Green Weed, Red Tape and The Man

The last time I visited with Thomas Lawrence and the Colorado Compassion \t\tClub, they were busy resuscitating an operation decimated by an \t\tunwarranted DEA raid.
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\t\tImpressed by these mad pot agriculturists, crossbreeding strains of \t\tcannabis under artificial lights in their basement, I decided to keep an \t\teye on them.
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\t\tTrust me, you would have been impressed, too. Lawrence attacked his \t\tcannabis enhancement with a cerebral vigor typically associated with the \t\tlikes of Stephen Hawking.
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\t\tAdmittedly, at a radically slower pace.
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\t\tI proceed with this disclaimer: Please, don't try this at home. Growing \t\t"Himalayan Gold" or "Purple Haze" isn't a frivolous pursuit.
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\t\tLeave it to the professionals.
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\t\tAnd CCC members are pros.
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\t\tSince Colorado voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing \t\tmedical use of marijuana in 2000, the club's membership has grown to \t\talmost 70 patients. It sustains its business operation purely through \t\tdonations.
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\t\tLegitimately assisting many patients in serious pain, the club has an \t\timpressive array of products, which now include salad dressing, peanut \t\tbutter, fudge and the classic brownie.
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\t\tNow our improbable hero, the Mr. Magoo of cannabis, has inadvertently \t\tstruck another blow in the fight for medicinal marijuana freedom.
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\t\tIt began when Lawrence was pulled over while driving in January with \t\tsome improper tags on his license plates.
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\t\tOur man also happened to have in his possession a heaping bag of \t\t"medicine" (to be more specific, "Kahuna Salad" - a medley of five \t\tstrains of marijuana), which the apprehending cops, as you can imagine, \t\twere a bit skeptical about.
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\t\tAnd who could blame them?
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\t\t"I told them it was medicine," explains Lawrence. I'm sure the police \t\thadn't exactly heard that one before.
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\t\tLawrence, who, predictably, had forgotten his caregiver paperwork at \t\thome, had some difficulty persuading the officers of his altruistic \t\tintentions.
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\t\tAs a result, both he and his medicine were hauled down to the station.
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\t\tEven though the club had recently harvested some supreme "Bubble Funk" \t\tand "Shishkaberry Dutch Treat," Lawrence and his wife, Larissa, could \t\thardly afford to lose an ounce of prime "Kahuna Salad" to The Man.
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\t\tSo in early February, Lawrence appeared at the police station with a \t\tcourt order and asked the police to return his medicine.
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\t\tYou can theorize, I suppose, that an individual who is possibly naive - \t\tor undoubtedly stoned - might believe the police would instantly and \t\twithout question return an ounce of marijuana.
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\t\tBut a clear-headed individual might realize that cops aren't in the \t\thabit of handing illegal hemp over to wiseguys with oversized bongs \t\treadied for fire at home.
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\t\tThere was a paperwork problem and a lot of futile waiting at the \t\tstation. The property disposition was not in order.
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\t\tOne cop told Lawrence that there "was no way he was ever getting that \t\tback."
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\t\t"But I have a court order," Lawrence replied over the phone to the \t\tproperty manager. "All you have to do is read the law."
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\t\tWhen a cop finally came to the lobby, he yelled. "Where's that guy \t\tThomas looking for his marijuana?"
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\t\tAfter some contentious discussion, Lawrence again left empty-handed.
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\t\tLast Thursday, however, with his lawyer and wife in tow, Lawrence \t\treturned with the proper paperwork to reclaim his ounce of "Kahuna \t\tSalad." This time, the return went down smoothly.
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\t\tAccording to the Denver Police Department, this was the first time \t\tillicit drugs had ever been returned in the city.
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\t\t"I couldn't keep the smile off my face," says Lawrence.
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\t\tBut the department's Sgt. Teresa Garcia does have some advice.
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\t\t"Please: If you're transporting marijuana or you have a prescription to \t\tuse it, bring some proof with you."
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\t\tThere's nothing like a happy ending.

Source: Denver Post (CO)
Author: David Harsanyi, Denver Post Columnist
Published: Thursday, March 10, 2005
Copyright: 2005 The Denver Post Corp
Website: http://www.denverpost.com/
Contact: openforum@denverpost.com
Link to article: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/greenweed.htm