Life As A Government Marijuana Recipient
How are you treated by law enforcement officials?
I have had my run ins with law enforcement over the years. In 1983 I was arrested in Orlando Florida. Saying that Florida laws here preceded Federal law and that I was breaking Florida law therefore I was arrested. Fingerprinted, pictured, it was quite interesting unique experience. Knowing that I wasn't breaking any law, I enjoyed it as much as I could. Since then, one time I was paying toll, and I had rolled down my window right near my house, so I had just lit up a joint, I roll down the window, throw the toll into the basket, and of course as I roll down the window, the smoke just whooshes out. Well against the building was a motorcycle officer trying to get people who weren't throwing the money in. So I threw the money in, light turned green, I go I look up I see this cop jumping on his bike lights going like this, I knew right away what it was. Cause that light had turned green. So I go to get out of my car and he goes "stay with your car and put your arms and legs out where I can see them". OK, so I turned I've got my legs out, guy comes around, he's got a gun on me. It's like, I've never had a gun put on me before. He goes, "Get out of the car slowly, you're under arrest". OK as I get out of the car slowly, he says "now go lean to the back of the car and keep your legs and arms spread". So now I'm spread out I'm back of my car, and he's got the gun on me like I'm the biggest terrorist there is. And he's going, he looks in the ashtray like this, and he pulls the joint out and says "Boy I'm good, I smelled this when you paid the toll, you're under arrest”. I said "Officer, you are good, but no sir, I'm not under arrest”. He said "What do you mean?" I said "Can I stand up?" He said "Yeah but with arms in the air." Still has the gun on me. "Officer I one of the federal patients I get my cannabis from the United States federal government, I'm not breaking any state law". "Do you have any proof of that?" "In my pocket, is a baggie with a prescription label and more marijuana in there. Can I get them out?" "Slowly" I mean I went slow. Hand went in, pulled up my baggie, and went "Here officer". The guy takes it, he's got a gun on me now but he doesn't... "This looks official" "It is officer" "May I put my arms down now?" He said "Yes" That's when I started explaining it to him what it is, in the car, I have a tin can, the government ships it in and I have protocol and everything else. So he said "But you can't drive with this." "Yes sir I can, I showed him my protocol where it says I can drive, where it you know, I can operate some machinery as long as I'm not intoxicated. And I said "Am I intoxicated to you?" He said "No" I go "Exactly" So he took a copy of my driver's license, I gave him a business card, so he knew where I worked. I said "look officer, if you find out that I am breaking the law somewhere"...because he kept saying "I still don't think you can drive with this." I said" If you find out that I'm breaking the law, you know where I work, you know where I live. Have a good day".
What has your relationship with US Drug Enforcement Agency been like?
I've actually had a good relationship with DEA. And that came across quite by accident, really. I was being threatened with arrest in Texas, when I got off the plane in Dallas, that they didn't care about federal law, I was going to be in Texas. So I called the US Attorney General's office to let them know what was going to happen and what they could do to help and somehow it got connected back to DEA, to an agent named Tim Yeestep. And Tim was an older agent that knew about the protocol. So when I was telling him the problem I was having, he started asking me questions that only somebody that knew about the protocols and knew about the farm in Mississippi would know about. So when I answered him, he realized I really was a patient, and he helped me quite a bit to take care of that. And we remained friends, acquaintances. I actually helped him work on his master thesis on medical cannibus. And we since met in Washington, at the EA. I went there with him, and saw the museum. In my hometown of Fort Lauderdale, I've come in contact with DEA, a couple times. And it's always been...The first time wasn't as cordial, because they threatened to arrest me, but then when they realized that I was a federal patient, which they did not know about, there were eight agents they surrounded my car and threatened to arrest me. And when I was trying to prove to them what it was, they said, "Do you know who we are?" They were in plain clothes, I go, "No." I did know who they were, but I said, "No." And they said, "We're DEA." I said, "Then you should be familiar with the program, because it's under DEA." They go, "We don't know of any program giving out medical cannibus in this country." I go, "Then you need to be reeducated." So, we started making phone calls to prove it and I showed the paperwork, but one of the officers was kind of nasty, and didn't want to believe it. So, finally it dawned on me that two days prior is when I had helped Tim Yeestep do a master thesis, and I had his phone number. So I said, "Wait a minute. We can call Tim Yeestep to verify I'm a federal patient." So the guy gets him on the phone, walks away so I don't hear him, comes back. He says, "Okay, I got one question for you and you better answer it right." I go, "Officer, what is it?" He said, "What did you just help this agent with?" "I just helped him do his master thesis on medical cannibus." "Yeah, Tim, it is him. It is legal? The government does give out medical cannibus in this country?" So, he hung up the phone, I go back to my office and I call Tim back. And I go, "Tim, there were eight agents there. Why didn't they know about this?" He said, "I don't know." The next day he called me back. He said, "When the program was shut down in '92, DEA stopped teaching about it. So, unless you're an agent prior to '92, you have no idea the program exists."
Can you travel on commercial airlines with your medical marijuana?
I put it in my tin can, that the government provides, I put it in my carry bag, I've got all my proof, and that's how I travel with it. Because FDA always told me, never check it through. Always keep it on you. And that's what I do. I always get to the airport two hours early - even before 9/11. Because when you're carrying something like that, going through airports, you expect a problem. Plus, I always let airlines know that I was traveling with it. Up to my lawsuit against Delta. I stopped that habit after that. Other patients aren't calling them saying, "hey, I'm going to be on your plane, I'm going to have Valium with me," - why should I call them about my medicine? So I stopped that practice.
What experiences have you had at airports with your marijuana in your carry-on luggage?
I'm at the airport, waiting to fly to St. Louis, and I've got my bag in front of me. I put my can in there with five ounces of marijuana, and I've got my baggie with the joints in there, and my roach bag, all in my carry bag. And I look three gates down, and there's a dog sniffing everybody and every bag. The cop had a twenty-five foot leash. So the cop was a long way away, and this dog's going up to everybody's bag and sniffing and sniffing the people. So I'm thinking, this is going to be interesting. So he gets to me. The dog sniffs my bag - nothing. Sniffs me - nothing. And I'm the last one in line. There was only two other people in line, so they go to go to the next counter. And I yell to the officer. I said, "Excuse me, officer. Is that dog trained for bombs or for drugs?" He said, "For drugs." I said, "Then you need to put your dog back on by bag. I've got about five ounces of marijuana in that bag." I said, "I'm one of the federal patients, you know." He breaks the dog off, orders the dog. And he's twenty-five feet away now, orders the dog, tells the dog, "Go to that package, go to that bag." The dog breaks off, goes right back to the bag. That astonished me, he's well-trained. Sniffs the bag - nothing. Turns in, sniffs me, and locks in on my wallet in my front pocket. The officer yells, "You've got drugs in your front pocket." I go, "Officer, I have residue all over me. But, no, I have nothing in my pocket. Everything's in the bag. Put the dog back on the bag." Now the cop comes close to me. He said, "My God, you reek of marijuana."I said, "I just smoked two cannibis cigarettes driving here. I'm one of the federal patients. But I have nothing on me. Everything's in a tin can, in plastic bags, in that bag, about five ounces of cannibis. Put him back on the bag."And he put him back on the bag - nothing. Turned around, locked in on my wallet again. I looked at the officer and said, "Officer, I think you need to retrain your dog." Broke the dog off of me and walked away.
What types of documentation do you have to carry with you?
When I leave the house, I carry with me a documentation to have a prescription on the baggy. I carry a copy of my protocol. I carry a letter from 1983 that the drug and food administration sent to Orange County when I was arrested in Orlando, saying the federal statute that I am under, and that I am not breaking any federal law. That federal law supersedes state law. Therefore, I am not breaking any laws. So I carry that letter with me. I carry a copy of Newsweek which has an article in there about me with a picture. I use it to show. I carry front page articles like The New York Times, The Washington Post, Ft. Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, Miami Herald. I carry letters from my doctors. I also carry, when I sued Delta Airlines, the police report of saying that Delta would not let me on a plane and the police can verify that I am a federal patient and that Delta was wrong. I carry that. I carry a copy of the Supreme Court page on the decision of the Oakland, California cannabis buyers cooperative, that stated that the only people legally allowed to possess cannabis in this country is anyone with a federal exemption, which of course is what I have. The internet of course, is very good as people know now today. I just tell an officer or somebody else hey look, you have got Internet in your cruiser. Go to Google and put my name in, you will pull up hundreds upon hundreds upon hundreds of articles. Hopefully that suffices. If that is not good enough, I have the phone number for a lieutenant that is head of the police department at the Ft. Lauderdale International airport and the captain for the police department of my home town.
How do your business clients react when they find out you get government marijuana?
The people I work with at New Bridge, my clients, all know that I use marijuana (cannabis). They all joke about it, "hey, let me have some of that", which of course they know I can't. I always joke with them. I say, "wait a minute." You are really undercover DEA. That is what I say to everybody. I know you are really undercover DEA. And so I am accepted. They know that it is a medicine. They know that it does not impair me in any way, shape, or form. They know that without it I would not be well. I mean these people have not seen me without it. They do not know how bad I would be. They just know what I have told them. But the fact that it does not harm me, they accept it. It is my medicine, and New Bridge has no problem with me taking my medicine and doing my job.
How do medical marijuana patients fare in the workplace?
I do not believe that employers should have the right to fire employees for medical cannabis, if they are in one of the states that has a recommendation from a physician. I don't think they should be fired either way, in any other state for that matter if they test positive. What a person should be fired for is if they notice impairment. Even operating dangerous machinery, now that is something that is a little different, it really is. To where I use it on a daily basis, I get no euphoric effect, I drive. What about a guy operating a huge crane? That maybe could get euphoric. That could cause a problem with the crane, an accident at work or harming somebody, something like that. There is a fine line, but this person might be someone who doesn't use it during the day, only at night time at home. Well then they have no right to be fired, only if they do something. It's got to be a real excuse, something really wrong that they do that would jeopardize somebody else. And then, I would hope that that person if knowing that they could jeopardize, I'm pretty sure that person would not do it knowing that they could jeopardize themselves or harm someone else. And so they would be rational enough to use it correctly.
Why do you think it's important for you to speak out about medical marijuana?
It's important for many reasons that I speak out. For personal, what I have sucks. I don't like it, I hate it. I don't need it, but I have it. So, I want to make something good come out of something bad, and if I can help others, it makes me feel better, because I'm lucky to be alive. I mean, God has made it to where I can be intelligent enough to discover Marijuana, intelligent enough to take on the federal government and win. So, I'm in a unique position in this country, I am the only person that can legally stand up and say, "I use cannabis on a daily basis." I'm the only person in this country who has a job, and I have a job the federal government says I shouldn't be able to do, because I use cannabis. I shouldn't be able to think, I should be lethargic. I'm doing a very high stress job, that normal people can't do, that are healthy. Well, I've got other problems besides worrying about the market going up or going down. I've got a severe bone disorder, but because of the medicine I'm in great shape. So, I've got to stand up and say that. Doctors can't stand up and say it, because if they do DEA comes down on them and go, "Let me see every prescription you've written for the last three years." A patient that is legal in the state, they can stand up and say a certain amount, but DEA can still come in and bust them. Feds can still come in and bust you. So, and someone in a legal state can't really stand up because they'd be arrested, saying that they use it. So, the government has made it very difficult to try to get these laws changed, and to try to make people understand that it's not this theory they make it out to be. So, I'm the only person in this country, over 300 million people that can do this. So, what am I going to do, not do it? If it wasn't for Robert Randall, the first patient, I wouldn't have known about it. He spoke publicly about it, I learned about it, I have to do the same thing, Bob is dead. There're only five of us left in the country today, which get it. So, I can't sit back and not do anything, I couldn't live with myself.
How do marijuana laws affect taxpayers?
I know in Florida, if somebody is arrested for a certain amount of marijuana that they have in their possession then they're going to be put in prison. Okay, when they are put in prison, we have over crowding in prison. So that means they are putting a non-violent criminal in jail, which cost me money to put him in jail. They could be letting out a violent criminal, which is going to harm us worse. Now that person goes into jail, and now the family may have to go on welfare. So now my tax money is paying for that guy in prison and for his family because he in prison, and they're on welfare. I don't like that. That's not good, that's not smart. You know I'm a stockbroker, I want to make money for myself and for my clients. And I don't want to waste money, and that's a waste of money. But more important, it's a waste of human resources and it's a waste of what we're doing to our population.
Why do we need to legalize marijuana, when we can get THC legally in other forms?
Side effects is not in the legal form yet. It's only allowed in Canunit, Canada. It won't be allowed in the United States for another seven years. I'm guessing this is now 2007 we would be lucky to have it by 2014. Marinol doesn't work and those forms. So cannibis is the natural plant is the only way that people can get the benefit of the medicine. Be that it be either smoking form, vaporization, tincture or edibles.
Why do you think the federal government is against the legalization of medical marijuana?
The federal Government fears the legalization of medical cannabis because of the money. The pharmaceutical industry knows that if we got medical cannabis that their sales will be plummet. I would be calling my clients and telling them to sell their drug stocks. Because people will be using cannabis, which they'll be growing their own. Now if medical cannabis became available, hemp would be next. The petro medical companies that make nylon, rayon, they synthetics, they don't want to see hemp because it would make great clothing, it would cut into their profits. The cotton industry definitely doesn't want to see medical cannabis, that would mean hemp could be next. That would kill the cotton industry. Now you can grow hemp and make paper out of it, very quickly. The lumber industry doesn't want to see that, they've been growing trees for 40 years to cut down and make paper. you have all these major lobby organizations that are funding all these politicians to keep it illegal. The prisons. Do you know how much food is needed to supply prisons? People who supply the food, they don't want to see the laws change. People wouldn't be in prison as much, their bottom line would be hurt.
