CA Supreme Court Invalidates State Limits on MMJ
By John Hoeffel, Los Angeles Times, Jan 22, 2010
In a unanimous decision filed Thursday, the California Supreme Court struck down the state's specific limits on how much medical marijuana a patient can possess, concluding that restrictions imposed by the Legislature were an unconstitutional amendment of a voter-approved initiative. …
    Medical marijuana advocates and the state attorney general's office said that means patients with ID cards are shielded from arrest for possession or cultivation if they have less than the limits in state law or the more liberal limits adopted by some cities and counties. But Chris Conrad, a court-qualified expert medical marijuana witness [who testified in the Kelly case], said he believed the limits would also protect patients without cards. …

Court: Pot Not Enough To Qualify as Caregiver
By Nicholas Grube, Daily Triplicate, Dec. 03, 2008
Simply providing medical marijuana to a patient in need does not constitute the legal definition of a primary caregiver and therefore does not make a person immune from prosecution, according to a recent California Supreme Court ruling.
    While this unanimous interpretation by the state's high court might make it easier for local law enforcement to combat illegal growers and distributors who use the caregiver title as a guise, it could also make it more difficult for patients to access legitimate medical marijuana providers.
    "This was an opportunity where the Supreme Court could make a major expansion of the rights of caregivers and chose not to do it," said Chris Conrad, founder of Safe Access Now, an organization devoted to protecting medical marijuana patients and caregivers. With this new ruling, Conrad said there will be a number of medical marijuana patients that will have to go to other sources, such as dispensaries, cooperatives and collectives, to receive their medication. …

Lawmaker Sponsors Bills Loosening MMJ Regulations
By Nancy Cook Lauer, West Hawaii Today, Dec 24, 2007 
Hawaii -- Just last week, a Big Island patient placed his baggie of pot, along with his medical marijuana ID card, on the X-ray machine as he boarded a commercial flight to Honolulu. Federal Transportation Security Administration screeners let it go, both coming and going. But life isn't always that easy for participants in the state's medical-marijuana program, prompting freshman Rep. Joe Bertram to sponsor four bills loosening marijuana regulation. Some travelers have had their pot confiscated; others have been arrested. … But at an informational session Wednesday of the House Health Committee, Bertram said he has high hopes the bills will get a favorable hearing because it's time to take the state's laws to the next level.
    Participants at the informational meeting included experts on California's medical-marijuana law, court-qualified cannabis expert and curator of the Hash-Marijuana-Hemp Museum in Amsterdam Chris Conrad, representatives of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii and medical-marijuana users.

State Bill Could Legalize Medical Marijuana
By  Jeff Rumage, The Daily Cardinal, Oct 03, 2005
Wisconsin -- Individuals suffering from AIDS, multiple sclerosis, cancer, and other painful diseases may soon be able to alleviate their pain with marijuana, pending the approval of a state bill proposed by Rep. Gregg Underheim, R-Oshkosh. The bill, introduced Monday, would allow physicians to prescribe marijuana at their own discretion.
    Despite the bill's support from such groups as the American Nurses Association and Wisconsin Public Health, some are still skeptical that marijuana may fall into the hands of younger recreational users. However, there has actually been a decrease in younger people using marijuana in states that have legalized its medical use, according to Mikki Norris of Human Rights and the Drug War. Younger people are probably viewing the substance as more functional than glamorous, Norris explained.
    Other skeptics maintain there are alternative medicines that will relieve the pain. Marinol contains THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, but many patients say it is not as effective, according to Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison.
    Many doctors are hesitant to undermine prescription drugs, though, explained court-certified marijuana expert Chris Conrad.Another complaint facing the medicinal marijuana movement is the danger of marijuana smoke. According to Conrad, cannabis-only smokers are no more likely to get lung cancer than any other person.    Although Conrad supports the legalization of marijuana in general, he is currently focused on medicinal uses. "In the war on drugs, I think it's extremely important that we remove patients from the battleground," said Conrad. …