The California Narcotic Officers' Association consists of over 7,000 criminal justice professionals who are dedicated to protecting the public from the devastating effects of substance abuse, whether cocaine, methamphetamine, or marijuana. We have seen first hand the debilitating and often tragic results, both psychologically and physically, of those who choose intoxication as part of their lifestyle. We have studied the medicinal use of marijuana issue, compiling information from medical experts to present to those we are sworn to protect. It is our firm belief that any movement that liberalizes or legalizes substance abuse laws would set us back to the days of the '70s when we experienced this country's worst drug problem and the subsequent consequences. In the '80s, through the combined and concerted efforts of law enforcement, prevention and treatment professionals, illicit drug use was reduced by 50 percent. Teenagers graduating from the class of 1992 had a 50 percent less likely chance of using drugs than those who graduated in the class of 1979.

Substance abuse rises whenever public attitude is more tolerant toward drugs, i.e., they are safe and harmless. Other factors that contribute to a rise in use include increased availability, reduced risk associated with using or selling, and lower prices. In 1993, for the first time after 12 years of steady decline, illicit drug use rose and continues to climb. A major contributing factor is a message that drugs "aren't so bad." To counter this "just say yes" campaign, we feel compelled to provide the facts on the use of smoking marijuana as a medicine. These well-documented facts will prove beyond a doubt that MARIJUANA IS NOT A MEDICINE.FACT: The movement to legitimize smoking marijuana as a medicine is NOT encouraged by the pharmaceutical companies, Federal Food and Drug Administration, health and medical associations, or medical experts; but instead by groups such as the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) and the Drug Policy Foundation (DPF). These organizations have little medical expertise and favor various forms of legalizing illicit drugs.

FACT: Pro-legalization organizations have admitted that their strategy to legalize marijuana begins with legitimizing smoking marijuana as a medicine. As reported in High Times magazine, the Director of NORML expressly stated that the medicinal use of marijuana is an integral part of the strategy to legalize marijuana. Tony Serra, a criminal defense attorney associated with the pro-legalization groups, stated that medicinal marijuana is the "chink in the administration's armor" that will lead to society seeing pot's mystical effects of peace, sisterhood and brotherhood. He is also the one who said, "If you kill a cop, I'll pay to take the case;" and "My sustenance is drugs and murder." A former director of NORML, Keith Stroup, told an Emory University audience that NORML would be using the issue of medicinal marijuana as a red herring to give marijuana a good name. The director of NORML, Dick Cowan, is quoted, "The key is medical access. Because once you have hundreds of thousands of people using marijuana under medical supervision, the whole scam is going to be brought up...then we will get medical, then we will get full legalization." Is there any doubt about their true motive while they play this cruel hoax on people with legitimate illnesses?

FACT: A leader of the medicinal use of marijuana movement, Dr. Lester Grinspoon, is an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard as well as chairman of the board of NORML. He has made absurd claims such as marijuana, like aspirin, is "unusually safe;" using cocaine two or three times a week "creates no serious problems;" and "Chronic cocaine abuse usually does not appear as a medical problem." He wrote a book called Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine, which is the bible for pro-marijuana advocates.

FACT: The studies cited by the marijuana advocates have been found to be either unscientific, poorly researched, or involved pharmaceutical THC, not marijuana. One of their "experts" who testified at the 1987 federal hearings to reschedule marijuana was a wellness counselor at a health spa who admitted under oath to using every illegal mind-altering drug he ever studied. Another "expert" admitted he had not kept up with new medical or scientific information on marijuana for over 18 years. Another doctor claimed there was voluminous medical research on the effectiveness of marijuana but under oath, when asked to cite the number of the studies, he replied, "I would doubt very few." The fact is that there is not one reliable scientific study that shows smoking marijuana to be a safe and effective drug.

FACT: The majority of the marijuana advocates' "evidence" comes from unscientific, non-scrutinized or analyzed anecdotal statements from people with a variety of illnesses. It is unknown whether these individuals used marijuana prior to their illness or are using marijuana in combination with other medicines. It is also unknown whether they have had recent medical examinations, are justifying their use of marijuana, experiencing a placebo effect, or experiencing the intoxicating effect of smoking marijuana.

FACT: The manufacturers of Marinol, Roxane Laboratories Incorporated, do not agree with the pro-marijuana advocates that THC is safe and harmless. In the Physician's Desk Reference, a good portion of the description of Marinol includes warnings about the adverse effects.

FACT: Common sense dictates that it is not good medical practice to allow a substance to be used as a medicine if that product is:

• not FDA-approved
• ingested by smoking
• made up of hundreds of different chemicals
• not subject to product liability regulations
• exempt from quality control standards
• not governed by daily dose criteria
• offered in unknown strengths (THC) from 1 to 10+ percent
• self-prescribed and self-administered by the patient.

FACT: The federal government, over the last 20 years involving a number of administrations from both political parties, has determined that smoking marijuana has no redeeming medicinal value, and is in fact harmful to health. These governmental agencies include the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Food and Drug Administration, and the U.S. Public Health Service. Their latest finding, as recently as 1994, was affirmed in a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C.

FACT: Since the pro-marijuana lobby has been unsuccessful in dealing with the federal government, they have targeted state and local governments to legitimize smoking marijuana as a medicine. A careful examination of their legislative and/or ballot proposals reveals they are written to effectively neutralize the enforcement of most marijuana laws. Crude, intoxicating marijuana under their proposals would be easier to obtain and use than even the most harmless, low-level prescription drug.

FACT: Major medical and health organizations, as well as the vast majority of nationally recognized expert medical doctors, scientists and researchers, have not accepted smoking marijuana as a safe and effective medicine. These organizations include: the American Medical Association, the American Cancer Society, National Sclerosis Association, the American Glaucoma Association, American Academy of Ophthalmology, National Eye Institute, National Cancer Institute, National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Dental Research, and the National Institute on Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

FACT: There are thousands of studies available documenting the harmful physical and psychological effects of smoking marijuana. The harmful consequences include but are not limited to premature cancer, addiction, coordination and perception impairment, a number of mental disorders including depression, hostility and increased aggressiveness, general apathy, memory loss, reproductive disabilities, impairment to the immune system, numerous airway injuries, and other general problems associated with intoxication.

FACT: The medicinal marijuana movement and its media campaign have helped contribute to the changing attitude among our youth that marijuana is harmless, therefore contributing to the increase of marijuana use among our young people after 12 years of steady decline.

The overriding objective behind this movement is to allow a minority (less than five percent) of our society to get "stoned" with impunity. This small minority is willing to put our citizens at risk from all the negative and disastrous effects caused to and by those who are intoxicated. What we don't need in this society is more intoxicated people on our highways, in workplaces, schools, colleges, or in our homes.

If you would like more information, call the CNOA office at (661) 775-6960

This position paper may be reproduced without the permission of the California Narcotic Officers' Association.