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Dear OPN Friends and Supporters, 2005 was a year of successes and challenges. Like so many Ohioans, harsh realities affected our members that resulted not only from poor health, a struggling economy, and a heartless system intent on denying medicine, but also from the many tragedies that afflicted our nation and world: environmental catastrophes and escalating warfare.
In spite of many challenges, OPN persevered and can proudly point to these accomplishments for 2005. - Introduction of SB 74. Ohio Senator Robert Hagan (D-33) introduced Senate Bill #74 - formerly the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act drafted by OPN (http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=126_SB_74) - into the Ohio Senate on 2/17/05. This bill would modify various sections of the Ohio Revised Code to regulate the medical use of marijuana under the direction of a patient's physician. OPN members have been in continual contact with Senator Hagan's office since then via phone calls, e-mail, and personal meetings. We received endorsement of SB 74 from the Women’s Organization for National Prohibition Reform (WONPR), representing a total membership in excess of 2.5 million women nationwide, and persuaded the Ohio Nurses Association to place SB 74 on their January 19th Board meeting agenda, pursuant of an endorsement. A Senate Staff Briefing is being planned for January 2006, and we understand that hearings on the bill will likely transpire in February or March. See also: http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/65/88/. - Helped defeat legislation harmful to patients. OPN played an instrumental role in the tabling and defeat of two moves to stiffen laws regarding medical marijuana in Ohio. OPN members participated in hearings for both SB 8 (2/16/05) and HB 8 (3/9/05), the proposed Ohio DUID (Driving while Under the Influence of Drugs) legislation that would forbid operating a motor vehicle if a specified concentration of marijuana metabolite was present in the operator's blood or urine. This bill has not passed the House Judiciary Committee due to strong opponent testimony. The bill does not have the votes to pass in the Committee. Amendments removing the metabolites have been discussed but rejected by the sponsor. This "FAST TRACK" bill has been derailed and is currently in legislative limbo. OPN also participated in the "Pepper Pot" hearings (6/8/05) that defeated a proposed local ordinance to greatly increase penalties for marijuana possession in Cincinnati. Testimony by a cadre of local residents resulted in no city council support, and the measure was defeated. - Formed the Ohio Patient Action Network. To lobby for SB 74, OPN formed the Ohio Patient Action Network (OPAN). While OPAN had been in the works since January 2004, bylaws were written and a board was formed on 6/8/05. OPN via OPAN has held a number of meetings since then to plan legislative strategy for SB 74. - Secured MPP grant funding. In January 2005, OPN submitted a grant application to the Marijuana Policy Project to fund OPAN. MPP awarded OPAN a grant in May 2005. An Interim Report regarding this grant was submitted to MPP by the designated 8/15/05 deadline. OPAN has retained a portion of these funds, which will continue to be directed toward expenses outlined in the original proposal. - OPN issued more press releases (10) and participated in more events (20+) than in any of its five other years of existence. Events included tabling at the Ohio Health Advocacy Network's Ohio Health Day (2/15/05); assisting with the Ohio speaking tour of LEAP's Judge Eleanor Schockett (1/31-2/8/05); and speaking as panelists at the Compassionate Care Conference in Traverse City, Michigan (7/23/05). We, as usual, spoke at the Global Cannabis March (Cincinnati - 5/8/05) and Hempfest (Columbus - 6/4/05). OPN members were instrumental in promoting Senator Hagan as recipient of a Golden Spine award sponsored by the Progressive Ohio Backbone Campaign (10/9/05). - As far as media goes, due to the assistance of the Hemprock's Happy Hemptress, Lynne Wilson, we participated on 7/14/05 as panelists in a three-hour Scott Sloan radio show on WLW 700AM (http://drugpolicycentral.com/real/opn/wlwopn.rm). Note: WLW is one of the most powerful broadcast stations and home to the region's conservative talk shows that can be heard in states far beyond Ohio. We were also featured on WMMS 100.7FM radio in Cleveland (8/2/05) and in two Cincinnati City Beat articles (3/2/05 and 11/9/05). To culminate the year, Joe and Dee Dee Zoretic were named High Times Freedom Fighters of the Month for December 2005. - Probably our two biggest accomplishments this year were the complete rehabilitation of our website http://www.ohiopatient.net and republishing of OPNews http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/component/option,com_yanc/Itemid,40/listid,3/. We initiated the Communications Team in August, which was charged with improving OPN outreach, beginning with the website and newsletter. We're pleased to report that both were completed within two months of inception - the new site came online on 9/22/05 and the first OPNews in a year went out 11/8/05. We owe a big thank you to our new webmasters. - During 2005, we produced two new tri-fold brochures to accompany the myriad of OPN and medical marijuana materials we already had available on our website http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/31/53/. From Fact Sheets to flyers to research studies, you'll find plenty of resources here to distribute in your local community. - As in years past, we tended to the business of running our organization. We held weekly meetings on the chat software Paltalk (http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/12/27/), maintained an 800 number (1-888-OH-Patient or 1-888-647-2843) for our members to easily reach us, and filed our tax return and other paperwork on time with the required regulatory body. Our Annual Meeting was held at Camp Mary Orton on 10/22/05 and our annual Spring Planning Meeting was staged five months earlier on 5/22/05. We also started the Zoretic Defense Fund to collect tax-deductible donations to cover patient legal defense costs. As with any organization, the good comes with the bad, and we faced these challenges in 2005: - Two of our prominent activists found themselves in trouble with the law for the very substance for which we advocate, ironically only four days after the introduction of SB 74. Lakewood Police arrested Joe and Dee Dee Zoretic in their home on 2/21/05 for felony marijuana possession and cultivation. This singular event dispelled the myth that patients rarely suffer legal sanctions for their medicinal use of cannabis. Throughout 2005, Mrs. Zoretic not only contended with an incurable nerve condition, RSD (for which marijuana was suggested as a treatment option in the 1999 Institute of Medicine report), but the entire family endured several weeks of Mr. Zoretic's incarceration (the family breadwinner) and escalating legal fees. At their 10/3/05 trial, their sentence on all charges amounted to a mere $100. Cost to the State of Ohio for the arrest and prosecution of the Zoretics: Probably tens of thousands of dollars. Proceeds to the State of Ohio for it: $100. The real cost, however, lay in the personal toll of such wasted resources. Please see: http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/49/70/ - Another patient in the Youngstown area is also being prosecuted for felony marijuana cultivation. In October 2004, Wellsville police confiscated four live plants and a small quantity of dried product from Randy Brush's home. Six months later on 4/28/05, a Columbiana County grand jury returned a secret indictment against Brush, charging him with two counts of felony marijuana possession and cultivation. Brush's initial trial date was 10/11/05, but it was continued to Tuesday, 1/17/06. For more on this case, please visit http://ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/70/2/. - Unfortunately, as with many non-profits, fundraising continues to be a challenge, especially in light of so many worthy causes that competed for funding in 2005. Our bank account is dwindling at about the same time as our need for dollars to promote SB 74 and the interests of Ohio's patients escalates. If you can help, please visit our website http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/227/127/ to donate by Paypal. Checks or money orders can be made payable to the Ohio Patient Network and mailed to P.O. Box 26353, Columbus, OH 43226. Donations to OPN are tax deductible to the extent provided by law. - Don't forget to contribute to our lobbying work by donating to the Ohio Patient ACTION Network. Remember, when hearings on SB 74 are held, we'll be up against an opposition who will be receiving five-figure salaries to testify. Opposing sensible medical marijuana legislation - police, agency heads, and "treatment" providers - is what they do for a living. We need you to help bolster our side by making a generous donation to the Ohio Patient ACTION Network. Your check under that name can be mailed to the above address. Note that donations to OPAN are not tax deductible. - 2005 was finally a year of transition for OPN leadership. Former OPN Vice President Doc Miller resigned at the Spring Planning Meeting for health reasons. Later in the year, both Rob Ryan and Doug Vaughn resigned their respective positions of Secretary and Director of Development. Rob Ryan also stepped down as OPAN President, and Mary Jane Borden resigned as OPAN Secretary at the Annual Meeting. However, Mike Miles replaced Doc, Tonya Davis stepped up to the presidency of OPAN, and Brandy Zink joined the OPAN board as Vice President. The position of secretary has tentatively been accepted as well. The good news is that most all of these individuals remain highly involved in OPN. If you are interested in a leadership position or simply finding out more about who we are, please see http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/55/78/ and http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/16/34/. What's in store for 2006? Hopefully a year at least as productive as 2005! Here's what to look for: - Hearings on SB 74. As mentioned earlier, a hearing on SB 74 will likely be held in February or March. OPN members will be busy planning testimony and media for these hearings. Medical professionals, attorneys, community leaders, or others with an expertise or interest in medicinal cannabis should contact Ken Schweickart at <ohio2004@netzero.net>. - More on SB 8. Although this bill is currently in legislative limbo, more work may be needed to defeat it. Updated information regarding SB 8 will be provided on our website and through OPNews. - More media. The stories Ohio's patients have to tell are so compelling. Stories of challenge, yet of hope (witness the Zoretics!). You saw two evolve in 2005. Look for more in 2006, hopefully without the accompanying legal strife. Contact our Director of Patient Advocacy with your story at <dzoretic@ohiopatient.net>. - More events. Look for OPN to participate in an increasing number of events, not only centered on cannabis, but also health and advocacy. If you attend a meeting in your area, or want OPN to stage one, please contact OPN President and Speakers Bureau Coordinator John Precup at <jprecup@ohiopatient.net>. - Chapters. OPN chapters are forming. We've received enquiries from folks in the Toledo, Dayton, Cleveland, and Cincinnati areas. A chapter is the ideal way to take the message of medicinal cannabis to your local community. Chapters can provide outreach and networking to patients or promote local initiatives to reduce or eliminate criminal penalties with regard to medical marijuana. Please contact OPN Vice President Mike Miles if you are interested in forming a chapter <stormscout@insight.rr.com>. - You. OPN needs you. There is so much work to be done, yet too few hands to do it. If you have the time for or interest in this important subject matter, why not make 2006 the year in which you get involved. We need help with membership development, newsletter content, chapter organizing, fundraising, and hearing testimony, to name only a few. If you're interested, please contact OPN President John Precup at <jprecup@ohiopatient.net>. As you see, 2005 was a year weighted by challenges, yet balanced by successes. Please join with us to make 2006 a year we'll be writing about for decades to come! John Precup President, Ohio Patient Network |
