Law Would Allow Patients To Grow Plants At Home

COLIN POITRAS, Courant Staff Writer (May 24, 2007) -- After one of the longest, most poignant debates of the legislative session, the House of Representatives Wednesday approved a bill allowing seriously ill individuals to grow marijuana at home to ease their pain.

The bill passed, 89-58, after more than six hours of passionate discussion in which lawmakers shared personal stories about the pain and suffering friends and family members had endured from chronic or terminal illness.

"Today we have the opportunity to give relief to Connecticut residents who are sick, who are dying, who are wasting away," said state Rep. Penny Bacchiochi, R-Somers. Bacchiochi admitted buying marijuana when her husband was dying of bone cancer several years ago. She said she hated the risk that went with it.

"This bill is about our choice, our right and our responsibility to say we no longer choose to arrest sick people," Bacchiochi said.

State Rep. Antonietta Boucher, R-Wilton, who lost several close family members to cancer and smoking-related illnesses, led the unsuccessful opposition. Boucher spent more than three hours arguing her case that legalizing marijuana was wrong, and had prepared more than 50 amendments in an attempt to forestall the legislation. She stopped after the first seven failed.

Opponents of the bill argued that legalizing the use of marijuana sends the wrong message to children - that it is OK to use illegal drugs and that illegal drugs can be good for you.

"Despite being well-intentioned, this bill could be one of the most dangerous proposals to come before us in a long time," Boucher said. "It defies all logic and responsibility for us to go down this path when we are banning tobacco and secondhand smoke."

The measure now goes to the Senate. It was unclear late Wednesday whether the Senate will take action on the bill before the legislative session ends in two weeks. It would also need Gov. M. Jodi Rell's signature, and Rell said Wednesday she had some concerns with the bill's language.

"I have the same mixed emotions I had before," said Rell, who has had discussions with Boucher about the bill. "I wish it had this language in it: `for terminally ill individuals.' I think everybody would feel better about passage of the bill. ... People would have a better comfort level with that language. There are some drawbacks to it."

The legislation would allow any individual with a debilitating illness or medical condition such as cancer, epilepsy, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis or AIDS to grow up to four 4-foot-tall marijuana plants in their homes, provided they obtain a doctor's prescription to do so. Those patients would have to register with the state Department of Consumer Protection.

The bill does not limit legalized use of marijuana to the terminally ill, nor does it address how those sick individuals or their caregivers would obtain the marijuana seeds critical to growing the plants. Local pharmacies do not stock marijuana or its seeds because of current restrictions under federal law.

Users would have to buy the seeds or starter plants on the street, and that rankled many during Wednesday's debate.

"As a freshman legislator I took an oath to uphold federal and state law," said Rep. Frank N. Nicastro Sr., D-Bristol. "But today I find myself debating with my colleagues how we are going to allow our constituents to go out and break the law."

As a former truant officer in Bristol for 17 years, Nicastro said he has seen how marijuana use can derail lives. At the same time, Nicastro said he witnessed the suffering caused by cancer when his mother died a short time ago. In the end, Nicastro urged caution, pointing out that both the American Cancer Society and the Multiple Sclerosis Society do not support legalized marijuana. He voted against the bill.

State Rep. Russell Morin, D-Wethersfield, said he wasn't worried about sending a wrong message to young people. Morin, a father of three, said his children would understand the bill's underlying purpose.

"The message I want to send to them is a message of compassion," Morin said. "We are not condoning illegal drug use. What this bill will do is show that we care."

Connecticut already has a law legalizing marijuana but it is virtually useless. Current law allows doctors to prescribe marijuana to ease the pain and discomfort of chemotherapy or for those suffering from glaucoma. But no prescriptions have been written because doctors don't want to risk prosecution under federal law.

A similar medical marijuana bill died in the General Assembly two years ago. The measure narrowly passed in the Senate but failed to be taken up for a vote in the House before the session ended.

If the bill becomes law, Connecticut would become the 14th state to enact legislation protecting patients who use medical marijuana with a physician's recommendation.

Connecticut's campaign for legalized marijuana was bolstered this year by support from television talk show host Montel Williams, who came to the state to lobby for the bill in March. Williams uses marijuana daily to ease the spasms and pain caused by multiple sclerosis.

Contact Colin Poitras at cpoitras@courant.com.

Courant Staff Writer Christopher Keating contributed to this story.

http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-medmar0524.artmay24,0,4638183.story?coll=hc-headlines-home