Oct. 20 - I write with profound sadness to confirm a rumor some of you may already have heard.

Montana medical marijuana patient Robin Prosser took her own life in the wee hours Friday morning.

We expect to conduct a memorial service at some point, and will let you know of any plans in advance. We also don't know yet what her family may plan to do, but we'll endeavor to keep you up to date.

Robin was a good friend to many of us, and an inspiration to all. For 22 years she suffered the ravages of systemic lupus, a condition that involved unrelenting constant pain and numerous severely debilitating side-effects. She was allergic to most prescription drugs her physicians tried, and only medical marijuana brought enough relief to make her life bearable.

In 2002, Robin made national news by conducting a month-long+ hunger strike in protest of her inability to legally use cannabis to treat her condition. In 2004, she played a central role in the successful campaign to pass a compassionate medical marijuana initiative in Montana. The campaign featured Robin in its TV and radio advertising, and she was a frequent spokesperson for the cause.

In the course of the 2004 campaign, Robin attempted suicide, preferring death to the agony of living without the cannabis she needed (at the time, she had run out, and simply couldn't find any that she could afford to buy). While "saving" her, Missoula police found a pipe with some residue in it -- and promptly charged her with possession of an illegal drug. As you can imagine, this horrendous example of law enforcement insanity provided an important boost to the initiative campaign, one whose irony wasn't for a second lost on Robin. That prosecution culminated with an agreement between Robin and the city which actually allowed her to use cannabis without fear of arrest during the final weeks of the initiative campaign.

But the Montana election decision -- 62%, the highest percentage of voter support ever achieved on medical marijuana -- didn't end Robin's frustrations. As Montana patients and caregivers know all too well, our law's constraints, coupled with the horticultural realities of the marijuana plant, make it difficult for patients to be sure of having the medicine they need, when they need it, without interruption. In Robin's case, this challenge was exacerbated by the fact that only certain strains of marijuana, high in sativa rather than indica, could address her physical conditions. And she had to depend on others for support, as she wasn't well enough to grow her own medicine successfully.

And then: Enter the DEA, always happy to complicate things for patients who live in misery.

Last spring, the DEA intercepted a UPS shipment of medicine enroute to Robin from her registered caregiver. While the government didn't bring charges against Robin, its actions DID prevent her from living pain-free in the final months of her life. Some caregivers became too afraid to serve her; others hadn't been producing the correct kind of medicine.

We had been trying over the last few months to improve the situation. Sadly, the kind of medicine Robin desperately needed might have become available to her within the next six weeks. But evidently the pain and stress she was enduring finally overcame her power to feel hope for a stable, better future.

Now I will surely never forget my last visit with Robin, just several weeks ago. We discovered that some medicine I had brought wasn't going to fit the bill. We talked about the near-term prospects for improvement in her quality of life, and about long-term dreams for true solutions that could meet all Montana patients' needs. As she had before, many times, Robin again told me that she would rather be dead than continue enduring her pain, required on top of her agonizing health problems to be regarded by her very own government as a criminal.

May Robin be finding now the peace and comfort she sorely deserved in life. May the rest of us never forget her struggle and the contributions she made to our shared cause. May we all eventually succeed in our effort to improve the lives of medical marijuana patients in Montana and everywhere. Let us be forever emboldened, let us find renewed and steadfast determination, if only as a small testament to our love for Robin Prosser.

My best wishes to all of you, Tom Daubert

Daubert Associates
Publicity & Public Relations Strategic Communications Group

PO Box 858
Helena, MT 59624