Organizers of a campaign against a California ballot proposal to legalize marijuana for medical use (Proposition 215) took one on the chin as Sacramento Superior Court Judge William Ridgeway called part of the campaign’s prohibitionist argument “misleading” and ordered changes. Advocates for the medical marijuana initiative applauded Ridgeway’s ruling and remarked that the statements in question were “yet another in a series of deceptions” waged by opponents of Proposition 215.
The judge’s action was sparked by an American Cancer Society (ACS) petition. The ACS asked to have two references to the organization by opponents, collectively known as “No on 215,” dropped or changed before publication in the ballot pamphlet distributed by the secretary of state. The pamphlets went to press this week.
The original “No on 215” rebuttal argument portrayed the ACS as vocal opponents of the medical marijuana initiative. In truth, ACS attorney George Waters maintained that the organization neither supports nor opposes the measure. Therefore, Judge Ridgeway ordered that “No on 215” alter their chief rebuttal argument: “American Cancer Society says no. ” In addition, the judge ordered that a second reference to the Society’s opinion on marijuana be removed entirely.
Ballot initiative proponents also note that the rebuttal falsely claims that “no major doctor’s organization supports Proposition 215” when, in fact, both the San Francisco Medical Society (SFMS) and the California Academy of Family Physicians (CAFP) — together representing nearly 10,000 physicians — have already endorsed the initiative.
“Perhaps the reason ‘No on 215’ keeps stretching the truth is [because] the campaign has no choice,” suggested Dave Fratello of Californians for Medical Rights. “The entire campaign is predicated on a falsehood — the notion that marijuana has no medical value. This is proved wrong by the experience[s] of tens of thousands of patients, nurses, and doctors across California, many of whom support Proposition 215.”
For more information, please contact Mark Capitolo of Californians for Medical Rights @ (916) 457-5546 or Allen St. Pierre of NORML @ (202) 483-5500.