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Medical marijuana clinic defies subpoena, gag order

The operator of a Pacific Northwest medical marijuana clinic has defied the gag order accompanying a subpoena for records of patients assisted in complying with the pre-requisites of State laws governing access to medical marijuana,  

No link, via email.

On Tuesday, April 10, 2007, THCF Medical Clinics and I, Paul Stanford, received a federal grand jury subpoena from the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant US Attorney James P. Hagarty. A federal grand jury is or will be empaneled for an investigation directed by Assistant US Attorney Hagarty. The subpoena says that the grand jury will meet at the United State Courthouse, William O. Douglas Building in Yakima, WA at 9:00 am on May 15, 2007. I am "COMMANDED" to appear and "COMMANDED to bring with you the following document(s) or object(s): * ..."

This subpoena says, "Provide the below described documentation pertaining to the following named parties: ," This subpoena then names 17 people from Oregon and Washington state, along with each person's date of birth. After the list of names, the subpoena continues: "Any and all documents including, but not limited to : * Documentation of Medical Authorization to Possess Marijuana for Medical Purposes in the State of Washington; * Medical Statements and or Reports; * Correspondence; * Reports of any violation and or termination of the Authorization; * Written Applications."

The subpoena says, "You are required not to disclose the existence of this request. Any such disclosure could impede the investigation being conducted and thereby interfere with the enforcement of the law."

I believe this requirement violates my right to free speech and is contrary to my life's work and The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation's goals to end adult marijuana prohibition, restore industrial hemp and help medical marijuana patients.

We can not disclose any patient's identity. Our obligation to protect our patients' privacy is a sacred duty.

We shall fight against this subpoena and for patients using medical marijuana until we prevail. THCF's attorney, Ann Witte of Portland, is preparing a motion to quash (or dismiss) this subpoena. Due to our duty to maintain patient privacy and conflicting federal laws protecting medical patients' privacy and empowering grand juries, our lawyer believes this issue will ultimately be decided by the US Supreme Court. When we file the motion to quash this subpoena, we will hold a press conference in Yakima announcing our opposition to the federal government's continued war on sick and dying patients who benefit from medical marijuana.

THCF has now helped over 18,000 patients in five states obtain a medical marijuana permit under their state's medical marijuana law. This is the first time we have ever received a federal subpoena. THCF Medical Clinics currently sees patients in Portland, Bend and Medford, OR, Seattle and Spokane, WA, Honolulu and Hilo, HI and Denver, CO. We will open medical offices this year in San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA and Las Vegas and Reno, NV.

The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation is a 501C3 nonprofit organization with several projects. In addition to THCF Medical Clinics, THCF has produced 400 episodes of our live weekly TV show, Cannabis Common Sense, and prints a newspaper called Hemp News. Cannabis Common Sense is on cable TV in Portland and Salem, OR, in Seattle and Spokane, WA, and in Denver, CO, and is also available on the Internet on YouTube. THCF maintains medical gardens that give free medicine to indigent patients. THCF produces cannabis-related events and sponsors other hempfests. THCF contributes to other organizations' efforts to help patients who benefit from medical marijuana, contributes to other groups working to end adult marijuana prohibition and contributes $500 each month to UNICEF for AIDS orphans in Africa.

We shall overcome!

Please support our efforts. Thank you.

Yours truly,

D. Paul Stanford

www.hemp.org

1-800-723-0188

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  • Display: Sort:
    Give 'em hell THCF.... (none / 0) (#1)
    by kdog on Sun Apr 15, 2007 at 10:37:34 AM EST


    Thank you. (none / 0) (#2)
    by kindness on Thu Apr 26, 2007 at 11:06:08 AM EST
    We all know you are putting your butt on the line with this move.  It's extremely principled of you.  Is there any way you could set out a tip jar to help defray the legal costs you are obviously about to incur?

    Hey Ben (none / 0) (#3)
    by Cptsalesman on Sun Apr 29, 2007 at 11:35:51 AM EST
    any chance of a follow up to this diary ? I'm curious as to what has happen between now and then.

    Subpoenas Quashed! (none / 0) (#4)
    by anthonyj on Wed Sep 05, 2007 at 12:14:43 PM EST
    U.S. court won't allow subpoena of Ore. medical marijuana records
    9/4/2007, 5:37 p.m. PDT
    The Associated Press

    PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A U.S. District Court has decided the medical records of 17 Oregon medical marijuana patients do not have to be
    released.

    In May, a federal grand jury in Yakima, Wash., issued subpoenas seekingthe information as part of an investigation of some growers in Oregon
    and Washington.

    The patients are not targets of the grand jury. But the issue had many
    patients concerned over the protection of their personal information.

    The state and a medical marijuana clinic moved to quash the subpoenas.

    A federal court judge in Washington agreed, saying the state wouldviolate its own privacy laws if it complied.

    Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

    http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/regional/index.ssf?/base/news-21/1188954325317800.xml&storyl ist=orlocal

    http://drugsense.org/temp/09.04.07XORDERXGrantingXMotionsXtoXQuashXGrandXJuryXSubpoenas.pdf