Legal Commentary

Medical Marijuana Debate In Denver Today

By Jeralyn

At 4:30 pm MT (6:30 pm ET), there will be a debate on medical marijuana in Denver, hosted by actor Richard Belzer. It's part of the the Plant Medicine Expo and Healthcare Provider Conference being held at the downtown Denver Sheraton.

Belzer was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1984, and has since made a full recovery. The debate features Colorado elected officials and advocates on both sides of the medical marijuana issue.

Just Say Now and Firedoglake are live-streaming the debate. You can watch here. Among the participants is Stan Garnett, Boulder District Attorney, who is running for Colorado Attorney General against John Suthers. Full list below: [More...]

Here is the full panel:

• Stan Garnett, District Attorney for Colorado’s 20th Judicial District: Garret is an aggressive prosecutor and a strong advocate for Public Safety. His priorities are prosecuting violent or sexual crimes, serious drug dealing, business and economic crime and cases involving public corruption.

• Tom Gallagher, Councilmember At-Large: Gallagher was elected to an at-large council seat in April 2003, and is a principal in Aeon Project Development.

• Joshua Kappel, Outreach Director for Sensible Colorado: Kappel began advocating for drug policy reform in 2005 as a member of Students for Sensible Drug Policy. A graduate of the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law, he is now a clerk with Vicente Consulting, LLC, a full-service medical marijuana law firm. He also serves as volunteer outreach director for Sensible Colorado.

• Charlie Brown, Denver City Councilman Brown currently chairs the Council’s Medical Marijuana Committee and is a member of the Government Affairs & Finance Committee and the Business, Workforce, & Sustainability Committee. He was the key sponsor of the city’s new medical marijuana ordinance that regulates this new form of controversial commerce. The ordinance was approved by Council 13-0 on January 11, 2010.

As one of the first states to experience the growing pains of a blossoming medical marijuana industry, the experience of Colorado elected officials and advocates on both sides should be interesting and informative.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on September 25, 2010 (boomark / email).