flew over his house at
- 2:00 a.m. in a helicopter equipped with an infrared device. The
- infrared equipment showed a white light emanating from Joe's roof,
- indicating the escape of a large amount of heat, while the other roof-
- tops were black.
- Joe was arrested and took his case to trial. The jury found Joe
- guilty of cultivating marijuana, but not guilty of possessing it with
- intent to distribute.
I said before the Drug War was highly politicized.
It's a matter of politics over matter when the government's Drug War elevates marijuana above its true pharmacological controlled substances classification; it's a matter of hysteria to escalate it to the same top category as heroin and LSD, 'Schedule I Substances'. Even cocaine is only Schedule II.
Late 1996 / early 1997, several states, including California, passed laws via citizen initiative ballots that legalized marijuana if a doctor prescribes it. Usually for nausea or weight loss from chemotherapy or AIDS.
A massive Federal and State Drug War hysteria campaign failed to stop people approving it.
- The New York Times, Oct 3, 1996, San Francisco
- "Skirmish in Anti-Drug War: California vs. 'Doonesbury'", by Tim Golden