WAR EAGLE!

So, today is the BIG day....the day all of us Auburn fans have been waiting a year for.


PAYBACK!

I never brag before an Auburn - Alabama game, because, despite either team having a terrible year none, of it matters when the Iron Bowl kicks off.

I believe Auburn will win today. I predict the score will be Auburn 35 Alabama 31.

Wish I could be there. Since my son is a student at Auburn I do plan to attend next year since the game will be in Auburn and I will have season tickets!

WAR DAMN EAGLE!

Happy Thanksgiving

A very happy and tummy satisfying Thanksgiving to all of my friends across the US today.

Here is what's on the Nall menu.

Turkey
Mashed Potatoes
Homemade Mac n Cheese
Turnip Greens
Green Bean casserole
Dressing
Cheesecake with cherry topping
Crown Royal Black and Ginger Ale

Hope y'all have a great one!

Loretta Nall vs. Senator Jeff Sessions

I may have mentioned a time or two on this blog my intense dislike of one Senator Jeff Sessions, the white supremacist, douche bag, Howdy Doody look alike Republican US Senator from Alabama. May have mentioned it. If not then let me say again that I have an intense dislike for this buffoon. How he continues to get elected is baffling....but he does. I've never voted for him and never will unless he is a contestant in a Hodwy Doody look alike contest.

I will say that in his long, disappointing career he has done two things that I consider decent. Those two things are the last two things one would expect from Senator Jeff Sessions, seeing as how he once said he thought the Ku Klux Klan was ok until he learned some of them consumed marijuana. He co-sponsored a bill to stop prisoner rape and he supported a bill to remove the powder/crack cocaine disparity in sentencing. He didn't go nearly far enough on the powder/crack sentencing reduction. It was a 20 to 1 disparity and he thought getting it down to 5 to 1 was good enough. It isn't.

Now Jeff has shown himself for the true hypocrite that he is. During the confirmation hearings for DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart Sessions had the following to say.

Perhaps due to the failure of Prop 19 in California (and despite the passage of medical marijuana in Arizona), Kohl, along with Democratic Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Al Franken of Minnesota, made no mention of medical marijuana. Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, however, made it his prime focus.

“I’m a big fan of the DEA,” said Sessions, before asking Leonhart point blank if she would fight medical marijuana legalization.

“I have seen what marijuana use has done to young people, I have seen the abuse, I have seen what it’s done to families
. It’s bad,” Leonhart said. “If confirmed as administrator, we would continue to enforce the federal drug laws.”

“These legalization efforts sound good to people,” Sessions quipped. “They say, ‘We could just end the problem of drugs if we could just make it legal.’ But any country that’s tried that, Alaska and other places have tried it, have failed. It does not work,” Sessions said.

“We need people who are willing to say that. Are you willing to say that?” Sessions asked Leonhart.

“Yes, I’ve said that, senator. You’re absolutely correct [about] the social costs from drug abuse, especially from marijuana,” Leonhart said. “Legalizers say it will help the Mexican cartel situation; it won’t. It will allow states to balance budgets; it won’t. No one is looking [at] the social costs of legalizing drugs.


Now, let me get this straight. Jeff Sessions is supposedly a strong supporter of States Rights....yet he wants the DEA to continue to violate States Rights and directives from the DoJ to leave alone those states which have passed medical marijuana laws? Hell, even my old buddy Troy King got this right when he filed an amicus brief on behalf of Angel Raich when she took former US Attorney General to the Supreme Court over medical marijuana.

Jeff Sessions is adamantly opposed to socialized medicine which he and others define as the government getting in between doctor and patient...yet he wants the government to do just that where medical marijuana is concerned? That is the definition of socialized medicine.

Sessions says that no countries which have legalized marijuana have seen improvements? And then he mentions Alaska....which isn't a country BTW, and which has seen very real success with their experiment of allowing up to 4 ounces of marijuana in the privacy of ones own home. Even Sarah Palin, who Sessions likely worships and fantasizes about, said that someone smoking a joint in the privacy of their own home does not rise to the level of needing to be interfered with.....that government has more important things to do. For once I agree with her.

And what about Portugal, which decriminalized all drug use in 2001? How do their drug use rates compare to the US?

According to TIME Magazine...

"Compared to the European Union and the U.S., Portugal's drug use numbers are impressive. Following decriminalization, Portugal had the lowest rate of lifetime marijuana use in people over 15 in the E.U.: 10%. The most comparable figure in America is in people over 12: 39.8%. Proportionally, more Americans have used cocaine than Portuguese have used marijuana."

Looks to me like Portugal is faring far better than the US.

And stop this nonsense that marijuana destroys lives. It is the damn laws that destroy lives. If marijuana in and of itself destroyed lives then people like George Bush, Sarah Palin, Bill Clinton, Barak Obama, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington would have had their lives destroyed from it's consumption. But they didn't....and neither has anyone else.

We have had marijuana prohibition in place since the 1937 Tax Act and the days of racist enforcer Henry Anslinger. And name one positive thing it has brought us. Has prohibition stopped people from getting marijuana? No. What it has done is turn a natural plant that anyone who wants it could grow into a commodity that is worth about as much as gold and thereby funded violent, dangerous Mexican cartels who make 61% of their profits from the importation of marijuana into the US.

Has it stopped kids from having unfettered access to marijuana? No. It has provided unfettered access to marijuana. Drug dealers don't ask for ID and they never will until the sale of marijuana is brought under regulation.

Prohibition has filled our prison system to bursting with non-violent people who have no business there. In Alabama our prison system is running at 195% capacity in large part because of this damn drug war. You think Sessions cares?

So, I will run against Senator Jeff Sessions in 2014. In order to do that I will need ballot access. And for that I will need the signature of every Alabama citizen who is tired of people like Jeff Sessions talking out both sides of their mouth and keeping in place the laws which have proven destructive, wasteful and futile. Please download the ballot access petition HERE fill it out and mail it to me at...

Loretta Nall for US Senate
4633 Pearson Chapel Rd
Alexander City, AL 35010

Print out loads of them and have all your friends, family and co-workers sign it. We have to get signatures which equal 3% of the votes cast in this last gubernatorial election. I am not sure what the exact number is but will inquire with the Secretary of States office today. Seems to me like I only need 5000 to qualify for federal office and not 3% of the ballots cast in the last gubernatorial election.

If we get started now then getting my name on the ballot should be no problem. Let's roll!

Go VOTE!

Please take the time today and exercise your right to vote in the General Election. If you don't participate then you have absolutely no say in decisions others make that affect your life.

Also, if you are a praying person then pray hard that Prop. 19, the Regulate, Tax and Control Cannabis Initiative in California passes. If you are not a praying person then keep your fingers crossed. Former Mexico President Vicente Fox recently said of Prop. 19...."May God let it pass." He knows that 61% of the violent drug cartel profits come from the sale of marijuana smuggled into the states from Mexico and he knows that legalization would practically bankrupt the cartels overnight. Seeing as how some 28,000 Mexican people have lost their lives to the unspeakable violence that prohibition has brought us I'd say he knows probably better than anyone what legalization will do. Listen to the man.

They're Smoking Weed!

A Dallas news anchor in San Francisco to cover the World Series trips out on the fact that people are smoking pot right out in the open. HYSTERICAL!

That Naughty Pig

As most of my readers know I own a male pot belly pig named Snuffalufagus, who is very sweet and likes his tummy scratched whenever he can get it. What they don't know (unless they have owned one and found out the hard way) is that pigs are completely oversexed animals (if you don't have them castrated when they are young) and will hump anything even remotely round.

I didn't have mine castrated when he was young. My vet dislikes pigs immensely and would not do it. He told me to find an old black farmer to do it. I asked a friend of mine if he knew of any farmers who fit that description and he said yes. I asked him about how the procedure was performed and he told me, "Well the farmer catch the pigs head up in a wooden thing, then he takes a razor blade and slices open the sac, pops out the balls, cuts them off, throws some turpentine in there and that's it. The pig will act like he dyin' for about 4 days then he will get up and be fine...most of the time anyway." I asked about anesthesia for my little pig and was told that none would be given.

Since I like my pig and thought that procedure sounded a lot like torture, I decided against getting him castrated. I now deeply regret that decision.

See, my pig is a flat out sex maniac. He humps anything round. Barrels, logs, he's made more than one attempt at the goats, cats, and would probably go after the dog if he could get close enough. We gave him a barrel a few months ago....but after a fierce bout of pig/barrel fornication, in which he rolled it down the driveway, across the road and into the neighbors yard (forcing me into a very embarrassing situation of having to explain why my pig was in my neighbors yard having relations with a barrel) we took it away.

Now, the pig has gotten his revenge. Every day (at least until this week) Snuffy was allowed to be out of his pen for a few hours in the evening. He likes to roam around in the woods, root for acorns, muscadines, and other tasty things to eat, and terrorize the other animals who happen to be out when he is. Other than a time or two, I have never known him to travel to the neighbors yard (remember the barrel episode?) and never gave it much thought. However, I should have foreseen what was bound to happen.

A few weeks ago one of my neighbors put up her Halloween decorations. Their house sits right next to mine and so her decorations, which consist of a scarecrow hanging on a fence and a large, ROUND, pumpkin, are just a few feet from the bottom of my driveway.

When we first noticed the decorations my husband said, "You know pig is going to go after that pumpkin...he won't be able to resist it." I said...'Man I hope not."

And then it happened. Day before yesterday I hear a knock on the door. When I answer it I see my neighbors adult son standing there. After we exchange pleasantries he asks me, "Say...y'all ain't seen a large plastic pumpkin around here anywhere have you? I seen your pig just humping the hell out of it yesterday afternoon and now it's disappeared. My mama really loved that pumpkin."

I don't think I've ever wanted to crawl under a rock so badly in my life.

"No", I said, "I haven't seen a pumpkin around anywhere. And I am so sorry you had to witness that incident. My pig has a thing for all things round. Let me look around the property and see if I can locate your pumpkin. If I can't I will replace it or give your mom the money if I am unable to find one."

He was agreeable to that. So, I looked all over my 2.15 acres of wooded property and there was no large, bright orange plastic pumpkin to be found. Piggy has her stashed somewhere I guess. I just can't figure out where he would have hidden it. Hell, you'd think a big orange plastic pumpkin with a jack-o-lantern face would be pretty easy to spot. Not so...at least not in this case.

So, yesterday I went to Walmart with the intent of purchasing another plastic pumpkin to replace the one that piggy befouled. But they didn't have any. All they had were the inflatable kind for $50. And, let's face it, an inflatable pumpkin would fare far, far worse in a go round with piggy than a plastic one did.

Anyone know where I can get a large, plastic pumpkin? I feel bad about my animal destroying another's property and want to replace it.

Piggy is currently on lock down until I can get him a better place built that won't require him being let out to roam every day. I hate that because he so enjoys being loose, kicking up his heels, wagging his tail, and trotting around the yard. But, nothing round is safe when he is loose and in the interest of preserving neighborly relationships I will keep him secure until a better pen is built or until I can find someone with adequate facilities to take the horny little porcine.

Say, anyone want a pig?


UPDATE: PUMPKIN FOUND!

As you can see he stashed her in a huge stand of nasty looking saw briers! That damn pig! Now I gotta wade through those evil things to rescue her and return her to her spot in front of the Scarecrow.

Headed to Anniston for Michael Lapihuska hearing

I and other members of Alabamians for Compassionate Care are headed to the court house in Anniston, AL this morning for a docket hearing on Michael Lapihuska's case. We will have signs calling for jury nullification and acquittal as well as this handout for passers-by. If you are in or around the Anniston area please come out and join us. The courthouse is located at

25 W 11th St Anniston, AL

Holy S*!#...What a SNAKE!

Got the below picture with the following explanation in my email this morning.

Looking for hogs in Georgia with his shotgun, heard a rattle and his first instinct was to point and shoot. Dude is about 6’2”. Look at the head on that thing!!!
Eastern Diamondback




That snake is enough to make my friend Tim Lennox pass out on sight! Cover your eyes Tim!

Seriously though...GOOD GOD that thing is a monster. Hell, I'd still be shooting it.

Speaking at UAB on Wednesday

On Wednesday, October 6, I, along with Thomas Pearson from Alabama NORML, will be speaking at UAB. I will be speaking about the medical marijuana bill and how to get involved in getting it passed and Thomas will be speaking about marijuana legalization in general and what benefits the state would reap should they ever decide to have a serious conversation about legalization. Details are below. The event is free. Please come out and join us.

Ending Alabama’s War on Marijuana Consumers

Heritage Hall room 121

Wednesday, Oct. 6th @ 7 pm

Representatives from Alabama NORML and Alabamians for Compassionate Care discuss strategies and opportunities for changing Alabama’s misguided, costly and harmful marijuana laws.

Is this a case of fratricide?

The Cullman Times is reporting that police gunned down a wild, huge, sharp-tusked, aggressive boar hog near Cullman High School.

Problem is....it wasn't any of those things. According to the picture of said beast below...it was a small, relatively harmless pot bellied pig. I have one that looks almost identical. He likes to get his belly and legs scratched.



What is truly telling about the way police reported this incident is that it is the exact way they report about the people they arrest. They blow shit up to the Nth degree, demonize the suspect, etc....and this was a pig...who could not come back later and challenge their story.....and they still lied and blew things way out of proportion.

I think this is a clear case of fratricide...and if they barbecue him and eat him then it will be cannibalism.

Then again...that's not really fair to the pig. In fact, it is an insult to pigs, which are smart animals and make great pets, to be placed in the same category with cops.

Poor piggy! They really didn't have to kill him.

So, will these people get probation from Judge Rochester?

The Clay Times Journal has released the Grand jury report from August and 9 out of 11 indictments are for controlled substance violations.

I can't help but wonder if these poor souls will be shown the same favoritism and leniency that was shown to Alex Rochester, the son of Judge John Rochester....the judge who will be presiding over these cases. If I were a betting gal I'd put my money on NO.

I've been hearing numerous reports that Alex Rochester violated his probation a few months ago....but his probation was not revoked and he was not placed in prison. However, there have been no papers filed in the court system to that effect. Of course, if your daddy is the judge then it'd be really easy to keep those papers from making their way into the AlaCourt system. Also odd that the probation office in the Court House caught fire right around the same time the reports about Alex violating probation were coming in. Those reports came from people who saw him in court and from a couple of different lawyers in Clay County.

Grand Jury report given

Wednesday, September 29, 2010 1:16 PM EDT

The following was released by Clay County Circuit Clerk Jeff Colburn regarding results of the August session of the Clay County Grand Jury.

The following indictments were issued. Readers are reminded these people are still presumed innocent unless they plead guilty or are found guilty by a jury in a regular session of court.

Christopher Glenn Ackles, two counts of Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance.

Cedric Bernard Adair, Obstruction of Justice.

Billy Wayne Atchley: Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance, three counts.
Angie Lee Beamon, Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance.

Gerald Bishop, Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance.

James Bishop, two counts of Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance.

Laura Ann Boyd, two counts of Unlawful Distribution of a Controlled Substance.

Lisa Dawn Brannon, Possession of a Controlled Substance and Use/Possession of a Controlled Substance.

Bradley Ray Brown, Use/Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of Marijuana First Degree.

Donald Lyn Brown, Possession of a Controlled Substance.

James Harold Bunt II, Theft of Property Second Degree, two charges, and two charges of Burglary, Third Degree.

Jessica Marie Businelle, Burglary Third Degree.

Michael Lapihuska Court Update

UPDATE: Good news. Just talked to Michael and the meeting with the psychiatrist went very well this morning. Without saying exactly what Michael told me I will say that there is renewed hope that things could very well take a turn in the direction of justice in this case.

I just got off the phone with Michael Lapihuska. He told me that the psychiatrist tapped by the DEFENSE for his psychological evaluation called him yesterday and told him that his appointment is this morning at 9:30 a.m. at the Calhoun County jail and that if he didn't show up that he, the psychiatrist, would write a letter to the judge recommending that Michael be sent to jail and that he would see him there. Michael has saved the voice mail message containing the threat and is in the process of forwarding it to me. I will post it here when I get it.

Now, what kind of crap is that exactly? How much hope can one have for a fair hearing when the shrink tapped by the DEFENSE is threatening the client?

Michael also told me that his lawyer told him to stop listening to me and ACC. Not a surprise. Very few lawyers want to fight their case in the court of public opinion. They do not want the public to see just how badly they suck and how little they care for their clients well being. Michael told her that I and ACC have done far more to help him than she has. That ticked her off. Good.

He also told her that he no longer wanted her as his attorney because she has not done any of the things he has requested. He is dead set on going to a jury trial and she has done nothing to prepare for that trial. She wants him to take the plea deal. He isn't going to do that. She said it doesn't matter if he doesn't want her as an attorney....that he can file all the papers he wants but that the judge will not grant his request. I call BS. True, the judge may not grant his request, but she doesn't KNOW that for sure.

Michael said his lawyer also adamantly refused to file a motion to suppress the evidence based on the fact that he was not breaking any laws by walking down the road and the cop therefore had no reason to stop him, much less search him.

Michael said he just received the letter from the circuit clerks office telling him that his case was not happening on Sept. 23....nearly a full week after Sept. 23. ???

NEWSFLASH for attorney Aundrea Mann Snyder...Alabamians for Compassionate Care will continue to work with Michael Lapihuska as long as he requests our services. We don't really care if you don't like it. Do your job according to your clients wishes and we won't have any problems. And we will be outside the court house on the day jury selection begins handing out jury nullification information and holding signs telling all who pass by the real story. And, how about you find a psychiatrist who doesn't seem so intent on jailing the person he is supposed to be helping? That'd be real helpful. We also plan to continue the media barrage concerning Michael. Don't like it? Tough. This man does not belong in jail or on probation and if you are unwilling to do your job then we will do it for you. Where should I send the bill when we are done?

Jailed for Medicine

(Michael pictured on left)

The Anniston Star has published a series of letters today about the case of Michael Lapihuska.

Please take a few moments and read Jailed for Medicine. Leave a comment and then write a letter of your own.

Also, Michael's court date, which was set for tomorrow, has been moved to Oct. 8. Please make plans to attend on Oct. 8 with signs calling for jury nullification.

ZING!

The state's bingo battle is heating up again. Illegal gambling task force commander John Tyson is accusing Victoryland of 'hiding' the machines. From this morning's BHAM News.

Tyson said he believes Victory Land still has the machines and is trying to hide them from the task force. "The statute does not say they're illegal unless you put a wall around them," Tyson said.

VictoryLand attorney J. Mark White declined to say whether the machines still are at VictoryLand. "No citizen is obligated to discuss the private areas of their home and business with anyone," White said.

"I think Mr. Tyson has no respect for the law, no respect for a citizen's right to privacy .¤.¤. If I wanted to hide something from him, I would put it in a law book," White said.

That's the funniest thing I have heard in a while. He zinged the hell out of Tyson! Made my entire Monday.

Video & Pics: Free Marc Emery Rally Montgomery, AL Sept. 18, 2010

This may be one of the best pictures....ever.



On Sept. 18, 2010 myself and 20 other dedicated drug policy reform activists from Alabama and Georgia retraced the steps of the historic Civil Rights March up Dexter Ave. to the Alabama State Capitol Building to protest the imprisonment of Canadian Marc Emery in the US Federal penitentiary for selling marijuana seeds over the internet.....from CANADA. The video is below.



We had a very positive encounter with a Montgomery police officer along the way. I was filming and my camera developed some technical problems. While I was attempting to resolve them the marchers continued on up Dexter Ave. When I get the camera fixed I look up to find they had all crossed the street and surrounded a Montgomery Police car, which was parked outside a drug store. I thought, "Oh hell, why are they doing that?" I tend to try and avoid police encounters at all costs and here the group was possibly about to provoke the wrath of one.



The car was unoccupied. When the officer saw them he came out of the store and began talking to them. Everyone had their cameras snapping pictures in case anything happened. But, the officer was very nice. He inquired about what we were doing and why. I was on the opposite side of the street so I didn't catch what all he said to the group.





After a couple minutes everyone crossed back over to where I was and we continued on. the police officer started to leave but instead made a U-turn and pulled up beside me. I walked over to his car and asked him if he needed to see our permit. He said that wouldn't be necessary. Then he asked me why we were doing the Free Marc Emery rally in that particular location. I explained to him that we chose the location for the historical significance and because one of Marc's hero's for peaceful, non-violent, civil disobedience and demonstration against bad laws is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I explained who Marc was and quipped that "Apparently we don't have enough non-violent drug offenders in American prisons so we've had to start importing them." He giggled...which is always a good sign.

Then the officer said, "Yeah, but why here? I mean people are asking me why are people protesting in Montgomery, Alabama for a Canadian? Shouldn't the protest be against the Canadian government for extraditing him? What should I tell them?"

Chris Butts was standing with me and he told officer that it was a world wide rally happening in cities all over the globe. The officer looked surprised. Then the officer asked if marijuana wasn't outlawed around the same time as hemp because of the competition with synthetics like plastic. I told him that was part of it and that today our biggest foes to changing the law are usually the giant pharmaceutical companies. I almost added, "And the prison industrial complex which keeps guys like you employed." But, I didn't because he was being nice and seemed on the surface to have no problem with marijuana or marijuana consumers and because he could have come out swinging his billy club at those who had surrounded his car earlier....but he didn't. He displayed a genuine curiosity about what we were doing, attempted to share some of his own knowledge on the issue and he was very friendly. As he pulled away he said, "I will hang out down here in this area today and make sure no other officers bother you."

Now, how often does that happen? It isn't often that I get to have positive encounters with police officers. When it happens it restores my faith in them a little bit. It makes me feel good when I can walk away from an encounter with the police with a smile on my face, my blood pressure in the normal range, and my hands not in handcuffs. It reinforces that not all of them are bad. That is a good feeling.
So, many thanks to the officer who was so friendly to us and gave us the chance to share in some mutual respect and knowledge exchange.

Many thanks are also in order to everyone who took time out of their weekend to travel to Montgomery and join the march. We had 5 people from north Alabama who drove well over 100 miles each way to be there. Three of them were newcomers who now plan to become involved in the medical marijuana movement here. Four of the attendees came all the way from Atlanta, Georgia. They said they were unable to find a rally there and wanted to be part of one somewhere. That's amazing. It isn't often that something is happening in Montgomery and nothing is happening in Atlanta. I think everyone but me drove over 100 miles each way to attend the march. That's dedication.

A special thanks to Chris Butts who provided the awesome signage and my ride to Montgomery. Without Chris and DJ I would not have made it yesterday due to problems with my truck. They drove a long way out of their way to make sure I could get there. Thanks to Ron Crumpton who brought me home.

And as always thanks to everyone else who came out in the dreadful heat on a college football game day and joined us in protesting the political imprisonment of my close friend and mentor Marc Emery.

I love you guys!

NOTE: Sorry for all the heavy breathing. It was hotter than hell and that was a big hill and I smoke too damn much :)

Here are some more pictures from yesterday.

Sorry Hell!

A man in Florida stands up to the bullies tormenting his daughter on the school bus.



Many of you may have no idea how damn close I've come to doing that exact same thing...or worse....in the last few years. I, personally, don't see what he has to be sorry for. I think he deserves kudos.

Go DAD!

REMINDER: Free Marc Emery Rally Tomorrow in Montgomery

I will be hosting a Free Marc Emery rally in Montgomery tomorrow from 12-3. Please meet me at the fountain on Dexter Ave. at 12 pm and join me and many others in a march to the state capitol building. For more information please GO HERE

The Tragic Case of Michael Lapihuska

I want to inform my readers about the incredibly tragic and maddening case of Michael Lapihuska in Anniston, Alabama. Michael is pictured above facing the camera.

Michael is a former resident of Anniston, AL and a medical marijuana patient. In 2003 he was sentenced to a year in an Alabama prison for 5 grams of marijuana. It was his second possession offense, which automatically made it a felony. After Michael got out of prison he moved to California where he was able to become a legal medical marijuana patient. He uses marijuana to treat PTSD and clinical depression.

Last December Michael traveled back to Alabama to visit with family and friends. One evening while walking down the road he was stopped by a police officer and accused of hitch hiking. The cop demanded that he be allowed to search Michael. Michael complied. During the search the cop found one gram of marijuana in a prescription bottle. Michael explained that he was a medical marijuana patient registered in California and was home visiting. He showed the cop his card. Cop didn't care. Michael was arrested, jailed and is now facing 2-10 years in prison for using the medicine that his doctor recommended.

It will come as no surprise to any of you who read this blog that he is having major trouble with his attorney, court appointed, naturally. She wants him to take a plea deal that would sentence him to 1 year in jail (suspended) and 2 years supervised probation. Michael will not take that deal, because he uses marijuana as medicine, and that is his only medicine. He knows he will fail the first drug screen on probation. The way he sees it, he is going to prison either way so he might as well fight the charges. He has demanded a jury trial.

Even though he has told his attorney that he wants a jury trial from the very beginning, according to him, she has not returned one single phone call. She also hasn't returned my phone call offering help from ACC and medical marijuana lawyers in other states. This week she is out of town on vacation and did not leave anyone in her office in charge of Michael's case. Michael's trial is set for Thursday, Sept. 23.

It gets worse. Michael asked for a mental health evaluation. The psychiatrist who was tapped for that threatened to have Michael's bond revoked. See, Michael rides his bike everywhere he goes. They psychiatrist called Michael at 5 pm on a Friday afternoon and said for Michael to meet him at the Calhoun Co. Jail the following Monday at 8 am. Problem was that Michael was a few days away and could not make the appointment on such a short notice. It would have been impossible for him to get back on his bike within that time frame. He told the psychiatrist that and the psychiatrist threatened to have his bond revoked if he did not show up. That wound up not happening....but good grief when even the doctor who is supposed to be evaluating you threatens you with jail how fair will the psychological hearing be? And why was it being conducted at the jail?

Michael contacted me in the very early part of this year asking for help. Ever since then he has been at almost every ACC meeting. He is basically homeless sleeping wherever he finds himself at the end of a day of riding, or occasionally staying with friends if any are nearby. He also volunteers at soup kitchens along the way. I've come to know him pretty well over the course of the last few months and needless to say I am very concerned about his upcoming trial. He is not a criminal. He is a sick man who uses a natural plant on the recommendation of his physician. He in no way belongs in a dangerous, inhumane, disease ridden, overcrowded Alabama prison. It is NOT a crime to be sick. I fear for him at a jury trial because Michael has an illness that isn't readily apparent. You can't see mental illness like you can cancer. He doesn't look sick so I am not sure a jury will believe it.

We wanted to try and have his attorney use the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the US Constitution which states that states shall recognize the laws and professional licenses of other states. However, since the idiotic 'Defense of Marriage' act was passed a few years ago it can be invoked to get around the Full Faith clause. Even though Montana has set precedent using that clause to defend a very similar case there before they had a medical marijuana law.

We also thought there was a very good chance that we could get it thrown out on the grounds that it was an illegal search. Alabama code states that it is only illegal to hitch hike if one is standing in the road obstructing traffic flow. The police report does not state that he was doing that....only that he was hitch hiking. Therefore the cop had no right to stop him...much less search him.

But, seeing as how his attorney has shown zero concern for him we don't think she will try either of these possible remedies for his case.

The Anniston Star has been extremely helpful to us in getting the word out about Michael's case. They did an incredible article last month. Please go and read
Anniston Man Finds One States medicine is Another's Illicit Drug

Since the article three great LTE's have appeared in support of Michael. Please read them

Cast a vote for Compassion
Un-American to harass sick
Ashamed of Government

More are on the way from ACC members and we hope they will appear before Thursday. Please take a moment and write your own.

Here are the current plans for Michael's upcoming trial.

1. We are going to ask for a continuance, which should be granted, so that suitable representation can be found. If that happens the trial will not be next Thursday.

2. If the trial does happen next Thursday then every member of Alabamians for Compassionate Care and any other interested citizen who can make it plan to protest outside the courthouse. We will be handing out jury nullification information, medical marijuana information, and information about our medical marijuana bill in the Alabama House. We will also have signs calling for jury nullification and informing people that Michael is a registered medical marijuana patient in California, that he has harmed no one etc.

I need readers to do a couple of things.

1. Write a letter to the Anniston Star on Michael's behalf. Send it to speakout@annistonstar.com
Do it TODAY!

2. If this trial happens next week then I need you to plan to be there. Bring signs that say

"Jury Nullification for Michael Lapihuska"

"Michael Lapihuska is a PATIENT NOT a CRIMINAL"

"Support medical marijuana in Alabama"

"ACQUIT MICHAEL LAPIHUSKA"

The more people we have on hand to get jury nullification information into the hands of potential jurors the better. The more people we have attend the louder our message becomes and the bigger this case becomes.

Winning this case for Michael is much bigger than just helping one man. It would set precedent in Alabama for medical marijuana patients traveling through here. Our medical marijuana bill, which will come back before the house judiciary committee in March 2011 contains a reciprocity clause that would actually keep Michael and other medical marijuana patients out of Alabama courts and jails. It would honor medical marijuana patients from other states.

Please check back here and on our ACC Facebook page for updates about the trial next week. Please send this to everyone you know in Alabama who might be willing to attend or help in some other way. Please tell everyone you know who knows anything about jury nullification that we need their help with this case. And, if you know an attorney who would be willing to take this case for a reduced rate or pro bono then get them in contact with me ASAP. I can be reached at

lorettanall@gmail.com
877-528-5647
256-625-9599

My letter in the National Post

The National Post in Canada ran two letters in support of Marc Emery today. One from me and one from Marc's wife Jodie.

While I agree with most of Chris Selley’s column, I take exception to his assertion: “However asinine, the law’s the law.”
I live in Alabama, where it used to be legal to own a slave and illegal to help a slave gain freedom. We also had Jim Crow laws that prevented blacks and poor whites from taking part in the political process. None of those laws were just and, everyone who had the courage to break them were true heroes, as is [marijuana activist] Marc Emery.
Just because something is against the law doesn’t mean it’s bad and just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s good, as former Alabama laws so clearly demonstrate.
Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” Marc Emery clearly has the moral high ground on this issue.

Loretta Nall, Alexander City, Ala.

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My Husband Shouldn't Be in A US Jail
Re: A Notable Defector In The War On Pot, Sept. 10.
Chris Selley claims my husband Marc Emery sold seeds to Americans for profit, but Marc was never selling seeds for personal gain. His purpose was to finance drug policy reform, and he was tremendously successful at it. The Drug Enforcement Administration made clear that they targeted Marc as “the founder of a marijuana legalization group” due to his money being “channelled to marijuana legalization groups active in the U.S. and Canada” and his arrest was “a significant blow to the marijuana legalization movement.”
There are seed sellers in Canada, Europe and even the United States who are not arrested and certainly don’t get five years in U.S. federal prison. Marc never set foot in the States and he paid income tax to Revenue Canada as a “marijuana seed vendor.” Marc should not have been extradited to a foreign country and the excessive, unjust punishment in the U.S. federal prison system he will endure — he should have been dealt with in his home country, where the activities took place.
Marc needs to be brought home to serve his time here in Canada.

Jodie Emery, Vancouver.

Marc Emery sentenced to 5 years

From the Seattle Post Intelligencer

Marijuana seed dealer who spent fortune on pot reform gets 5 years

By LEVI PULKKINEN
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

Canadian marijuana seed dealer and pro-pot activist Marc Emery has been sentenced to a five-year prison term, marking the end of a years-long legal fight once cast by federal authorities as a blow to the marijuana reform movement.

Imposing Emery's sentence Friday, U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez honored a plea agreement struck earlier this year by Emery to avoid a potential 10-year prison term.

Emery -- a 12-time candidate for elected office in Canada described by federal authorities as a "Prince of Pot" -- spent millions of dollars gained through a mail-order marijuana seed business to advocate for marijuana law reform in Canada and the United States. After a five-year extradition fight, Emery pleaded guilty earlier this year to drug crimes, which he described as "civil disobedience."

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