Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana

Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) is a not for profit medicinal cannabis dispensing collective located in Santa Cruz, California. WAMM was founded in 1993 by Valerie Leveroni Corral and her then husband Michael Corral. Members receive organic medicinal cannabis at cost and volunteers trade work for cannabis. There is a compassion program for those unable to afford the full cost of medicine. [1] WAMM is the first medical marijuana collective to receive non-profit status from the United States Government.[2]

Early days

In 1973, while driving though Nevada, a small airplane swooped down and scraped Valerie Corral's car, sending her "skidding, rolling and bouncing 365 feet through the dust, brush and rocks."[3] As a result of the accident, Corral's injuries included brain damage, epilepsy and severe migraines. Despite taking prescription drugs, Corral continued experiencing convulsions, shaking and grand mal seizures.[3] Having read in a medical journal that marijuana controlled seizures in mice, Corral's husband recommended that she give the drug a try—she has maintained a steady level of marijuana in her system since then, finding that it helped alleviate her symptoms.[3]

In 1992, Valerie and Mike Corral were arrested by the local sheriff for the cultivation of five marijuana plants, which spurred her into the political arena. As a result, Valerie became the first patient in California to challenge existing law and use a defense of necessity for medical marijuana.[3] Prosecutors dismissed the case, claiming they were unlikely to win before a sympathetic jury in liberal Santa Cruz. After the sheriff arrested the Corrals again one year later, the district attorney stated he had no intention of ever prosecuting them, requesting that the police leave the couple alone. The Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) was started at this time (1993).

Valerie was a key-player in the crafting and passage of Proposition 215 (also known as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996), which allowed patients with a doctors recommendation to use marijuana medicinally. WAMM became the first medical marijuana collective to be granted non-profit status in the United States.[4] WAMM is also considered to be the most legitimate medical marijuana collective and cooperative in the nation.[5]

While Mike and Valerie were supported by local authorities to protect them against theft and distribution, federal authorities maintained that growing, using and distributing marijuana was illegal. To provide legal protection, Santa Cruz deputized the Corrals in 2000 to act as medical marijuana providers.[3]

Members

According to WAMM, many members have either a terminal or serious illness.[6] Between the years 1993 and 2010, 223 members of WAMM died. In 2009, WAMM director Valerie Corral stated that the collective had about 2 dozen minors as members.

Hospice care

Corral founded a hospice care center for patients who use medical marijuana to alleviate symptoms associated with various terminal diseases and conditions. She has provided personal care and comfort to hundreds of individuals during their passage to death, including Laura Huxley, with whom she was a close personal friend.[7] Close to 200 WAMM members have died since the conception of the group. Valerie Corral has been by the bedside of most.

DEA raid

On September 5, 2002, armed federal agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) raided the WAMM garden weeks prior to their annual harvest, arresting the Corrals and destroying all the collective's medicine (150 plants).[3] Valerie and Mike were detained and later released. The government never filed charges, though the Corrals decided to challenge the federal ban with assistance from Santa Clara University law professor Gerald Uelmen and advocates at the Drug Policy Alliance.[3] The raid was condemned by many high profile individuals, including then-California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, Emily Rielly, former Vice Mayor of Santa Cruz, and all members of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors that were serving at the time.[8][9]

Several weeks later, WAMM handed out medical marijuana on the steps of city hall in Santa Cruz, California.[10] WAMM members, whose illnesses include multiple sclerosis, cancer, and AIDS, came out in support of their organization.[11] Many protests and media articles followed the raid, and the DEA received unfavorable worldwide media attention as a result of the raid against the terminally ill.

Post raid

Despite the raid in 2002, Valerie and Mike Corral continue to operate WAMM out of Santa Cruz. Valerie played a key role in drafting SB 420, which expanded many definitions and provisions for patients in California.

Support from City of Santa Cruz

The City of Santa Cruz has been explicitly supportive of WAMM and its activities. Following the 2002 raid, WAMM was permitted to dispense medicinal cannabis to its members on the steps of City Hall.[12][13][14] In 2003, in solidarity with the collective, the City of Santa Cruz sued the federal government for raiding WAMM. The case is called Santa Cruz v. Mukasey.

Judge Fogel’s rulings

In 2004, Federal Judge Jeremy Fogel denied the government’s motion to dismiss the Plaintiff’s (WAMM’s) complaint. This ruling allowed WAMM to continue cultivating medicinal cannabis while the lawsuit was pending. In 2008, Judge Fogel ruled in favor of WAMM in Santa Cruz v. Mukasey. Fogel used reasoning from the earlier Conant v. Walters case to partially guide his decision. The Conant decision stated, "Applied to our situation, this means that, much as the federal government may prefer that California keep medical marijuana illegal, it cannot force the state to do so."[15]

Lawsuits and court cases

Valerie Corral has been at the forefront of several lawsuits against the government. The most recent court case is County of Santa Cruz v. Mukasey, in which the City and County of Santa Cruz signed on with WAMM to sue the federal government.

Judge Jeremy Fogel recently allowed discovery for the plaintiffs, which allows WAMM's lawyers to ask the federal government very specific questions in regard to their enforcement of California's medical marijuana laws. An American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) press release stated the following:

In a first-of-its-kind ruling, a federal court today held that the U.S. Constitution bars deliberate subversion by the federal government of state medical marijuana laws.[16]

Valerie has also been involved with Conant v. Walters, County of San Diego v. San Diego NORML, and Craker v. DEA.

The Federal Government, the DEA denied Professor Craker, Valerie Corral, and MAPS request to end the federal governments monopoly on medical marijuana production and research. From an ACLU Press Release:

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Bush administration struck a parting shot to legitimate science today as the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) refused to end the unique government monopoly over the supply of marijuana available for Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved research. DEA’s final ruling rejected the formal recommendation of DEA Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Mary Ellen Bittner, issued nearly two years ago following extensive legal hearings.[17]

In January, 2010, WAMM dismissed their lawsuit against the federal government. WAMM counsel Allen Hopper cited a 2009 policy change in the Obama Administration that gave the Justice Department more discretion with regard to medical marijuana busts.

Reactions

Speaking with CBS News, A WAMM attorney, Gerald Uleman stated that "Representing Valerie Corral, for me, is like representing Mother Teresa," and he called her "one of the most compassionate people I've ever met."[18] Drug Policy Alliance director Ethan Nadelmann also likened Corral to Mother Teresa.

Driving fatality

A WAMM volunteer caused a fatal accident after leaving a WAMM site in 2010.[19][20] The woman whose car he hit died at the scene, and her baby was injured but survived. The volunteer, an artist who had started a support group for WAMM members with chronic pain, died the next day. Police reported that he said, at the scene of the accident, that he had used marijuana "just prior to the collision".[19] Family members said that it was impossible to be certain of the collision's cause, because the volunteer's vehicle had some mechanical problems and he had several health problems, such as sleep apnea, that could have caused or contributed to it.[19]

Future

WAMM's farm is located on property owned jointly by the Corrals. They divorced in 2015.[6] Valerie Corral needed to raise money to buy out her ex-husband's share in the land.[6]

Valerie Corral

Valerie Corral
Nationality United States of America
Occupation Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana.
Organization Raha Kudo, Design for Dying Project

Valerie Corral is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana[21] and Raha Kudo, Design for Dying Project.[22]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Luker, Kelly, Metro, 3-14-'02 The Secret Garden
  2. ↑ Nieves, Evelyn, Mother Jones, Jan/Feb ’01 Half an Ounce of Healing
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mendoza, Martha (2004-05-24). "Not Your Average Pot Proponent". CBS News. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
  4. ↑ Nieves, Evelyn (January–February 2001). "Half an Ounce of Healing". Mother Jones. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
  5. ↑ Pollan, Michael (1997-07-20). "The Pot Proposition; Living With Medical Marijuana". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
  6. 1 2 3 Kava, Brad (13 May 2015). "The End of WAMM?". Good Times.
  7. ↑ Valerie Corral (Spring 2008). "O Nobly Born". MAPS Bulletin. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, Inc. xviii (1): 42–48.
  8. ↑ Santa Cruz Sentinel, 9-11’02, County, City Condemn DEA Marijuana Raid
  9. ↑ Lypps, Heidi, CounterPunch, 9-17-‘02 The Crackdown on Medical Marijuana
  10. ↑ Krohn, Christopher (2002-09-21). "Why I'm Fighting Federal Drug Laws From City Hall". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
  11. ↑ {http://www.lilozada.com/federal-raids-california-cannibis-collectives/}
  12. ↑ Ritter, John, USA Today Pot raid angers state, patients
  13. ↑ LeDuff, Charlie, Liptak, Adam, New York Times, 9-18-'02 Defiant California City Hands Out Marijuana
  14. ↑ Krohn, Christopher, New York Times, 9-21-'02 Why I'm Fighting Federal Drug Laws From City Hall
  15. ↑ American Civil Liberties Union, 8-20-‘08 Federal Court Rules US Government May Not Deliberately Subvert California’s Medical Marijuana Laws
  16. ↑ "Federal Court Rules U.S. Government May Not Deliberately Subvert California's Medical Marijuana Laws". ACLU. 2008-08-20. Retrieved 2008-12-01.
  17. ↑ "Bush Administration Deals Eleventh Hour Blow To Scientific Freedom". ACLU. 2009-01-12. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
  18. ↑ de Vries, Lloyd, CBS News, 5-24-‘04 Not Your Average Pot Proponent
  19. 1 2 3 Baxter, Stephen (28 October 2010). "Brother of driver in Hwy. 1 crash near Davenport says Stephen Sibley had numerous health issues". The Santa Cruz Sentinel.
  20. ↑ Baxter, Stephen (5 April 2011). "Driver in fatal head-on crash near Davenport had marijuana in system". The San Jose Mercury-News.
  21. ↑ http://www.wamm.org
  22. ↑ http://www.rahakudo.org
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.