EDITORIAL
A brave and right decision

Thursday, June 5, 2003

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U.S. DISTRICT Court Judge Charles Breyer should be commended for infusing his court with an air of common sense Wednesday when he refused to imprison Ed Rosenthal on a federal marijuana conviction.

A federal jury had convicted Rosenthal in January for cultivating and conspiring to grow marijuana. And he could have been locked up for at least five years, even though he was acting as an officer for an Oakland medical marijuana program, in line with Proposition 215. The voter-approved initiative allows patients with a doctor's approval to grow and use pot to relieve the pain and distress of cancer and other debilitating diseases.

In an obvious bow to public will and Rosenthal's humanitarian intentions, Judge Breyer set Rosenthal free, declaring he had been punished enough. It was a courageous ruling, and a dose of judicial honesty that is both compassionate and fair.