A state committee heard the passionate pleas from hopeful Georgia constituents who each presented their emotional case for why they should be allowed to use medical marijuana legally.
Then came the narc.
Sgt. Chris Clark of the Atlanta Police Department spoke straight as he laid out his service record. He was a 26-year veteran of the department. He got his start as an undercover narcotics agent, busting street-level thugs as part of America’s war on marijuana and other drugs.
What compelled the former beat cop to advocate for medical marijuana was the plight of his son Caden, an 11-year-old who Clark claimed suffered from hundreds of seizures every day since he was born.
“We were just waiting out his days,” Clark said. “Waiting for the seizure that would take his life.”
But then last year Clark heard about a cannabis oil that appeared to be effective in treating seizures in Colorado. His wife and two sons moved out there without him as part of a nationwide migration of medical refugees seeking the drug. The wait list was five months, but it was well worth it.
Caden has seen his seizures decrease by about 84 percent since he started low-dose versions of the drug. He can walk again after using a wheelchair for many years. Cognitively, Caden is more aware than ever before.
“The seizure reduction is absolutely incredible,” Clark said. “None of that existed without (cannabis) oil.”
The Macon committee meeting was the second of a five aimed at outlining a suitable plan for crafting a viable medical marijuana bill to present during the 2015 legislative session. The topic has remained on the state’s plate since a bill that would have legalized the cannabis oil ran out of time on the final day this year’s session.
About 15 families spoke, some who wanted the cannabis oil for their children, others who wanted whole-plant marijuana to be available for those suffering from severe pain and life-threatening diseases.
There was Katie Crosby, a Macon resident whose excruciating pain turned the vibrant Georgia Bulldog fan into a homebound shell of her former self. Two-time cancer survivor David Garrison, an eighth-generation Cobb County resident, professed that the whole-plant marijuana he smoked following his surgeries and chemotherapy was more effective, less damaging and less addictive than the opioid pain relievers he was prescribed.
State Rep. Allen Peake, who introduced that failed bill and has led the committee hearings, said he felt Wednesday's meeting was productive. While some advocated for whole-plant, smokeable marijuana to be part of a potential bill, the Macon Republican said his pitch was still to legalize the cannabis oil.
“We’re still focused on medical cannabis oil with a low amount of THC that you can’t get high,” Peake said.
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