[420 Girl]

Hundreds of people took advantage of the pleasant weather to head to Moscow's East City Park Saturday for the annual Hemp Fest.

There was the usual fare - crafts, clothes and music. It was Mom's Weekend at UI, so that made for a bigger crowd with more dollars to spend.

But perhaps the most interesting moment came when Dist. 6 Republican State Representative Tom Trail took the stage to talk about his proposed legislation to legalize medical marijuana in Idaho.

"Idaho is not on the cutting edge of the legalization of medical marijuana," Trail told the crowd at the festival. "So far 14 states have enacted legislation to legalize medical marijuana. 15 states are now at some, either initiative or legislative action to do the same."

Many know Trail for his persistent attempts to get industrial hemp legalized, something he says he hasn't given up on. But his focus Saturday was creating access to medical cannabis for the seriously ill.

"I've talked to several AIDS victims, brain cancer, and they're scared to death when they go out to buy marijuana to relieve their pain, because they could be put in jail," Trail said during an interview after he spoke.

Trail's proposal is one of the most restrictive in the country. He says states should be able to have medical marijuana laws without interference from the federal government.

"Citizens should have the right, the voters, to make decisions on, for example, whether or not a doctor can make a prescription of a drug that can relieve pain of a patient that has a debilitating disease," said Trail.

Trail says he's supportive of the Obama administration's decision to have the DEA back off when it comes to going after medical marijuana patients. And he says he's hoping his bill will gain support during this political season.

"There are a number of legislators out there who are on the fence right now, but this is a fine time to do it," he said. "We're coming up with a primary election, we have an election this fall and I think you put a lot more pressure on legislators to make a commitment."

Trail said the other option for getting a law on the books is the initiative process, but he says that's a real challenge in Idaho.

"If we had it on an initiative this fall it would pass overwhelmingly. The problem in Idaho, unlike many other states, it will cost you half a million to a million dollars to get everything organized to get it on the ballot.

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...marijuana.html