Who is the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition?

Our mission is to reverse the trend of mass incarceration in Colorado. We are a coalition of nearly 7,000 individual members and over 100 faith and community organizations who have united to stop perpetual prison expansion in Colorado through policy and sentence reform.

Our chief areas of interest include drug policy reform, women in prison, racial injustice, the impact of incarceration on children and families, the problems associated with re-entry and stopping the practice of using private prisons in our state.

If you would like to be involved please go to our website and become a member.


Friday, August 07, 2009

Acquitted Pot Patient Leaves Court With Drugs

Daily Camera

— Rolling out of the Boulder County Justice Center in a wheelchair Thursday with a jumble of once-confiscated pot in his lap, Jason Lauve smiled and waved to supporters after a jury acquitted him of possessing too much medical marijuana.

Eight men and four women found the 38-year-old Louisville resident not guilty of a felony drug possession charge, as well as lesser charges of possessing marijuana and marijuana concentrate.

Lauve, who was prescribed marijuana to relieve the pain from a back injury, burst out crying, grabbed his defense attorney and nearly fell to his knees when the verdict was announced.

"Thank you so much," he yelled out to the jurors.

Boulder District Judge Maria Berkenkotter had to pause and admonish Lauve's supporters as they applauded and called out during her reading of the verdicts.

She ordered that more than two pounds of Lauve's marijuana supply, which had been confiscated by police in a raid of his home last summer, be returned to him.

"I have a right to live," Lauve said afterward. "All of us as patients have a right to have our own life, not the government's life. We should not be treated like criminals."

Laurie Borgers, a medical marijuana patient from Denver, said she was elated by the verdict.

"I am happy and relieved as expected to see justice was served today," she said outside the courtroom. "They need to stop picking on sick people."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

A couple of years ago, Larimer County did something quite similar to a couple. This was at the same time as the Timothy Masters case broke wide open in Larimer County, so this case got brushed over. I believe their last name was Masters as well (I could be wrong on that), but they were arrested and charged for cultivation although they had legal right as authorized growers of medical marijuana. Larimer County destroyed their crop (let it dry out and die). When the couple was exonerated and the charges dismissed, the couple sued Larimer County for the value of their destroyed crop. It was something like $100,000. I never did hear the outcome of that. Oh, what a wonderful "justice" system we have!

Anonymous said...

We do not have a justice system -- that concept is a cherished myth. What we have is a legal system, one which is open to influence by money, status, the press, and/or power.