Crown Point – The Lake County Council passed a resolution Tuesday supporting the legalization of medical marijuana.
The council voted 4-2 to support Lake County Councilman Jamal Washington, D-Merrillville, who is urging state officials to pass “a prescribed medical marijuana program statute by the state of Indiana.”
Washington was joined by Council President Ted Bilski, D-Hobart; Councilwoman Christine Cid, D-East Chicago; and Councilman David Hamm, D-Hammond; in supporting legalization.
Council members Elsie Franklin, D-Gary, and Eldon Strong, R-Crown Point, opposed the measure. Councilman Dan Dernulc, R-Highland, was absent.
Indiana is one of only a handful of states and American territories that still consider all marijuana use a crime. Two bills regarding the use of medical marijuana were studied earlier this year by the General Assembly, but neither was passed into law.
Washington said medical marijuana could help people suffering from a coma, glaucoma and Crohn’s disease. “Just like the prohibitions against alcohol and gay marriage, marijuana will soon be legal in all 50 states, I believe. I believe we must make our voice heard.”
Councilwoman Franklin said she had promised a family member she would oppose marijuana use. She said she is concerned people falsely claiming illnesses would misuse marijuana for recreational purposes.
Strong said, “There are a number of reasons not to support medical marijuana. I’ve been a patient of Crohn’s Disease (inflammation of the bowels), and this past spring I was diagnosed with cancer.
“I spent the summer going through chemotherapy and radiation in Chicago where medical marijuana is allowed. The radiologist asked me if I wanted to try it for the pain I was having. In the same breath he also told me there were better medicines out there than marijuana. I believe that.”
“I’m torn,” Bilski said. “I see the positive side of this. I don’t want to see anyone suffer. But I am not an advocate for any drug use. Even alcohol becomes a problem if you drink too much. I wish the resolution would say to put it on a referendum and leave it in the hands of the people to decide.”
The council voted to give Franklin a seat on the Lake County Redevelopment Commission in place of Washington. Other council members said they were surprised Franklin wanted to return to the commission after having left it earlier.
Franklin said she didn’t like how Washington conducted himself on the five-member commission, which oversees subsidies for residential and business improvements. Washington said Franklin is upset that he was conducting an investigation into spending irregularities that involved one of her friends. He said he will continue his probe despite Tuesday’s decision.
Franklin called Washington a liar. The two engaged in an argument that continued so long Bilski had to shout and hammer his gavel to stop it.
The council also approved three exceptions to its new job freeze to allow two county-based courts and the county parks department to give officials authority to offer jobs to new employees, even though the old employees were preparing to resign but had not yet done so.
The council reorganized the E-911 salary scale to create more entry-level dispatcher positions and appropriated $1 million for additional road improvements this year and next on county highways.
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Full Article: Council Lights Up Debate On Legalizing Medical Marijuana
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