Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “The willingness to accept the penalty for breaking an unjust law is what makes civil disobedience a moral act and not merely an act of lawbreaking.” While I am currently entangled in a legal battle against an unjust law much different from the one Dr. King was fighting, I strongly believe his words still apply.
On Aug. 31, 2013, I was arrested by the U.S. Park Service Police in Philadelphia while attending an event being held at the People’s Plaza, a designated free speech zone directly in front of Independence Hall and right beside the Liberty Bell Pavilion. The purpose of this event was to gather people in a public display of the need to reform the current draconian laws in this country against the personal use of marijuana. I was particularly drawn to this event because of my deep belief that marijuana is a safe, natural alternative to many of the synthetic pharmaceutical drugs prescribed by physicians in this country every day. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, 290 people in the United States are killed by prescription drugs every single day. In the entire recorded history of mankind, there has yet to be the first death linked directly to marijuana.
I was charged by the Park Service police with simple possession of marijuana because at the end of this event, I joined with others in the crowd and lit a joint as an act of civil disobedience. On Jan. 27, I finally had my day in a U.S. federal district court, where I was found guilty of the charge against me. At my sentencing on March 26, I was ordered to pay a $3,000 fine and will be on federal probation for the next two years. In addition, I am banned for life from Independence National Historic Park and the Liberty Bell. Despite what I feel was an excessively harsh sentence aimed at silencing activists, I still stand behind my actions and sincerely believe I was doing the right thing.
While we technically have a medical marijuana program in the state of New Jersey, the harsh reality is the current program is almost completely unworkable because of the actions of Gov. Chris Christie. Thousands of qualified patients are being denied access to a prescribed medication simply because our governor disagrees with the need for a medical marijuana program and has done everything in his power to block full implementation of this program, which is now five years old. On Dec. 2, 2013, Sabina Rose, a 15-month-old child and a New Jersey resident, died as a result of a massive seizure caused by Dravet Syndrome. Sabina’s doctors had tried treating her condition with conventional pharmaceutical drugs, but, as is often the case with Dravet Syndrome, these drugs provided no relief. Her only hope was one particular strain of medical marijuana that has proved to be beneficial in the treatment of seizures. While Sabina’s parents had completed all of the necessary paperwork and had received all of the required physician sign-offs, her application had not yet been approved by the N.J. Department of Health and Senior Services.
Sadly, Sabina’s case is not the only instance of patients losing their lives due to a lack of access to needed medication. On average, 22 military veterans take their own lives every single day in this country. A large percentage of these deaths are a direct result of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, another condition in which medical marijuana has proved to be a safe and reliable form of treatment. Unfortunately, PTSD is not one of the extremely limited number of qualifying conditions allowed under New Jersey’s medical marijuana program. Our brave warriors here in New Jersey are forced to use pharmaceutical drugs to treat their conditions. And as I found out firsthand, these drugs often have devastating side effects, such as causing severe suicidal thoughts and tendencies.
Despite everything that has happened to me, I still believe my actions were justified. Sometimes civil disobedience has to be the first resort because courts and legislatures take time, and it is the only way to make anyone care about an unjust law in time to do anything about it. Countless lives are lost every day in New Jersey and across the country as a result of patients being denied access to a medication that can and does save lives.
Don DeZarnSenior Operations Manager, Dining Services
Executive DirectorNew Jersey Veterans for Medical Marijuana
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