Rochelle Lampkin of Detroit doesn’t drink alcohol, smoke tobacco or use drugs for recreation. But about once a month, she takes in a substance that she says benefits her quality of life, even though it’s against the law.

She uses marijuana for medicinal purposes.

“I have a problem with my optic nerve,” Lampkin explained. “It’s called optic neuritis, and the nerve swells up. If I smoke one marijuana cigarette or even use a vaporizer, which I truly prefer, it relaxes the nerve.”


Rochelle Lampkin

Lampkin is just one example of an underground group of Michigan residents who say they use pot not to get high, but to treat the symptoms of multiple sclerosis, cancer and other illnesses.

And recently, a Ferndale-based group called the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care (MCCC) declared it would fight for medical users’ right to toke without having to fear prison. The coalition hopes to do this through a new initiative campaign that could leave the issue up to state voters in November 2008.

A narrowly defined agenda

Michigan law bans marijuana use and grants no exception for medical reasons. Pro-medical marijuana activists say their initiative, called the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, would change state law to let patients grow, possess and use cannabis under a doctor’s recommendation. (The drug is spelled “marihuana” throughout the initiative’s text.)

MCCC spokeswoman Dianne Byrum said while she had no solid statistics, she believes medical users have been arrested in Michigan before. And that is what activists in her group are trying to change.

Byrum, who works at Byrum & Fisk Advocacy Communications in East Lansing, is a former state lawmaker of 16 years who once was the Democratic leader of the Michigan House of Representatives. She said the MCCC approached her for the spokeswoman job.

“I think it’s the right thing to do,” she said. “It’s good public policy.”

Byrum said the initiative calls for safeguards to ensure that only medical patients with “serious or debilitating” diseases can use pot legally. Some of the listed debilitating conditions include AIDS, agitation of Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, cancer, Crohn’s disease, glaucoma, hepatitis C, HIV, and nail patella.

In addition, the initiative demands the existence of a genuine doctor-patient relationship, and the doctor’s recommendation for treatment must be in writing.

Patients would need ID cards to distinguish themselves from the rest of the population. Prohibitions on using pot in public or driving under the influence would remain.

Lastly, patients and caregivers would have limits on how much of a supply they could possess at any one time. The initiative’s text specifies that patients could only possess up to 2.5 ounces of usable cannabis, and they could grow up to 12 marijuana plants so long as they are kept in an enclosed, locked facility. A user may also possess stalks, seeds and unusable roots so long as they have an “incidental amount.”

Unlike a recently passed state initiative that banned racial preferences, Byrum said the MCCC’s initiative would not alter the Michigan Constitution.

Putting the ‘grass’ in grassroots


Andy Krumlauf (left) and Mark Crawford gather signatures toward an initiative to protect users of medical marijuana. The Flint residents are traveling the state with the petition. They were in East Lansing Friday. Krumlauf said they receive $1 for every valid signature collected.

This is not the first time that a campaign has been launched to legalize or decriminalize cannabis on some level in Michigan. During this decade alone, pro-marijuana activists have repeatedly tried (and failed) to put such an initiative on the ballot.

But Byrum said the latest campaign aims to be “narrow in scope” — that is, restricted to medical users. “The Coalition for Compassionate Care is only talking about the medical use of marijuana,” she said.

Byrum said the coalition is taking no chances of having its effort go up in smoke. To successfully put the initiative on the November 2008 ballot, the MCCC needs to produce 304,101 valid signatures within a span of six months, she said. Activists intend to increase their odds by trying to gather about 550,000 signatures. That’s because the coalition believes there is an approximate 55 percent validity rate for such signatures.

The petition effort is in its early stages, and a mixture of volunteers and paid staff started to get them signed in late May. The MCCC also is seeking donations and directing curious people to its Web site, stoparrestingpatients.org.

Smoky specifics

The MCCC proudly wears the “grassroots” label, but a few of its specifics still remain hidden in the tall grass.

Thomas Morgan, a spokesman from Byrum & Fisk Advocacy Communications (and former City Pulse managing editor), said the MCCC is “the natural outgrowth of local medical marijuana initiatives in communities around the state.” Paperwork filed with the secretary of state says the group formally established itself in late April.

The MCCC’s membership is mostly mysterious. Byrum said she didn’t yet know how many members the coalition has. And while the coalition’s Web site promises to soon list donors and petition passers, it only lists one member, petition organizer Krystal Martinez.

According to paperwork the MCCC filed with the state in late April, Martinez is also the group’s treasurer. However, Martinez declined to go into details about the group’s leadership, deferring all questions to Byrum.

And then there is the issue of money. A thermometer graphic on the MCCC’s Web site reveals that activists have a fundraising goal of $450,000 in pledges by November. But while the MCCC is asking for donations, it is not yet clear who is funding the organization or whether the coalition is getting money from outside the state.

In other states, supporters of medical marijuana initiatives have earned the backing of George Soros, an international financier and billionaire from New York. In recent years, Soros attracted the media’s eye for being a major supporter of liberal causes. Byrum said her group has not received money from Soros at this time but would accept any support in the future. “We welcome any contribution,” she said.