Medical marijuana backer on hunger strike in jail

Medical marijuana backer on hunger strike in jail

Supporters rap decision to move case to federal court

Dustin Costa, a medical marijuana advocate, is awaiting federal charges in Fresno County Jail for a seizure by narcotics agents who uprooted 1,000 plants at his Winton home.

By David Chircop
DCHIRCOP [at] MERCEDSUN-STAR.COM
Last Updated: August 17, 2005, 07:25:25 AM PDT

Supporters of a jailed medical marijuana activist say the 58-year-old Merced man detained on federal drug charges is on a hunger strike.

Since his arrest on Thursday, Dustin Costa has become the county's focal point in a philosophical debate about medical marijuana.

Costa's backers are placing him on a pedestal, describing him as an effective political organizer, while prosecutors are dismissing him as a drug dealer hiding behind the state's medical marijuana laws.

Underscoring the issue are lingering contradictions between federal drug laws and voter-approved state measures legalizing the use of medical marijuana.

Costa, who goes by the nickname "Rev. D.C. Greenhouse," is president of the Merced Patients Group, a private cannabis club in Merced that claims 230 members.

In recent months, the group has lobbied against local ordinances banning medical marijuana dispensaries.

The federal case against Costa repackages marijuana cultivation charges that he has fought in Merced County Superior Court for more than a year.

Those charges stem from a February 2004 pot bust in which local narcotics agents netted close to 1,000 plants at Costa's Winton home.

Costa's attorney planned on putting up a medical marijuana defense in state court, but that argument is useless now that it is in federal court. He faces a maximum of 45 years in prison for the drug and weapons charges.

"He wanted to box it out in state court," said Auburn-based lawyer Bill McPike, who defended Costa in Merced County.

McPike said he believes local prosecutors, who do not agree with state law, "went out of their way" to forward the case to federal prosecutors.

"Their duty is to prosecute state law," he said. "It's not to prosecute somebody for 18 months, then chicken out and turn it over to the feds."

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal government can prosecute people who use marijuana for medicinal purposes.

But California Attorney General Bill Lockyer argues that the ruling doesn't overturn the state's medical marijuana laws.

"Either Merced County doesn't read directives from the Attorney General or it ignores them," said McPike.

It is not clear how Costa's case was picked up by federal prosecutors.

District Attorney Gordon Spencer declined to discuss Costa's case, saying it is now a federal matter.

Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said Costa's medical marijuana defense lacked merit and was merely a smokescreen to evade prosecution.

"It was a disservice to those who may need medical marijuana," he said.

The outspoken club president has attracted attention with mock campaign T-shirts that read "D.C. for D.A." and for his efforts to assemble a medical marijuana marching band.

The Merced club helps connect people with doctors who give recommendations for marijuana, and people who supply the drug.

To join the club, members pledged to become politically active and be named in a lawsuit.

Dr. Tom O'Connel, a Redwood City-based surgeon who works with the Merced club, said he thinks the transfer to federal court may be legal, but is "grossly unfair."

"It's like a football game where the referee comes in at halftime with a soccer ball," he said.

O'Connel is currently researching chronic marijuana users, and believes that many are self-medicating to relieve a number of ailments, including anxiety disorders.

"Pot was Prozac and Paxil before those drugs were even thought of," he said.

O'Connel said he has tried to persuade Costa not to refuse meals at Fresno County Jail, where he is being held. Jail officials could not confirm Costa is on a hunger strike.

Costa's detention hearing is scheduled in Federal District Court in Fresno this morning. Members of his club say they will hold a rally outside the courthouse to protest the transfer of his case.

Reporter David Chircop can be reached at 385-2453 or dchircop [at] mercedsun-star.com.