AUBURN, Calif. ( APBnews.com) -- All eyes will be on
a jury here Tuesday, not because it's hearing a
high-profile case that is testing California's medical
marijuana law, but because some jurors might be
coming in Halloween costume.
Observers said they would be watching closely for any sign of the jury's leanings.
"It would be interesting if they all come dressed like they're at a [Grateful] Dead
concert," said prosecutor Christopher Cattran. "But if they all come as Madame
Defarge knitting nooses, that's something else."
On Thursday, the jurors had asked the judge, through the bailiff, if they could
dress up for Halloween, Cattran said. The judge, smiling, asked the lawyers if
costumes would be all right.
"The rest of us said, 'I don't know,' and we shrugged our shoulders," Cattran said.
The judge agreed to the request but suggested that the lawyers not appear in
costume. Cattran said he would follow that advice; the other lawyers could not
immediately be reached for comment about their fashion choices.
Growing for medical use
The defendants, Steve and Michelle Kubby, face charges that they illegally
maintained a large marijuana garden with the intention of selling their product.
The Kubbys, who are both ill, claimed they have the right to grow marijuana for
their own use under the provisions of a 1996 initiative passed by California
voters.
Proposition 215 allows sick patients to smoke marijuana for medical reasons
with a doctor's approval. Supporters of medical marijuana say it is an effective
drug when used to treat the side effects of cancer treatment and a variety of
illnesses, such as glaucoma.
Steve Kubby, a 53-year-old former Libertarian candidate for governor, was a
prime mover in the campaign to pass the proposition. However, the initiative did
not include provisions allowing for marijuana to be sold to patients, and
authorities have wrangled over the rights, if any, of people who grow the drug
for themselves or others.
No restrictions
It's not clear how many of the 12 jurors and five alternates will get in the holiday
spirit. No restrictions were made on what the jurors could wear, meaning that
they could conceivably come dressed as anyone from Jack the Ripper to
President Clinton.
The jurors all live in Placer County, which is home to 230,000 people northeast
of Sacramento in the Sierra Nevada.
Cattran said he had heard that Steve Kubby sees the costumes as a sign that the
jury does not take the charges against him seriously. But Cattran said he didn't
think that was the case.
The trial began in August but has had numerous breaks in testimony. It is
expected to end by late November, Cattran said.
By Randy Dotinga, an APBnews.com West Coast correspondent. |
