Long a mecca of the drug counterculture, San Francisco takes center stage Wednesday in a passionate debate over medical marijuana when a federal judge decides whether to send the city’s “ganja guru” to jail for doing something that is legal in California.
A federal court jury in January convicted Ed Rosenthal, 58, the author of many books on marijuana and a columnist for “High Times” magazine, on three counts of growing marijuana–a violation of federal law.
Rosenthal had wanted to argue that he was growing the drug for medical use, which is legal and voter-approved in California, although barred by federal law.
But Federal District Court Judge Charles Breyer did not allow Rosenthal’s attorneys to present this background, calling it irrelevant to the verdict.