Pregnant caregiver Sherri Versfelt of Nederland Co
Breaking News out of Boulder, CO
For immediate release: October 15, 2009
Cannabis Therapy Institute
On Thursday, Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett dropped the charges against 35-year-old pregnant caregiver, Sherri Versfelt of Nederland, CO, who had been scheduled for a jury trial next week. Sherri had been charged with felony marijuana crimes stemming from a raid on her house in July 2008. Sherri was serving as the caregiver for a patient with a debilitating medical condition.
Sherri's case was set to go to trial Monday in Boulder District Court. Perhaps the idea of the bad PR the case would have generated was a factor in the D.A.'s decision to drop the charges.
Rob Corry, Sherri's attorney, had a guest commentary printed in Thursday's Boulder Daily Camera that discussed the atrocities of her case.
The Cannabis Therapy Institute posted a picture of her on their website on Wednesday night, calling the persecution of the pregnant caregiver a "Witch Hunt" and rallying supporters to her trial.
The D.A.'s last medical marijuana prosecution of patient Jason Lauve resulted in a resounding defeat when Jason was acquitted on Aug. 6 in less than 3 hours by a Boulder County jury. The D.A. was widely criticized for wasting taxpayer resources on the Lauve prosecution.
Prosecuting a pregnant woman would have arguably been the biggest PR mistake the D.A.'s office had made since Jason's case. Jason participated in most of his trial in a wheelchair and received great sympathy from his jury. A photo of him receiving a hug by one of his jurors was on the front page of the Boulder Daily Camera the next day and photos of him outside the courthouse with 34 ounces of medicine spread across the Internet.
To appease public opinion after Jason's victory, Garnett campaigned in editorials and public meetings to become known as the "the most progressive District Attorney in the state on the issue of medical marijuana. "Recently, Garnett pledged to the Boulder County Commissioners that he was going to use "as little of my office's resources in prosecution of marijuana cases as we can." Click here for more.
The Cannabis Therapy Institute is calling the dismissal of Sherri's charges a guarded victory for all Colorado patients. Despite Garnett's assurances that he was not waging a war on patients, the prosecution of Sherri Versfelt continued for over a year and wasted even more thousands of
taxpayer dollars.
"I hope that Stan Garnett continues to uphold the pledge he made after my acquittal that he wouldn't prosecute any more patients or dispensaries," says Jason Lauve, former medical marijuana defendant. "Sherri's prosecution went on for far too long. I hope that this teaches police and prosecutors to have more respect for patients' Constitutional rights and to keep them out of the court to begin with."
Rob Corry is on a string of victories this week with medical marijuana patients. On Tuesday, he liberated almost half a pound of medicinal cannabis from the Colorado Springs Police Department on behalf of patient Stephan Thomas who had the charges against him dropped as well. See the
story and video here:
Comments
The war is over people now it's time to shake hands and get on with our lives. The people have spoken they dont want their hard earned tax dollars wasted on frivolous prosecution's of medical cannabis user's.If the district att. of the state want to keep working for the people they will have to get used to medical cannabis or get a job some where else.
Only this battle is won; the War on Americans' Rights continues unabated. In Colorado, the chief law enforcement officer (A.G. Suthers) disregards the supreme law of Colorado regarding the medicinal use of cannabis; he and other elected officials are in revolt against our Constitution! Look out for Rethuglican Scott McInnis who is running for Governor -- he has gone on record as opposing our Constitutional protection of medicinal cannabis patients. We just barely averted the passage of regulations by the Board of Health which would have contradicted the Medical Marijuana Amendment. We need to retain the goodwill of the people of Colorado who voted for the Amendment and we need to galvanize our base into becoming even more politically involved. Fight for what is right!
The Constitutional right to freedom of religion, free speech, a free press, to keep and bear arms, to be secure in your person, house, papers and effects against unreasonable search and seizure, to life, liberty and property, to be protected from having your property taken by the government without due process of law and without just compensation, to confront the witnesses against you, to be protected from excessive bail, excessive fines, cruel and unusual punishment, to vote and others have been denied to millions of Americans in the name of the drug war.
It's time to end this prohibition and all the harms it causes. Medicine should not be taxed but recreational marijuana should be regulated like alcohol and taxing that would not hurt anyone.
I guess the writers of the Constitution never pictured a Country that would deny medicine to sick people or they would have put something in about the right to use a safe effective medicine.
Only this battle is won; the War on Americans' Rights continues unabated. In Colorado, the chief law enforcement officer (A.G. Suthers) disregards the supreme law of Colorado regarding the medicinal use of cannabis; he and other elected officials are in revolt against our Constitution! Look out for Rethuglican Scott McInnis who is running for Governor -- he has gone on record as opposing our Constitutional protection of medicinal cannabis patients. We just barely averted the passage of regulations by the Board of Health which would have contradicted the Medical Marijuana Amendment. We need to retain the goodwill of the people of Colorado who voted for the Amendment and we need to galvanize our base into becoming even more politically involved. Fight for what is right!
Almost got to be a doctor, got felony for growing instead. Spent $50,000 on lawyers, got 46 days in jail. Lost my truck and my house, got it all back by growing more. Now I'm a caregiver and they can't get me again. You got your card, look up High Country Caregiver and I will bring you your meds. As long as I'm alive I will be growing organic medicine and providing to those who need it.
I got charged with growing, selling, and special offender because of guns in my home. They never caught me selling to anyone after watching me for a year. Was facing 10 years mandatory prison time. I regret pleading guilty to cultivation, but was scared of going away for that long. I am now a felon after serving 27 days in jail. I now grow legally and am looking for patients to sign me up as thier caregiver so I can stick it back to the man. I lost my home to. I had a public defender, but I might of been aquitted if I had $20,000.00 for a lawyer. tommay@rocketmail.com
I used to know Sherry, it's been a long time. I hope she is well, I am so glad for her. I know this is an old article but nonetheless I am still.
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