Miss New Jersey's medical cannabis "use" confuses Jay Leno

October 23, 7:30 PMBoston NORML ExaminerMike Cann

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Georgine DiMaria, Miss New Jersey 2006, is introduced at the 2007 Miss America Pagent.
(photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Jay Leno's opening monologue on his most recent thursday night show joked on Georgine DiMaria, Miss New Jersey 2006.

Leno quoted a Washington Post story and ribbed,

*"Smoking to treat asthma, really? Isn't that like eating Taco Bell to cure diarrhea?" *

The Washington post column's mention of DiMaria is below.

*"In April, the 2006 Miss New Jersey, Georgine DiMaria, outed herself as a stealth marijuana user to treat her asthma."*

But might it be Georgine who gets the last laugh?

Georgine DiMaria-Jay Leno Response

*"10/24/2009

While I am thrilled that Mr. Leno took notice of my use of cannabis therapy his facts about my personal usage of medical marijuana and comments about marijuana, in general, are both naive and false.

Hopefully correcting this misinformation can be an opportunity to further advocate the strong benefit of medical marijuana and the grave importance of marijuana reform here in my home state of New Jersey.

As a life-long severe asthmatic, living with a debilitating disease and staring death in the face almost every day of my twenty-five years, I know firsthand how important finding a miracle drug can be. Finally, after years of constant suffering, I have found that miracle in marijuana, yet I am denied access to my lifesaver due to its illegality and a general lack of knowledge about marijuana as a medicinal substance. Used responsibly in its purest form through either vaporization or ingestion, marijuana has saved my life numerous times, and has the potential to do just that for so many others.

Mr. Leno needs to understand I have always, and still most definitely stand by my opposition to smoke in any capacity, as I am a National Spokesperson for the American Lung Association for Asthma and Tobacco Control, and I feel that smoking in any case, is negative for one’s health.

Yet the most beneficial and effective way I have found to ingest medical marijuana is through vaporization, which has served as my method of treatment." *

------------

Georgine DiMaria was crowned Miss New Jersey 2006. Since then, she has been a health care advocate in her state and community. Her new platform, which she spoke pubically about for the first time on 4/20/09, is medical marijuana

Georgine spoke at the Philly NORML and NORML-NJ International Cannabis Awareness Day on April 20, 2009, where she urged New Jersey residents and elected officials to support medical marijuana reform laws.

A chronic asthma sufferer, she has been a spokesperson for the American Lung Association and recently, a supporter of safe medical marijuana access.

She is currently an active member of the New Jersey NORML Board of Directors.

Chris Goldstein, the executive director for NJ NORML writes that DiMaria may be responding to the bad jokes on local NBC tv news and the Jay Leno show itself.

Thanks Jay Leno.