Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment (OCRA)

I am starting this petition in order to see that the State of Ohio joins the twenty three other States in America that have ended their prohibition against Cannabis/Marijuana for the purposes of medical, industrial and recreational use.

Please join me and the good folks of ORG (Ohio Rights Group) in seeing that this gets done. Thank you!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment - Full Text

Be it resolved by the people of the State of Ohio: That the Constitution of the State of Ohio be amended by adopting a section to be designated as Section 12 of Article XV thereof, to read as follows:

Article XV: Section 12. The medical, therapeutic and industrial use and regulation of Cannabis.

Section 1. Rights.
In accordance with Article 1: Bill of Rights, Section 1 of the Constitution of the State of Ohio:

(A) Residents of the State of Ohio, who have attained the age of majority and who are diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition, shall be eligible residents for the purpose of making therapeutic use of the genus Cannabis, also known as medical marijuana or marihuana, currently defined in Section 3719.01 of the Revised Code, hereinafter referred to as Cannabis, to alleviate their suffering. Residents of the State of Ohio, who are under the age of majority and who are diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition, may be eligible residents with the prior written consent of a parent or guardian.

(B) Eligible residents shall have the right to make therapeutic use of Cannabis to alleviate their suffering and to possess an amount of Cannabis sufficient to meet their therapeutic needs.

(C) Eligible residents shall have the right to be free of discrimination and interference from the State of Ohio with regard to their therapeutic use of Cannabis. Persons who are not eligible residents may use medical necessity as an affirmative defense in a court of law.

(D) Eligible residents shall have the right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to their therapeutic use of Cannabis, including, but not limited to, any records kept by the State pertaining to such use.

(E) Eligible residents who make therapeutic use of Cannabis shall have the right to produce their own Cannabis, and to acquire Cannabis sufficient to alleviate their suffering from state-licensed providers without fear of arrest, prosecution or undue interference by the State.

(F) Eligible residents shall have the right to access goods and services to enable their therapeutic use of Cannabis.

(G) Within the State of Ohio, it shall be a legal right for individuals or organizations, deemed eligible by the Ohio Commission of Cannabis Control, to grow, process, distribute, transport, purchase or sell Cannabis for therapeutic use in various forms to eligible residents according to rules and regulations as established by the Ohio Commission of Cannabis Control.

(H) Residents of the State of Ohio, deemed eligible by the Ohio Department of Agriculture under Section 3(E), shall have the right to produce and sell non-psychoactive Cannabis, also known as hemp, for industrial use including, but not limited to, paper, fuel, foods, building materials and clothing. With this right, Cannabis for industrial use is hereby removed from any schedule or classification system in the State of Ohio wherein it is listed as a drug.

(I) These rights shall not be abridged, and the State of Ohio shall support, uphold and defend these rights in accordance with the health and safety of Ohioans and the Ninth and Tenth Amendments of the Constitution of the United States of America.

Section 2. Limitations.
(A) Nothing in this Amendment requires the therapeutic use of Cannabis or the industrial use of Cannabis; nor does this Amendment invalidate existing bans against smoking in public places or places of employment.

(B) Nothing in this Amendment shall prohibit the reasonable regulation and control of the commercial production and distribution of Cannabis for therapeutic use by the Ohio Commission of Cannabis Control as set forth in Section 3.

(C) Nothing in this Amendment shall prohibit the reasonable regulation and control of the commercial production and distribution of Cannabis for industrial use as delegated by the Ohio Commission of Cannabis Control to the Ohio Department of Agriculture as set forth in Section 3.

(D) Nothing in this Amendment shall prohibit the sale of Cannabis for therapeutic use or for industrial use to eligible residents; nor prevent research or educational institutions from studying the therapeutic properties of Cannabis; nor prevent research or educational institutions from studying the properties of Cannabis for industrial use; nor prohibit the reasonable application of fines or fees pursuant to the regulation and control of Cannabis within the State in accordance with Section 4; nor prohibit the reasonable taxation of Cannabis for therapeutic use or Cannabis for industrial use in a manner similar to other agricultural commodities.

(E) Debilitating medical conditions include, but are not limited to, the following diagnoses: glaucoma; multiple congenital cartilaginous exostosis; multiple sclerosis; nail-patella syndrome; positive status for human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS); Alzheimer’s disease; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; cancer; celiac disease; Crohn’s disease; hepatitis C; mylomalacia; post traumatic stress; rheumatoid arthritis; sickle cell anemia; injury or disease to the spinal cord, spinal column or vertebra; Tourette's syndrome; a chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces cachexia or wasting syndrome, severe or chronic pain, severe or chronic nausea, seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy, or severe or persistent muscle spasms; depression; and any additional medical condition or its treatment that may be designated by the ...