LF: Minnesota mom who gave cannabis oil to son will not face trial

Title: Minnesota mom who gave cannabis oil to son will not face trial - drug warriors furious
Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press
URL Source: http://www.twincities.com/localnews ... a-brown-madison-has-signed-off
Published: Apr 17, 2015
Author: Tom Cherveny
Post Date: 2015-04-20 21:21:27 by Deckard
Keywords: None
Views: 45360
Comments: 118

Angela Brown, left, visits with supporters, including Patrick McClellan, outside the Chippewa County Courthouse in Montevideo, Minn., in September. McClellan, of Minnesotans for Compassionate Care, testified at the Legislature for the bill that will allow the use of medical cannabis. He made the trip from Bloomington to show support for Brown. Forum News Service: Tom Cherveny

Angela Brown of Madison, Minn., has signed off on an agreement that will lead to the dismissal of a child endangerment charge against her for giving her 15-year-old son cannabis oil to treat his seizures and pain from a traumatic brain injury.

Brown said her attorney, Michael Hughes of Bend, Ore., informed her a week ago that he and Lac qui Parle County Attorney Rick Stulz worked out an agreement that will allow for a "continuance for dismissal'' of the child endangerment charge. If she pays a $100 court fee and has no violations for 90 days, the gross misdemeanor charge will be dropped.

Brown said she signed the agreement Thursday and expected it to be entered in court by the Lac qui Parle County attorney.

Brown had been set to stand trial on the charge Wednesday.

"I was shell-shocked and actually upset; he's getting exactly what he wants,'' said Brown of her initial reaction when asked by her attorney if she would OK the agreement.

Brown learned of the agreement while in the Twin Cities on April 10 for the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival and the debut showing of "Pot (The Movie),'' which documents the fight for medical marijuana, and in which she appears.

By approving the agreement, Brown said she spares her son Trey the trauma of having to testify in the trial. The prosecution intended to subpoena Trey, according to Brown. She said it would have been traumatic for her son to have to testify.

She said her attorney filed statements from her son's medical provider warning of the harm it could cause him.

Brown was charged in June with child endangerment after surrendering a small amount of cannabis oil to law enforcement. The family had traveled to Colorado to obtain the oil to treat Trey. He suffered the traumatic brain injury when he was struck by a baseball at age 11.

Brown and her husband, David, believe their son would be eligible to receive the cannabis oil when use of medical cannabis for some medical conditions becomes legal in Minnesota on July 1.

The legal fight has been a financial blow to the family, and the ordeal very stressful for the parents and their three children, Brown said. They have been fearful that she would be taken away and put in prison. She and her husband have a gofundme.com fundraising site to accept funds for their medical and other costs, and now the costs to move to a new home.

Brown said they have decided to move to Colorado where David has accepted a position with his former employer, the Corrections Corporation of America.

The ordeal has put Angela Brown into the limelight as a spokeswoman for those calling for laws to allow for the use of medical cannabis.

Trey Brown, center, looks at a cellphone photo taken of him outside the Chippewa County Courthouse in Montevideo, Minn., in September. Trey's mother was facing criminal charges at the time for giving her 15-year-old son medical cannabis to treat his pain from a traumatic brain injury. (Forum News Service: Tom Cherveny)

Her family's story is part of the newly released documentary film, and Brown has appeared on national television programs to tell it.

While it has been difficult for her family, she believes the ordeal has served some good in that she has been able to call attention to the issue. She remains committed to it.

"I'm going to continue to fight. It's not done,'' she said.

Ask yourself. How would anyone know that she gave cannabis oil to her son unless she told them?

My guess is that if you did, you would rather let them suffer rather than use an "unapproved" medicine.