Marijuana Policy Project

John Ray Wilson was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2002, had no health insurance and was unable to afford drugs to treat the disease, according to his attorney. 

So Wilson, now 36, sought natural alleviation from the pain with a therapy involving the use of substances including bee venom and marijuana, the attorney said.

Wilson started growing his own marijuana, according to court documents, but his plan fell apart.

On Aug. 18, 2008, a helicopter pilot spotted his marijuana patch on Skillmans Lane in Franklin behind his rented home and township detectives arrested him, authorities said.

The 17 marijuana plants they confiscated, some 6 feet tall, brought Wilson a charge of operating a drug manufacturing facility, an offense that can bring up to a 20-year prison sentence if there's a conviction.

Under a judge's ruling in Superior Court, Somerville, on Monday, a jury won't hear Wilson's account of why he grew the marijuana.

Judge Robert Reed ruled that Wilson cannot use his medical condition as a defense or mention it to a jury. The reason follows the argument that led to the rejection of Wilson's motion for the dismissal of the indictment.

Since there is no legislatively permitted exemption for personal use in operating a drug manufacturing facility it cannot be used as a legitimate defense, state Deputy Attorney General Russell Curley argued and Reed agreed.

Mentioning multiple sclerosis would amount to an emotional appeal to the jury, Curley argued.

Reed wrote in his opinion that medical marijuana is a matter for lawmakers.

"If medical marijuana use is to be recognized to an exemption from our criminal law, the legislative process must produce that result," Reed wrote. "Defendant's assertion of a personal use defense is not permitted under our present law."

Allowing medical marijuana use for certain patients is being weighed by the state Legislature.

The most recent version of a bill permitting it, which cleared an Assembly committee in June, recognizes multiple sclerosis as a qualifying disease, but would not allow patients to grow their own.

Critics contend that if the bill becomes law it would allow marijuana to fall into the hands of recreational users and could lead to outright decriminalization.
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James Wronko of Somerville, Wilson's attorney, said he will appeal Reed's ruling.

Wilson's defense hinged on him growing the marijuana for his own use, not for distribution. But his medical condition and story about self-treatment were necessary components in that argument, Wronko said.

Without allowing the testimony of Wilson's illness and his treatment by using marijuana, the jury could incorrectly conclude he is a commercial drug dealer, Wronko argued.

Wronko said Wilson learned about using marijuana to treat multiple sclerosis while watching talk show host Montel Williams, a fellow sufferer.

"(Wilson) began buying it from different places on the street, but it became dangerous and he didn't want to be part of the drug trade," Wronko said. "So he began to grow his own."

That changed when the state police helicopter flew overhead.

Along with the 17 plants, detectives seized some "processed bags of marijuana" and psilocybin mushrooms, according to court documents.

He was charged with other offenses, including possession of the psilocybin mushrooms. Wronko said it was a small amount and it is not the focus of their case.

Wilson could not be reached for comment.

As for now, Wronko said the effects of the multiple sclerosis come and go for Wilson. He still gets around on his own, but with difficulty. He has not reached the point of having to use a wheelchair.

"He has good days and bad days, good weeks and bad weeks," Wronko said.

Critics contend that if the bill becomes law it would allow marijuana to fall into the hands of recreational users and could lead to outright decriminalization.

James Wronko of Somerville, Wilson's attorney, said he will appeal Reed's ruling.

Wilson's defense hinged on him growing the marijuana for his own use, not for distribution. But his medical condition and story about self-treatment were necessary components in that argument, Wronko said.

Without allowing the testimony of Wilson's illness and his treatment by using marijuana, the jury could incorrectly conclude he is a commercial drug dealer, Wronko argued.

Wronko said Wilson learned about using marijuana to treat multiple sclerosis while watching talk show host Montel Williams, a fellow sufferer.

"(Wilson) began buying it from different places on the street, but it became dangerous and he didn't want to be part of the drug trade," Wronko said. "So he began to grow his own."

That changed when the state police helicopter flew overhead.

Along with the 17 plants, detectives seized some "processed bags of marijuana" and psilocybin mushrooms, according to court documents.

He was charged with other offenses, including possession of the psilocybin mushrooms. Wronko said it was a small amount and it is not the focus of their case.

Wilson could not be reached for comment.

As for now, Wronko said the effects of the multiple sclerosis come and go for Wilson. He still gets around on his own, but with difficulty. He has not reached the point of having to use a wheelchair.

"He has good days and bad days, good weeks and bad weeks," Wronko said.