Ala. Driver Smokes Pot As Medicine

By Margie Trax Page, Star Beacon, Ashtabula, Ohio

Jul. 15–GENEVA — An Alabama woman who didn’t have a prescription for what she calls “medicinal marijuana” was apprehended by police Friday after a police dog alerted to the presence of drugs in her van.

Barbara Franklin, 53, reportedly ran a stop sign at West Liberty and Swan streets. Officer Doug Zetlaw initiated a traffic stop and smelled cigarette smoke with a hint of marijuana smoke, police reports show.

Franklin denied having any drugs on her but admitted to having smoked the drug earlier that day, Zetlaw said.

“(Franklin) said she uses the marijuana for medicinal reasons but said there were no drugs in the van,” Zetlaw said.

After canine officer Zip alerted to the presence of drugs, Zetlaw and Officer Joe Carroll searched the vehicle and found marijuana seeds on the van floor and a marijuana cigarette in the passenger-side door-map compartment, police reports show.

Franklin maintains that she didn’t have drugs on her at the time of the search.

“(Zetlaw) went around and around my van with that dog, and then suddenly he says something to the dog, and it jumps on the van,” Franklin said. “(Zetlaw) found four (marijuana) seeds and a stem. I know I didn’t have anything else in the van, and even what we found we couldn’t identify as ours,” she said.

“What (Zetlaw) smelled wasn’t in the van. It was on my breath,” she said.

Franklin, who lives on disability and has relatives in Rock Creek, said she suffers from Crohn’s disease, fibromyalgia and carpal tunnel disorder and uses the drug to stimulate her appetite.

“I can’t keep any food down; I don’t eat. (Marijuana) stimulates my appetite and helps me keep food down. If I didn’t use marijuana, I would have to take $700 a month in medications,” she said.

Franklin has been cited for drug possession and for failing to stop at a stop sign. She has two prior convictions in Ashtabula County, including a 2004 drug-abuse charge and a 2006 charge of receiving stolen property, court records show.

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