OLYMPIC VALLEY, Calif. — Before the bust, Steve Kubby's claim to fame was political trivia at best: Just who was last year's Libertarian candidate for governor?
Then came the January day that narcotics officers raided Kubby's home on a scenic slope near the Squaw Valley ski resort. Agents confiscated 265 marijuana plants growing in the basement and arrested the politician and his wife.
The drug case has thrust Kubby, who said he smokes pot daily to control a rare form of cancer, into the forefront of the roiling battle over medical marijuana. It comes at a pivotal juncture in the fight.
Last month, a federal advisory panel declared that pot has therapeutic merits for patients with AIDS or cancer. Meanwhile, advocates are hopeful that last year's Democratic political sweep in California--and the departure of Republican drug warrior Dan Lungren as attorney general--will yield a friendlier environment for patients who smoke marijuana.
That hasn't been the case even with approval of Proposition 215, California's landmark 1996 medical marijuana initiative. Despite the new law, drug agents closed cannabis clubs in numerous cities. Overall, marijuana arrests statewide jumped to a record 57,677 in 1997, the law's first year of life.
Dozens of people have tried to use the law as a shield against prosecution, but few have succeeded. Kubby's case promises an unusual test. Although other patients say the drug helps them cope with illness, Kubby goes farther. Marijuana, he contends, has kept him alive.
Kubby was diagnosed in the 1970s with a type of cancer that attacks the adrenal glands and typically kills within five years. Early on, he suffered through operations, chemotherapy and radiation. But for the last 20 years his most regular form of treatment has been cannabis.
"As long as I have pot, I can lead an active and healthy life," said Kubby, 52. "I can be as physical and intellectual as any other adult. Without this medicine, I would drop dead in a few days."
Prosecutors aren't even debating Kubby's tale of herbal success. Instead, they contend the number of plants Kubby and his 33-year-old wife, Michele, cultivated were too many for personal medical use.
Authorities have charged the couple with possession of pot for sale as well as other felony counts for small amounts of hashish, psychedelic mushrooms and peyote buttons found at their home.
