After a neurologist told Shirley Nelson that a banned oil extracted from marijuana plants might help her son find relief from debilitating seizures, she launched an online petition.

She hoped to add 1,000 names to her plea to lawmakers to legalize the non-psychoactive extract known as cannabidiol, which some scientists think quiets the chemical and electrical activity in the brain that causes seizures.

In three weeks, she collected more than 100,000 signatures.

Some were from ardent advocates of marijuana legalization. Many were from mothers who have used heartbreaking stories of suffering children to lobby conservative legislators elsewhere to clear the way for an experimental remedy made from a federally prohibited plant.

“We’re fighting hard,” said Nelson of mothers like her. “We’re fighting with everything we’ve got.”

Legislatures in 17 states that ban marijuana have legalized the use of cannabidiol, in many cases after hearing from a powerful constituency of mothers of children with seizure disorders.

Not in Indiana.

Earlier this year, a Senate committee killed a measure to exempt non-psychoactive marijuana extracts from the state’s pot laws provided they are used in certain medical treatments.

The legislation was authored by Rep. Don Lehe, a conservative Republican from Brookston who found himself opposed by prosecutors who argued that the measure would open the door to medical marijuana.

“That’s not what this legislation was about,” he said. “It’s about creating some relief for children in need.”

Nelson plans to hone in on that message next week when she testifies in front of a legislative committee assigned to take another look Lehe’s proposal. She’s been advised she’ll have 10 minutes to make her case, at most, given the anticipated crowd.

Nelson’s story resembles the plight of other parents who see cannabidiol as a last hope.

Her 17-year-old son, Jonathon, was born with cerebral palsy and multiple ailments that robbed his mobility and now his speech.

He’s …read more

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