cannabisnews.com: Pot Laws Costing Plenty





Pot Laws Costing Plenty
Posted by CN Staff on September 27, 2002 at 20:10:13 PT
By Tom Hennessy, Staff Columnist
Source: Press-Telegram 
Monday, September 23, 2002 - Depending on your view, it was a defiant act of mercy or a collective nose-thumbing at the U.S. government.What happened last Tuesday in Santa Cruz was this: People who support the use of marijuana for medical purposes distributed it to a dozen patients, including some who are terminally ill. Among those helping to distribute the pot were the city's mayor, six of its seven council members, and a county supervisor.
It was anti-government at its most melodramatic. Several hundred citizens cheered the heroes, the pro-pot officials, and hissed the villains, mostly the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. All this took place, mind you, outside City Hall."Santa Cruz is a special place, and today we're letting the world know how compassionate we can be,' said Mayor Christopher Krohn. "We're taking a stand.'The stand was that of defying federal authorities and declaring the city to be a "sanctuary' from them. The demonstration, triggered by a recent federal raid on a local medical marijuana club, included a few people who, although not ill, lit joints to express their disdain for the feds.But event organizers, namely the Women's Alliance for Medical Marijuana, discouraged such freelance smoking, insisting that the demonstration's focus was on medicinal use of the plant.At play here was a conflict of laws. Use of marijuana for medical purposes is legal in California if prescribed by a physician. But its use for any purpose is prohibited by U.S. law. And the U.S. needs to get over that.Meanwhile ...The Santa Cruz flap comes at a time when another battle is being waged to decriminalize marijuana use. In Nevada, an initiative called Question 9 proposes that people be allowed to posses up to 3 ounces.Question 9, which is on the November ballot, is not as revolutionary as it appears at first glance. Were it enacted, pot smoking in public would still be outlawed. So would driving under its influence and selling it to minors.But what makes the initiative unique is the fact that it is supported by the state's largest police organization, the Nevada Conference of Police and Sheriffs. Last month, the group's board of directors voted 9-0 to back Question 9. In so doing, NCOP president Any Anderson reflected the frustration of many police officers."I was a Metro police officer for 28 years,' he told the Las Vegas Sun, "and I spent a lot of time booking people on marijuana charges that never went to court. It would take anywhere from a couple of hours for a single arrest to about half my shift if there was a line at the booking window or multiple arrests time that could have been better spent on the street addressing violent crime.'It is refreshing to see groups like NCOP take a second look at enforcement of marijuana laws, an effort that is costing us a fortune.In 2000, the United States saw a record 734,498 marijuana-related arrests. If you suspect most of these were for sale or production, you are wrong. About 85 percent of those arrested were charged with simple possession. According to the Department of Justice's own statistics, about 60,000 people or 3.3 percent of our total incarcerated population are under lock and key for marijuana violations.That's costing us $3.2 billion a year.Thought you'd like to know.Tom Hennessy's viewpoint appears Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Source: Long Beach Press-Telegram (CA)Author: Tom Hennessy, Staff ColumnistPublished: Tuesday, September 24, 2002 Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Newspaper GroupContact: speakout presstelegram.comWebsite: http://www.presstelegram.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:NRLEhttp://www.nrle.org/WAMMhttp://www.wamm.org/Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/Pictures From WAMM Protesthttp://freedomtoexhale.com/eventpics.htmOne Puff At A Time - Economist UKhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14262.shtmlWhy I'm Fighting Federal Drug Laws From City Hallhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14195.shtml 
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on September 27, 2002 at 22:39:22 PT
delariand
No you're right. What we are finding lately is writers writing without doing enough research to get it correct. I was contacted by a writer from a newspaper and she wanted to speak with someone that had good knowledge about different aspects of Hemp. I sent her Jack Herer's web site and I told her he is an expert and could help her I'm sure. Writers need to investigate to make their articles good and believable. Some writers do.
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Comment #1 posted by delariand on September 27, 2002 at 22:26:31 PT
Is it just me?
Or did this guy forget that the NCOP retracted it's vote and the president was basically forced from his position?
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