cannabisnews.com: Groups Hope Petition Helps Soften Pot Policies





Groups Hope Petition Helps Soften Pot Policies
Posted by CN Staff on October 13, 2002 at 18:15:24 PT
By Holly Wray
Source: Columbia Missourian 
All that is stopping the Columbia City Council from considering softer penalties for marijuana possession is 400 signatures. A petition circulating around the city calls for a new ordinance that would make possession of marijuana a ticketable offense only, not punishable by a prison sentence. The petition also asks that the city legalize possession of medical marijuana with a doctor's note.
The council will have to vote on adoption of the ordinance if the petition receives 1,191 valid signatures by mid-December. If the petition receives enough valid signatures and the council does not approve the ordinance, it will go to a public vote in April. The petition asks the council to consider lowering the penalty to a $25 fine for first-offense possession of less than 35 grams of marijuana — about enough to make 14 joints. Classified as a misdemeanor in city ordinances, the maximum punishment of possession of less than 35 grams of marijuana is a $1,000 fine and one-year prison term. A conviction for possession of drug paraphernalia, also a misdemeanor, carries the same penalties. Recent MU graduate Sarah Duff and Anthony Johnson, president of Mizzou ACLU, wrote the petition with Columbia attorney Dan Viets. "I have a firm belief that it will pass," said Duff, who is a member of The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and Students for a Sensible Drug Policy. Other cities have decriminalized marijuana possession on the local level, including Milwaukee, Ann Arbor, Mich., and Mendocino, Calif., according to NORML. Another provision of the petition dictates that all marijuana possession charges be directed to the municipal prosecuting attorney. That would mean people charged with possession of marijuana, if convicted, would be sentenced according to city ordinances in municipal, rather than state, court, Viets said. "This ordinance would establish that it is the policy of the city to prosecute under the city ordinance," Viets said. "It's not really making a radical change; it's making it consistent." Prosecuting attorneys have absolute discretion on what charges they file and where they file them, said Municipal Judge John Whiteside, who hears most of the marijuana possession cases that come to city court. The proposed ordinance would restrict that choice and might have some constitutional problems, Whiteside said. In all cases that involve a first-offense possession charge of a small amount of marijuana and don't involve other charges, officers send the suspect to municipal court, said Columbia Police Chief Randy Boehm. Boehm said he has not seen the petition, but in general he does not support it. "If it removes that discretion, it's not good for law enforcement," he said. "The system works now." Three years ago, there was a similar effort to petition the council to consider an ordinance that would have reduced penalties for marijuana possession. That measure failed to get on the ballot by a few hundred signatures, Viets said, because many people who signed the petition wrote down an address different from the one under which they were registered to vote. Some city and county officials addressed the issues raised by the petition. According to a compromise worked out among former Columbia Police Chief Norm Botsford, County Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Crane and former Columbia Prosecutor Bill McKenzie in January 1999, all charges for possession of 5 or fewer grams of marijuana go to municipal court, and others go to state court. Viets disputes the policy because he said Columbia residents who supported the petition, such as the group Columbians for Responsible Marijuana Law Enforcement, were not included in devising the new rule. Viets said this rule has not been followed consistently. He has had clients, he said, who were charged with possession of less than 5 grams but sent to state court, while others charged with possession of more than 5 grams were sent to municipal court. Boehm said officers generally follow the 5-gram rule. The suspect might be sent to state court if there are other circumstances, Boehm said, such as previous criminal record or other charges in conjunction with the possession charge. "The rule is followed in a general way," Boehm said. "But it is necessary to have some discretion. There can't be a policy that describes all possible situations that can arise." Note:  400 signatures are still needed for the City Council's review. Source: Columbia Missourian (MO)Author: Holly WrayPublished: October 13, 2002Copyright: 2002 Columbia MissourianContact:  editor digmo.com Website: http://www.digmo.com/SSDPhttp://www.ssdp.org/NORMLhttp://www.norml.org/CannabisNews - Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml
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Comment #8 posted by TroutMask on October 14, 2002 at 06:46:02 PT
Big Doobies in MO
"35 grams of marijuana — about enough to make 14 joints"Wow, over 2 grams per joint. They must share a lot in MO.-TM
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on October 13, 2002 at 23:34:14 PT
afterburner 
Thank you for mentioning the needed correction. Hopefully someone will write the paper and tell them about it. That's a big mistake.http://www.chomedeynews.ca
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Comment #6 posted by karkulus on October 13, 2002 at 23:16:27 PT
Not to give them any ideas,but...
Wouldn't it be weird if the Fed.govt. encourged "citizen corp" types to make citizens arrests as deputized Federal marshalls?They could go around saying" I arrest ye in the name of the most high Czar and his gnarly minions (the DEA).Of course,on-the-spot executions would be optional.Most likly it would be asset-forfeiture(like,give me your wallet!)
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Comment #5 posted by afterburner on October 13, 2002 at 22:10:51 PT:
FoM: misprint on page 5!
This pdf takes a long time to load, but it is interesting. However, there is a misprint on page 5!In other words, we recommend that the authorities legalize cannabis for use below the age of 16. NOT!!! This is a misprint. I have read this quote before, and Senator Nolin says that cannabis should remain prohibited below the age of 16.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on October 13, 2002 at 20:51:04 PT
Articles on Marijuana from Canada
Page 3 and page 5 of this pdf file is news about marijuana from Canada. I didn't know how to copy the article to post it so I uploaded the whole paper in pdf. Here it is.http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/legalize.pdf
Chomedey News
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on October 13, 2002 at 20:27:06 PT
It Was Decriminalized in Ohio
Hi Gary,I wish I could remember the year but it was the late 70s that the laws changed in Ohio. It went from a 20 to 40 year sentence for possession to a small fine as long as it is under 100 grams. 
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Comment #2 posted by Gary Storck on October 13, 2002 at 19:46:18 PT
Madison not Milwaukee
The article said pot was decrim in Milwaukee. But they had to mean Madison, where an initiative passed by voters in 1976 was codified as Ordinance 23.20 by the City Council in 1977. Addressing both personal and medical use, Ordinance 23.20 is said to be the oldest medical marijuana law in the U.S., possibly the world.Milwaukee eventually did pass some kind of decrim ordinance, but not until like 10 years ago or so, I think.
Drug Policy Forum of Wisconsin
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Comment #1 posted by afterburner on October 13, 2002 at 19:23:48 PT:
In Memory of the Ann Arbor Sun...May It Shine On.
Although Ann Arbor, Michigan, was one of the first, if not the first city to decriminalize marijuana possession to a misdemeanor with a fine, the cases could still be referred to state or federal jurisdiction for prosecution of politically active defendants. This unintended result is still haunting us today, as in the WAMM raids by federal DEA agents overstepping California law in their zero- tolerance drumbeating. Pray for Peace. Stop the War on Drugs (cannabis prohibition). Let Freedom Ring. 
Ann Arbor Sun: 1968-1975 (on microfilm)
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