cannabisnews.com: Federal Drug Czar Won't Face Prosecution in Nevada





Federal Drug Czar Won't Face Prosecution in Nevada
Posted by CN Staff on April 24, 2003 at 10:03:30 PT
By The Associated Press
Source: Associated Press
National Drug Czar John Walters won't be prosecuted for violating state election laws, the secretary of state's office says. Chief Deputy Secretary of State Renee Parker said it would be futile to try to prosecute Walters for failing to turn in legally required campaign contributions and expenditure reports. Parker said Wednesday an attorney general's opinion found he was acting within the framework of his position last year when he campaigned against legalizing marijuana in Nevada. 
"There is nothing we can do," Parker said. "Our own attorneys are telling us we will lose." Jonathan Andrews, a special assistant state attorney general, decided that Walters didn't have to file the campaign reports required of all candidates and groups that advocate for ballot questions because of an 1890 U.S. Supreme Court decision. That decision held federal officials are immune from state action when exercising the functions of their offices, according to Andrews. The Marijuana Policy Project filed a complaint about Walters with Secretary of State Dean Heller earlier this year. The group charged that Walters, like any other person, should have submitted three reports detailing his contributions and expenditures last fall in the Question 9 campaign. Those who fail to turn in reports can be fined $5,000 for each omission. Walters visited Nevada three times to speak out against Question 9, the ballot question that would have allowed adults to possess as much as three ounces of marijuana in their homes. The question failed by a 61-39 percent vote in the November election. His Office of National Drug Control Policy also ran many television commercials warning residents of the dangers of marijuana use. Source: Associated PressPublished: April 24, 2003Copyright: 2003 Associated Press Related Articles & Web Site:Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/Federal Drug Czar Won't Face Prosecution in State http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16043.shtmlDrug Czar Spurns Complaint from Marijuana Grouphttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15318.shtmlDrug Czar Not Bound by Nevada Lawhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15313.shtml
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