cannabisnews.com: Pot Laws Easier Here? 





Pot Laws Easier Here? 
Posted by CN Staff on August 18, 2003 at 06:59:28 PT
By Mark Sommer, News Staff Reporter
Source: Buffalo News 
Canada's current penalties for marijuana possession are about to go up in smoke. That's causing concern among law enforcement officials - from Erie County Sheriff Patrick M. Gallivan to federal drug czar John P. Walters - who don't like the implications of pot being decriminalized north of the border. But here's something not widely known: New York State's laws on marijuana are, in some ways, weaker than the ones Canada is poised to adopt. In fact, New York decriminalized marijuana a quarter-century ago, one of 12 states to do so.
So what exactly is the difference between what Canada is proposing to do and what New York already does? It comes down to quantities and the number of infractions. Canada, if the country's law is changed as expected, would not legalize marijuana. Instead, it would treat possession of up to 15 grams, or about a half-ounce, with fines equivalent in U.S. dollars of up to $290 for adults and $180 for minors. Stiffer penalties would be imposed for drivers who are high. New York's law long ago raised the bar for prosecution to 25 grams. Possession in the state is supposed to net offenders a civil citation for up to two offenses, with a $100 fine for the first conviction and $200 for a second. It's the lowest form of violation that can be prosecuted in the state. The law gets tougher after two convictions or if the violator is convicted of smoking in public. In each case, the penalty rises to the level of a Class B misdemeanor, which can result in 15 days of jail time and a fine of up to $250. And even then, some well-placed legal and law authorities believe the law is not always enforced. "From a law enforcement perspective, I'm sure there are times when people are not arrested for very small amounts (of marijuana)," said Buffalo Police Commissioner Rocco J. Diina. "These are cases clogging the (court) calendar on what are considered minor infractions and which are being routinely dismissed by judges." Buffalo defense attorney Paul Cambria agreed. "Often police will just find marijuana and toss it away," he said. "It's not worth the paperwork to go forward." Will the decriminalization of marijuana in nearby Ontario tempt Western New York youths? Sheriff Gallivan says yes - potentially posing a dilemma, for example, for families vacationing in or enjoying a summertime residence in Canada. "Should this change in Canadian policy take effect, we will see a sharp increase in the availability of marijuana within a 10-minute drive from downtown Buffalo," he said. Gallivan said some teens are already enticed to go across the border to take advantage of the lower drinking age of 19. Decriminalizing marijuana will increase availability, he said, and raise the likelihood more youths will smoke pot there. The sheriff also said marijuana is already a major export from Canada. "We get more marijuana in the Buffalo area from Canada than anywhere else," Gallivan said.  Pushing for lax laws Marijuana laws in the state stand in sharp contrast to the stringent Rockefeller Drug Laws, the 1973 granddaddy of mandatory-minimum sentencing for cases involving cocaine and heroin. Proponents of marijuana decriminalization - many of whom favor outright legalization - say marijuana is a relatively harmless recreational drug enjoyed by tens of millions. Putting people in jail for marijuana is a waste of lives and public funds, they say. "Every time the Allman Brothers come into town, people are caught smoking and are charged with a misdemeanor," said Ruth Liebesman, an attorney at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. She was referring to one of many rock bands that are a magnet for pot smokers. People like Liebesman take satisfaction from an October 2002 Time/CNN Poll that found 72 percent of people favored a fine without jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana, and 80 percent supported legalizing marijuana for medical purposes. Nearly half of those polled - 47 percent - said they had tried marijuana. The poll added fuel to the arguments of the reform group, a 33-year-old organization that seeks to legalize marijuana use for adults. "When one out of two Americans have flouted the law, there's something wrong with the law," said Keith Stroup, founder and executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based organization. "We distinguish all the time between the use and abuse of alcohol. That's what we should do with pot." Bruce Mirken, spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C., another group that has pushed for marijuana decriminalization, scoffs at the notion that Canada's relaxed laws will hurt the United States. "New York has a marijuana use rate which is about half of that in Massachusetts, which does jail people (for small amounts of possession)," he said. "Is New York flooded with Massachusetts teenagers wanting to get high?"  A 'gateway drug' But opponents of marijuana decriminalization say that tough penalties are needed because pot has been shown to be a "gateway drug" to other illicit and potentially dangerous substances, from LSD to Ecstasy. They fear that decriminalization in Canada will signal greater public acceptance of the drug. That could lead to greater availability and more trafficking, they claim. Recent scientific studies point to health risks posed by marijuana. The National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, has found persistent use can impair memory. Long-term use increases the risk of cancer of the head, neck and lungs and can lead to a chronic cough, bronchitis or emphysema. For some people, the institute said, the drug can become an addiction.  Area of ignorance Americans continue to underestimate the dangers of marijuana, said Walters, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. "The reality of marijuana in the United States is that it is the single biggest area of ignorance," said Walters, who during the Reagan administration was chief of staff to the nation's first drug czar, William Bennett. "Most people think of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine - those are hard drugs, those are the great drugs of addiction. "But you cannot speak seriously about the need for treatment and dependency and abuse in the United States without talking about marijuana," Walters said. "Of the illegal drugs, it's the single biggest cause of treatment need of any illegal drug and twice that of the second most significant cause, cocaine." While penalties for marijuana are lower, arrests are at an all-time high. In 2001, the last year for which numbers are available, 723,627 people were arrested for marijuana violations across the country, according to the FBI. That's the second-highest ever recorded and more than double the number of arrests in 1992. Marijuana arrests were nearly half of all drug arrests in the United States, the FBI said. Charges for first-time users, however, are frequently thrown out in New York under what's known as an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal. And few people are convicted of smoking pot more than twice, when the penalty changes to a misdemeanor. Major reforms The 25-gram level set for prosecution in New York State has a historical basis. That amount refers to what constituted a "lid," the amount that marijuana was typically sold in during the 1960s and early 1970s. The lid eventually gave way to the ounce, technically 28.35 grams. That amount provides 30 to 40 modest-size joints, which can last an average smoker two to three months. Nowadays, with top-grade pot going for $400 and up, marijuana is also commonly sold in eighths of an ounce. Marijuana reforms in the state and nationally have been dramatic since the heyday of the '60s counterculture, when smoking "grass" first attained widespread popularity. "When we founded NORML 32 years ago, possession of even a small amount was a felony in almost every state, and it was very common for people to get five- and 10-year sentences for possession of even an ounce of marijuana," said Stroup, the executive director of the marijuana law reform group. Some people have gotten steep prison sentences for far less. John Sinclair received a 10-year prison sentence in Michigan in July 1969 for possession of two joints. His situation was popularized by the John Lennon song "John Sinclair," and he ended up being released from jail - but not before serving 21/2 years. Medical issue Another burning issue concerning marijuana is Canada's decision in July to begin allowing doctors to prescribe marijuana for medical purposes. In contrast, the Bush administration that same month asked the U.S. Supreme Court for permission to prosecute doctors who recommend marijuana to their patients. Doctors are allowed to do so in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, in accordance with the laws of those states. Note: Canada is lessening its penalties for marijuana possession. But in an odd twist, New York's laws on the drug are even weaker.Complete Title: Focus: Marijuana Reform: Pot Laws Easier Here?Source: Buffalo News (NY)Author:  Mark Sommer, News Staff ReporterPublished: August 18, 2003Copyright: 2003 The Buffalo NewsContact: lettertoeditor buffnews.comWebsite: http://www.buffalonews.com/ Related Articles & Web Sites:NORMLhttp://www.norml.org/Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/It's Time To Ease Nation's Laws on Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17008.shtmlThe Sick Shouldn't Be Victims of The Drug War http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16917.shtml
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Comment #5 posted by afterburner on August 18, 2003 at 13:56:47 PT:
Virgil vs. the Big Lie of ''Decriminalization'' 
Gateway = BS. Ignorance = Quack Walters. Severe recriminalization in Canada, if it passes, God forbid, would be more restrictive than New York. It's legal now in Ontario. Sheriff Gallivan, is New York overwhelmed with a sudden increase in imported cannabis? Are the citizens of Buffalo dying on the streets, poisoned by Canada's "weapons of mass destruction"? 
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Comment #4 posted by Lehder on August 18, 2003 at 09:49:42 PT
 relegalization
>>"From a law enforcement perspective, I'm sure there are times when people are not
   arrested for very small amounts (of marijuana),"Let me tell you how lax - and impossible - mj law enforcement is in Albuquerque. First of all, you're not going to get arrested for pot unless you are drunk and call the cop a spic. Out of a population of about 650,000 probably half smoke marijuana, about 90% of them semi-privately and the rest without a care about public comsumption. I have been turned on by strangers at bus stops, on the side walk, and in clubs. People smoke on their porches, in the parks and nearly everywhere else. In the university area you can see plants in people's windows. Places that do not sell tobacco or cigarettes offer big boxes of rolling papers, and the head shops really push the limit by displaying large marijuana stalks, with the leaves and flowers stripped off, above their pipe racks and grow equipment. The only people who do not smoke in Albuquerque are cops, Q-cleared defense employees who either think that marijuana is a dangerous drug or else very likely snort a lot of cocaine, and a few outnumbered bigots who recently arrived from the East. You can buy marijuana on the street with little more trouble than you would have buying marijuana on the street in San Francisco or coastal Oregon.New Mexico provides a jail term for casual possession. But if this law were enforced, jails for probably 300,000 would be needed. In 1986, the Albuquerque Journal reported that "APD does not target individual marijuana growers," and as far as I know this policy has not been changed. Advertisements for apartments in Albuquerque - noisy, miserable places to live no matter what the price - boast "large closets," which is about all they have to offer.Street crime, robbery, vandalism, gang wars, burglary, DWI, assault are so pervasive in Albuquerque that there is simply no time or resources to deal with marijuana. Cops there have learned this lesson the hard way: from their own drug war that fosters crime and violence. The intersection of two major freeways and the proximity to Mexico have made Albuquerque a distribution center for big big loads of every kind of dope, and only a Hitlerian repression could dent it. Marijuana, despite the law, is almost legal in Albuquerque. In Santa Fe, there are only a few people who do not smoke marijuana: cops and a few of the employees of LANL who live there. In Taos the cops smoke as much dope as Julia Roberts does at her ranch; only Donald Rumsefeld, who does not smoke dope at any of his six plush New Mexico residences, is left out.New Mexico cops have their hands full with crime and especially drunkeness. If you can't see this in Albuquerque, then try Gallup, and if you're still unconvinced take old 666 north to Shiprock. A friend of a former friend traveling south from Shiprock in a rental car at night ran over a body on 666 - at least he thought he had hit a pretty big bump. Thinking it over, he decided that, well, that might have been a body. So, I'm told, he called the car agency and the cops and was advised - don't worry about it, this happens all the time.If you head north out of Gallup in the dead of night in the middle of winter you will see dozens of people setting out on foot for the 90 mile walk to Shiprock with nothing but a beer in their hands, not even a coat. When the bars are closed they'll puncture cans of hair spray to sip the intoxicating contents. If there were a power blackout in New Mexico, no one would notice.Cities and entire states are being forced to make nonenforcement the unofficial policy on marijuana. The real problems that society faces are difficult enough to solve, especially with overbearing federal policies that make local solutions nearly impossible, without having to hunt down, imprison and destroy every responsible marijuana smoker.Marijuana is going to be legal one way or another. But life in the U.S. is going to decline a lot while we're getting there. What a stupid, stubborn way to legalize.
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Comment #3 posted by Virgil on August 18, 2003 at 07:53:56 PT
Glad the police get their views published
The party line gets repeated repeatedly, with LE now commenting on an issue of foreign sovranty as if he eats enough donuts for that big of a shadow.People can take a short train ride from Buffalo to Niagra Falls and possess/consume MJ without breaking any laws in Canada. That is a big part of the story left out. It gives a stink to the whole article.American newspapers, stay home without it.
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Comment #2 posted by 13th step on August 18, 2003 at 07:46:09 PT
Notice how they can say...
...recent studies , and never cite the study?"Recent scientific studies point to health risks posed by marijuana. The National Institute on Drug Abuse, part of the National Institutes of Health, has found persistent use can impair memory. Long-term use increases the risk of cancer of the head, neck and lungs and can lead to a chronic cough, bronchitis or emphysema. For some people, the institute said, the drug can become an addiction. "BAH! disinformation.On another note:
http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0300southwark/content_objectid=13231906_method=full_siteid=50100_headline=-Dope-parents-wake-up-to-a-dead-baby-name_page.htmlBoth had alcohol, but what is given prominence? 
'Puffing' cannabis.****"A COUPLE were unable to recall the crucial moments after they found their three-week-old baby boy dead because they had been "puffing" cannabis, an inquest heard.Steven Richards, who had smoked four cannabis joints, could not give a consistent account surrounding the death of tiny Charlie.And Rebekah Leech, of Lindsay Street, Rotherhithe, had fallen asleep with the tot in her arms after smoking two joints and drinking two Bacardi Breezers, Southwark Coroners' Court heard.She said: "All I can remember was Steve taking him out of my arms, then I fell back asleep. "When I woke up, all I can remember was Steve shouting the baby's dead and that was it."Charlie died on May 27 at Mr Richards' bedsit in Belvedere, Kent. Mr Richards, who had also drunk "three or four" glasses of cider, said he could not say what happened surrounding the death.He called 999 saying his baby was dead with blood on his face lying next to the couple in their bed.At the inquest he could not remember the conversation.He said Charlie could have died in his cot although blood was found on the couple's bed sheet.But the inquest heard it was possible one of the parents could have slept on top of the baby and blocked his airways.Coroner Serena Lynch asked if Mr Richards had found the baby in the cot.He replied: "That's the bit I can't understand. I just can't remember."She then asked what position the baby was lying?Again he replied: "I can't remember."Consultant paediatric pathologist Professor Anthony Risdon said the blood on the sheet came from an extensive haemorrhage of the lungs, which could be a sign of airway obstruction.He said: "I think it is likely the baby did die on the bed."He said there was nothing to indicate an unnatural death.Prof Risdon said the death did not fit into the usual category of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.Recording an open verdict, Ms Lynch told the couple: "I'm so sorry medical science cannot tell us exactly how Charlie died. "There is nothing sinister in the discrepancy or inconsistency we have heard about."But she added: "Alcohol and puff did not help your memories of what happened that evening."*******Grrrrr....This makes me so sick.Propaganda machine is in high gear on both sides of the pond. They're scared so they are pumping up the rhetoric.Email the Buffalo news and tell them they need to do real fact checking, and not repeat the governments lies!
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Comment #1 posted by Richard Paul Zuckerm on August 18, 2003 at 07:34:51 PT:
CANADA STILL HAS NOT LEARNED HISTORY!
The people of Canada better familiarize themselves with the history of the Cannabis laws as shown from the Web article entitled Shadow of the Swastika, www.sumeria.net/politics/shadv3.html, before its too late! Government supremacy is NOT the answer! Shrinking government is the answer. The government is NOT your friend, people!! Wake up!Richard Paul Zuckerman, Box 159, Metuchen, N.J., 08840-0159, richardzuckerman2002 yahoo.com. 
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