cannabisnews.com: Marijuana Initiative: Judge Rejects Signatures Marijuana Initiative: Judge Rejects Signatures Posted by CN Staff on June 26, 2004 at 07:54:41 PT By Erin Neff, Review-Journal Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal A District Court judge ruled Friday that Clark County officials are not obligated to count thousands of petition signatures misplaced by leaders of an initiative to legalize possession of small amounts of marijuana. The decision jeopardizes the initiative's chances of qualifying for the statewide November ballot. Judge Ken Cory cited another case before his court and the hardships those signature collectors faced in denying the request for a temporary restraining order for the Committee for the Regulation and Control of Marijuana. "Their rights to gather signatures were infringed," Cory said of the case involving Nevadans for Sound Government, whom he granted an extraordinary extension to the petition deadline. "Whereas in this case, I don't think you can point to any other showing of a violation of rights." The committee, led by Billy Rogers of the Southwest Group, said it discovered a box containing 6,000 signatures four days after the petition's June 15 deadline for submission. In the other petition case, Cory said, the plaintiffs successfully argued governmental agencies had impeded their ability to gather signatures. Rogers' attorney, Ross Goodman, argued a conflict between two state statutes should have permitted the Clark County Election Department to accept the signatures, which had been notarized prior to the June 15 deadline. He said the Legislature crafted election laws with the mandate they be "interpreted liberally" to benefit the will of the electorate. "Through inadvertent and excusable neglect, they were found after the deadline," Goodman said, referring to the 6,000 signatures stacked in front of Rogers at the plaintiff's table. But Clark County counsel Mary-Anne Miller argued the statute specifying a June 15 deadline "isn't something the Legislature just made up." She also said Goodman hadn't proven his case could succeed on the merits of the petition filed in court. "They would have to establish a due process right to a second chance, a do-over, a mulligan, whatever you want to call it," Miller said. Rogers had sought the restraining order to force the county to accept the 6,000 signatures during the signature verification process currently under way and expected to be finished by July 2. Without the 6,000 signatures, his petition faces a real danger of not qualifying for the November ballot. The committee turned in 35,000 signatures in Clark County, more than the 31,360 required. However, most petitions lose 30 percent of their signatures during the verification process. For a signature to be valid, it must be that of a registered voter in that county. If the petition does not qualify in Clark County, the committee's petitions would have to qualify in all 13 of the other counties for which it met a valid number of signatures during the initial raw count. At least two of those counties, Elko and Lyon, have a very small margin of error. Rogers and Goodman each said Friday they did not know whether they would seek an emergency injunction in District Court, something Cory advised Friday would be an option for them. "By then they'd be done with the count, and the relief we'd be seeking would be more extraordinary," Goodman said after the hearing.Note: Cory says petitioners cannot show a rights violation.Complete Title: Marijuana Legalization Initiative: Judge Rejects SignaturesSource: Las Vegas Review-Journal (NV)Author: Erin Neff, Review-JournalPublished: Saturday, June 26, 2004Copyright: 2004 Las Vegas Review-JournalContact: letters lvrj.comWebsite: http://www.lvrj.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/Judge Asked To OK Late Pot Petitionshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19064.shtmlForgotten Box of Pot Petition Signatures Foundhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19056.shtmlMJ Initiative Backers Forgot 6,000 Signatures http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19055.shtmlLegalization of Marijuana: Initiative in Jeopardyhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19052.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #28 posted by FoM on July 08, 2004 at 13:18:39 PT Related Article from The Associated Press Marijuana Initiative Falls Short in Clark County, Future in DoubtJuly 8, 2004LAS VEGAS (AP) - A marijuana initiative has failed to qualify in Clark County, jeopardizing the petition's ability to make the statewide November ballot, election officials said Thursday. To qualify for the Nov. 2 election, the initiative must collect 51,337 valid signatures statewide and qualify in 13 of Nevada's 17 counties. "It would be a longshot if they were to make the total of 51,000 if they are relying on just the other counties to make up the difference," said Steve George, spokesman for the Secretary of State's Office. "Usually if something doesn't carry in Clark County ... it will have a hard time making it." The Committee to Regulate and Control Marijuana submitted a total of 66,135 signatures across Nevada. The initiative would allow adults to legally possess up to an ounce of marijuana. Of the 35,400 signatures turned into the Clark County Election Department, about 26,730 were verified, according to Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax. The initiative needed 31,361 signatures to qualify in Clark County. George said the 26,730 signatures includes some 13,000 which are in dispute because a petition affidavit was not completed. The Secretary of State's Office has requested the State Attorney General's Office determine whether those signatures should count. Backers of the marijuana initiative said they will have enough valid signatures in the remaining counties to bring the issue before voters. "We knew Clark County and Elko were going to be close, so if we make it in Elko, I'm confident we'll have enough valid signatures in 13 counties," said Billy Rogers, head of the Committee to Regulate and Control Marijuana and a member of the Washington D.C.-based Marijuana Project. Five counties have reported having enough valid signatures, according to the Secretary of State's Office, which has yet to process and review the signature counts due Friday. Ronda Moore, deputy secretary of state for elections, said Elko reported its count at 104 percent of needed valid signatures and Clark came in at 85 percent of what was needed. She cautioned that nothing is official until the review process is completed. The other counties that already have submitted their counts to the Secretary of State's Office are Carson, Lander, Lyon, Mineral, Eureka and Douglas counties. Mineral, Carson, Lander and Lyon counties qualified the petition. Eureka and Douglas counties did not. The marijuana committee forgot to turn in 6,000 signatures to the Clark County Election Department by the June 15 deadline. A Clark County judge later ruled election officials were not obligated to count the signatures. Copyright: 2004 Associated Press What's New in Drug Policy Reform [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by FoM on June 27, 2004 at 12:17:50 PT Freedom of Religion EJ that's true. I look at things from a whole different way then most people. I look for connections that aren't really important except to me. It's a journey I have been on my whole life practically. Politics are hard for me to grasp but looking at it from the way I do seems to help me understand what I want to know. I do hope this makes sense. This is hard to explain. [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by E_Johnson on June 27, 2004 at 12:07:06 PT That's why freedom of religion is so important When a religion fails people, the people who feel it failed them can go start their own religion or found a new branch of their starting religion. In America almost anyone can find some church somewhere that suits them. [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by FoM on June 27, 2004 at 11:35:41 PT EJ You're Right I knew when I typed that my meaning might not be understood. Organized religion has failed the truly devout people in their organized religion. They have not failed at keeping power for sure. Just the people have been hurt and disappointed. [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by E_Johnson on June 27, 2004 at 11:30:56 PT What organized religion has failed FoM? In evolution, you're a success if you're still alive to reproduce.In that sense, organized religion has been much more successful than anything else humans have ever done. [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by E_Johnson on June 27, 2004 at 11:25:07 PT We originally supported Israel because the Arabs had an offical policy of calling for their extermination.Thanks to America, they weren't annihilated.Rome destroyed Jerusalem and the Jews were never welcome anywhere else they tried to live.So what is the solution? Let them be exterminated?Now the Palestinian crisis has turned the word "support" into something less noble.But this has not inflamed terrorism anywhere near to what the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan has done. That was exactly and precisely where and when Bin Laden heard the call to Jihad. [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by FoM on June 27, 2004 at 11:02:27 PT One More Thing I really do believe that as long as we are in their holy land or supporting Israel we are doomed to attack. Because of the scripture in the link we support Israel. This is a religious war. This is why organized religions always fail.How can anyone fix it? http://www.shalomjerusalem.com/jerusalem/jerusalem59.htm [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by FoM on June 27, 2004 at 10:23:28 PT EJ I Saw a Program on TV I saw this program on church history. It was about how the different early religions after the death of Christ developed. I can't remember exactly but it mentioned the Byzantine Empire and the birth of Islam. It was very late when this was on the History Channel or Discovery or one of those channels. After the Islamic nation was getting established they turned on the church of the time because of ICONS. ICONS are what I remembered most. They attacked and killed because of what they felt were idols and unacceptable. It also said the Islam Nation is something to be reckoned with since one in five people are in that religion. It seems radicals have been around since the beginning of time and I don't know how to look at this issue. I hope this makes sense.Maybe this link will help. http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MA/BYZ.HTM [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by E_Johnson on June 27, 2004 at 10:17:12 PT This is why I don't like Michael Moore that much I think he basically wants to lead a cheering section against Bush, which is fine, I agree with it, and it is his right.However, 9Michael Moore is not someone that anyone can count on for a sober and thorough look at everything that contributed to 9/11, because that's not even what he wants to do. He wants to indict Bush, which is a different goal from looking at how and why 9/11 came to be, no matter what role Bush played himself.The reason why I think it is important to understand the role the Soviet invasion of Afghnaistan played in all of this is because Bush is pursuing the same kind of mission in Iraq that the Soviets were pursuing in Afghanistan.Whether we believe in the more or less cynical versions of what that mission was -- whether it was gaining access to energy resources, or bringing modern social values to an ancient tribal society -- we are in a similarly deep and abiding pile of doodoo now.So even if it does take attention away from the all mighty sins of America and the all mighty sins of Bush -- it would be good to go back and look at the Soviet invasion and how much the world is still paying for that terrible mistake today. [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by E_Johnson on June 27, 2004 at 09:54:45 PT I still very strongly believe The three men in history who have the most historical responsibility for 9/11 are the three Soviet aopparatchiks who ordered the invasion of Afghanistan. If the Soviets had never gone into Afghanstan, Bin Laden would be hanging out at the Bel Air Hotel right this minute with a bunch of other rich dissolute Arab playboys hiding from their families while spending down their cash on expensive champagne and cheap hookers. [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on June 27, 2004 at 05:56:33 PT Go Mike! I saw the first available screening of F911. I'm wondering if it will set a record as largest grossing opening weekend for a documentary... I love Moore's usage of music as ironic comment, although my personal choice for GWB Theme Song wouldn't have fit the mood (it's the Sex Pistols' "Liar")... and I do wish he had mentioned the $43 million dollars the US Government gave to the Taliban in May, 2001, in return for their cracking down on heroin production. Especially since the Taliban apparently profited on it twice, because they had stockpiled heroin and thus were able to corner the market. Oh well, minor quibble. I also hope this film comes out on DVD before the election, at least by a good two weeks if not more.I also agree that a Michael Moore movie about the drug war would be way cool, but I'm not sure if he's ever tackled the subject on screen before. I know he's written about it, and his opinions are pro-reform, but I wonder if the whole entire drug war might be a bit too large of a topic for him to fit in just two hours. On the other hand, imagine the film he might do about medical marijuana and the feds' war thereupon. There's lots of potential for the extremes of pathos and comedy in a somewhat more manageable sized topic. Just my opinion though. [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 22:47:09 PT Virgil Thanks! It sounds like it was an experience to remember. I can't wait to see it too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by Virgil on June 26, 2004 at 22:37:46 PT Comment12- `Fahrenheit 9/11' When I saw the movie there were 6 or 7 times when the crowd laughed all at the same time. Except for the laughs and applause at the end everyone was silent.Cannabis did evoke a laugh. The film was talking about the Coalition of the willing and mentioned two countries I did not know of and cannot recite now that lent their name to the list. Then he said Morocco was one of the Willing and volunteered 2000 monkeys to set off landminesabd he showed some old Viking footage and mentioned Iceland. Then the screen went blank except for "The Netherlands" showing up on the bottom of the screen. Then there was a scene with what must of been a wooden pipe about a foot long and with a bowl nearly two inches across. Then you saw some puffing and then everyone laughed.It seems the crowd knows the Dutch know cannabis. [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 19:37:58 PT Dankhank I think I'm over being real upset about the error. One thing that happens is when we make a mistake we usually won't ever make the same mistake again. The school of hard knocks has always been my best teacher. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by Dankhank on June 26, 2004 at 18:54:08 PT failed by association ... ? FOM,Yes, I see what you mean, I can relate ...On an up note, I got a good copy of the movie "Grass", and I will now be handing out copies of that most imformative of movies, as well as the CRL.Kerry is ignoring Oklahoma, now, but I'm waiting ... Vote Sanity!! [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by OverwhelmSam on June 26, 2004 at 17:22:54 PT In A Way, It's Good News... If there are enough signatures turned in already, it will be on the ballot, AND we got more publicity than we expected. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 15:11:00 PT `Fahrenheit 9/11' Tops $8 Million `Fahrenheit 9/11' Tops $8 Million in First Day at TheatersAssociated PressSaturday, June 26, 2004 LOS ANGELES - "Fahrenheit 9/11," Michael Moore's assault on President Bush, took in $8.2 million to $8.4 million in its first day, positioning it as the weekend's No. 1 film, its distributors said Saturday.Based on Friday's numbers, "Fahrenheit 9/11" was on track for an opening weekend that would surpass the $21.6 million total gross of Moore's "Bowling for Columbine," his 2002 film that earned him an Academy Award for best documentary. Complete Article: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/states/california/counties/alameda_county/9020755.htm?1c [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by The GCW on June 26, 2004 at 14:06:12 PT Briefly This is the last paragraph in this Boulder Weekly article.... "Reagan did not always get it right. He oversaw high levels of deficit spending, a disastrous expansion of the drug war and a foreign-policy scandal. Often his policies fell short of his rhetoric. Yet, though imperfectly, he showed us the way to those values that can restore our spirit and propel us into a bright future: individualism, free markets and technological achievement."http://www.boulderweekly.com/libertybeat.htmlReagan’s legacy4 2 0(Don't assess Reagan's legacy till after prohibition ends and We then look back at the many facets of damage that He's responsible for... the damage / bad seed is still growing!!!) [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 11:54:09 PT Dankhank I feel like I failed and I didn't but it reflects on us all. It's like see those lazy stoner types forget where they put things. I mind that.It is almost 100 miles to see the movie. If they bring it to one closer big town it will only be 40 miles one way and that doesn't take as long. I really want to see it. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by Dankhank on June 26, 2004 at 11:31:25 PT me2 FOMI, too, am more embarrased than anything else about this BOX.Re: F 9/11 ... the closest I am to a showing is 100 miles, but I will go to see, soon.Rockin' in the Free World ... Rock the Vote [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by cloud7 on June 26, 2004 at 09:21:47 PT It's not over yet "If the petition does not qualify in Clark County, the committee's petitions would have to qualify in all 13 of the other counties for which it met a valid number of signatures during the initial raw count. At least two of those counties, Elko and Lyon, have a very small margin of error. Rogers and Goodman each said Friday they did not know whether they would seek an emergency injunction in District Court, something Cory advised Friday would be an option for them."It seems there is still a pretty good chance of it either passing outright without the signatures or finding some way to get the other 6000 counted. I have no doubt that MPP will do everything possible to rectify this, all we can do is wait. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 09:06:49 PT Truth We've been very busy around our place recently ( just finished putting a new roof on our house) and won't get to see it for a week or two. I really hope we get to see it on the big screen but if not we will purchase and play the DVD many times I'm sure. I will also buy the re-release of Rockin' In The Free World and a movie soundtrack when it's available. Bless Michael Moore and his convictions. I'm concerned someone might attempt to kill him. That worries me. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 08:58:46 PT Hope I really don't know. It makes it close. I always like a buffer when something like this is going on. It's easy to makes things turn the other way when it is close in my opinion. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by Truth on June 26, 2004 at 08:58:37 PT FOM Yes, we did see the movie, it was everything I hoped for. I don't see how anyone could watch it and still vote for the bozo. I think bush is on his last days.The sound track was excellent. Strong sound, good music. (Some of it was pretty chilling.) [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by Hope on June 26, 2004 at 08:53:31 PT Now What Will Happen? There is a possibility, isn't there, that there will be enough signatures without the six thousand? Or is there no way there are enough without the infamous 'forgotten' box? [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 08:19:42 PT Truth Did you get to see the movie? I know everyone I know from a Neil Young Board I visit is excited that Neil Young sang RIFW as the credits played. I bet the soundtrack will be really good too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Truth on June 26, 2004 at 08:14:16 PT Good morning Changing subjects, it sure was nice to hear F9/11 end with a Neil Young song. Great movie. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by FoM on June 26, 2004 at 08:10:27 PT Now What Will Happen? I still feel embarassed and I didn't have anything to do with it. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment