Pubdate: Tue, 03 May 2005 Source: Maneater, The (Columbia, MO Edu) Copyright: 2005 The Maneater Contact: http://www.themaneater.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1283 Author: Courtney French NORML GATHERS SUPPORT FOR MARIJUANA ORDINANCE The MU chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws is circulating a petition against the Columbia Police Officers Association's push to repeal Columbia's marijuana ordinance. In March, CPOA started a petition to repeal the marijuana ordinance. NORML's petition, which began circulating at the Earth Day Festival two weeks ago, now has between 100 and 200 signatures, said Amanda Broz, former president of the MU chapter. Broz said the petition is an act of opposition to the CPOA's actions. "Our community supported this change in the law," she said. "It just makes sense. People don't want police to focus on misdemeanor marijuana crimes." The ordinance, which passed with 61 percent of the vote in November, decreased penalties for possession of less than 35 grams of marijuana by referring cases to municipal court instead of state court. Broz said this is one of the reasons the ordinance is important. "It keeps people from having a permanent record that would prevent them from having certain opportunities," she said. Broz said NORML would support a compromise with the CPOA, whose main problem with the ordinance is the inability to treat multiple offenders more harshly than first-time offenders. The group would support placing a limit on the number of times a person can be cited each year before the case is referred to state court. "The citizens of the community know what's best, and the police should respect their vote," Broz said. - --- MAP posted-by: Josh