Pubdate: Tue, 21 Jun 2005
Source: Metrowest Daily News (MA)
Copyright: 2005 MetroWest Daily News
Contact:  http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/619
Author: Peter  Reuell
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)

STUDY: POT USE IN MASS. IS HIGH

A recent study cited Boston as the highest city in the nation, but local 
police said yesterday that has not kept pot off MetroWest streets. If 
anything, it's easier to get than ever.

Although  they rarely make the massive busts seen in larger cities, police 
in MetroWest  and Milford communities say marijuana is easy to find, and 
remains relatively  cheap.

"We know  marijuana has always been popular, and still remains popular," 
Franklin Police  Deputy Chief Steve Semerjian said. "Obviously, there's a 
good supply line,  because there's no shortage."

In a study  released last week, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental 
Health Services  Administration found more than 12 percent of Boston 
residents aged 12 and older  had smoked marijuana in the last month -- the 
highest rate in the nation.

The figures  seemed hardly surprising to Ashland Police Detective Greg 
Fawkes. "It's not  hard to get," he said of pot. "We see it constantly. 
It's very prevalent. You  could say just about everybody knows somebody in 
town they could get pot from."

And they  probably will not have to shell out much for it. Although younger 
kids often buy "dime" bags for $10, larger amounts go for as little as  $15 
or $20, Fawkes said.

Stopping  the trade is a challenge, he said, not only because it's so 
diffuse, but also  because it's so common.

Despite the  department making a major bust over the weekend, involving 
four grams of crack  cocaine, OxyContin and more than an ounce of 
marijuana, Fawkes admitted it is  nearly impossible for officers to chase 
down every small dealer. "It's just  that it's really easy to get your 
hands on," he said. "It seems like every kid you grab with a dime bag knows 
not one kid they could get it from, they know 10  kids they can get it from.

"The  problem is also...two months ago we had another crack and heroin 
bust. We've got  to prioritize. We can't track down every guy dealing dime 
bags of marijuana."

Where is  all that pot coming from? Mexico,  mostly, said Drug Enforcement 
Agency spokesman Anthony Pettigrew. Other sources  include Canada, Jamaica 
and Colombia. "It's  coming in by any traditional way you see other drugs 
come in," he said. "They're  shipping it through trucking companies. A lot 
comes in through the mail." Pettigrew  said the drug usually sells for 
between $90 and $250 an ounce. High potency designer pot, however, can go 
for as much as $400 an ounce. Milford Police Lt. James Falvey, however, 
said busts that big are rare. Over a year ago,  the department seized more 
than a pound of marijuana in a raid, but most recent  busts have been smaller.

"A typical  example might be a patrol officer making a motor vehicle stop, 
making an arrest  for another crime and finding a small amount in the car 
or on the person," he  said.

In  Framingham, marijuana has largely been pushed out by other drugs, like 
heroin  and cocaine.

"(It's) not  a huge problem that we see here," Framingham Police spokesman 
Lt. Vincent Alfano  said. "Generally, the only time we come across 
marijuana is involved in an  officer making a traffic stop. Our efforts are 
primarily concentrated on the  heroin and the cocaine."

While some  chalk up the popularity of pot in Boston to the thousands of 
college students  who flock to the city, the same cannot be said about the 
campus of Framingham  State College.

"I've got  to be honest. I don't think there's been... a marked increase," 
Framingham State  College Police Lt. Pam Curtis said yesterday. "We 
probably average, I would say,  one or two calls for marijuana a month, but 
that's alleged use, at times."

Part of the  success, Curtis chalks up to the college's strict 
zero-tolerance policy. Students  caught using drugs, including alcohol, 
face a five-week expulsion from  dormitories and school activities, and may 
be required to attend drug counseling  sessions. Subsequent offenses can 
prompt expulsion from school. "Framingham State really has done a 
phenomenal job of not just handing out consequences,"  Curtis said. "There 
is an educational setting behind it."
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