Pubdate: Fri, 24 Feb 2006
Source: Lowell Sun (MA)
Copyright: 2006 MediaNews Group, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.lowellsun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/852
Author:  David Perry
Cited: National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws 
http://www.NORML.org
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project http://www.MPP.org

AN OUNCE OF POT -- AND JUST AN OUNCE OF TROUBLE

For decades, marijuana has offered forbidden pleasure to its users, 
but a sobering penalty when caught. Last week, a state legislative 
committee took the first step toward lessening the sting for those 
caught with small amounts of marijuana.

The Mental Health and Substance Abuse Committee voted 6-1 to make 
possession of less than an ounce of the drug a civil offense, 
punishable by a $250 fine. The citation may be paid by mail, just 
like a parking ticket. Parents of those 18 years and younger in 
possession of less than an ounce of pot also would be notified.

As the law stands, offenders risk up to six months in jail and a $500 
fine. Such a measure has a long way to go -- it must be approved by 
the House and Senate. It then goes to the desk of Gov. Mitt Romney, 
whose anti-drug stance has been staunch.

If he vetoes the bill, it would take a two-thirds majority in both 
the House and Senate to override the veto.

The possession of small amounts of marijuana (usually an ounce or 
less) has been decriminalized in 12 other states, according to Allen 
St. Pierre, executive director of the National Organization for the 
Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).

The Bay State bill may revive debate on the issue, state Sen. Susan 
Fargo hopes. Fargo was an early co-sponsor of the bill, after the 
late Sen. Charles Shannon, a former police officer, appealed to her 
for help. A 2000 poll in Shannon's district showed widespread support 
for decriminalization, and "it was something that was important to 
him, so I agreed to sign on," Fargo said. "I felt it was at least 
important to bring out for debate." Fargo said she's not yet sure 
where she stands. "It's not something I've yet done much research on 
at this point," she said.

But the Bay State debate is not about the use of medical marijuana, 
to ease pain of those suffering from disease. Rep. Steven Tolman, a 
Brighton Democrat and chairman of the Mental Health and Substance 
Abuse Committee, has said that the bill's goal is to make sure a 
youthful pot arrest and criminal record doesn't haunt someone for the 
rest of their lives.

Chelmsford Police Chief Ray McCusker opposes decriminalization. "I'm 
obviously disappointed by this action," McCusker said. "I think it's 
going to cause the drug that's already the number-one choice of youth 
in our area to become even more prominent. That's my concern. Along 
with alcohol, it's the number-one drug of choice with teens. And I 
just think something like this sends a bad message to them. And I'm 
disappointed it's gotten this far."

Lowell Police Superintendent Edward Davis also opposes 
decriminalization of pot. "And I think the general public by and 
large believes it should still be a criminal offense. There have been 
attempts to get this done through the courts with cases, and that 
hasn't worked. So now, they're going through the Legislature. "I know 
that research shows it's not a gateway drug, but in my opinion, 
marijuana sets the stage for the abuse of other drugs. And what tells 
me that is 10 years of past experience with narcotics enforcement."

Davis said there is "incredible profit" spread among pot dealers and 
smugglers, "and I don't see how this bill would change that. I think 
we have to remain vigilant and prosecute people. We have a big enough 
problem with alcohol and those would only add to the problem we're 
already dealing with."

Those who deal with addiction were split on decriminalization.

Mary Grady, a clinician who works with juveniles at Lowell House, 
said the message the bill will send to "impressionable" young pot 
smokers is that "the less penalty you have, the less of a big deal it 
is." She said she has worked with children as young as 9 years old 
who have smoked pot. "And now, it can be tainted with heroin and 
cocaine, which are addictive. They go buy it and they never know 
what's in there. And it's so accessible." Grady said marijuana 
paraphernalia and seeds are readily available on the Internet, and 
pot itself is "easy to find. There are parents who sit on a Friday 
night, and invite kids 12 and 13 years old to smoke it with them. And 
what's going to stop them from doing that? 'I'll only get a fine, who 
cares?' "Adults, fine, go and do your thing. But somebody who's 12 
and still impressionable?"

Janice LaCroix, a Lowell drug and alcohol counselor, said she would 
like to see fewer law-enforcement resources used to chase "relatively 
harmless" pot. "Maybe if we stopped chasing all the marijuana out 
there, we could spend time on the heroin and the dealers who are 
killing our kids," LaCroix said. "I deal every day with severe 
addictions, including alcohol and heroin. Very little do I see 
marijuana as an issue of addiction. It typically isn't an 
overwhelming issue in peoples' lives. But I can walk down the street 
10 feet to a liquor store that sells all kinds of poison. This 
morning, I was sitting with a 25-year-old who looks like he's 50. And 
that's from alcohol." She said marijuana is a "gateway" drug to 
harder drugs "if you want it to be. I used to smoke pot and never 
wanted to try cocaine or heroin. That's apples and oranges."

"I don't see it as a gateway drug," said a 20-year-old Middlesex 
Community College criminal-justice major, who requested anonymity. He 
smokes weed, but not nearly as much as the rest of his family. "I'm 
the only one in my family who's not a daily smoker. My parents, 
brother, sister, they smoke regularly. I'm less frequent." "I agree 
with the legislation," said the student. "The idea should be to head 
toward decriminalization. My parents are successful people. It's not 
like it affects the rest of their lives. "The problem is, my biggest 
concern is, I've seen people caught with a small amount who've gone 
to jail, and it's been hard for them to recover their lives."

"What the committee did was certainly something we support," said 
Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project in San 
Francisco. Mirken said that evidence from studies in states that have 
decriminalized marijuana show that "it really doesn't make a whole 
lot of difference in terms of marijuana use in this country. The 
bigger question is, why put people in jail for possession or use of a 
drug that is demonstrably less addictive than alcohol?"

Last year, he said, 771,605 people were arrested on marijuana 
charges, "the equivalent of every man, woman and child in the city of 
San Francisco." Yet reports show "every year it is widely available 
and becoming more available and there's no sign of any change. "At a 
certain point," Mirken said, "you do have to acknowledge that the 
definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again 
and expecting different results." 
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