Pubdate: Mon, 24 Mar 2008
Source: Telegraph, The (Nashua, NH)
Copyright: 2008 Telegraph Publishing Company
Contact:  http://www.nashuatelegraph.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/885
Author: Steve LeBlanc, The Associated Press
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Marijuana)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)

REP. FRANK DEFENDS BILL TO DECRIMINALIZE SMALL AMOUNTS OF POT

BOSTON - Rep. Barney Frank is defending a bill he plans to file this 
week decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana, saying the federal 
law unfairly targets those using medical marijuana in California.

Frank, who filed a bill to decriminalize marijuana as a member of the 
Massachusetts Legislature in the 1970s, said the decision whether to 
make possession of the drug illegal should be left up to the states.

He also said the federal government shouldn't have a law on the books 
that is rarely enforced and which doesn't make sense to large 
portions of the public.

"Do you really think people should be prosecuted for smoking 
marijuana? I don't think most people agree with that. It's one area 
where the public is ahead of the elected officials," Frank said in an 
interview with The Associated Press. "It does not appear to me to be 
a law that society is serious about."

Frank said he was particularly troubled by federal law enforcement 
agencies targeting those using marijuana as a legal medical treatment 
under California law.

"I don't think smoking marijuana should be a federal case," he said. 
"There's no federal law against mugging."

Marijuana use is illegal under U.S. law, which does not recognize the 
medical marijuana laws in California and 11 other states.

The Drug Enforcement Agency and other U.S. agencies have been 
shutting down major medical marijuana dispensaries throughout 
California in the last two years and charging their operators with 
felony distribution charges.

Frank first announced the bill on the HBO show "Real Time," hosted by 
Bill Maher.

Frank's comments come as pro-marijuana activists are pushing a ballot 
question that would decriminalize possession of an ounce or less of 
marijuana in Massachusetts.

Instead of facing a criminal record, those caught with a small amount 
of marijuana for personal use would instead pay a civil fine of $100 
much like a traffic ticket. Supporters say the measure would save the 
state millions of dollars in law enforcement costs and spare 
thousands of state residents from the burden of a criminal record. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake