Pubdate: Tue, 14 Sep 2010
Source: Times-Standard (Eureka, CA)
Copyright: 2010 Times-Standard
Contact: http://www.times-standard.com/writeus
Website: http://www.times-standard.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1051
Author: Donna Tam, The Times-Standard
Cited: Proposition 19 http://yeson19.com/
Bookmark: http://mapinc.org/find?272 (Proposition 19)

QUITE A LEAP FOR STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Humboldt County Law Enforcement Officials Sign on to Group's Support 
for Proposition 19

Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos said he supports 
marijuana legalization, but is not endorsing Proposition 19.

Gallegos' name was among a list of more than 30 former and current 
law enforcement officials across the state to sign a letter released 
by Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) in support of 
legalization and Prop. 19 -- the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis 
Act of 2010.

Retired Humboldt County Sheriff's Office Capt. Stephen Cobine and 
former Humboldt County Senior Deputy District Attorney Jeffrey 
Schwartz were also among those on the LEAP letter saying Prop. 19 can 
help relieve the problems associated with the war on drugs.

The letter, addressed to California voters and signed mostly by 
retired law enforcement officials, called the country's current drug 
policy on marijuana an "abysmal failure."

"As criminal justice professionals, we have seen with our own eyes 
that keeping cannabis illegal damages public safety -- for cannabis 
consumers and non-consumers alike. We've also seen that prohibition 
sometimes has tragic consequences for the law enforcers charged with 
putting their lives on the line to enforce it," the letter said. "The 
only groups that benefit from continuing to keep marijuana illegal 
are the violent gangs and cartels that control its distribution and 
reap immense profits from it through the black market."

Gallegos, the only signee who is currently serving besides Oakland 
City Attorney John A. Russo, said he is not endorsing Prop. 19 and 
does not know how his name ended up on the endorsement letter. He 
added that it shouldn't be a surprise he supports legalization.

"I think marijuana should be legalized and regulated and taxed just 
like we do with alcohol," he said. "I think I've been kind of 
outspoken about that for the past eight years and I think it stays 
the same. ... I am more than prepared to get over this battle and 
start redirecting those resources away from marijuana and go after 
more serious drugs. We have plenty of work to do out there."

According to an e-mail from LEAP spokesman Tom Angell, Gallegos' 
campaign had agreed to him signing the endorsement letter.

Regardless of the confusion, Gallegos said he supports the principle 
of the letter.

"I think it's completely fair to use my name in regards that I am a 
law enforcement officer who thinks it should be legalized and 
regulated and controlled like alcohol," Gallegos said.

Similarly, Schwartz has some hesitation over the proposition, but 
chose to support it.

He said Prop. 19 needs clarity on production and sales, but supports 
it because it's a "big step in the right direction."

"I support the legalization of marijuana and this is the closest step 
we'll ever see from California," he said.

Attempts to reach Cobine were unsuccessful and Angell said Cobine has 
declined to do any press interviews.

During a telephone press conference, Stanford Neill Franklin, 
Narcotics Enforcement and Executive Director of LEAP and former 
Maryland State Police major, reiterated the organization's stance on 
law enforcement and marijuana.

"The violence that's in our communities has not subsided. The 
availability of drugs in our society has not decreased. ... After 
seeing this, I began thinking and wondering whether or not we were 
being effective," Franklin said. "And, it was becoming clear that we weren't."

Franklin was joined by other officers who pointed to how nonviolent, 
marijuana-related arrests waste law enforcement resources, and 
prohibition fuels violence around marijuana production and black 
market sales and creates a hypocrisy of the law in the eyes of young people.

Humboldt County Undersheriff Mike Downey, who has been elected to 
replace Sheriff Gary Philp when Philp's term ends, said he had not 
been approached to sign the letter.

Downey said the position of the Sheriff's Office is that law 
enforcement agencies are there to uphold the law, not decide what the 
law is. He said the retired officers signing the letter are providing 
their insight on the matter based on personal and past professional 
experience, but it is not appropriate for him to weigh in.

"I don't think it's in the best interest of the citizens of Humboldt 
whether or not the sheriff's department comes out with a stance on 
this issue. We are here to enforce the law," Downey said. "To make my 
personal view on this is not prudent."

Other local law enforcement commented on the initiative's effectiveness.

Arcata Police Chief Tom Chapman said the initiative may cause more 
confusion, leaving jurisdictions to create different regulations for the area.

"Prop. 19 is a poorly written voter initiative," he said. "Despite 
claims of marijuana being regulated like alcohol, this initiative 
places regulatory control on local government. City by city there 
will be different regulations for the sales, transportation, 
cultivation and consumption of marijuana."

Eureka Police Chief Garr Nielsen is a board member of the California 
Police Chief Association, which opposed Prop. 19.

"It's a complex issue and there are certainly valid arguments on both 
sides, but I don't think Prop. 19, the way it is crafted, is the 
solution to the problem that's facing law enforcement," he said. 
"Even if marijuana is legalized we would still have to put resources 
into enforcing ordinances relative to codes related to the 
cultivation of marijuana and that kind. The legalization of marijuana 
does not give people cart blanche to violate building codes and safety codes."

LEAP's letter argues that law enforcement dollars can go to 
enforcement of higher priority rather than the tens of thousands of 
misdemeanor arrests made each year. According to the letter, there 
were more than 60,000 marijuana-related arrests in 2008 in 
California, and nearly 60,000 unsolved violent crimes.

"When we change our cannabis laws, police officers will no longer 
have to waste time on low-level cannabis arrests; we'll be able to 
focus on protecting the public from murders, rapists, drunken drivers 
and burglars. Cannabis will no longer clog up our court dockets," the 
letter said.

Nielsen said this isn't the case in Humboldt County, where resources 
are spent combating larger grow operations or the Mexican Cartel -- 
issues that affect public safety immensely.

The use of small quantities of marijuana is not a high priority for 
law enforcement in this area, he said.

Schwartz disagrees. He estimates that 70 percent of a county 
prosecutor's time is spent on marijuana-related cases.

"A huge portion of the resources is spent on marijuana when there are 
far worse drugs out there," he said.

Schwartz, who worked at the DA's office from 2005 to 2007 and now has 
a private practice, said enforcing marijuana law is a "total waste of 
resources."

For more information on LEAP, visit www.copssaylegalizedrugs.com. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake