Pubdate: Tue, 19 Jun 2012
Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright: 2012 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/IuiAC7IZ
Website: http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/82
Author: Hal Dardick

BURKE NOT READY TO VOTE TO DECRIMINALIZE MARIJUANA

Councilman Wants More Details About Ticketing Vs. Arrests

An influential Chicago alderman said Monday that he's not ready to
sign off on Mayor Rahm Emanuel's proposal to decriminalize possession
of small amounts of marijuana.

Although Ald. Edward Burke, 14th, didn't rule out backing the mayor's
plan, the veteran City Council member said he needs to know more about
when police will write tickets instead of making arrests.

"If you run across somebody that's violating the law and you want to
write them a ticket as opposed to taking them into custody, and that
person has no identification, how do you write the ticket?" Burke
asked, after a speech at the City Club of Chicago.

"Do you believe what the person says - my name is Joe Blow, or my name
is George Washington and he's got no identification to back that up?
How do you then guarantee that that person is going to show up for the
administrative hearing?"

Under Emanuel's proposal, which a council committee could hear as soon
as Thursday, police would have the option of writing tickets for
possession of 15 grams or less of pot. Fines would range from $100 to
$500.

That could generate millions in city revenue and potentially give beat
cops more time on the street to deal with more serious issues such as
gang violence.

Police, however, could still enforce state statute and make arrests,
and Burke wants to know when they would use that discretion.

"The Police Department has to show us, I think, that they are not just
going to blindly issue tickets to everybody that's in possession of
small amounts," said Burke, a former police officer and the longest
serving council member. "There has to be a certain strategy to know
which of these people that they could write a ticket to are eligible
for a ticket."

Burke also questioned the effect that writing tickets might have on
younger people's views of drug use.

"This is a slippery slope that we begin sliding down," he said. "I'll
tell you as a parent, I'm very concerned with anything that gives kids
the idea that this is not a bad thing to do."

Pot decriminalization was first suggested last year by Cook County
Board President Toni Preckwinkle, who said low-income people and
minorities are arrested for pot possession in disproportionate numbers.

Ald. Daniel Solis, 25th, agreed and put a proposal before the council
that Emanuel plans to modify and support.

Despite reservations like those expressed by Burke, Ald. Patrick
O'Connor, 40th, the mayor's council floor leader, said he expects the
proposal to win approval, if not by a huge margin.

"I think there will be a lot of personal involvement in this vote,"
said O'Connor, who noted some aldermen may be influenced by knowing
people who have had drug problems. "There's a myriad of issues that go
beyond just whether you are decriminalizing marijuana, and I don't
know that everybody's there."

O'Connor said he also doesn't expect the Emanuel administration to try
to force the issue. "I don't think there will be a fullcourt press to
make sure it passes overwhelmingly," he said.

Burke, meanwhile, said time will tell whether he votes for
it.

"I'm not saying we shouldn't do this," he said. "I'm saying there's a
lot of questions that should be answered."
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MAP posted-by: Matt