Pubdate: Sat, 02 Jun 2012
Source: News-Tribune (LaSalle, IL)
Copyright: 2012 News-Tribune
Contact:  http://www.newstrib.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3808
Author: Tom Collins

DECRIMINALIZE POT? NO THANKS, SAY LOCAL AUTHORITIES

Peru police Detective Dennis Potthoff unzipped an alligator skin 
suitcase, donned a pair of gloves and began unloading vacuum-packed 
bags of marijuana onto a police table.

One thing about packaged cannabis: It reeks. The crime lab had cut 
open a few packages for testing, but even the sealed plastic bags 
couldn't contain the strong, fetid odor.

The suitcase was seized from a motorist charged with a felony, though 
by Illinois Valley standards this 50-pound seizure is chump change. 
Hundreds of pounds flow through the area with regularity, frustrating 
law enforcement officers. Cannabis is a plague.

So what do police think about Chicago reducing misdemeanor possession 
to a fines-only proposition?

"It's Chicago," Potthoff shrugged. "They've got a lot more serious 
crimes going on, so their time could be spent on more violent felonies."

Chicago authorities recently passed an ordinance that allows police 
to ticket people found with small amounts of marijuana instead of 
arresting them on misdemeanor charges, freeing up cops to address 
homicides instead of paperwork.

Now, Chicago police can write a ticket for $250 to $500 for 
possessing as much as 15 grams of marijuana. In the Illinois Valley, 
possession of that amount can fetch up to a year in jail.

And it still could. Prosecutors and law enforcement officers 
interviewed by the NewsTribune say they have no intention of 
following Chicago's lead and relaxing penalties for small amounts of pot.

La Salle County sheriff Tom Templeton said he opposes any effort that 
tends toward legalization, while allowing for special considerations 
in the Windy City. "Up in Chicago, with the volume of crime they 
have, I think decriminalization is OK," Templeton said. "Here in 
downstate, I think things are fine the way they are."

Putnam County state's attorney Jim Mack said he, too, opposes 
decriminalization because "it misleads people" as to the seriousness 
of the offense.

"The bottom line is marijuana is definitely a gateway drug that leads 
to harder drugs," Mack said. "I don't think it should be decriminalized."

Mack also noted that the filing of a criminal misdemeanor serves as a 
warning to young and first-time offenders who get a chance to mend 
their ways and avoid worse troubles down the road.

"If you can scare them a little bit and educate them," he said, "then 
I think you have a less likelihood they'll come back with harder drugs."

One consideration in Chicago is the sheer volume of cannabis cases 
and the associated costs, which city officials were in many ways 
eager to shed. Chicago authorities said 18,000 arrests for possession 
of 10 grams or fewer tied up more than 45,000 police hours, and the 
new ordinance would nearly cut that time in half. Local prosecutors, 
however, say cutting out misdemeanor cannabis offenses wouldn't save 
them enough time to help the bottom line.

Mack said he prosecutes a manageable number of cannabis cases - no 
more than 100 a year - while Bureau County state's attorney Patrick 
Herrmann said he prosecutes many more misdemeanors for underage 
possession of alcohol than for unlawful possession of cannabis.

La Salle County's caseload is substantially larger, though the 
resources for fighting that particular class of crime are more than adequate.

State's attorney Brian Towne said marijuana represents about 26 
percent of his misdemeanor caseload and that he spent more than 
$19,000 last year prosecuting those cases.

However, Towne draws revenue from a drug fines that last year 
generated nearly $250,000, or nearly 13 times his misdemeanor costs.

"Even with 26 percent fewer misdemeanors, I couldn't reduce my staff 
because those people do a lot more than just misdemeanor cannabis 
cases," Towne said. As for decriminalization, Towne said he harbors 
doubts in light of Prohibition, which was a failure on all fronts. 
Towne said he's reluctant to thrust legalized marijuana upon a 
society that can scarcely handle drunk drivers and alcohol-fueled violence.

"To legalize would be to give government approval for someone who 
might not use an illegal substance to think that it's OK," Towne said.

Herrmann said the United States has become a quilt of conflicting and 
confusing drug laws and he, for one, is opposed to Illinois adding to 
the chaos.

"Many of the cases we see on the interstate are originating, I 
believe, in states where it's legal," he said. "That's an issue that 
needs to be addressed before we discuss decriminalizing cannabis in Illinois."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom