Pubdate: Thu, 22 Nov 2012
Source: Eagle-Tribune, The (MA)
Copyright: 2012 The Eagle-Tribune
Contact:  http://www.eagletribune.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/129
Author: Jesse Roman

AREA TRIES TO PREPARE FOR VAGUE LAW

The idea that marijuana should be legal for citizens with chronic
illnesses was overwhelmingly approved by Massachusetts voters on
Election Day - that was the easy part. But nobody is really sure what
happens next.

"There are a tremendous amount of questions," said Essex County
District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett, a staunch opponent of the law.

The vaguely worded ballot question, which passed by a near 2-1 margin,
makes it legal for citizens with a doctor's note to purchase and
consume marijuana for medical treatment. Only two communities in the
state, Lawrence and Mendon, voted against the measure.

The law calls for up to 35 marijuana dispensaries to be set up in
Massachusetts next year, with at least one but no more than five in
each county. The state's Department of Public Health is charged with
regulating medical marijuana, as well as filling in the many blanks,
such as how the dispensaries will operate, where they can be located,
how much pot they can dispense, where the drugs will come from and
much more. So far, the department is mute on how things might shake
out.

"The department will work closely with health care and public safety
officials to develop smart and balanced policies and procedures over
the coming months," Lauren Smith, interim commissioner for the
Department of Public Health, said in a statement to The Salem News.
"We will work carefully, learn from other states' experiences and put
a system in place that is right for Massachusetts."

The department declined to say if it had already received any
applications from people or businesses looking to open up
dispensaries.

With so few answers, communities are left to make educated guesses at
how to prepare for the prospect of having a marijuana dispensary in
their own backyards. Danvers selectmen and Salem and Peabody city
councils have had at least some brief discussions already with the
idea of changing or altering zoning bylaws to limit where dispensaries
might locate. That's a smart strategy, Salem Rep. John Keenan said.

"If you don't zone it, I imagine the dispensaries would be able to
locate in any business district and I would imagine that would be a
concern," said Keenan, Salem's former city solicitor. "But then the
question is where do you put it? I don't think there are going to be
councilors lined up to volunteer to have it in their ward."

The Salem council will hold a joint public hearing with the city
Planning Board to discuss the issue on Tuesday, Dec. 4.

"I would like to move in some kind of direction that would define
(dispensary locations) as narrowly as possible," said Salem City
Council President and Sen.-elect Joan Lovely, who voted against the
ballot question.

Danvers Selectman Dan Bennett guessed that a community would have
legal difficulty banning dispensaries altogether and urged his fellow
board members last month to start planning for the strong possibility
that a dispensary will open in Danvers.

"There is a likelihood they will want to locate where the traffic is,
and, let's face it, all of the highways go through Danvers," Bennett
said in an interview. The town's attorneys are now looking into what
the town's options are.

Like Salem, "I think we'll be looking into a zoning bylaw to control
the location," Bennett said. "Frankly, I don't want it in the downtown
area where kids are hanging out after school."

The Peabody City Council is doing the same and will hold a Legal
Affairs Subcommittee meeting Tuesday addressing if it can control the
location of marijuana dispensaries "so they don't just pop up on the
corner," City Councilor Dave Gamache said at a meeting Nov. 8.

Legislative response

Despite the overwhelming vote, the state Legislature has authority to
repeal the law, though everyone agrees that's extremely unlikely.
There's little doubt, however, that the law will be altered, Danvers
Rep. Ted Speliotis said.

"The way I and I think most of the Legislature looks at ballot
questions is it's the voters accepting or rejecting an idea. The
actual implementation is left to the government," Speliotis said.
"Every chapter of the law is written to amend and improve on. That's
every new piece of legislation. We ask how can we make it better?"

The new session officially begins in January. Lawmakers usually begin
filing legislation for the upcoming year in mid-December.

"We'll know a lot more about (what lawmakers' intentions are) in the
next couple of weeks," Keenan said. "I would venture to see what the
DPH does first. Right now, we're in wait-and-see mode."

Keenan, who was in favor of the ballot measure, said he wants to hear
from district attorneys, law enforcement, health care providers and
others before deciding how to improve the law.

"I'm sure the district attorney will reach out to us and give us some
advice about what we might do to implement the law in a safer way,"
Keenan said. "We're willing to listen to folks who have any ideas on
implementation."

Whatever happens, "we'll be very cautious and make sure the
implementation is consistent with the intention of the law," Speliotis
said.

Blodgett, however, has little faith that anything can be done to save
what he considers a very flawed idea.

"The bottom line is that there are no safeguards we can put in place
to prevent abuse from this (law)," the district attorney said in an
interview. "Look at other states, they are all trying to change the
law that was initially passed because they are grappling with the
problem of abuse. It will be a challenge for the Legislature and the
local communities to decide where the dispensaries will be and how
they will run."

Blodgett laments that the law will inevitably lead to "more drug use,
more people driving cars stoned and more necessity for health care
providers to provide health care. ... The last thing we need are more
15-year-old kids smoking pot."

That said, Blodgett hopes lawmakers and DPH will reach out to him and
other law enforcement officials as resources as they try to implement
the law and dull the negative impacts.

"I hope the Legislature crafts tight, well-thought-out restrictions
and language," he said. "That is going to be important."
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MAP posted-by: Matt