Pubdate: Sun, 01 Mar 2015
Source: Spokesman-Review (Spokane, WA)
Copyright: 2015 Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.spokesman.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/417
Author: Gene Johnson, Associated Press

TRIBES DISCUSS LEGAL MARIJUANA

Representatives Attend Forum on Regulatory, Social Issues

TULALIP, Wash. (AP) - The Justice Department's announcement in 
December that it would allow the nation's Indian tribes to legalize 
and regulate marijuana on their reservations brought notes of caution 
if not silence or opposition  from many tribes.

They were reluctant given the substance-abuse problems that already 
plague many reservations.

But the attendance at a conference on the topic Friday gave an early 
indication of just how many might be weighing it, even if a thicket 
of potential legal issues remain.

Representatives of about 75 tribes from around the country converged 
on the Tulalip Indian Tribes' resort and casino for a $605-a-head 
seminar on the regulatory, legal and social issues related to pot legalization.

That's a small fraction of the nation's 566 recognized tribes. Many 
attendees were from smaller tribes looking for a potential economic edge.

"A great deal more are considering this than I thought would be 
considering it," said Ken Meshigaud, chairman of the Hannahville 
Indian Community, a band of the Potawatomi Tribe on Michigan's Upper 
Peninsula. "From an economic standpoint, it may be a good venture the 
tribes can get into."

Tulalip Vice Chairman Les Parks called it "a dream of another point 
of self-sufficiency on our reservations."

"That's what marijuana can do for us," he said.

Tribes have been wrestling with the idea since the U.S. Justice 
Department announced that it wouldn't stand in their way if they want 
to approve pot for medical or recreational use.

The agency said tribes must follow the same law enforcement 
priorities laid out for states that legalize the drug, including 
keeping marijuana out of the hands of children and criminal elements.

The discussions are heating up: On Monday, about 200 tribal leaders 
attended a meeting of the National Congress of American Indians, 
which included a closed-to-the-press panel discussion with Justice 
Department officials on marijuana legalization, said Demitri Downing, 
a former prosecutor for the Tohono O'odham tribe in southern Arizona 
who now advises tribes on regulatory issues related to pot.

The topic also is on the agenda of a major tribal economic summit in 
Las Vegas next month.

"We have to take a look at it," said Seth Pearman, an attorney for 
the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. "The economic 
opportunity is just astronomical - it would be almost negligent to 
miss out on this."

He said tribal leaders already are drafting regulations for a 
marijuana industry, and they toured some Washington state 
dispensaries on their trip.

The conference was organized by Robert Odawi Porter, a former 
president of the Seneca Nation in New York, and Seattle marijuana 
business attorneys Hilary Bricken and Robert McVay.

Porter noted that difficult legal issues remain, especially related 
to tribal sovereignty. About 17 states have some criminal 
jurisdiction over tribal lands. If tribes are in those states, and 
those states prohibit marijuana, tribal members could face state 
criminal prosecution if they legalize or regulate marijuana, he said.

Several tribes stressed they are proceeding cautiously and reluctant 
to outpace changes in state marijuana laws. For example, tribes might 
not want to legalize for recreational use if it's illegal 
off-reservation, said Chris Stearns, a Navajo and the chairman of the 
Washington State Gambling Commission.

"They can sell to non-Indians, but the second they leave the 
reservation they get arrested," Stearns said. "That's not a great 
business model."

The tribal council of the 3,200-member Hoopa Valley Tribe, in 
Northern California's famed Emerald Triangle, has requested 
recommendations from health, law enforcement and other tribal 
officials to consider the consequences of marijuana legalization, 
including whether it might jeopardize federal aid for health care, 
fire services or housing, said Councilman Brad Marshall.

Some tribes said they would first consider regulating cannabis for 
medical use. They said they were intrigued with the idea that making 
pot more accessible might help cut down on abuse of methamphetamine 
or prescription drugs among tribal members.

"We're looking at what the benefits are, not only with revenue but 
with the medical relief we can give to our elders," said Lewis 
Taylor, chairman of the St. Croix Tribe of Wisconsin.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom