Source: Las Vegas Sun Contact: Pubdate: December 03, 1997 ABERNATHY ARRESTED WITH DRUGS ATLANTA (AP) State Sen. Ralph David Abernathy III, son of the pioneering civil rights leader, was fined $500 after he was found with a small quantity of marijuana, a customs official said Wednesday. Abernathy, 38, whose father, the Rev. Ralph Abernathy Jr., became head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was slain in 1968, was stopped Monday after he drew the attention of a drugsniffing dog at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport. Abernathy was found to have been concealing about 6.9 grams of marijuana, enough for several cigarettes, said Michael J. Vanacore, an official with the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Atlanta. Vanacore said customs agents have blanket permission from the U.S. attorney to assess immediate fines on those found to be carrying small quantities of drugs. Such cases are not prosecuted, he said. Abernathy did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. All contents copyright 1997 Las Vegas SUN, Inc.