Cowardly career politicians, out of touch with their own constituents and terrified of being branded "soft on drugs," have once again dropped the ball on decriminalizing marijuana.
Senate Bill 5615, which would have freed up Washington's criminal justice resources by making adult possession of small amounts of marijuana an infraction carrying a fine, rather than a misdemeanor carrying mandatory jail time, failed to get a vote in the Washington State Senate Tuesday.
"This means efforts to address adult marijuana use through a civil, public health approach, rather than a failed criminalization approach, have died for the 2010 legislative session," said Alison Holcomb, drug policy director, ACLU of Washington.
"The ACLU of Washington is disappointed by the Legislature's failure to pass this bill despite strong and consistent public support for it," Holcomb said.
"An overwhelming majority of Washington voters support the modest change proposed by SB 5615 -- a change already made in 13 other states, 11 of them as long ago as the 1970s, with no adverse impact," Holcomb said.
According to Holcomb, studies in those states demonstrate no increase in marijuana use among adults or youth, results echoed in jurisdictions like Seattle, where adult marijuana possession has been the lowest law enforcement priority since 2003.
"In 2008, police and prosecutors filed 12,428 cases involving misdemeanor marijuana possession by adults in Washington courts -- using funds that would be far better spent addressing other priorities, including violent crime," Holcomb pointed out.
"The Washington State Office of Financial Management estimated that SB 5615 and its companion HB 1177 would have made approximately $15-16 million in scarce public safety dollars available to combat true public safety threats, and would have directed significant resources to sorely needed, state-funded treatment and protection services," Holcomb said.
"We applaud Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, prime sponsor of SB 5615, for her tireless efforts to advocate for sensible reforms grounded in reason, science, and fiscal responsibility," Holcomb said. "And we hope our Legislature will get the electorate's message in 2011 and pass marijuana decriminalization legislation."
"It's time to stop wasting money on arresting and jailing adults for marijuana use and invest instead in proven prevention and treatment programs," Holcomb said.
Five of these? Yes, please. (Super Silver Haze sativa/indica hybrid)
The government of the Czech Republic in eastern Europe will allow ordinary citizens to grow up to five marijuana plants starting Jan. 1, 2010.
The cabinet of Prime Minister Jan Fischer defined "personal use" amounts of cannabis and other drugs, clarifying the nation's new penal code that will decriminalize cultivation and possession of pot.
While marijuana will remain technically illegal, possession will be punished only with fines comparable to those imposed for parking tickets, Sean Carney at the Wall Street Journal reports.
What constituted "small amounts" for personal use was previously undefined. Police and the courts loosely interpreted the laws on a case by case basis, often resulting in home marijuana growers being jailed.
This is what 15 grams of pot looks like. If you have this much or less, you won't have to Czech yourself, starting Jan. 1.
According to the Justice Ministry's additional proposed rules, which according to Czech newspaper České Novinyare not yet formally approved, the possession of up to 15 grams (just over half an ounce) of dried marijuana will no longer be a criminal offense. Individuals will be also allowed to possess up to five grams of hashish without being prosecuted.
If the government accepts the ministry's proposed rules in two weeks, those having more than 15 grams of marijuana or five grams of hash could still face up to one year in prison.
Also allowed under section of the new rules already approved will be cultivation of up to five coca plants and five mescaline cactus. Up to 40 psilocybin "magic" mushrooms may be kept at home, according to the approved rules.
Even harder drugs are included in the decrim plan. According to a section of the proposal not yet officially approved, up to two grams of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin will also be decriminalized. Possession of up to four Ecstasy tables won't be criminally punished.
Approval of a table specifying specific amounts of drugs is part of the country's new penal code, approved last year by both houses of Parliament and signed into law this year by President Vaclav Klaus.
Photo: Chmee2
Burning one down in the Czech Republic. Hempiest heads in Europe?
Czechs are not only Europe's heaviest beer drinkers (320 pints per person per year), according to the Wall Street Journal; they may also be the continent's biggest potheads.
Almost one of four, 22 percent, of Czechs between 16 and 34 smoke marijuana at least once a year, according to a 2005 report by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
Although the medical marijuana issue is gaining prominence in Europe and worldwide, the Czech Republic still doesn't recognize medical use of the herb. However, a Czech non-profit group in September opened the nation's first marijuana dispensary in Prague, despite there being no medical marijuana laws on the books.
The grand opening of the dispensary was attended by Prague's mayor, Dr. Pavel Bern, who is also a physician and proponent of responsible marijuana use.
Some Czech courts have occasionally made exemptions to current law to allow for medical use and cultivation of cannabis, but without supporting legislation such rules remain in limbo.
A massive representation of a joint in a "rolling paper" evoking the American flag, 2008 Summer Solstice Parade, Fremont Fair, Seattle, WA (Photo: Joe Mabel)
Marijuana decriminalization in Washington state just won some important allies.
This morning, the Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) Board of Governors (BOG) voted unanimously to support the decrim bill, SB 5615, in the upcoming session of the Legislature.
The BOG voted 9 in favor, 0 opposed, and 2 abstaining to support the bill, Alison Holcomb, drug policy director at the ACLU of Washington, has told Toke of the Town.
Marijuana decriminalization in Washington state may be an impossible dream this year, despite the fact that it was just passed out of state Senate committee with a "do pass" recommendation.
After some pretty amazing remarks (for different reasons) on both sides of the debate, the Washington State Senate Judiciary Committee voted 5-3 to pass out Senate Bill 5615.
SB 5615 reclassifies adult possession of no more than 40 grams of marijuana from a misdemeanor crime carrying mandatory jail time to a civil infraction imposing a $100 penalty that can be paid by mail.
Rather than objecting to marijuana decrim on any rational basis, this dynamic duo of dimwits chose to resuscitate long-discredited Reefer Madness myths as valid reasons for the bill not to move forward.
Hates trench coats and massages: Sen. Jim Hargrove
Jim Hargrove, after emphasizing he's a college graduate, said that he saw one of his former fraternity brothers who smoked pot back in the day and -- apparently because of marijuana -- the poor pothead was still wearing the same trench coat he had 20 years ago.
(Side note to Senator Hargrove: If it's not too much trouble, can you put me in touch with your pot-smoking buddy? If the marijuana he smokes is so good it makes you wear a trench coat for 20 years --imagine the savings on clothes! -- I'd really like to try some of that shit. alapoet@comcast.net. Thanks, man.)
What's worse, this dirty dope-smoker had the same hairstyle he had back then, and was actually taking classes at (shudder) Evergreen College. We've all heard of that bastion of "higher" education, now haven't we? Buncha damn hippies and commie pinko liberals, that's what they are, yessir. What's more, he even practiced some massage therapy -- yet another vaguely disreputable profession, we are given to believe.
I guess because Hargrove disapproves of his friend's dress, hairstyle, and lifestyle, we are supposed to keep arresting and jailing marijuana smokers, mmmkay?
Voters of Washington's 24th District, PLEASE vote this clueless clown out of office next opportunity you get, before he embarrasses you all again and does more damage. The bad news is you're stuck with this idiot until the 2012 elections.
And voters of the 28th District should be pleased to find that your State Senator Mike Carrell [office phone number (360) 786-7654] doesn't mind wasting lots of your tax dollars on enforcing futile marijuana laws.
According to the ACLU of Washington, there were more than 11,000 arrests for misdemeanor marijuana possession in 2007 in the Evergreen state. The courts entered 3,600 convictions and imposed more than 16,000 days in jail. Police time, court time and jail time consumed approximately $7.6 million of YOUR tax money.
But Mike Carrell said it's not about your money; it's about the crucial importance of arresting marijuana smokers. So I guess you shouldn't mind at all, eh? Gotta get them potheads.
Carrell also, while admitting he's never been to Amsterdam, "helpfully" shared that "one of the greatest dangers" of visiting there is "walking on needles, and other things" because Holland's liberal drug policies have contributed to the "unraveling of their society."
Whoa, Mike; that would would come as a big surprise to the orderly Dutch, to find out their entire society has unraveled. Presumably they are too stoned to notice they're walking around on needles... Sigh.
Hates science: Sen. Pam "Doesn 't Smoke A" Roach (Side Note to Pam: You shouldn't have taken down the link to that first picture on your State Senate site, darlin'. It was a lot more flattering, i.e., unlike you. Oops, did I say that out loud?)
And then there's the always-entertaining Senator Pam Roach (yes, she of the dreaded "financial disclosure irregularities"). Pam flatly stated, based undoubtedly on her vast knowledge, that marijuana "is a gateway drug." Never mind the science! Pam said so. I guess that settles it.
Hey, Mrs. Roach: It's not too late. Take a hit from the clue bong, baby. Study after study over a 30-year period has discredited the gateway theory of marijuana. You've had plenty of time to learn this. Either get your facts straight, or shut the hell up and get out of the way.
To thank the members of the committee who voted to pass (prime sponsor Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles, my new hero Committee Chair Sen. Adam Kline, Committee Vice Chair Sen. Debbie Regala, and the eloquent, intelligent and articulate Sen. Rodney Tom, all Democrats; and Republican Sen. Bob McCaslin, who bravely crossed party lines to make this a bipartisan effort), visit:
Senators Kohl-Welles, Kline, Regala, Tom and McCaslin are real leaders, and deserve the continuing support and votes of the marijuana community.
Kohl-Welles in particular shined as she told why marijuana decriminalization really is a public safety issue: It burdens law enforcement and criminal justice resources to arrest and prosecute marijuana users caught with small amounts of the herb, while having absolutely no impact on use or availability of marijuana. Kohl-Welles rightly pointed out that the deprioritization of marijuana enforcement frees up police to pursue serious crimes.
Here's the video recording of the hearing (February 18 executive session) from www.TVW.org:
You can scroll forward to the discussion of SB 5615 by clicking on the progress bar at the bottom of the window. The discussion begins at 1:36:05.
I encourage all of you to watch and listen. It's a great opportunity to be able to hear our elected representatives engage in an open, public discussion and debate of our state's marijuana laws and the broader "war on drugs."
SB 5615 now goes before the Senate Rules Committee, which must take action to put the bill on the floor of the Senate for full vote. Senate Rules Committee members:
The companion bill, House Bill 1177, was referred to the House Committee on Public Safety & Emergency Preparedness, where it has yet to be scheduled for a public hearing. The bill is being held up in committee by pot-phobic asshat ex-cop State Rep. Chris Hurst (D-Enumclaw), chair of the House Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Committee. So it basically all comes down to this one guy.
Asshat ex-cop Chris Hurst ain't givin' up on the marijuana war (Side Note to Chris: Dude. How hard did you think it'd be for me to link to another picture, after you disconnected the first one? Asshat.)
Next Wednesday, February 25, is the deadline for bills to be passed out of committee. Asshat Hurst flatly declares no hearing will be held.
He argues it would be irresponsible to move a piece of legislation forward before the federal government removes marijuana as a Schedule 1 controlled substance. Hurst claims he actually supports such a change, but says Washington state should not act ahead of the federal government. (Um, Chris? Isn't that what a leader does? Get out ahead? Otherwise, you're just a follower, a tool, and a political coward.)
Doing so, he argues, could lull citizens into harm's way with zero-tolerance federal authorities, such as the Coast Guard, DEA or border agents. Officer, er, Senator Hurst is apparently oblivious to the fact that a dozen other states -- including even Mississippi, for Christ's sake -- have decriminalized marijuana, and no such thing has happened.
If you'd like to call Hurst's office and let him know what you think about that:
Telephone (360) 786-7866
Or if you're one of his constituents, you can send him a message online:
This blog may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for educational purposes, to advance understanding of human rights, democracy, scientific, moral, ethical, and social justice issues, etc. This constitutes a "fair use" of any such copyrighted material as provided for in Title 17 U.S.C. section 107 of the U.S. Copyright law. This material is distributed without profit.
Posts
