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DrugSense FOCUS Alert #372: A Marijuana Decriminalization Initiative

On November 4th Massachusetts voters will have the chance to pass a ballot initiative decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana -- removing the threat of jail time for possessing an ounce or less of marijuana for personal use. In response to the announcement that the initiative will be on the ballot a columnist for Boston's tabloid newspaper wrote the column below which was printed today. Letters to the editor of the Boston Herald need to be short and well written - under 200 words. The average printed letter is about 120 words in length. Please also support the initiative. For details visit http://sensiblemarijuanapolicy.org/ ********************************************************************** Contact: [email protected] Pubdate: Sun, 6 Jul 2008 Source: Boston Herald (MA) Copyright: 2008 The Boston Herald, Inc Author: Howie Carr SENSIBLE POT A HALF-BAKED POLICY, DUDE Marijuana makes you stupid. It's as simple as that. And now in Massachusetts, we are going to have a ballot question that asks the following: Do you really want to make it even easier than it already is to get stupid, and stay stupid? Yes, the Bong Brigade is on the march again. They want to put the high back into high school, the truckin' back in truck stops, the joint back in all those joint legislative committees. Stand by to see stoners at the Stone Zoo, potheads in Marblehead. The grass is always greener in Greenfield, dude. If you liked HempFest on the Boston Common every September, you're going to love legalized marijuana. This one's, like, totally for Jerry Garcia! This year, the front group is something called the Committee for Sensible Marijuana Policy, and it's pushing a Sensible State Marijuana Policy. Its flacks are available for media interviews to discuss their "sensible policy." Organizers include the usual "concerned citizens," with a few token "former law enforcement professionals" thrown in. Their goal is to use the initiative to abolish criminal penalties for less than an ounce of marijuana or, to use their preferred word, hemp, as in, "Dude, did you know, like, George Washington's army used hemp when it was fighting in, uh, like, was it the Civil War, man?" The sensible group's press release sounds like it was written after watching a "Dragnet 1967" marathon on TVLand. Harmless people, we are told, "are arrested, booked, entered into the Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) system, resulting in a possible sentence of up to six months in jail and a $500 fine." Key word: possible. Do you know how difficult it is to actually be thrown in jail around here? You can lie under oath and obstruct justice, and you don't have to do a day in the can - am I right Tom Finneran? Pot charges are usually meaningless add-ons, like piling a driving-to-endanger on top on an OUI, or like Neil Entwistle being charged with possession of an unregistered handgun. The potheads say 7,500 marijuana citations make it onto the CORI system every year. But how many of those Class B controlled-substance convictions are added to someone's CORI record along with more serious raps like, say, for possession of Class D controlled substances (cocaine) with intent to distribute? The ganja-guys then cite the alleged "collateral damage" of this CORI indignity: "inability to find employment, obtain housing and receive a college loan." Please. The reason stoners can't find employment is because they're too wasted. They forgot to turn on the alarm clock. They went out for a smoke break and never returned. They missed the bus, man. They can't "obtain housing" because they can't get it together to ever leave mom's rent-free basement. Unless you're in the cop's face when you light up - like they do at HempFest - you face almost zero chance of getting arrested. Decriminalizing pot doesn't seem like a big deal, I'll grant you. After the courts decreed Adam and Eve are going to be Adam and Steve, bringing Cheech & Chong along for the ride amounts to little more than a footnote. But the problem with this ballot question is, it will lead to more pot smoking, which this society needs like . . . like, fill in the blank, dude. How can the same health pests who loathe tobacco not care a whit about a different debilitating drug that you have to ingest into your lungs in the form of smoke? The fact is, once you make something legal, even if it's just de facto, it's easier to get. Pot does fry your brain. On my radio show, I can tell a stoner within 10 seconds. They . . . talk . . . slow. They mention "hemp." They talk about "thousands" of political prisoners locked up for pot. And since their vocabulary is so stunted, because their memories are shot, they keep repeating the same words over and over again. Sensible . . . sensible . . . sensible. ********************************************************************** Additional suggestions for writing LTEs are at our Media Activism Center: http://www.mapinc.org/resource/#guides Or contact MAP's Media Activism Facilitator for tips on how to write LTEs that are printed. [email protected] ********************************************************************** PLEASE SEND US A COPY OF YOUR LETTER Please post a copy of your letter or report your action to the sent letter list ([email protected]) if you are subscribed, or by E-mailing a copy directly to [email protected] if you are not subscribed. Your letter will then be forwarded to the list so others may learn from your efforts. Subscribing to the Sent LTE list ([email protected]) will help you to review other sent LTEs and perhaps come up with new ideas or approaches as well as keeping others aware of your important writing efforts.

Press Release: Mendo Measure B Squeaks By

[Courtesy California NORML] June 20, 2008 In final election returns, Mendocino's anti-marijuana Measure B eked out a narrow 52-48% victory. The final margin was the same as the one announced after election day, before 11,000 absentee ballots were counted. California NORML, which supported the No on B campaign, regards the result as a moral victory, given that Measure B had been widely expected to win by a lopsided margin. Pre-election polls had suggested a victory margin of 60 - 65% , leading Measure B proponents to express disappointment at the narrowness of their win. The final margin was so close that opponents would have won in a general election, where turnout is larger, younger, and more liberally inclined. Marijuana proponents intend to return to the county with more workable proposals for legally regulating the county's marijuana industry. The No on B campaign succeeded in raising substantial doubts about Measure B, arguing that it in no way addressed the underlying problems of large-scale growers. http://nomeasureb.org. Measure B repeals Mendocino's Personal Use of Marijuana Initiative, Measure G, passed by an overwhelming 58% of the vote in 2000, but otherwise leaves the county's marijuana policy in doubt, since it seeks to establish the same state limits for marijuana growing that were recently declared unconstitutional in the California appeals court Kelly ruling. Measure B's validity will be subject to two immediate court challenges. The No on B campaign thanks supporters and volunteers for helping wage a strong mail, media, and get-out-the-vote campaign. "Everything was stacked against us from the beginning," said No on B campaign director Laura Hamburg. Measure B was placed on the ballot by the Board of Supervisors, with support from the city councils of Willits and Ukiah, the district attorney, the county's leading newspaper and major media, and local development interests upset by the difficulty of paying wages competitive with the marijuana industry. California NORML is proud to have played a leading role in supporting the No on B campaign, along with a devoted core of Mendocino activists, the Mendocino Marijuana Patients Union, and the Mendocino Green Party. Thanks too to the Drug Policy Alliance for their financial support.

Biggest Reform in History Makes the Ballot

From the Desk of Ethan Nadelmann

Ethan Nadelmann 90x90Dear friends,

I have been traveling back and forth to California this year, working on a ballot initiative that represents the most significant reform of prisons and sentencing in the history of the United States. We’re calling it the Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act or “NORA” for short and we’ve just heard from the California Secretary of State that it has officially qualified for the ballot.

We wrote this measure and we are spearheading the campaign. I’m telling you about it because, as with past campaigns, our success in California, the most populous state, will have a national impact.

Now I need you to make a donation to help us build our fund for voter education and television advertising in the days leading up to the election.

Our research shows a substantial majority of Californians really like what’s in NORA. It provides a solution to the state’s prison overcrowding crisis through a combination of measures that will simultaneously and safely reduce the size of the prison population, provide effective treatment and rehabilitation, reduce recidivism and crime, and save taxpayers billions of dollars.

It would be great if NORA could be enacted into law by the State Legislature, but our friends in Sacramento tell us the only way to get it done is through the ballot initiative process. That’s why I need your help. I’ve raised millions from wealthy folks -- including some who live outside California and regard this as a fundamental issue of human rights, smart public policy and/or fiscal responsibility -- but we can’t get to the finish line without lots of support from people across the country who care. Please make a donation now.

I should tell you that NORA isn’t just about solving California’s prison overcrowding crisis and saving taxpayers billions of dollars. It’s also about reforming California’s prison industrial complex in ways that will transform the state into a leader in sensible drug and sentencing policy, and serve as a model for other states.

California used to be known as the State of Higher Education. Now it’s known as the State of Higher Incarceration. NORA can change that with your help.

You might also be interested to know that NORA includes a provision that changes the penalty for marijuana possession from a misdemeanor to an infraction -- like a traffic ticket. This single change will protect some 40,000 people a year convicted of simple marijuana possession from the serious and life-long collateral consequences of a criminal record.

So, if you want to know more about the details of NORA, click here, but please also take the opportunity to make a generous donation to ensure NORA wins on Election Day. There are still millions of people in California and across the country who think the best solution to every problem is to lock people up. Don’t let them win the day.

And after you’ve made your donation, please forward this email to everyone you know and encourage them to support NORA as well. There’s never been an opportunity like this to accomplish so much good for so many people.

One in eight Americans lives in California, and a victory in November will send a clear message to policy makers across the country that the American people want a public health approach to drug problems, not more wasteful prison spending. Your support of this California initiative will mean similar reforms will be more likely to pass across the country.

We’re talking about freedom, compassion and responsibility. Smart drug policy. Smart crime policy. And good government for a change.

Many thanks,

Ethan Nadelmann
Executive Director
Drug Policy Alliance Network

P.S. I need to raise the remaining money to run a powerful campaign through Election Day. Please give now to help me build a war chest for NORA.

AMMA calls for a new initiative for Mendocino

[Courtesy of The American Medical Marijuana Association] Wednesday, June 4, 2008 AMMA calls for a new initiative for Mendocino by Steve Kubby, AMMA Director MENDOCINO, CA -- The passage of Measure B has generated widespread news coverage across the US. A lot of people are looking to the what happens in this haven for cannabis cultivation, as some sort of a national response to the increasing public acceptance of medical marijuana. With this in mind, the American Medical Marijuana Association is calling for a new initiative for the local Mendocino November Ballot to provide urgently needed protection for the rights of patients, caregivers and cooperatives to use and cultivation cannabis for medical purposes. In particular, the new initiative needs to have a civilian review board to oversee the operations of what appears to be rogue officers and officials in Mendocino, who hate medical marijuana and those who use it. Furthermore, to protect sick, disabled and dying patients, we believe it is absolutely necessary to legalize personal use and cultivation as well, since police, prosecutors and judges seem hopelessly unable to distinguish between medical and non-medical situations. Meanwhile, Mendocino law enforcement can now be expected to engage in a frenzy of raids and arrests, while the District Attorney's office will be just as enthusiastic about prosecuting felonies against any patient with 7 plants or more. We predict this will be a wake up call for the voters and they will be ready to support a return to the Measure G protection of their rights. The key to understanding why a new initiative is necessary and desirable is because Measure B passed with a mere 8,493 votes, while Measure G passed in 2000 with approximately 20,000 votes. That's because half as many people voted in this June election as in the November 2000 election. Since Mendocino is a traditionally Democratic stronghold, it seems reasonable to conclude that the November 2008 election will again see twice as many voters. We believe that those voters, after being harassed by law enforcement this summer, will be far more like to approve a new initiative to overturn Measure B and reinstate a modified Measure G type initiative. MEASURE B-Vote Analysis Total Votes for June 3, 2008 Election: 16,285 YES on B 8493 52.15% NO on B 7792 47.85% Difference between Yes and No vote 701 votes. =========== Total Votes for November 7, 2000 Election: 34,953 YES on G 58% NO on G 42% ###

Help decriminalize marijuana in Massachusetts

[Courtesy of Marijuana Policy Project]

The Committee for Sensible Marijuana Policy (CSMP) has just begun the second and final stage of the signature drive to place a marijuana decriminalization initiative on the Massachusetts ballot ... giving voters the chance to decriminalize the possession of up to one ounce of marijuana for personal use in the state.

Last November, after two months of petitioning, CSMP turned in more than 105,000 signatures to qualify the initiative for the November 2008 ballot. State law then required the state legislature to consider the initiative between January 2 and May 6. That period is now over, and CSMP began the second stage of the signature drive, which requires another 11,099 valid signatures by June 18. To ensure a place on the ballot, the campaign must collect approximately 20,000 raw signatures — at a cost of about $65,000.

Would you please consider making a contribution to the campaign to ensure that voters have the chance to decriminalize marijuana this fall?

This is the first time in history that an initiative to decriminalize marijuana will be placed on any statewide ballot. And winning in Massachusetts could dramatically advance marijuana policy reform elsewhere in the country.

So far, the campaign has done everything right, including successfully completing the first part of the signature drive and lobbying the legislature not to take any actions that would harm the campaign.

But now the campaign must raise the money that's needed to complete the second phase of the signature drive. Will you please visit www.SensibleMarijuanaPolicy.org/donate to donate $10 or more today?

Thank you,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

Medical Marijuana: Watch this lying TV ad in Michigan

[Courtesy of Marijuana Policy Project] 

MPP’s medical marijuana initiative in Michigan is under attack by out-of-state prohibitionists, who have purchased thousands of dollars' worth of airtime on major TV stations in Michigan to run this outrageously false ad that claims “every major health organization rejects” medical marijuana.

This is a flat-out lie, of course. To the contrary, numerous major health organizations support medical marijuana access and even call on the government to change the law and stop arresting medical marijuana patients — including the American College of Physicians, American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Lymphoma Foundation of America, AIDS Action Council, American Academy of HIV Medicine, National Association of People With AIDS, and many others.

We can’t let the drug warriors lie to the public and jeopardize our ability to pass the medical marijuana ballot initiative in Michigan. Would you please help us fight back with the truth by donating to our campaign today?

We know from past successes that we can pass state medical marijuana initiatives, and we can do it again in Michigan this November — if we have the financial resources to make sure voters hear the truth. Since our well-financed opposition is swarming the airwaves with false and fear-mongering ads, it's crucial that we have the funds to fully execute our campaign plan.
 
Would you give what you can today? If you help us respond, you’ll be able to tell your friends and family that you helped pay for the campaign that succeeded in making medical marijuana legal in Michigan.

Thank you in advance,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

Michigan Medical Marijuana Initiative Certified for the November Ballot

[Courtesy of MPP] 

I am excited to announce that yesterday the Michigan government officially certified that MPP's Michigan campaign committee — the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care (MCCC) — collected enough signatures to qualify a medical marijuana initiative for the statewide November ballot. You can read more about this milestone here.

The roughly half a million signatures counted by the state had a whopping 80.2% validity rate, far exceeding what was needed to qualify for the ballot. I hope you’ll consider making a donation to MCCC today so that we can run a robust campaign the rest of the year and ensure that the measure passes in November.

The official word that we gathered enough signatures to send the initiative to the voters in November culminates a monumental effort in the state. Thanks to the hard work of MPP and MCCC staffers, local activists, volunteers, and supporters for the past nine months, Michigan is close to becoming the 13th medical marijuana state — and the first in the Midwest.

The initiative will now be transmitted to the Michigan Legislature, which has 40 days either to pass it into law or to send it to voters in November. Because the legislature has considered multiple medical marijuana bills in recent years and none has ever gained traction, Michiganders — who support protecting patients from arrest by a nearly 2 to 1 margin — are all but certain to vote on the issue at the polls later this year.

Most importantly, Michigan patients are now one enormous step closer to being able to use medical marijuana without the fear of arrest and jail. If passed by a majority of voters on Election Day, the initiative will allow Michigan patients to use, possess, and grow their own marijuana for medical purposes with their doctors’ approval.

The most recent polling shows that 61% of Michigan voters support medical marijuana access, and we’ve hired a top-notch consulting firm and a full-time campaign manager to translate that public sentiment into a new law that protects patients. But we need your financial support to succeed, so please make a donation to the campaign today.

I’m grateful for your support.

Sincerely,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)
Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your monthly pledge to MPP will be doubled.

Different lipstick, same old pig

[Courtesy of Marijuana Policy Project] 

“Different lipstick, same old pig.”

That was the title of a Las Vegas Review-Journal editorial on Monday, referring to a quote by MPP’s Neal Levine, who was artfully characterizing the unconstitutional ballot initiative law in Nevada that we’re going to overturn.

Last week, MPP and the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the Nevada government to overturn its unconstitutional law, which requires signatures from voters in all of the state’s 17 counties in order to qualify a measure for the statewide ballot.

This is the second time MPP has sued the Nevada state government over the very same issue. We won in 2004, and we’re going to win this time, too, and the Nevada government is going to have to pay our legal fees in full — again.

In addition to the editorial in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, one of the state’s biggest newspapers, a columnist for the Las Vegas Sun also weighed in on the situation.

Because MPP plans to run another ballot initiative campaign to tax and regulate marijuana like alcohol in Nevada in a few years, it’s vitally important that Nevada’s ballot initiative law not be overly burdensome.

The previous law we overturned in 2004 — which required signatures from voters in 13 of Nevada’s 17 counties — was correctly thrown out by a federal court as a violation of the “one man, one vote” rule. And the new law — which MPP’s Neal Levine told the Las Vegas Review-Journal was “a different shade of lipstick on the same old pig” — also violates the “one man, one vote” rule.

We’re so sure we’re going to win this lawsuit — and get our legal fees reimbursed by the incompetent Nevada government — that I’m not even going to ask you to donate money to help pay for it.

However, I hope you’ll consider joining our monthly credit card pledge program — even with just $5 or $10 per month — in order to support our other 2008 projects.

Thank you, as always, for supporting MPP’s work.

Sincerely,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)
Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2008. This means that your monthly pledge will be doubled.

Press Release: Denver Marijuana Initiative Wins 57-43

[Courtesy of SAFER] For Immediate Release: November 8, 2007 Contact: Mason Tvert, SAFER, 720-255-4340 Denver Marijuana Initiative Wins 57-43 Mayor John Hickenlooper says the city will follow the new law and create city panel to implement it DENVER -- Election officials have finished counting the votes and an initiative making adult marijuana possession the city's lowest law enforcement priority -- Initiated Question 100 -- has been approved 57-43. In light of the city's overwhelming support for the measure, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper announced yesterday that he would appoint a Marijuana Policy Review Panel to ensure that the new ordinance is implemented to the greatest extent possible, as well as to study and report on its effects. The 11-member panel will include: • One (1) at-large member of the Denver City Council • One (1) representative of the Denver Police Department • One (1) representative of the Denver County District Attorney's Office • One (1) representative of the Denver City Attorney's Office • Three (3) criminal defense attorneys, one of whom shall be a public defender • Two (2) residents of the City of Denver, as selected by the petitioner committee that initiated this ordinance • One (1) drug/alcohol abuse prevention counselor • One (1) member of the Denver Metro Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee who is not also a member of law enforcement Statement from Mason Tvert, the lead proponent of Initiated Question 100: "We are glad to see our mayor and city officials will be respecting the will of the voters, and we look forward to working with them toward a more sensible marijuana policy in the City of Denver. Although these officials say adult marijuana possession is already a low priority, it could undoubtedly be lower. For example, the City of Seattle, which adopted a very similar lowest law enforcement priority measure in 2003, handled just 125 cases of adult marijuana possession in 2006, whereas Denver -- a city with fewer residents -- handled nearly 1,400. As an example, one can look to Missoula, Montana. There, a similar lowest law enforcement priority measure was approved by voters last year. Just a couple weeks ago officials there adopted an official policy directing police to stop arresting adults for simple marijuana possession and make such cases the absolute lowest priority for prosecutors. We strongly believe Denver policies should reflect the fact that every objective study on marijuana has concluded that it is far less harmful than alcohol to both the user and to society. As we have said repeatedly, there is no logical reason why adults should punished for making the rational, safer choice to use marijuana instead of alcohol."

Only one month to collect 100,000 signatures in Michigan — please help!

[Courtesy of MPP] 

As I wrote you at the end of last month, the Marijuana Policy Project needs your help to place a landmark medical marijuana initiative on the Michigan ballot.

Landmark? Yes, because if Michigan voters are given the opportunity to pass the initiative in November of next year, Michigan will become the first state in the Midwest where patients will be able to use, possess, and grow marijuana legally for medical purposes.

And we can pass the initiative, because the only two public opinion polls that have been conducted in recent years show that between 59% and 61% of Michigan voters support the initiative. And this polling is accurate, because five out of five Michigan cities have passed local medical marijuana initiatives with an average of 64% of the vote since 2004.

I want to thank the 44 generous supporters who made a financial donation after my last message about this campaign. But now I need your help, too.

Would you please donate $10 or more today, so that we can afford to pay our hard-working petitioners who are working furiously to collect the remaining signatures that are needed to place the initiative on the November 2008 ballot?

Our petitioners have done a great job since we kicked off the drive on May 23. But, we still have work ahead of us: In the next month, we need to collect the final 100,000 signatures that are needed to place the initiative on the ballot.

Please donate $10 or more today, so that Michigan voters will have the chance to protect marijuana-using patients who have cancer, multiple sclerosis, and other medical conditions from arrest.

Fully 10.1 million people live in Michigan, so making Michigan the 13th medical marijuana state would provide a huge boost to change federal law to end our government’s persecution of medical marijuana patients nationwide.

If our hard-working petitioners fail to collect 100,000 signatures over the next month, the initiative will not appear on the ballot, and all the work we’ve done — and all the money we’ve spent — in Michigan will have been in vain.

If you live in Michigan, please volunteer to collect 100, 500, or even 1,000 signatures from registered voters over the course of the next month. Or, if you’re unable to do so, please donate $10 or more so that we can pay others to do so.

If you do not live in Michigan, please reach out across state lines to help make medical marijuana legal in the first Midwestern state by donating $10 or more today.

Please lend your support today — and do not delay. I’ll be grateful for anything you can do to help. Thank you for considering this request ...

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $3.0 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2007. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

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