Pubdate: Thu, 22 Feb 2007
Source: Georgetown Voice, The (DC Edu)
Copyright: 2007 The Georgetown Voice
Contact:  http://www.georgetownvoice.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1823
Author: Jessica Bachman
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)

GW STUDENT ASSOCIATION PASSES PRO-POT RESOLUTION

Marijuana legal reform has reached an all--time high at  George 
Washington University.

Among Americans between the ages of 18 and 25, 16.6  percent reported 
using marijuana within the last month,  according to the Office of 
National Drug Control  Policy's 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

The George Washington University Chapter of the  National 
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws  (NORML) is working 
closely with GW's Student  Association in an attempt to moderate the 
university's disciplinary measures for students who are caught 
using  marijuana, according to Greg Hersh (GW '08), president  of the 
school's NORML chapter.

Last week, GW Student Association President Lamar  Thorpe vetoed a 
NORML resolution proposing that  marijuana use carry less severe 
university sanctions,  more closely mirroring the punishments for 
underage  drinking. Before Thorpe signs off on the marijuana 
resolution, which the Student Senate passed on Feb. 6,  he wants to 
see specific evidence that there is a need  for reform, according to 
GW's student newspaper, The  Hatchet.

Thorpe and NORML are creating a commission composed of  student 
senators, NORML members, faculty, educators  from the GW Center for 
Alcohol and Drug Education and  administrators from Student Judicial 
Services in order  to study on GW's current disciplinary policies, 
according to Hersh.

"We started off on the wrong foot by leaving out 
the  administration," Hersh said.

The commission, which has yet to be formed, will look  into how 
current drug policies have affected individual  students charged with 
marijuana use in the past,  according to Hersh. The commission will 
present its  findings to the faculty and the Student Senate, and 
NORML will draft a new resolution accordingly.

The current minimum sanction for use or possession of  marijuana is 
eviction from campus residence halls,  according to the University's 
Student Code of Conduct.

Josh Pfeiffer (GW '07) does not believe that the  current penalty is 
unnecessarily harsh.

"Housing at GW is scarce, and if you don't want to  abide by the 
rules then you should think twice about  using marijuana," he said. 
"University housing is a  privilege to have."

Ben Matlin (GW '07) also disagrees with NORML's claim  that marijuana 
use should be punished the same way as  underage drinking, but he 
agreed with their assertion  that the current punishment is too strong.

"It's like comparing apples to oranges," he said. "But  for someone 
to lose housing on their first offense is  ridiculous."

The Georgetown University Student Association has not  encountered 
any proposals or resolutions to reform the  official sanctions 
carried by marijuana use at  Georgetown, according to new GUSA 
President Ben Shaw (COL '08). If the issue does come up in the 
future,  Shaw said that he would try to promote "lots 
of  conversation with student groups and administrators."

Taylor Wray (COL '08), president of Georgetown's NORML  chapter, 
which was founded in the fall of 2005 and is  not recognized by the 
University, said that his group  does not plan to work with GUSA.

After hearing about the GW initiation, Georgetown NORML  considered 
trying to reform the Code of Conduct, Wray  said. Sanctions for 
marijuana use vary by case and can  include fines, rehabilitation, 
recommendations for  counseling, or suspension, according to 
Georgetown's  Alcohol and Other Drugs Policy.

"Looking into the Georgetown Student Code, we found  that there is a 
large spectrum of penalties for both  alcohol and marijuana," he 
said. "There wasn't a  smoking gun that we could point at for change."

Wray also believes that a marijuana policy change at  Georgetown 
would be unproductive and possibly  unnecessary because of the 
discrepancy between policy  and punishment.

"Here the letter of the law doesn't always extend to  reality," he 
said. "Department of Public Safety  officers don't always do what 
they are required to do."
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman