Pubdate: Fri, 29 Aug 2008
Source: Northwest Arkansas Times (Fayetteville, AR)
Copyright: 2008 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Contact: http://nwanews.com/nwat/Editorial/68570/letter/
Website: http://www.nwanews.com/nwat/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/828
Author: Kate Ward, Northwest Arkansas Times
Cited: Sensible Fayetteville http://www.sensiblefayetteville.com
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Marijuana)

SENSIBLE FAYETTEVILLE COLLECTS 900 MORE SIGNATURES

Sensible Fayetteville will submit its second round of signatures 
today in hopes of giving local voters the choice on election day to 
make adult marijuana possession the lowest priority for police.

"We needed about 300 additional signatures, and so far, we've 
collected upwards of 900,"Ryan Denham, campaign director, said."We've 
almost tripled what we needed, and we're still going. We'll turn them 
in at the end of [today ]."

Sensible Fayetteville is a local coalition made up of the OMNI Center 
for Peace, Justice & Ecology, the Green Party of Washington County, 
the University of Arkansas student branch of the National 
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and the Alliance for 
Reform of Drug Policy in Arkansas Inc.

Initiative sponsors turned in a total of 5, 522 signatures Aug. 6. On 
Aug. 19, City Clerk Sondra Smith and staff verified 3, 385 valid 
signatures. Based on the number of votes cast in the city's last 
mayoral election, a total of 3, 686 signatures are required to 
qualify the petition.

"We compared the signatures on the petition to a list of registered 
voters,"Smith said."Several people that signed the petition didn't 
live in the city limits of Fayetteville, and since this is a city 
issue, they have to reside in the city. Some people also signed more 
than once."

In a last-minute effort to gather the remaining signatures, Denham 
and fellow coalition members launched various public campaigns in the 
Fayetteville Square and at Wilson Park. Additionally, all registered 
voters who signed the petition dur ing the campaign will be entered 
in a drawing. The winner will receive a Water Buddy Travel Filter. 
This product retails for $ 59. 95.

"We've been working on this since last November,"Denham said."We've 
been at the post office, the [University of Arkansas ] and we've been 
going door-todoor. This is a local campaign, but it's a national 
issue and we hope people understand that."

If approved, the amendment would be similar to the one approved in 
Eureka Springs and would make"investigations, citations, arrests, 
property seizures and prosecutions for adult marijuana and marijuana 
parapher nalia offenses, where the marijuana was intended for adult 
personal use, the city of Fayetteville's lowest law enforcement and 
prosecutorial priority."

Denham said the focus is on adults who would fall under misdemeanor 
offenses, which is possession of 1 ounce or less. He said enforcement 
of the law, as written, only serves to increase law enforcement 
expenditures and overcrowd jails.

Similar laws have been passed by communities in Missouri, Montana, 
Washington, California and Colorado.

"A number of cities are starting to recognize what a waste the 
current policy is,"he said."Marijuana arrests are clogging the system 
and wasting our resources. We'd rather not have an adult arrested for 
possessing 1 ounce of marijuana. We'd rather see them cited."

In addition to making marijuana possession the lowest priority for 
police, the measure requires the city clerk to submit letters to 
state and federal legislators, the governor and the president 
stating"The citizens of Fayetteville have passed an initiative to 
deprioritize adult marijuana offenses where the marijuana is intended 
for personal use and request that the federal and Arkansas state 
governments take immediate steps to enact similar laws."The letter 
would be submitted annually until state and federal laws are changed 
accordingly.

"This affects everyone in the United States,"Denham said."We've had a 
record number of marijuana arrests. This year alone, about 829, 000 
people were arrested on marijuana charges."

Smith said she doesn't know how long it will take to determine the 
final sum of petition signatures.

"It depends on how legible the signatures are,"she said."Last time, 
we had a lot that weren't legible. I had three people working on it 
for almost 10 days. It was very time consuming. We hope to have them 
counted up in about three days. Then we have to compare them to the 
signatures we've already received to make sure there are no 
duplications and make sure they're registered."

In Arkansas, Denham said, citizens have the right to petition local, 
county and state government for changes in law.

Residents have until today to sign the petition by visiting Ozark 
Glassworks on Huntsville Road or Sidney's Emporium on Dickson Street.

To view the full text of the proposed ordinance, visit 
www.sensiblefayetteville.com
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake