Pubdate: Fri, 12 Oct 2012 Source: Spectator, The (Seattle U, WA Edu) Copyright: 2012 The Spectator Contact: http://www.su-spectator.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4150 Author: Chelsee Yee 502 HAS POTENTIAL FOR STATE, BUT NOT IN THIS JOINT If passed, I-502 will make possession of marijuana a legal right. Three freshmen sit in their dorm room, bored with nothing to do. No party invites for these boys on this Friday night. So they decide to start their own little party. "Hey bros, wanna rip my new bong?" asks one of them. The three gather in a circle and take their turns until the room, and most likely the entire hallway outside, develops a familiar stench. As they begin to make Nutella, peanut butter and Cheez-It sandwiches, they hear a forceful knock on the door. It's Public Safety, of course. But it doesn't matter. Initiative 502 just passed, legalizing marijuana. "Don't worry, man. It's legal now," the boy says as he gets up to open the door. But it's not. Not for them. Though Initiative 502 could legalize the regulation of marijuana use, it will still be weeded out at Seattle University and other colleges. Initiative 502 will essentially legalize marijuana in the state if it gets enough votes, making pot possession a legal right.. Here's what you can expect to see on the November 6 general election ballot, according to New Approach Washington, the pro-pot organization behind the initiative: "This measure would license and regulate marijuana production, distribution and possession for persons over 21, remove state-law criminal and civil penalties for activities that it authorizes, tax marijuana sales, and earmark marijuana-related revenues." But for all the pot-dealers out there waiting to go public, don't get too excited. Selling marijuana to minors will remain a felony, as will home growing for people who are not medical marijuana patients. In addition, the only marijuana that would be legal to sell in this state must be grown by specially-licensed Washington farmers; state employees will not be involved in growing, distributing or selling marijuana. Marijuana will also be sold in standalone, marijuana-only stores operated by private Washington businesses licensed and regulated by the state. These marijuana standalones must be located at least 1,000 feet from schools, playgrounds and parks, and cannot display marijuana in a way that is visible to the public. There will also be a new DUI marijuana standard, setting a limit of 5ng/ml active THC blood concentration. In the past, college campuses have treated marijuana use similarly to alcohol consumption. Such policies will remain the same regardless of the outcome of I-502. "The protocol will be mirroring our response with alcohol violation," said Christopher Glenn, the administrator for residential life over at the University of Washington. "We have a protocol in place that deals with anything like noise, alcohol or marijuana, and our protocol for a long time is that if there is any suspicion, we make an automatic call." What he means by this is that if there is suspicion of a large group of people, perceived hostility, non-compliance (i.e. refusing to show their IDs), or large quantities of marijuana or any other drugs, then the RAs are instructed to call the police. Basic possession or small use of marijuana is to be addressed by the residential advisor staff. When the RAs at UW bust possessors, the marijuana is disposed of and involved paraphernalia (pipes, bongs, etc.) are secured for the police to pick up later. The protocol is a revision from previous years when the UWPD were dispatched for every suspected case of marijuana use or possession. Despite a potential change in marijuana law, universities can decide protocol for themselves. "I-502 has little to no effect on our policies. There are several laws in place concerning marijuana that have not changed because Washington laws have changed. We are obligated to uphold the federal laws," Glenn said. This also holds true for Seattle U. Initiative 502 will not impact Seattle U's policy, which states that students may not be in possession of or use marijuana for any purpose on university property or in university functions. "We have to think of our conduct policy on multiple levels," said Associate Dean of Students at Seattle University Darrell Goodwin. "The policy is that you can't be in possession, but in terms of the sanctioning, there's no published sanctioning because we wouldn't necessarily be able to predict all of the different ways in which you might engage as a student." The consequences depend on the student and the circumstance, along with all the other factors that are involved. If caught with marijuana, the school takes into consideration the whole experience: the student's background, their former judicial history, the nature in which the student is discovered, how much substance the student has, what their intention was etc. However, the sanction for being in possession of drugs could range from disciplinary prohibition to dismissal from the university. "It won't matter even if [a student has] a prescription. Students may not possess or provide or use marijuana on university premises," Goodwin said. About two years ago, Seattle U participated in a webinar with a number of other schools in groups that are starting to examine how the I-502 is impacting their program. According to Goodwin, most of the Jesuit schools decided that marijuana would not be permitted on their campus. "So essentially, Seattle University is in alignment with a number of private schools and Jesuit Catholic schools on this issue," he said. Though I-502 will have no impact on the universities, it is anticipated to play a vital role in the economy as a source of new tax revenue. According to the state Office of Financial Management, there would be a 25 percent sales tax with 40 percent of the new revenue going to the state general fund and local budgets. The remainder would be dedicated to substance-abuse prevention, research, education and health care. Washington is one of three states, along with Oregon and Colorado, that will have an initiative on marijuana legalization on this year's ballot. And don't think that it's only college students who are voting for I-502 to be passed. The Seattle Times, The Olympian, the Columbian, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, Washington State Senators Ed Murray and Margarita Prentice, and King County Sheriff Steven Strachan also support the new measure. "As the initiative has come up, I have been saying for years that the ambiguity is bad for law enforcement and public safety," said Strachan. "Instead of talking about the danger, it gets all wrapped up in the confusion and the lack of the respect for the system that the ambiguity creates." In Seattle, the laws pertaining to pot possession are vague, making it confusing to determine what's legal and what's risky behavior in the eyes of police enforcement. According to The Seattle Times, at least 11 states and several large cities have stripped criminal penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana, usually making it an infraction akin to a ticket. Most recently, Rhode Island decriminalized small amounts of marijuana. Less than an ounce of pot counts as a civil violation with a $150 fine. The law was signed by Gov. Lincoln Chafee and takes effect April 1 next year, replacing the law that makes marijuana possession punishable up to a year in jail or a $500 fine. With the new law in place, supporters hope that the ambiguity with how marijuana is handled in the Washington state will be resolved. "I think it will enforce the issue. We need to create clarity. As the sheriff I cannot believe that legalizing for recreational use will create public safety problems," Strachan said. "It will help us better define those breaking the law and those who are not." Strachan plans to vote for the I-502 because he believes it is important for law enforcement to enforce laws that are clear. The current marijuana law, he says, is not clear, nor is it understood or well supported. "The clarity will be good for the rule of law, the messages we send, and good for the public community," he said. But no matter what the results are for I-502 on the morning of November 7, marijuana is still a controlled illegal substance under United States federal law, which categorizes it as a Schedule 1 drug, the same category as cocaine and heroin. Currently, the Obama administration has been cracking down on marijuana dispensaries, many of them operating in full compliance with state laws. Since October 2009, the Justice Department has conducted more than 170 aggressive SWAT-style raids in nine medical marijuana states, resulting in at least 61 federal indictments, according to Huffington Post. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, President Obama makes clear of his position on the issue: "What I specifically said was that we were not going to prioritize prosecutions of persons who are using medical marijuana," he said. "I never made a commitment that somehow we were going to give carte blanche to large-scale producers and operators of marijuana - and the reason is, because it's against federal law. I can't nullify congressional law." So even if Washington does succeed at passing Initiative 502, there is still a rough road ahead as it faces the supremacy clause, which marks a high possibility of the initiative falling out altogether. Either way, this year's election is something you definitely want to take part in, especially being able to vote in what has proven to be the true "go-green" state, and a chance to alter Washington's state of mind. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom