Pubdate: Wed, 26 Dec 2012
Source: Morning Call (Allentown, PA)
Copyright: 2012 The Morning Call Inc.
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/DReo9M8z
Website: http://www.mcall.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/275
Author: Peter Hall

LEGAL POT UNLIKELY IN PENNSYLVANIA ANYTIME SOON

Montco Lawmaker Trying, but Lehigh Valley Prosecutors Stand With 
Corbett - Opposed.

The Lehigh Valley's top law enforcement officials say they agree with 
Gov. Tom Corbett when it comes to decriminalizing marijuana for 
recreational use.

There's not enough to gain and too much at risk in eliminating 
criminal penalties for marijuana possession, say Lehigh County 
District Attorney Jim Martin and Northampton County District Attorney 
John Morganelli.

"I don't think it's a good idea to legalize it for recreational use 
and introduce it to a whole group of people who don't use it now," 
Morganelli said Wednesday.

Both Martin and Morganelli said they're more open to the use of pot 
for medical purposes. In the 20 states that have legalized medical 
marijuana, it can be prescribed to treat pain, nausea, glaucoma and a 
number of other maladies.

"If you could show me someone in a hospital who gets some relief from 
smoking a joint, God bless 'em," Martin said.

But Corbett, who was previously Pennsylvania's tough-on-drugs 
attorney general, said he would veto a bill even if it limited 
marijuana use to medical purposes, a spokesman said.

"He believes that smoking marijuana is a crime, should remain a crime 
and that marijuana is a gateway drug," spokesman Kevin Harley said.

The renewed discussion of legal marijuana in Pennsylvania comes after 
a state senator who sponsored a failed bill to legalize the drug for 
medical use said he will reintroduce the legislation as well as a 
measure to decriminalize pot next session.

Sen. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery, compared the debate over 
legalization to that over gay marriage, saying that once enough 
states legalize marijuana, "all of the horror stories" put forth by 
opponents will be revealed as false.

But the politics of legalizing marijuana in Pennsylvania are 
complicated. And although Colorado and Washington made history last 
month by voting to make their states the first in America where it is 
legal to possess small amounts of pot for personal use, Pennsylvania 
is unlikely to follow anytime soon, one pundit said.

Although a 2010 poll showed that 80 percent of Pennsylvania voters 
favor the legalization of medical marijuana and one-third supported 
legalizing the drug outright, Pennsylvania is home to a cultural 
conservatism that keeps such issues off the floor of the Legislature, 
said Franklin & Marshall College political science professor G. Terry Madonna.

Even Ed Rendell, a liberal Democrat, never took a stance on 
legalizing marijuana while he was governor, and without strong 
advocacy from party leaders, Leach's bills are highly unlikely to get 
much support, Madonna said.

He added that Corbett's promise to veto any bill decriminalizing 
marijuana was a message to dissuade minority leaders in the 
Republican-controlled House and Senate from taking up the issue. 
Party leaders are reluctant to have their members vote on a 
controversial bill that has no chance of success because it would 
become a point of criticism in the next election, Madonna said.

Leach's bill to legalize the medical use of marijuana died in the 
Senate public health and welfare committee after it was referred 
there last spring. Similar House legislation by Philadelphia Democrat 
Mark Cohen in the last two sessions met the same fate.

Chris Goldstein, a board member of the Philadelphia chapter of the 
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said he 
believes marijuana has long been wrongly classified as a dangerous 
drug. He cites studies that suggest it is less damaging to the human 
body than legal substances including alcohol and can be used to help 
people hooked on prescription pain killers kick their addictions.

He also pointed to evidence debunking the theory that marijuana use 
leads to experimentation with more dangerous and addictive substances.

"Kids will tell you it's a gateway to Doritos and Haagen-Dazs," Goldstein said.

He said Corbett's adherence to the outdated gateway theory is 
worrisome because he appears to be out of touch with policy changes 
around the country to eliminate criminal penalties for marijuana use 
and possession.

But Morganelli and Martin said they don't believe any good would come 
from legislation to allow recreational use of marijuana.

"I don't think we need more dopers running around. We have enough 
people who are using drugs," Morganelli said.

They also panned one of the arguments for relaxing drug laws. They 
maintain that ending prosecutions for marijuana possession would not 
free up a great deal of prosecutorial resources or prison space.

Most people who are charged with marijuana possession are caught with 
the drug as a result of a traffic stop or other coincidental contact 
with police, Martin said.

"We're not spending a lot of resources targeting those offenders," he 
said. "When we bump into them, they are charged."

[sidebar]

Where is marijuana legal?

Colorado and Washington have legalized marijuana for personal use. 
Marijuana may be prescribed for pain, nausea, glaucoma and other 
medical issues in the following states:

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia

Hawaii

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Montana

Nevada

New Jersey

New Mexico

Oregon

Rhode Island

Vermont

Washington

Source: National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom