Pubdate: Sat, 14 Sep 2013
Source: Detroit Free Press (MI)
Copyright: 2013 Detroit Free Press
Contact: http://www.freep.com/article/99999999/opinion04/50926009
Website: http://www.freep.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/125
Author: Ann Zaniewski

POLL: NEARLY HALF OF LIKELY MICHIGAN VOTERS FAVOR LEGALIZING, TAXING POT

Nearly half of likely Michigan voters said they favor legalizing and 
regulating marijuana, and about a quarter of respondants want to keep 
current marijuana laws in place, according to a poll released Friday.

The results show a continuing shift in public sentiment toward 
legalizing the drug, said Bernie Porn, president of EPIC-MRA, the 
Lansing research firm that conducted the poll.

"I think that people are changing their opinions about marijuana. ... 
There is a receptivity to legalization and the realization that you 
don't need to have law enforcement spending the kind of time that 
they devote to the crimes that people are convicted of because of 
current marijuana laws," he said.

In the poll of 600 likely voters, 47% said they favor legalizing 
marijuana by taxing and regulating it like alcohol. Twenty-six 
percent said they favor continuing the system of state criminal 
penalties for marijuana offenses.

In addition, 16% said they would favor replacing criminal penalties 
for marijuana offenses with a fine, and 4% said they would like to 
see all state criminal penalties for marijuana offenses repealed. 
Seven percent were undecided or refused to answer.

The poll was commission by Michigan NORML, the state's chapter of the 
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Porn said the poll showed people who identified themselves as 
Democrats are most in favor of legalizing marijuana possession and 
use. He also said Republicans were generally more supportive of 
keeping current marijuana laws than legalizing the drug.

Neil Yashinsky, executive director of Michigan NORML's Oakland County 
chapter, said he was encouraged by the survey results.

"Eventually, the politicians will catch up with the people. They will 
reflect the values of their constituents" and pass a 
decriminalization effort, he said.

Julie Brenner, executive director of the North Oakland Community 
Coalition, said she wasn't surprised by the poll results because 
public opinion does seem to be shifting. Brenner, while not opposed 
to medical marijuana use, said she's worried that widespread 
legalization will make the substance more accessible to youths. 
Marijuana poses risks to brain development, she said.

The poll was conducted Sept. 7 through Tuesday and has a margin of 
error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. Porn said cell phone 
users made up 20% of the sample.

Porn said a poll in early 2012 asked whether voters would approve a 
measure to legalize marijuana if it appeared on the ballot. At that 
time, 50% of people said no, and 45% said yes.

A bill in Lansing proposed by state Rep. Mike Callton, R-Nashville, 
would let cities and townships in Michigan decide for themselves 
whether to allow marijuana distribution centers. Another bill, 
sponsored by state Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, would serve to 
decriminalize marijuana throughout the state, making possession of a 
small amount of the drug tantamount to a traffic violation.

USA Today and Free Press staff writer Bill Laitner contributed to this report.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom