Pubdate: Tue, 12 Nov 2013
Source: Detroit News (MI)
Copyright: 2013 The Detroit News
Contact:  http://www.detroitnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/126
Author: Gary Heinlein
Page: 1A

LEGALIZED POT MAKES INROADS IN MICHIGAN

House Speaker Open to Discussion After Voters Relaxed Laws in 9
Cities

Lansing - Marijuana legalization advocates have gained momentum in
Michigan after voters last Tuesday approved pot legalization proposals
in three cities.

The moves have gotten some attention among state legislators in
Lansing, where the state House leader seems more ready to debate the
issue than the Senate majority leader or Gov. Rick Snyder.

House Speaker Jase Bolger "is open to having the discussion about the
right policy regarding marijuana and how it is treated under state
law," said Ari Adler, press secretary to the Republican House leader
from Marshall.

Adler said Bolger doesn't support legalized marijuana but is willing
to discuss decriminalizing it.

"(Bolger) likes to use the example of speeding - it's illegal, but the
punishment is a ticket, not jail time," Adler said. "Using that
premise, the question is: Should a small amount of marijuana for
personal use result in a ticket or jail time; does the punishment fit
the crime?"

Last Tuesday's results now means nine cities in the state have eased
or eliminated penalties for use or possession of small amounts of
marijuana, joining the precedent-setting state medical marijuana law
approved by voters in 2008.

Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville, R-Monroe, doesn't consider
legislation decriminalizing marijuana a high priority issue, a
spokeswoman said.

"The majority leader has never been one to shy away from a discussion,
but there is no simple solution to the issue, and decriminalization is
not high on his list of priorities at this time," said spokeswoman
Amber McCann, who added Richardville's chief concern is keeping drugs
from young people.

Gov. Rick Snyder similarly said last week that such local decisions
don't necessarily reflect the will of residents across the state.

"And to make it very clear, the whole topic of marijuana is not
something I have nor intend to spend much time working on," Snyder
said.

Tim Beck, chairman of the Safer Michigan Coalition, said the group is
pushing for lower fines for pot possession and use to be adopted statewide.

"I believe it has a chance, especially after these latest wins," said
Beck of Detroit. "Hopefully, it will give people in the Legislature
the courage to do the right thing."

Cloudy legal picture

In some cities with decriminalization ordinances, marijuana use or
possession involving an ounce or less is treated like a parking ticket
or traffic violation. Voters in Ferndale, Jackson and Lansing went
further by approving proposals to make it legal to possess, use or
transfer an ounce or less of marijuana on private property.

It created a cloudy picture in which local ordinances now say it's OK
to have pot for personal use within the city limits, while state and
federal laws say it remains a crime.

Police chiefs in at least two of the cities - Ferndale and Lansing -
said they'll continue enforcing state law.

Ferndale Police Chief Timothy Collins said the marijuana legalization
plan approved by 69 percent of the city's voters is "a symbolic gesture."

"The officers are sworn to uphold all of the laws," Collins said. "The
state law supersedes the local ordinance in this case."

State Attorney General Bill Schuette declined to get involved in the
discussion.

"This is an issue that will have to be resolved by the courts,"
Schuette said in a statement.

There's also ambiguity about federal law making marijuana possession
or use illegal.

The Obama administration and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder have
issued guidelines under which the Justice Department makes it a low
priority to arrest violators who are in compliance with laws in states
such as Michigan, which have legalized medical use, and Colorado,
which legalized recreational use.

Gina Balaya, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office for the
Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, said her office "focuses on
cases involving large drug trafficking organizations, violence, harm
to minors, and other federal interests."

"We historically have not prosecuted individual possession of small
quantities of marijuana," Balaya said.

Craig Covey, a former mayor who led the Ferndale legalization
initiative, said Michigan should join Washington state and Colorado in
legalizing the recreational use of marijuana.

"I think Michigan, for a change, should try to get out in front of the
issue and think about regulation and taxation so we're not behind the
rest of the country on this issue," Covey said.

Bipartisan bill sought

Safer Michigan Coalition is hoping lawmakers will pass a bipartisan
bill, chiefly sponsored by Democratic Rep. Jeff Irwin of Ann Arbor,
that would dramatically reduce penalties for infractions involving an
ounce or less of pot. It has five Democratic and two Republican sponsors.

Under the proposal, the maximum fine for a first violation would be
$25, for a second violation $50 and for all subsequent violations no
less than $50 and no more than $100.

There's a similar Senate bill sponsored by state Sen. Coleman Young
II, D-Detroit. Neither has received a committee hearing.

Beck said the two proposals parallel Michigan's first marijuana
decriminalization ordinance, passed in Ann Arbor 40 years ago.

Current state law says possessing any amount of marijuana is a
misdemeanor punishable by up to a year behind bars and a fine as high
as $2,000. Marijuana use is a misdemeanor punishable by 90 days in
jail and a fine of up to $100.

Possession of marijuana in a Michigan park, however, can result in
harsher penalties. Judges have the discretion to issue sentences up to
2 years and fines up to $2,000.

Under federal law, marijuana possession is punishable by up to a year
in jail and a minimum fine of $1,000. The penalty for a second
conviction is a 15-day mandatory minimum sentence with a maximum of
two years in prison and a fine up to $2,500. Further convictions carry
a 90-day mandatory minimum sentence, a maximum of three years in
prison and a fine up to $5,000.

The passage of local ordinances promotes the goal of pot legalization,
Beck said.

"Our logic is to create chaos and confusion between state and local
laws, so the solution is that the Legislature steps in and does the
right thing and listens to voters," he said.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt