Pubdate: Sun, 10 Aug 2014
Source: Tulsa World (OK)
Copyright: 2014 World Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.tulsaworld.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/463
Author: Paul Brunton
Note: Paul Brunton is a Tulsa-based criminal defense lawyer and a 
former three-term state legislator. He served as Tulsa County chief 
public defender from 1972-74, and as chief federal public defender 
for the Northern and Eastern districts from 2001-2006,
Page: G3

CANNABIS POLICY PUTS CITIZENS IN CROSSHAIRS

As a longtime practicing attorney engaged in criminal defense, I have 
handled hundreds of marijuana-related cases in city, state and 
federal courts throughout Oklahoma, and nationally.

I have witnessed the damaging effects to individual liberty and a 
multitude of barriers to legitimate employment from its 
classification as a Schedule I controlled substance.

Aside from generating huge amounts of dollars for use by law 
enforcement agencies in fighting a "war" that cannot be won, 
supporters of continued criminalization of marijuana ultimately will 
see it fail.

Time for change

As a former Republican member of the Oklahoma Legislature, I, along 
with several colleagues, introduced legislation to decriminalize the 
simple possession of marijuana. An editorial in the Tulsa World 
called it: "an idea whose time has come." This was in the mid-to late 
1970s. The bill never reached the House floor because it lacked 
sufficient votes to pass.

Fast forward to today: A significant push at the state level has 
resulted in not only the passage of medical marijuana legislation as 
well as the beginning of decriminalization of marijuana in a growing 
number of states.

Legalization of marijuana for legitimate medicinal use should be a 
no-brainer as a practical, medical and humanitarian goal. I am 
certain the lack of understanding and necessary commitment here in 
Oklahoma will make our state one of the few holdouts left in this 
country before it succeeds.

Unfair enforcement

Never in modern history has there existed greater public support for 
ending the prohibition on marijuana and replacing it with regulation. 
The historic votes on election day 2012 in Colorado and Washington - 
where, for the first time ever, a majority of voters decided at the 
ballot box to abolish cannabis prohibition - underscore this political reality.

Oklahoma has some some of the strictest marijuana penalties in the 
nation. A second offense for minor marijuana possession is classified 
as a felony, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Cultivation of 
any amount of cannabis also is classified as a felony and may be 
punishable by up to life in prison. These penalties are clearly 
disproportionate to the behavior in question.

Oklahoma has the 20th highest per-capita marijuana possession arrest 
rate in the country. Oklahoma police arrest more than 10,000 
individuals annually for minor marijuana possession violations at the 
cost of nearly $30 million per year.

This ongoing prohibition financially burdens taxpayers, encroaches 
upon civil liberties, engenders disrespect for the law, impedes 
legitimate scientific research into the plant's medicinal properties, 
and disproportionately impacts communities of color. Presently, 
African Americans in Oklahoma account for 7.6 percent of the state's 
population. They also consume marijuana at similar rates to whites. 
Yet, African Americans constitute 20.8 percent of all marijuana 
possession arrests in Oklahoma.

State control

It is time to stop ceding control of the marijuana market to untaxed 
criminal enterprises, and it is time for lawmakers to pass laws 
permitting medical and personal use of cannabis by adults and 
licensing its production.

A pragmatic regulatory framework that allows for limited, licensed 
production and sale of cannabis to adults - but restricts use among 
young people - best reduces the risks associated with its use or 
abuse, as well as satisfying federal concerns about states' taxation 
and regulation of cannabis.

It is time for a new approach in regards to Oklahoma's ineffective 
and expensive cannabis policies. The ongoing criminalization of the 
cannabis plant and the practice of arresting and prosecuting those 
adults who consume it responsibly is a disproportionate public policy 
response to what is, at worst, a public health concern.

James Garner, recently deceased, was praised in a Tulsa World 
editorial as a true Oklahoma-born success story. In his memoirs, 
published in 2011, Garner addressed his reasons for supporting the 
legal use of marijuana. He is quoted as saying: "I don't know where I 
would be without it. ... It opened my mind to a lot of things, and 
now its active ingredient, THC, relaxes me and eases my arthritis 
pain.... I smoked it for about 50 years. ... I drank to get drunk but 
ultimately didn't like the effect....not so with grass. Grass is 
smooth. It had the opposite effect from alcohol. .... It made me 
tolerant and forgiving. ... After decades of personal research and 
observation, I've concluded that marijuana should be legal and 
alcohol should be illegal."

Personally, I doubt I could have said it any better.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom