The state Supreme Court case that resulted in residents of Bernalillo and Santa Fe counties being allowed to vote on whether they would like to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana turned on a definition and who has the authority to decide what the words in question mean. "Other questions" was the question. The questions to go before Bernalillo and Santa Fe counties are nonbinding advisory questions, meaning the passage or defeat means nothing in and of itself and county commissions aren't required to act based on outcomes of the voting. The commissions had voted to put the questions on the November ballot.

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Is Officer Discretion Too Big a Part of Equation?

Police Officers Can Choose to File Under the New City Code or the Existing State Law

Santa Fe broke new ground for New Mexico last month when it decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana, making the violation a mere civil nuisance violation under city ordinances.

But just because Santa Fe has decriminalized having an ounce or less of pot in the city code doesn't necessarily mean people caught with a joint won't get criminal charges on their record and face the possibility of jail time. That, apparently, will be left to individual police officers.

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Support for Change Strongest Among Young Respondents

A proposed constitutional change legalizing marijuana never made it to this year's ballot, but it looks like it would have been a hard sell with voters anyway.

A statewide Journal Poll of likely voters in the Nov. 4 general election found 50 percent of respondents opposed to legalization, while 44 percent favored it.

Another 3 percent told pollsters they had mixed feelings, while 3 percent didn't know or wouldn't say.

The poll question was: "Do you support or oppose legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults in New Mexico, with a tax and regulation system, similar to Colorado?"

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NM Supreme Court Overrules Action by Secretary of State

Marijuana is back on the ballot. The New Mexico Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Friday that Secretary of State Dianna Duran overstepped her authority when she refused to allow Bernalillo and Santa Fe counties to put advisory questions on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Each county wants to ask general-election voters whether they support decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana.

The election results won't carry the force of law. It would be up to the counties or other governments to pursue legislation aimed at changing marijuana penalties, if they so choose.

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New Study Says That Legalizing All Drugs Is the Smart Thing to Do

Here's a riddle: How many knowledgeable people does it take to suggest a policy change before society adopts their sage advice?

Buried in all the recent news about ISIS, horrific weather lashing the United States, the violence of NFL players and the like came a hardly noticed news item about the idea of legalizing drugs. Now, stay with me on this. It's important. The Global Commission on Drug Policy, an illustrious panel including former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz, former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve Paul Volcker, former presidents and prime ministers of nearly a dozen countries, and others issued a detailed study about why it's smart - for reasons both humanitarian and financial - to legalize marijuana and other drugs. Yes, all drugs. Maybe it's time to consider their suggestion? After all, our decades-long War on Drugs has been a miserable failure. Actions to curb drug production and violence in other countries, and along our border have obviously not worked.

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SANTA FE - Santa Fe's advisory Public Safety Committee on Tuesday panned the city's new ordinance that decriminalizes possession of less than an ounce of marijuana.

Former police chief Eric Johnson referred to part of the new law that makes busts for possession of small amounts of pot the lowest law enforcement priority in Santa Fe.

Johnson wanted to know what that means and said in his view marijuana remains "a gateway drug." The committee voted unanimously to have nothing to do with the pot law, rejecting an amendment to clarify that it remains "unlawful" to have an ounce of pot in Santa Fe.

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Weekend Mailing of Ballots to Be Postponed

The state Supreme Court on Monday ordered election workers to postpone the mailing of general-election ballots this weekend until the court can decide whether it's legal for the county to add advisory questions to the ballot.

The court order came shortly after Bernalillo County filed an emergency petition Monday asking justices to intervene and authorize the addition of two advisory questions - one centering on marijuana decriminalization, the other on raising taxes for mental-health programs.

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Secretary of State, NM High Court, 2 Counties Involved

SANTA FE - New Mexico's politically charged debate over marijuana decriminalization intensified Tuesday with two counties, the secretary of state and the state Supreme Court embroiled in legal questions over November ballots.

And the governor had something to say, too.

Santa Fe County joined Bernalillo County in challenging Secretary of State Dianna Duran's decision to not allow advisory questions on the Nov. 4 ballot. Duran's office, meanwhile, said she would go to federal court to challenge the state Supreme Court for holding up the mailing of ballots to certain overseas voters.

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Counties Could Sue Secretary of State

Secretary of State Dianna Duran says she won't allow Bernalillo and Santa Fe counties to put nonbinding "advisory" questions on the fall ballot.

Each county had agreed earlier this week to ask voters whether they support decriminalizing possession of an ounce or less of marijuana.

In a memo released Wednesday, Duran, a Republican, told the counties she has "denied" their attempt to put those questions on the Nov. 4 ballot.

The questions, she said, are really just opinion polls because they don't carry the force of law or change local ordinances. Instead, they simply ask voters for their opinion. It's not legal to add such questions to a general-election ballot, she said.

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What do the two advisory questions from the Bernalillo County Commission have in common with the three real ballot questions approved by the Albuquerque City Council? Nothing. Because the commission's two questions won't change the law regarding penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana or institute a grossreceipts tax to provide facilities and care for the mentally ill. And even if they did, there has been no legal opinion as to the constitutionality of the first and no fiscal details on how the projected millions of dollars would be spent from the second.

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Democrats Favor Advisory Questions Over City Issues

It isn't clear they'll fit on the ballot or survive a court challenge.

But two non-bonding advisory questions - one asking voters their opinion on a tax increase for mental health services, the other on reducing marijuana penalties - narrowly won County Commission approval Monday for addition to the Nov. 4 ballot.

It was a 3-2 vote along party lines, with Democrats in the majority.

The decision came in a packed meeting in Downtown Albuquerque after commissioners heard from a handful of women who shared their personal struggle with addiction and mental illness. Supporters of decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana also spoke.

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Commission to Consider an 'Advisory Question' For November Ballot

SANTA FE - Voters in Santa Fe County, and not just those inside Santa Fe city limits, may get to weigh in on whether possession of small amounts of marijuana should be decriminalized - but they won't vote to actually create a law to lower pot penalties.

The Santa Fe County Commission today will consider placing an "advisory question" on the November ballot. The results would serve as an opinion poll on decriminalization. "It's not binding, but it lets voters weigh in," said Pat Davis of ProgressNow New Mexico, which pushed petition drives to put pot decriminalization measures on the ballot in Albuquerque and Santa Fe.

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"It is unlawful for a person intentionally to possess a controlled substance. ... one ounce or less of marijuana ... is, for the first offense, guilty of a petty misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not less than $50 ... and by imprisonment for not more than 15 days." - N.M. statute 30-31-23, Controlled substances; possession prohibited

If New Mexico Attorney General Gary King is entrusted with enforcing New Mexico's laws, then how, exactly, can he opt to kick back on the sidelines when a plain reading of a city pot decriminalization ordinance appears to be in direct conflict with the state statute?

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It's Unlikely Council Can Override Mayor

Mayor Richard Berry on Friday vetoed an election resolution that would have asked Albuquerque voters to reduce marijuana penalties and to raise taxes for social services.

The mayor faced an all-or-nothing proposal from the City Council - an election resolution containing five ballot items, including the marijuana and tax proposals.

The debate now turns to the council, which could try crafting a new election resolution when it meets Wednesday. Unless a councilor changes his or her position, there isn't enough support to override the veto.

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King: City Has Authority to Enact Own Ordinance

SANTA FE - Attorney General Gary King supports decriminalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana and his office has no plans to challenge Santa Fe's brand new ordinance that does just that.

"The city of Santa Fe definitely has the authority to enact its own ordinance, but beyond that I don't think it would come under the purview of the Attorney General's Office," said Phil Sisneros, spokesman for King.

"It could, but right now we don't see that happening," Sisneros said. "The attorney general (King) is in favor of decriminalizing marijuana laws such as the council has done."

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Move Bypasses Public Vote on Nov. Ballot

SANTA FE - There won't be an election on whether to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana in Santa Fe after all - a divided City Council went ahead and adopted a decriminalization measure late Wednesday night.

The vote was 5 to 4 to pass an ordinance that makes having an ounce or less of pot only a civil infraction, punishable by a fine of no more than $25. Councilors who voted for passage said it would save the cost of putting the measure on the ballot, estimated by the City Clerk's office at as much as $80,000.

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But There May Not Be Enough Space for Question

SANTA FE - The Santa Fe County Commission on Tuesday voted 4-0 to put proposed decriminalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana within the Santa Fe city limits on the ballot for the Nov. 4 general election.

But questions remain as to whether there's enough room on the ballot to publish the question.

State Secretary of State Dianna Duran and her Bureau of Elections Director Bobbi Shearer outlined several concerns about whether there is enough space on the ballot to handle the pot proposal and having different ballots in precincts split between city and county voters.

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But Measure Faces Mayoral Veto and Lack of Space on Ballot

Petitioners calling for decriminalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana have filed enough valid voter signatures to put a proposal on the ballot in Santa Fe, the city clerk has confirmed.

Proponents are aiming to have the question go before city voters as part of the November general election.

In Albuquerque, however, the picture is not so clear. The City Council late Monday narrowly agreed to ask voters whether they support reducing marijuana penalties.

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Both Topics Are Intertwined and Must Be Addressed Together

The faces of frightened young children huddling together just inside our border are heartrending. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has the right attitude. Enough talk. Let's act.

Merely deploying National Guard units underscores the pressing need for a national dialogue that places immigration into a more sensible context. Too many politicians miss the real issues and exploit the topic for partisan gain.

Immigration is a symptom. Immigrants have different motives for coming here, but a core problem stems from the Mexican drug war that has claimed more than 105,000 lives on our doorstep, and threatens our families and children in perhaps a thousand U.S. cities.

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When you go to urgent care, you should be able to be confident the medical professionals treating you aren't high. When you drive down the highway, you should expect a truck driver to be sober. A drug-free workplace is what most people expect - including employers.

And that's what Presbyterian Healthcare Services says it is committed to and is required to provide under federal law. So, when a nurse practitioner started working in one of its centers and tested positive for THC, the active chemical in marijuana, she was fired, even though she provided documentation that she is authorized to use medical marijuana to treat symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. Donna Smith's attorney says she did not possess or use marijuana at work and had excellent performance reviews at previous jobs.

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