They're Standing Firm Despite State's Growing Prison Population OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Despite last week's largest pro marijuana rally at the Oklahoma Capitol in recent history, there is little appetite in the conservative Oklahoma Legislature to join other states in legalizing cannabis, even for medicinal purposes. Legislators from both sides of the aisle say that while attitudes may slowly be shifting toward loosening laws that prohibit Oklahomans from smoking pot, the idea isn't worth the potential political fallout in a state with a tough-on-crime reputation, especially during an election year. [continues 238 words]
As a longtime fan of Philip Seymour Hoffman's work, I view the widespread reactions of grief over his death with a mixture of appreciation and dread. As a fan, I appreciate the recognition that this Oscar-winning actor's astounding talents richly deserved. But I also brace myself for the sort of anger-driven, self-defeating, lock-'em-up anti-drug crusades that too often have followed shocking drug-related celebrity deaths. Such high-profile tragedies as the 1970 drug-related deaths of rock stars Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix, for example, helped fuel the Nixon administration's "war on drugs" and numerous "zero tolerance" state drug laws that filled prisons with long sentences for nonviolent offenders. [continues 564 words]
Patients, Others Attend Rally and Hearing OKLAHOMA CITY - Colleen Stice has a 13-monthold son who, at times, suffers hundreds of seizures a day. Her son, Rowan, was diagnosed with a form of epilepsy when he was 6 months old and hasn't gained a pound since he started taking medication, Stice said. "He's developmentally behind because of the medication and the state it puts him in," said Stice, of Tulsa. "I feel terrible ... Either I let the seizures kill his brain, or I let the medicine do it." [continues 780 words]
Hundreds of people rallied at the state Capitol on Wednesday to ask the Legislature to rethink how Oklahoma regulates marijuana for both medicinal and recreational purposes. Supporters gathered for speeches in front of the Capitol, piled into conference rooms and packed the Senate gallery, voicing concerns over what many called the over-criminalization of the drug and the necessity for its use as a medicine. Ron Ferrell, 63, of Oklahoma City, was among those who were actively lobbying their lawmakers on the issue. Ferrell said, regardless of Oklahoma's reputation as being behind the times socially, he feels the momentum of the medical marijuana movement will eventually take hold in the state. [continues 607 words]
By the time my 5-year-old daughter leaves for college, it's quite likely that marijuana use will be broadly decriminalized. Alaska has become the most recent state to move toward legalization, placing an initiative on the ballot for an August vote. If it passes, Alaska would join Washington and Colorado, which have already made recreational use legal for adults. The trend will probably continue, since 52 percent of Americans support legalization, according to the Pew Research Center. That's good news - and not because I want my daughter to indulge. [continues 622 words]
Regarding "New pot laws don't reflect liberal ascendancy in U.S." (Our Views, Feb. 3): A growing majority of Americans now support marijuana legalization. This is a bipartisan issue. The punitive nanny state has proven itself to be a failure. Surely Republicans who loathe big government can see this. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize violent drug cartels, prohibition is a grand success. The drug war distorts supply and demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. [continues 108 words]
At least, so say many proponents of legalizing marijuana Keeping marijuana an illegal substance does nothing more than help drug dealers recruit children into a culture that takes advantage of them and their vulnerability, a former undercover narcotics agent said. Neill Franklin, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), spent 34 years with the Maryland State Police working primarily in drug investigations. Franklin spoke earlier this month at a University of Oklahoma conference entitled, "The War on Drugs and Mass Incarceration: Myths and Realities." [continues 1181 words]
During her time in office, Sen. Constance Johnson has proposed a number of bills aimed at easing Oklahoma's strict marijuana laws, and this year is no different. Senate Bill 2116, proposed by Johnson, D-Oklahoma City, would legalize a small amount of "personal use" marijuana -- up to an ounce -- as well as set up rules for the sale and growth of the product. Although 20 states now have legalized marijuana for medical use, Johnson's bill is unlikely to pass. [continues 428 words]
Law Enforcement Hasn't Seen the Over-The-Border Deluge They're Expecting. BOISE CITY - A month after recreational marijuana became legal in Colorado, the flood of Rocky Mountain weed law enforcement officials predicted would come across the border into Oklahoma doesn't appear to have materialized. At least, not yet. About 53 percent of Colorado voters in November 2012 voted to repeal the state's ban on recreational marijuana. That change went into effect at the beginning of January. The new law allows anyone older than 21 to buy small amounts of marijuana from dispensaries in the state. Colorado residents may buy up to an ounce of marijuana in one transaction, while outof-state residents are limited to a quarter ounce. [continues 479 words]
IN a recent Washington Post column, Democratic strategist Steve Rosenthal argued the United States electorate has become leftleaning, citing things such as changing attitudes about marijuana. "It is more than an interesting observation that America now leans left," Rosenthal thundered. "This should be a guiding light for politicians. With the knowledge that most Americans are, in fact, behind them, Democrats no longer need to fear running on their beliefs." Apparently, Democrats who actually have to run for statewide office don't share Rosenthal's certainty, particularly on marijuana. In Colorado, where voters have legalized adult recreational use of marijuana, Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper is openly hostile to that effort. [continues 449 words]
BOISE CITY - A month after recreational marijuana became legal in Colorado, the flood of Rocky Mountain weed law enforcement officials predicted would come across the border into Oklahoma doesn't appear to have materialized. At least, not yet. About 53 percent of Colorado voters in November 2012 voted to repeal the state's ban on recreational marijuana. That change went into effect at the beginning of January. The new law allows anyone older than 21 to buy small amounts of marijuana from dispensaries in the state. Colorado residents may buy up to an ounce of marijuana in one transaction, while out-of-state residents are limited to a quarter ounce. [continues 479 words]
Smoke a joint on your porch in Denver and you face no legal consequence. Get caught doing it twice in Oklahoma City and the law says you could go to prison for up to 10 years. Oklahoma has some of the strictest marijuana-possession laws in the nation, but the reality is few people convicted only of possession find themselves serving time, law enforcement officials, prosecutors and defense attorneys say. "There are a lot of people who surely believe prisons are full of marijuana possession cases," Oklahoma County Assistant District Attorney Scott Rowland said. "It's not true. What's true, instead, is you have to work very hard to go to prison on drug possession cases in Oklahoma, period." [continues 1377 words]
Reading "Oklahoma legislator's bill aims to legalize pot" (News, Jan. 26), I wasn't surprised that officials opposing a bill to legalize and tax marijuana were law enforcement, not the health sector. Naturally, Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel doesn't want marijuana legalized. He's paid to house city and state prisoners, many on marijuana charges. Add the loss of federal grants and it would take a very big man to say otherwise. No surprise, either, that the head of the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs doesn't want to lose manpower and turf. [continues 129 words]
During her time in office, Sen. Constance Johnson has proposed a number of bills aimed at easing Oklahoma's strict marijuana laws, and this year is no different. Senate Bill 2116, proposed by Johnson, D-Oklahoma City, would legalize a small amount of "personal use" marijuana - up to an ounce - - as well as set up rules for the sale and growth of the product. Although 20 states now have legalized marijuana for medical use, Johnson's bill is unlikely to pass. [continues 429 words]
OKLAHOMA CITY - State Sen. Connie Johnson has introduced a bill that would regulate and tax marijuana like alcohol in Oklahoma. Senate Bill 2116 would make the personal use, possession and limited home-cultivation of marijuana legal for adults age 21 and older, and establish a system in which marijuana is regulated and taxed similarly to alcohol. National polls have shown a steady increase in support for taxing and regulating adult use of marijuana in recent years, with a majority of Americans now consistently supporting an end to its prohibition. [continues 333 words]
"What's that smell?" a 10-year-old girl asked her mother as they walked toward a Colorado rec center. That question launched the first of what probably will be many conversations that mother will have with her daughter about marijuana, now legal in Colorado. The mother began to research what was being written about how to talk to kids about pot, and she found very little material, presumably because adults are still figuring it out. She did find one article, written by Suzanne S. Brown in the Denver Post, that addressed some of the questions teens are asking about pot. Here are some excerpts: [continues 315 words]
It is said that Mother Nature is no fool. She created the marijuana plant, just like she created the coca plant (cocaine) and opium poppy (morphine). But, then again, Mother Nature created tonsils. On Nov. 6, 2012, the states of Colorado and Washington legalized the recreational use of marijuana, thus taking the great marijuana debate to another level. Prior to that, medicinal use was the discussion of the day. But make no mistake, the transition from medical to recreational was carefully orchestrated years ago by marijuana advocates. By that I mean the transition has come full circle. When marijuana proponents realized long ago that the country was not yet liberal enough to gain any traction on their bandwagon to legalize, they quickly adopted the medicinal angle, playing the humanity card with the notion that once medical use was accepted, then legislating recreational use was just a nine-iron away. [continues 546 words]
State Sen. Constance Johnson has filed a bill to legalize marijuana in Oklahoma and place its regulation under the control of the state Health Department. "I think with our current system of laws and punishments for simple possession, we are burying ourselves into a pit where the costs are unsustainable," said Johnson, who has made several unsuccessful past attempts to liberalize Oklahoma's marijuana laws. Johnson said she believes unnecessarily harsh laws have ruined young people's lives, and that decriminalizing marijuana would reduce gang activity and violence. [continues 666 words]
Mallory Johnson had lost count of how many times her daughter was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance or helicopter, her tiny body convulsed with seizures. Desperate to find a treatment that would work for Zoey, Johnson's odyssey took her through a winding trail of doctors in Oklahoma, Texas and Arizona. When Zoey was 3, Johnson learned her daughter had Dravet syndrome. The seizure disorder is so rare - striking about one in 40,000 children - that one doctor told her: "Google it." [continues 1237 words]
Smoking Marlboros is now forbidden in Irish bars in New York City. But buying, selling, and smoking marijuana is legal in Colorado. It doesn't take a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing. But where are we going? One certain result of the legalization of marijuana is that there are going to be more potheads, more dropouts, and more deaths on highways from those high or stoned - and more rehab centers. Coloradans may relish the freedom they have voted for themselves. But the costs will be borne by society and the families of future victims of potheads behind the wheel. [continues 629 words]
Inside Oklahoma
