CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE — After being rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee in a 4-0 vote last Thursday, HB 1623 was defeated this afternoon in a voice vote by the full Senate. The bill, which would have reduced the penalty for possessing less than a quarter ounce of marijuana, had been marked for death since it received a rare veto threat from Governor Lynch following passage by the House.

Matt Simon, executive director of the NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy, was not discouraged by the result. “A strong majority of voters now understand that our marijuana laws were written for the 1970’s, and that they need to be updated for the 21st Century,” he explained. “Through this process, I think we have demonstrated that a reform of this nature is both wise and inevitable.”

Simon cited the 193-141 House vote as a turning point for marijuana reform in New Hampshire. “It’s tough to raise this kind of issue in an election year,” he said, “but given the results from our recent poll, we’re confident that decision-makers will catch up with public opinion when the next opportunity arises.”

Congratulations to the reformers who have moved decrim forward in the Granite State. Matt is right; just getting a passage from the House is a major accomplishment. Don’t be too discouraged about losing this battle, because we keep making progress on winning the war.

Brown says message must be sent on cannabis | UK | Reuters
LONDON (Reuters) - Gordon Brown said on Tuesday the government needs to send a message that cannabis is “unacceptable,” increasing speculation he will decide to tighten drug laws.

Brown has received a report from The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) on cannabis and will decide soon whether to upgrade it to Class B from a Class C, although a decision is not expected this week.

Newspapers have predicted that Brown will reclassify the drug even though the council has reportedly advised the government to keep cannabis in Class C.

“I don’t think that the previous studies took into account that so much of the cannabis on the streets is now of a lethal quality and we really have got to send out a message to young people — this is not acceptable,” Brown said.

Cannabis was downgraded to Class C — which includes substances such as anabolic steroids — in 2004. That means possession of the drug is treated largely as a non-arrestable offence.

But Brown launched a review by the advisory council, which comprises doctors, police, judges and counsellors, soon after he became prime minister.

And now he’s just about ready to completely ignore his advisory council, which is said to favor keeping cannabis decriminalized by a vote of 20-3.

But surely, when someone is quoted as calling cannabis “lethal”, you can’t expect them to accept pesky things like facts, logic, and science.  Brown wants to change the cannabis laws in the UK for purely political reasons.

wcbstv.com - NYCLU: City Now World’s ‘Marijuana Arrest Capital’
NEW YORK (CBS/AP) ? Police busted nearly 400,000 people for carrying small amounts of pot in the last decade, making New York City the world leader in marijuana arrests, civil rights advocates said Tuesday while unveiling a study criticizing the war on drugs.

The study by Queens College sociologist Harry G. Levin, titled “Marijuana Arrest Crusade,” accused police of purposely singling out minorities during the 10-year crackdown. It said that data provided by stat Division of Criminal Justice Services showed that between 1997 and 2007, 52 percent of the suspects were black, 31 percent Hispanic and only 15 percent white.

Laws were revised in the late 1970s to largely decriminalize carrying small, concealed stashes of marijuana, Levin said. But he claimed police routinely “manufacture” arrests for possession in public view — still a misdemeanor — by stopping young black men on the street and goading them into emptying their pockets.

According to the study, arrests for marijuana possession began skyrocketing in the late 1990s during the Giuliani administration — a trend that continued under Mayor Michael Bloomberg at an estimated cost of between $50 and $90 million a year. There were 39,700 arrests last year alone, according to the study.

The 2007 total makes the city “the marijuana arrest capital of the world,” Lieberman said. The study says New York deserves that title because it devotes far more resources to arresting and jailing marijuana offenders than other large cities in Europe and elsewhere. It also cites a previous analysis of FBI data showing that five of the top 10 counties with highest per-capita arrest rate were the five boroughs.

Police spokesmen slammed the report, of course, saying Dr. Levine is a “legalizer” and was grossly distorting his research.  Law enforcement believes that marijuana arrests are part of “quality of life” policing under the “broken windows” theory, which states that if you ignore graffiti, broken windows, garbage, etc., then people will believe that they live in a lawless zone and more serious crimes will increase.

The theory isn’t necessarily wrong, it’s the lumping of marijuana smoking in with those other misdemeanors that is the problem.  It has created an adversarial relationship between young minority males and police and drives drug users toward crime and drugs that do create societal problems, like alcohol.  It’s OK for young adults to sit on the stoop and drink a 40-ounce of malt liquor, a drug that’s proven to increase aggression and violence, but not to consume cannabis, a drug that leads to mellow happiness and social belonging.

Concord Monitor - Marijuana bill drubbed in committee
The marijuana decriminalization effort at the State House appears to have gone up in smoke.

The Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday voted 4-0 against a bill that would decriminalize possession of one-quarter of an ounce of the drug, making it a violation rather than a misdemeanor.

The House passed the bill 193-141 last month. Gov. John Lynch immediately issued a rare veto threat, and Senate leaders announced their opposition to it.

In the House, sponsors focused their arguments on the fact that college students convicted of drug offenses can lose access to federal education assistance, a consequence they argued was too harsh. Yesterday, Sen. Deborah Reynolds said New Hampshire is the wrong place to fix that.

“It seems to me that maybe we need to be going to our congressional delegation,” Reynolds said. Meanwhile, she said, this bill would send the wrong message: “Smoke a little pot, it’s not a big deal.”

The bill’s prime sponsor, Rep. Jeff Fontas, held out little hope yesterday that the Senate would overturn the committee vote, saying he doesn’t know of any senators who will argue in favor of the bill on the Senate floor.

“No senator has told me that they’re wiling to do that,” said Fontas, a 21-year-old Nashua Democrat.

A quarter of an ounce equates to about eight joints. At a public hearing this week, opponents of decriminalization raised myriad issues, including how the bill jibes with laws against transporting marijuana or possessing paraphernalia. Some also raised the point that marijuana today is more potent than it was a few decades ago.

“The ’small amount’ is probably equal to a bag back in the ’60s,” said Sen. Bob Letourneau, a Derry Republican.

Once again the “Not Your 60’s Pot” myth raises it’s ugly head.  It’s predicated on the idea that the more potent the pot, the more dangerous it is.  It’s simply not true.  Marijuana is non-toxic; smoking more potent marijuana isn’t any more likely to harm you.  Marijuana is also self-titrating, which just means that users are able to immediately gauge the effects and limit intake.  If you’ve got schwaggy weed, you smoke a lot of it and get high.  If you’ve got the diggity dank, you smoke a little of it and get high.  You could argue since you inhale less smoke from the chronic as opposed to the ditchweed, then more potent marijuana is safer.

As for Senator Reynolds’ contention that the elimination of student aid for drug convictions needs to be addressed in the federal senate, well, that’s true.  New Hampshire cannot change a federal law.  However, what triggers that law is an arrest for marijuana possession, and 99% of all such arrests happen at the state level, which is something New Hampshire can address.

Finally, about “the message” the bill would send: New Hampshire residents are already smoking pot and don’t see it as a big deal.  The house - which directly represents the people - supported the bill.  Polls show over 70% public support for marijuana decriminalization.

Sugar Grove loosens up its marijuana law :: Beacon News :: News
SUGAR GROVE — In an unusual move in the Fox Valley, village police plan to start writing tickets — instead of making arrests — for first-timers caught with small amounts of marijuana.

Police Chief Bradley Sauer said the change will keep officers from spending long hours in court on minor drug charges and also allow those who slip up just once to keep their records clean.

“This is a warning on steroids,” he said.

Tickets for first-time marijuana possession or drug paraphernalia possession will be $200. Sauer said those fines were in line with the fees judges typically hand down in court.

Both marijuana and paraphernalia possession are state violations, but towns can change those to town ordinances if they want, said Kane County State’s Attorney John Barsanti. However, village ordinances cannot carry any jail time, only fines.

Look, over 70% of Americans favor fine-only penalties for marijuana use.  Sugar Grove is making a sensible change to best use their limited police resources.  Every marijuana arrest means taking an officer off the streets for paperwork, booking, and testifying against someone who, aside from smoking marijuana, is probably a decent, hard-working, productive citizen.

Nashuatelegraph.com: Pot bill authors look to appease critics
CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE – The two, upstart Nashua authors of a marijuana decriminalization bill offered to restrict it to first-time offenders in hopes of overcoming the opposition of Gov. John Lynch to the House-approved measure.

Reps. Jeffrey Fontas and Andrew Edwards said this would erase fears it would be a get-out-of-jail-free card for repeat offenders and do as intended, give a young person leniency single mistake.

The bill would drop punishment for possession of up to a quarter-ounce of pot to a fine of no more than $200. Currently, the same offender can get up to a year in county jail or fines of up to $2,000.

Matthew Simon, executive director of New Hampshire Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy said even opponents point out judges ignore the jail punishment and order fines for first-time offenders.

“If nobody agrees the penalties are appropriate, why can’t we change that?” Simon asked.

Proponents contend this would prevent New Hampshire from punishing students with the loss of college aid for a single conviction.

But Karen Eckal, speaking for Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, urged the bill be killed outright.

The college aid loss for one year is a federal law and this would not change that or do anything for New Hampshire students attending college outside the state.

“There is no amount of tinkering with our law that is going to change that fact,” Eckal said. “As well shrouded as this is in good intentions, it doesn’t accomplish what the sponsors think it will.”

Did you notice the rhetorical sleight-of-hand on that position by the Attorney General? We say that a pot conviction can mean a student loses college aid, they say that’s a federal law and a New Hampshire bill can’t change that.

But Ms. Eckal, can you not see that the penalties listed in the Higher Education Act’s Aid Elimination Penalty are triggered by a drug conviction? Notice that doesn’t say federal drug conviction. So if New Hampshire decriminalizes a pathetically-small 7 grams of marijuana, that will mean less drug convictions and less Granite State young people losing their federal aid.

As for kids from New Hampshire attending schools in other states? If they’re studying in Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, or Oregon, they’re already protected by decriminalization to some degree.

Nevertheless, the bill is opposed by the Republican Democratic Governor John Lynch, and by the Democratic Senate Majority Leader Joseph Foster.

Call your Congress today and tell your representative to support our two pro-marijuana bills in the House:

Washington, DC: US Congressman Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced legislation in Congress Friday to strip the federal government of its authority to arrest responsible adult cannabis consumers. The measure, H.R. 5843, known as an “Act to Remove Federal Penalties for Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults,” is the first federal decriminalization legislation introduced in 24 years. Frank’s pending bill, co-sponsored by presidential candidate Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), seeks to eliminate all federal penalties prohibiting the personal use and possession of up to 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) of marijuana. Under this measure, adults who consume cannabis would no longer face arrest, prison, or even the threat of a civil fine. The bill also eliminates all penalties for the not-for-profit transfers of up to one ounce of pot. All are encouraged to write their representatives in support of this important legislation via NORML’s online advocacy system.

Washington, DC: Representative Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced H.R. 5842, the “Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act,” earlier today. This bill would make federal authorities respect states’ current laws on medicinal cannabis and end DEA raids on facilities distributing medical marijuana legally under state law. Representative Paul, whose presidential campaign prominently featured the ending of the drug war as a platform plank, was joined by Representative Barney Frank (D-MA) in sponsoring this bill. All NORML supporters are strongly encouraged to write their Representatives in favor of this important bill via NORML’s online advocacy system.

For the first time in 24 years, we have a bill in Congress to end penalties for personal possession of pot. Celebrating 4/20 was nice, but now it’s time to work for marijuana law reform, so nobody need ever be arrested, fined, or harassed for their private responsible use of the herb.

Call your federal representative now (and/or click here for an email form)! As NORML Board Member Madeline Martinez says, “Put down the joint, step away from the bong, for just the minute it takes to call your government!” Don’t be intimidated; they work for you, and calling a member of Congress is really easy:

Call 202-224-3121
Support HR5843

Just be brief and polite. The operator will ask for your zip code; this will allow them to find your particular representative*. When you get to the office of your representative, ask if you can speak directly to him/her. That probably won’t happen, as they are very busy, but they do work for you, right? Who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky and speak directly to them; in which case, email us at stash ‘at’ norml.org and tell us all about it.

More likely you’ll get a staff member. If so, just say to the staffer:

Hi, my name is ____ and I live in ____. I’m calling to tell Representative ____ that he/she should support HR5843.

You don’t have to tell them where you live, but they take calls from their constituents more seriously. So if you want to be more anonymous, you could say “____ county” or “the ____ district” or even just your state.

This will give them a moment to get a pen. They may not know what “HR5843″ is. So for your next sentence, restate the bill number and then describe it, like this:

HR5843 is the bill Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts introduced that would end federal penalties for small amounts of marijuana for personal use.

Now from here, depending on how busy/interested the staffer is, you can continue the conversation. Give them reasons to say “yes” to your proposal, let them know they are politically safe in doing so. The more you can put it in your words, the better, but say away from “man, we all have the God-given right to smoke the herb, dude” lines of reasoning, no matter how true that may be. They need concrete reasons to justify their vote; sadly, our “rights” aren’t often a good enough reason.

Here are some “talking points” that if you can work into the conversation in your own words, all the better:

• 830,000 people were arrested for marijuana in 2006
• 89% of those arrests were for possession only
• Adults who use marijuana responsibly are not part of the crime problem
• A marijuana arrest can needlessly cause the loss of a career, housing, student aid, and more.
• Twelve states already have decriminalized personal possession of marijuana
• Federal resources would be better spent on meaningful crime
• Current federal penalties call for up to a $1,000 fine and one year in prison for as little as a joint.
• One third of the US population live in states that have decriminalized marijuana

Most of all, be sure to let them know this issue is important to you and it will help determine how you vote in future elections.

*You only have one. You also have two Senators. You can call them and ask them to sponsor companion legislation to Barney Frank’s HR5843 to end federal penalties for personal marijuana possession.