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Stasher Adam’s report on SB 5615 hearing (Washington marijuana decriminalization bill)

By "Radical" Russ Belville on February 11, 2009

My girlfriend and I went to the senate hearing for WA SB 5615 today. It was great.
We lucked out with several bills of interest on the agenda. The first was a bill to abolish the Death Penalty in WA! Next was SB 5516 regarding Overdose Prevention and finally SB 5615 dealing with the reclassification of MJ as a class II infraction.
 
 
The experience was a great one, I recommend everyone do it. Take it from me, no one should feel intimidated or shy about attending these hearings.
 
2 hour video, here are the hot spots…
45:00 min into the hearing discussion of SB 5516 began.(Overdose Prevention) 
47:45- first joke from Chair, “If I remember right from my old days, there are 28g in 1oz”
54:30- Life saving drug introduced
1:00:00- Sen. Carrel ask ask stupid question…
1:02:30- Committee Chair Sen. Kline strikes again…Sen. Carrel slams his pen down and leaves the room :)
1:25:00- Chair makes great point, just watch…
1:26:30- Sen. Roach(funny) Calls all drug users thieves!!!
 
At the 1:32:30 mark the discussion of SB 5615 begins.(MJ Possession)
1:35:00- My big moment… that’s me in the back helping them out.
1:35:30- ACLU speaks
1:40:30- Chair makes 2nd joke, Comments on old cartoon, “Cop holds gun to pot smokers head…Drugs cause brain damage…
1:41:30- Fmr. WA state Rep.Nixon speaks, this guy nails it… He must have been reading the Stash. He hit a ton of great subjects. NORML needs to hire this guy!
1:45:00 Sen. Roach burns herself… (MSM corny joke) At this point she is desperate to make some point, begins to bring up the DUID/no good test thing AND the gateway theory all in the same sentence. Does she have a point?
 
1:47:30- Sen. Kline WA Senate Judiciary Committee Chair becomes my newest hero!!!
“I would like to answer Sen. Roach’s gateway theory question, MJ is a gateway drug. I used to grow my own dope, now I brew my on beer.”
 
The room burst into applause!!!

1:47:45- Rep from the King Co. Bar Association speaks. (Kills) the BAR…

1:52:00- Rep. speaks from the Hemp, Love and Freedom foundation. Questions are raised about a voter initiative.

 

1:54:30- Sen. Kline says “I might have to do it(start an initiative), I’ll name it after

“Sen. Roach”….

 

Well, that’s it. I have good reason to believe that this bill will pass through this committee without much trouble. There are many more steps towards our ultimate goal but today we started the journey in Washington State.

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I am the producer of The NORML Network, the host of the NORML SHOW LIVE and The NORML Stash Blog, and NORML's Outreach Coordinator. I'm married, live in Portland, Oregon, and I am a registered medical marijuana caregiver in this state. I've worked days as an IT geek and nights as a professional musician. Previously, I have been the host of my own political talk radio show on satellite radio. I've been the High Times "Freedom Fighter of the Month" and I travel across the country to educate people on marijuana reform. I've dedicated my life to bringing an end to adult marijuana prohibition and re-legalizing cannabis hemp, and I'm honored to be chosen by NORML to give voice to the Marijuana Nation and to speak for those who can't speak up.

3 responses to “Stasher Adam’s report on SB 5615 hearing (Washington marijuana decriminalization bill)”

  1. Adam Gentz
    Adam Gentz
    February 15, 2009 at 5:27 pm |

    awesome report!!! :) we love these bills.

  2. "Radical" Russ
    "Radical" Russ
    February 11, 2009 at 12:16 pm |

    Ah, the old “if we decrim pot, there will be a rash of DUIDs, because we have no good way to test for impairment!” line.

    OK, Sen. Roach, think this through:

    If you have no good test for impairment by cannabis using drivers, how do you even know there are cannabis DUID’s now?

    You’re proposing that we must keep cannabis illegal in order to stop the people who use cannabis from driving while impaired, yet you have no other way of detecting their impairment but their possession of the cannabis?

    Then how impaired are they?

    When someone is obviously impaired while driving, police have a number of ways of stopping them. Visible demonstration of impaired driving doesn’t require any actual intoxication and a cannabis using driver could be charged with all manner of driving infractions, misdemeanors, and felonies resulting from impaired driving, assuming such driving would even take place.

    Suppose that right this minute, a Washington state trooper pulls over a driver for driving too slowly and weaving in and out of lane. The trooper smells the odor of burned marijuana. The driver is lethargic with glassy red bloodshot eyes. But a search of the driver and the car reveal no marijuana or paraphernalia. Are you saying that today’s trooper has no choice but to let the driver go if he can’t find any contraband?

    Whatever result you imagine for that scenario, that is what would happen is cannabis is decriminalized in Washington State. The possession of the cannabis would net the driver a fine, but the state could still prosecute him as they would in the scenario above.

    Just ask anyone in the thirteen decriminalized states who has a cannabis DUI.

  3. Urb Age
    Urb Age
    February 11, 2009 at 12:11 pm |

    Great job Adam…..Thanks for the report!!!!

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