To harp on a theme that some of us have been pushing , re: cannabis is one of those rare, real "bipartisan" issues out there on a local/state level (not so much federal, with a few exceptions)...please notice that the co-sponsor of this decrim bill is a Republican.
[I know, I know. Decrim bills are like the "same-sex civil unions" of cannabis re-legalization. I tell friends all the time how silly it is that we've lowered penalties in California for users, but not for suppliers. That's just a prescription for increasing demand somewhat, and thus prices, and incentivising growers to grow more. The lack of a functional supply-side policy is the single biggest flaw in Amsterdam's policies (also: conservative govt in Netherlands trying to shut down pot industry and kill jobs there). ]
H/t , as usual, to www.drcnet.org for the update.
http://stopthedrugwar.org/...
Since this is a 'press release', I have been informed by MB and others that it is permissible to post the full-text to this site.
(flip)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 22, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell at (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc
Former Baltimore Narcotics Cop Testifies for Bill to Decriminalize Marijuana in Maryland; Tuesday Hearing on Lowering Marijuana Penalty to $100 Fine
ANNAPOLIS, MD -- A former Baltimore narcotics cop will testify before a Maryland House of Delegates committee today in favor of a bill that would decriminalize marijuana possession. The bill, HB 606, sponsored by Del. Curt Anderson (D-Baltimore City), will be heard by the House Judiciary Committee at 1:00 PM EST in Room 100.
Neill Franklin, who did narcotics work with both the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police Department over a 34-year career, will testify that, "The current laws force police officers in Maryland to waste hour after hour processing marijuana possession arrests. Can you imagine how many more burglaries, rapes and murders we could solve if we put these wasted man-hours toward good use? Marijuana prohibition constitutes a serious threat to public safety."
Franklin is executive director of the organization Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), an international group of police officers, judges, corrections officials, border agents and other criminal justice professionals who have witnessed the failures of the so-called "war on drugs" firsthand.
The Maryland bill will lower the penalty for possessing an ounce or less of marijuana from a criminal misdemeanor to a civil offense punishable by a fine of up to $100. In addition to Del. Anderson, HB 606 has bipartisan support from 20 co-sponsors and has been officially endorsed by the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland.
Maryland spends over $236 million enforcing its marijuana laws every year, according to Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron.
Del. Michael Smigiel (R-Cecil County), a co-sponsor of the decriminalization bill, says that many cops are privately approaching him in support of the idea. "Many police who come before the judiciary say they don't want to have to spend all that time taking someone in for less than an ounce, booking them and going through that whole process, when there are other people out there that they could be spending their time on that are committing serious crimes," he recently told WBAL-TV.
The full text of HB 606 and other information can be found at http://mlis.state.md.us/...
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, prison wardens, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.
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Videos of LEAP cops: http://YouTube.com/...
LEAP on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/...
LEAP on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/...
Location:
Annapolis, MD
United States