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 veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 6,769
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 Columbia pot law compromise in works [MO]
#4895564 - 11/04/05 09:25 PM (3 years, 2 months ago) |
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Columbia pot law compromise in works
November 4, 2005 - kctv.com
OLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- One year after voters handily approved an ordinance that sharply reduces the penalties for possessing small amounts of marijuana, city police officers and prosecutors have joined the measure's chief backer to quietly push a compromise.
The former opponents are saying little about their negotiations, which began earlier this year after Columbia police started a petition drive to overturn the new law. But the original supporters say the revised ordinance _ which will likely require City Council approval _ is designed to prevent repeat offenders and those charged with committing other crimes while holding pot from taking advantage of the more lenient sentencing guidelines.
The new law, which was approved by nearly 62 percent of voters in November 2004, requires police to treat those possessing up to 35 grams, or 1 1/4 ounces of marijuana as low-level misdemeanor offenders subject to municipal court fines of no more than $250 _ a punishment essentially equivalent to receiving a speeding ticket.
Should the offender stay out of legal trouble for another year, the conviction would be dropped.
A related measure that allows seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana within the city limits was approved by nearly 70 percent of Columbia voters last year.
On Tuesday, voters in Denver, Colo., approved an even more lenient pot possession law that allows residents over 21 years old to possess up to one ounce of the drug. The change may be little more than symbolic, though - authorities in the Mile High City said they plan to instead enforce more stringent state laws.
University of Missouri-Columbia junior Bailey Hirschburg, a leader of the campus marijuana reform group, said the compromise is far better than the alternative of a ballot initiative generated by the measure's opponents.
"One of the things we had on our side last year was the (high) turnout," said Hirschburg, a Cape Girardeau native and local chapter president of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML.
The status of the police-driven petition drive is uncertain. Sterling Infield, president of the Columbia Police Officers Association, declined to comment, citing a mutual agreement with Boone County Prosecutor Kevin Crane and local civil liberties attorney Dan Viets. The police organization would need 2,275 signatures to put a repeal measure on the ballot.
Hirschburg said supporters fear the results might be different in a non-presidential election, particularly if it were held in the summer when many students leave Columbia.
That was the case in April 2003, when Columbia voters rejected a similar measure to effectively decriminalize pot possession.
Crane, who represented Columbia police in negotiations with Viets, also declined to discuss the new proposal. Viets, though, said the compromise effort is driven by a desire to avoid another election on the merits of marijuana.
"Both sides would prefer not to have to go back to the ballot," he said.
Should elected leaders approve the modified proposal, Viets said he doesn't anticipate further efforts by either side to tighten or weaken the city's pot laws.
"There is an element of trust that has to be involved in any negotiations," he said. "If we have an agreement, we anticipate both sides will abide by it."
Mayor Darwin Hindman said he anticipates the measure will win approval by the city's elected leaders, given the advance work done by former foes Crane and Viets.
"That gives it pretty strong credentials," he said.
Hindman said he has received a joint letter from Crane and Viets outlining the proposed changes but could not immediately locate it in response to a public records request by The Associated Press. State law gives public agencies up to three business days from the time a request is made to respond to such requests.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 6,769
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Re: Columbia pot law compromise in works [MO] [Re: veggie]
#4913890 - 11/09/05 02:57 PM (3 years, 1 month ago) |
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Columbia pot law compromise would exempt repeat offenders
November 9, 2005 - kctv.com
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- A compromise proposal to change a voter-approved marijuana possession law would prevent certain repeat drug offenders and those convicted of other crimes from taking advantage of the new law's lenient sentencing guidelines.
An ordinance passed by Columbia voters in November 2004 requires police to treat those possessing up to 35 grams, or 1 1/4 ounces, of marijuana as low-level misdemeanor offenders. Pot owners now avoid arrest and only face municipal court fines of no more than $250 _ a punishment essentially equal to that associated with a speeding ticket.
A related measure that allows seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana within the city limits was approved on the same ballot by nearly 70 percent of Columbia voters.
Earlier this year, Columbia police officers started a petition drive to overturn the new drug possession law, which was approved by nearly 62 percent of city voters. In response, the law's chief supporter met quietly with the officers' representative, Boone County prosecutor Kevin Crane, to work out a deal.
Both Crane and civil rights attorney Dan Viets, who represents the Columbia Alliance for Patients and Education, have previously declined to discuss the particulars of the proposed compromise until it is formally presented to the Columbia City Council.
But a Sept. 2 letter from Viets to Mayor Darwin Hindman, obtained by The Associated Press under the state's open records law, outlines four proposed exemptions to the new law:
_ those found guilty of a felony in the preceding 10 years;
_ anyone found guilty in state court of a Class A misdemeanor, other than marijuana or drug paraphernalia possession, in the previous five years;
_ anyone found guilty in state or municipal court of misdemeanor marijuana possession two or more times within the previous five years;
_ anyone arrested on misdemeanor marijuana charges who is also held on suspicion of a felony or misdemeanor offense chargeable only under state law.
Crane said Wednesday the proposed compromise addresses the biggest concern by Columbia police: Hardened criminals will exploit a law intended to cut nonviolent, first-time offenders a break.
"It's essentially recognizing that there should not be a one-size-fits-all standard for offenders," he said. "If you have someone with a significant criminal history, they should not receive the same benefits as someone without a significant criminal history."
The proposed revision would also eliminate a reference to deferred prosecution and change a description of the police force's adherence as "the lowest priority" to "among the lower priorities."
The reference to deferred prosecution is unnecessary, said Viets, because local prosecutors have always had that authority and continue to do so.
Calling the proposal "the result of a long and painstaking process of negotiation," Viets asked Hindman to "actively discourage" any City Council members from proposing more changes.
"Any changes beyond the ones which both parties have agreed to will not be supported by either side," Viets wrote.
Council members contacted Wednesday said they want to wait until a proposal is submitted before weighing in. Viets said he expects the prepackaged compromise by the former opponents will be supported by elected leaders.
"I hope that will carry enough weight," he said.
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