BEACON HILL NOT HIGH ON MOVE TO DECRIMINALIZE POT

BOSTON -- The voters of the 4th Essex District surprised Rep. Brad
Hill Tuesday when a majority supported a ballot question asking him
to introduce a bill that would decriminalize marijuana use.

But the proposal, which would make marijuana possession a civil
infraction instead of a criminal offense, still has a long way to go
on Beacon Hill before it reaches the House floor.

Because the question was non-binding, Hill isn't required to sponsor
the legislation. Hill, an Ipswich Republican who was overwhelmingly
elected to his second term Tuesday, is personally opposed to the bill
and doesn't expect he'll change his mind anytime soon.

The bill could still come from another source. Similar non-binding
questions won the majority of voters' support in the 2nd Middlesex
Senate District, Medford, Winchester, and parts of Somerville and
Woburn, as well as the 6th Middlesex House District in Framingham.

A non-binding proposal supporting the legalization of marijuana for
medical use won the majority of votes in several Cape Cod towns.

Supporters of marijuana decriminalization say the drug isn't more
harmful than alcohol and that marijuana arrests burden the
Massachusetts courts.

"Coming out in support of this is not going to harm anyone
politically," said Steve Epstein, a lawyer from Georgetown who
sponsored the 4th Essex ballot question. "Across the state, we're
going to see that a majority of voters are tired of seeing adults
arrested for possessing marijuana."

Even if such a proposal is submitted to the Legislature, several
lawmakers said yesterday it would face many hurdles before becoming a
law.

"I don't think there's much appetite in the Legislature for reducing
penalties or reducing the stature of drug crimes," said Sen. Bruce
Tarr, a Gloucester Republican whose senatorial district includes the
4th Essex district's towns, Ipswich, Manchester-by-the-Sea, Hamilton,
Wenham, Boxford and part of Georgetown.

Rep. Patricia Jehlen, a Democrat from Somerville, said Tuesday's
numbers in support of marijuana decriminalization aren't overwhelming
enough to assure such a proposal would be approved by the Legislature.

She said the vote, however, is significant enough to draw
legislators' attention to the issue.

Jon Holmes, a member of the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition
who helped organize the marijuana ballot question campaigns, said he
was surprised at how well the proposals did Tuesday. Holmes said he
plans to meet with other MassCann members within the next several
days to decide how to proceed on Beacon Hill.

Epstein, one of the founders of MassCann, said he hopes to meet with
Hill soon and persuade him about the merits of the ballot question.

Hill, it seems, is going to need a significant amount of persuading.

"It would be awfully tough to support something (like this)," Hill said.

"By smoking marijuana, it can lead to bigger drugs. I've seen (that)
personally cause the death of three acquaintances since I graduated
from high school."

Hill said he has no plans to file such a bill before the end of this
year. But he said he will hold informal meetings around his district
early next year to learn more about the proposal.

"I want to be educated on the issue and the only way to be educated
is to hold hearings on the issue throughout the district and find out
what people really think," Hill said. "I'm going to give the people
the opportunity not just to vote on it but to (also) discuss it in a
forum."

The ballot questions that appeared in many communities Tuesday
represent the first time MassCann has placed such a proposal on a
ballot, Epstein said. Last year, the group unsuccessfully tried to
gather enough signatures to place a marijuana decriminalization
question on all ballots in the state.