CONSTERNATION GREETS BILLS TO EASE POT LAWS

When voters in Rep. Brad Hill's relatively conservative district indicated
they would support a bill to decriminalize marijuana, the news came as a
surprise to the Ipswich Republican.

However, Hill wasn't persuaded to sponsor such a bill. He maintains
marijuana can lead to the abuse of more dangerous substances.

But nothing prevented Steve Epstein, a Georgetown attorney and the
proposal's lead advocate, from taking the bill to Beacon Hill as
legislation filed by a citizen's request.

Epstein's bill would make marijuana possession a civil infraction
punishable by a fine, instead of a criminal charge. That bill, along with a
similar bill that's backed by several Democratic lawmakers, finally reached
a public hearing last Tuesday.

At the hearing, supporters reminded the Criminal Justice committee that the
majority of voters in more than a dozen towns, including Manchester, showed
support for marijuana decriminalization bills in non-binding referenda last
November.

Epstein, one of the founders of the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform
Coalition, told the committee that he would rather see police officers,
especially those in small departments like Georgetown's, spend their time
on more important issues.

Medford resident Jack Cole, a retired state police officer from New Jersey,
agreed.

"Let's put police on things that are much more important, like violent
crimes," Cole said.

Cole and others talked about the long-lasting burden a drug conviction can
create, particularly to young people.

"I have a lot of sorrow because I think I've ruined a lot of good people,"
Cole admitted. "Once you have a drug arrest, you get stigmatized."

Although no one spoke against either bill at the hearing, the bills face an
uncertain future in the Statehouse. Many legislators are reluctant to adopt
causes that could be perceived as soft on crime.

Rep. Stephen Tobin, the House chairman of the Criminal Justice Committee
and a defense attorney, said he can easily see the issue from both sides.

Tobin, a Democrat from Quincy, said he hates to see teen-agers get a
permanent mark on their record from a simple act of poor judgment. But he
also doesn't want to send the message to young people that it's O.K. to
smoke marijuana, and he's afraid the decriminalization bills might do that.

"I really don't know how this will play out," Tobin conceded.

Hill, who would only consider supporting the decriminalization of marijuana
if it's for medicinal use, steered clear of Tuesday's hearing.

"I haven't even been following it, to be honest," Hill said later in the
week. "I have bigger fish to fry than to worry about ... a bill that I
don't support."