POLICE WASTING TIME, RESOURCES IN RAIDING LEGITIMATE MERCHANTS

The recent raids by the Anchorage police of legitimate merchants for the
crime of "selling drug paraphernalia" is an egregious waste of valuable
police resources and an affront to the rights of all Alaskans, especially
those who use marijuana as medicine.

Thanks to this action, merchants who pay thousands of dollars in property
taxes and employ dozens of workers are facing financial ruin. Why? Have we
done such a good job in solving violent and property crimes that busting
vendors of glass pipes has moved to the top of the agenda? Police,
including five detectives, spent from noon to 11 p.m. just confiscating
property from one very small store. Another 30-plus police man-hours was
spent at the Black Market. What a waste.

Of course using marijuana is legal in Alaska. It's legal as medicine and
it's also legal as a privacy matter. The Ravin decision, a unanimous 1975
Supreme Court ruling that the right to use marijuana in one's home is
protected by the Alaska Constitution -- the right to privacy -- was
reaffirmed in 1993 by the Alaska Superior Court (McNeil vs. State).

I urge everyone to contact their Assembly members and the mayor. Tell them
how you feel. Visit our Web site www.freehempinak.org for their e-mail
addresses and phone numbers.

- -- Al Anders, chair

Free Hemp In Alaska

Anchorage