RESIDENT LEADS FIGHT TO REFORM POT LAWS

As a young teenager, Mike Gogulski began reading about the 1960s
counterculture and the prevalence of marijuana use in that era. He quickly
concluded that something was out of whack.

"I felt the government's policies were not logical, not all there," Hamden
resident Gogulski said.

Now 26, Gogulski is working to change government policy towards marijuana as
Connecticut Cannabis Policy Forum president.

He operates the organization, formed in March, from his home in southern
Hamden. The forum describes itself as "a voice for reason and compassion in
marijuana policy."

Gogulski says the forum works with the state chapter of the National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, a well-known
pro-marijuana group based in Washington, D.C.

Gogulski, a college graduate who works in the computer industry, has become
a frequent letter writer to newspapers across Connecticut, offering his
views on drug-related issues.

Every printed letter, he says, brings more public support. "They're coming
out of the woodwork," he said.

The Connecticut Cannabis Policy Forum has an eight-member board and is now
putting together a membership program, Gogulski said. The group eventually
will suggest specific legislative reforms for possible action.

While board members' views vary on marijuana use, he said, "all us don't
think [adults] should be put in jail for smoking marijuana in the privacy of
their home."

Gogulski, who is married and expecting a child, is optimistic that headway
is being made in changing marijuana laws. "There is momentum nationally and
internationally for marijuana policy reform, but it will come in incremental
steps," he said.

He called Connecticut "an enlightened state," in the effort, noting the
state makes clean syringes available for drug addicts to deter AIDS and
generously supports substance abuse treatment programs.

He said "ideological support" for changing marijuana laws exists among state
legislators, but few want to lead the effort for fear of a public backlash.

Current state law, Gogulski said, makes possession of up to four ounces of
marijuana a misdemeanor and calls for up to one year in jail and a $1,000
fine. He said people are in Connecticut jails for marijuana possession.

ALLOW FOR MEDICINAL USE

Gogulski, who has attended pro-marijuana reform conferences around the
country, said the first step toward reform is to make marijuana legal for
medicinal uses.

A handful of Western states have done so through successful statewide
referendums, although the federal government is fighting the results. Courts
eventually will determine outcomes.

Some Connecticut Cannabis Policy Forum board members have medical problems,
including multiple sclerosis, and they support legalizing marijuana for this
reason.

Gogulski has joined a class action federal lawsuit against the U.S.
government, calling for marijuana to be legalized for medicinal use. The
lead plaintiff is a doctor, he said.

Gogulski said many studies and medical professionals refute government
claims that marijuana has not medical use and is dangerous.

He insisted studies have found marijuana -- whether smoked or taken in
tablet form -- can relieve chronic pain, cut down on nausea, and counter
glaucoma, an eye disease.

If legalization for medical use is achieved, Gogulski said, future goals in
Connecticut are to decriminalize possession of small amounts for personal
use and then eventually reduce penalties for larger amounts.

VERSUS TOBACCO, ALCOHOL

Gogulski said that while the use of alcohol and tobacco kill hundreds of
thousands of Americans each year, no one dies directly from smoking pot.

"Marijuana is an extraordinarily safe substance by comparison," he said.
"This shows that our laws are at least inconsistent."

He said pot is much safer than so-called harder drugs such as cocaine and
heroin.

Gogulski said marijuana does cause some problems, noting all drugs can be
abused. "A segment of the marijuana-using population is vulnerable to drug
abuse, but that doesn't justify jailing the rest of the people who use it,"
he said.

He described marijuana as "an intoxicant that alters consciousness and
perception, and affects coordination, cognition, and cardio-pulmonary
performance."

He would favor keeping it illegal to drive a car or operate heavy machinery
on the substance, he said.

Gogulski supports a minimum age limit for marijuana use. He said many
youngsters now say it's harder to obtain alcohol than marijuana, which he
considers an argument for selling pot in legally-controlled venues.

He said crime and violence are sometimes associated with marijuana because
pot is sold through the black market. "This could be dramatically reduced
by placing marijuana in an established environment," he claimed.

Gogulski said marijuana should be sold in the same way as alcohol and
tobacco, with many controls put in place.

"People hear the word 'legalize' and think pot farms will be popping up in
their neighborhood and they'll have joint-vending machines on every corner,
but that won't happen," he said.