STATE'S MARIJUANA LAWS DO MORE HARM THAN THE DRUG

On April 7, The News-Enterprise reported that a 21-year-old woman had
been charged with a felony for possessing marijuana seeds and growing
equipment.

In Kentucky, a felony conviction can result in the revocation or
suspension of a professional license, strip students of financial aid
for life, make it impossible for a capable and loving adult to adopt
a child, and prevent a citizen from voting, serving on a jury, owning
a firearm, securing public housing and obtaining food stamps.

Alcohol, a government-approved recreational drug, has been
scientifically proven to be more addictive, debilitating and toxic
than marijuana.

Marijuana has never caused a single medically documented overdose
death -- unlike Tylenol, which causes about 500 overdose deaths a
year in the U.S. alone.

In a day and age where Kentucky jails are overcrowded, court dockets
are clogged and much more dangerous drugs like methamphetamine are
being manufactured -- not to mention the rampant abuse of
prescription drugs plaguing the state -- perhaps it is time for
Kentucky to reconsider its failed marijuana policies.

Nathan Miller, Esq.

Marijuana Policy Project

Washington, DC