POT PETITIONS SHY 1,000 SIGNATURES

Organizers said the grass-roots campaign to place a
marijuana-decriminalization initiative before Joplin voters is not
over, after their first attempt at a petition drive fell about 1,000
signatures short.

"It's definitely a workable situation," said Kelly Maddy, president
of Sensible Joplin and the Joplin chapter of the National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "We still feel really
good that we have a fighting chance to get this thing on the ballot."

Maddy and a handful of volunteers collected more than 5,600
signatures since September 2007 in an effort to get the
decriminalization initiative on the November ballot. The petitions
were submitted to City Hall on July 10. The group collected 3,623
signatures from registered Joplin voters, but it still needs an
additional 1,033 valid signatures to meet the necessary number to put
a proposal before voters.

Maddy said he received the results of the petition review Thursday
but has not received a formal report from the city clerk's office.

City Attorney Brian Head said most of the invalid signatures came
from unregistered voters.

"The primary issue is there was a large number of people who signed
the petition who weren't registered voters or who weren't registered
Joplin voters," he said.

City Clerk Barbara Hogelin is expected to present the results of her
petition review to the City Council at its regular meeting on Aug. 4.
Hogelin was out of the office Thursday.

After the council meeting, Maddy and his organization will have 10
days until Aug. 15 to amass the needed signatures. The city clerk
then will have five days to review the petitions.

Maddy said that in addition to canvassers taking up their normal
stations at the Joplin Public Library and other places, they will be
going door-to-door with voter lists to obtain the signatures. He said
the group also has planned a "Signature Surge Day" starting at noon
Saturday, Aug. 9, at Par Hill Park.

"We're going to be all over doing our canvassing," he said.

The magic number of signatures is 4,656, or roughly 15 percent of the
total number of registered voters in Joplin at the time of the most
recent city election, which was in April.

If the group obtains the required number of signatures, the City
Council on its own could make the proposal law, but Mayor Gary Shaw
has said the panel most likely would defer to the voters on the issue.

Shaw reiterated Thursday that if the petition ultimately is brought
before the council, he believes the decision should be left to the
voters in Joplin.

"I think if it's thrown in our court, we'll get it on the fall
ballot," he said, adding that the city would prefer that date rather
than conducting a special election in February. "Just so we don't
have to charge our citizens extra for a special election," he said.

[sidebar]

THE PROPOSAL

If the city clerk finds that the petitions carry an adequate number
of signatures, residents would vote on a proposal that says adults
charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana, which is 35 grams
(1.225 ounces) or less, or with possession of marijuana paraphernalia
would not be jailed or have to post bond. Those found guilty in
municipal court would be subject to a $250 maximum fine.