MARIJUANA LAWS ARE A BUST

When Crane Carter of St. Helena came to my office a few weeks back
with a letter to the editor about a state law that protects the
medical use of marijuana, he was a bit nervous. Yet he was also courageous.

It takes guts to publicly take on a law enforcement official for a
perceived lack of knowledge regarding the law.

In his letter, Carter said Sheriff's Capt. John Robertson erred when
he told the St. Helena Star that his agency does not recognize
medical marijuana.

Since voters passed Proposition 215 in 1996, local officials have had
a duty to recognize that some people have legal prescriptions for the
drug, Carter argued in his letter.

I called Robertson to find out more about his stance on medical marijuana.

First, he conceded that the county's Health and Human Services
Department issues medical marijuana cards to people who have
prescriptions for the drug.

However, he said his agency defers to the Napa County District
Attorney's office to decide whether or not to pursue marijuana cases.
This is done on a case-by-case basis.

"We do not recognize the medical marijuana card that gets you free
from citation or arrest," Robertson told me.

"Until the law changes or until we receive information otherwise from
our current lawmakers, it is still an infraction to possess less than
an ounce, and, depending on the amount, it could be a felony, to
distribute marijuana for sale, or to possess it for sale or distribution."

In other words, you may be cited -- but probably won't be arrested --
for smoking a joint. But if you are caught transporting a large
amount -- say, 30 pounds of pot -- a medical marijuana card is not
going to keep you out of jail.

The main message Robertson passed on to me, however, is that busting
people for using or possessing small amounts of marijuana is not a
top law enforcement priority. The sheriff's department has bigger fish to fry.

For example, the department participates in the state's Campaign
Against Marijuana Planting, working with other agencies to stop
large-scale cultivation of pot.

Last year, during a bust outside of Bothe State Park, officials
discovered chemicals used in the process of growing pot had been
dumped into streambeds. They found garbage, sanitation problems and
thefts of water from nearby vineyards.

An even larger law enforcement priority, he said, is stopping the
sale, production and use of methamphetamines.

I thank Mr. Carter for bringing the issue to light. I thank him for
having the courage to write a letter challenging public officials to
explain their interpretations of the law.

I also thank Capt. Robertson for explaining his position.

Thanks for reading.