U. OF VERMONT PAYS $15,000 TO 2 STUDENTS WHO WERE ARRESTED IN
PRO-MARIJUANA RALLY

The University of Vermont has agreed to pay $7,500 each to two
students who were arrested at a campus rally last spring in support of
legalizing marijuana. The students asserted that their First Amendment
rights had been violated and that the university had pursued
disciplinary action against them even after local criminal charges had
been dropped.

The event, known as the "420" rally , has been held at the university
almost every year for nearly a decade. At 4:20 p.m. on April 20,
students have gathered on a campus lawn and displayed their devotion
to the cause of making marijuana legal. Past rallies have attracted
more than a thousand students and have included formal speakers and
discussion groups.

In recent years the event became "one big party," said Gary J.
Margolis, the university police chief. "There is a difference between
a political rally and an all-out party with purposeful violation of
the law."

Over the past three years, university officials have cracked down in
two ways. First, a heavy police presence has deterred students from
attending. And second, alternative events, such as a spring festival,
have drawn students away. In 2003, the rally did not take place.

"Due to the nature of how the event evolved over time, it became our
goal to stop this 420 event from taking place," said Enrique
Corredera, the university's communications director.

This past spring, as the Vermont legislature worked toward its later
approval of a measure to legalize the medical use of marijuana, Thomas
R. Wheeler, then a sophomore, tried to organize a revival of the
tradition. Five or six hundred students showed up for the event, as
well as 20 police officers.

In short order, Mr. Wheeler and two other students were arrested. Mr.
Wheeler and his roommate, Nikolai Sears, were charged with disorderly
conduct. A third student, Eli W. See, was charged with marijuana
possession and use.

But on the day of their scheduled court appearance, they learned that
all the charges had been dropped.

A subsequent disciplinary hearing at the university found all three
students innocent of all charges related to the rally. Mr. Wheeler was
suspended for one year for an unrelated campus noise violation.

The Vermont affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, which
represented Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Sears, said the university's actions
were a violation of the students' free-speech rights.

"The students had been unlawfully arrested," said Allen Gilbert,
executive director of the ACLU in Vermont. "There should be no
university action taken against them."

Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Sears threatened to sue the university for
violating their First Amendment rights. They asked for $15,000 each, a
formal apology, and the revocation of Mr. Wheeler's suspension.

According to Mr. Wheeler, the students agreed to take $7,500 each and
either a formal apology or a shortening of Mr. Wheeler's suspension
from one year to one semester. The university picked the latter, he
said.

University officials refused to comment on the details of the
settlement. "We're pleased with the outcome," said Mr. Corredera.
"It's unfortunate that a couple of our students felt that their First
Amendment rights were violated."

Mr. Wheeler said he plans to organize another 420 rally next spring,
when he returns from his suspension. "This one was a good start in
revitalizing the tradition," he said. "I got arrested, but later my
rights were protected. People will notice this; the seed has been planted."