STATE'S LAWMAKERS TO BE LOBBIED ON MARIJUANA LAWS

CHICHESTER, N.H. (AP) — One of New Hampshire’s best-known law firms is
taking on a new challenge — the effort to decriminalize the use of
marijuana.

The law office of Mark Sisti and Paul Twomey is the new home of the New
Hampshire Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, a branch of the
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Twomey said he doesn’t smoke pot, but that it’s time to stop clogging up the
criminal justice system with people who do.

"I see the tremendous injury done to families and society by the war on
drugs," he said. "This is a cultural war of the ‘60s. Let’s declare the war
over and get on with it."

Twomey and Sisti have developed prominence for their criminal defense work
of clients including Pamela Smart, but also handle many low-profile drug
cases.

"I don’t use pot and wouldn’t use it if it were legal. I just see people’s
lives ruined day after day. They are forced to spend a lot of money for
attorneys. When you put it next to alcohol and tobacco, it is a harmless,
benign substance," Twomey said. "I personally think adults should decide
what they put into their own bodies."

The group plans to lobby state lawmakers for three reforms — legalizing
medical use of marijuana, legalizing the growing of industrial hemp and
decriminalizing marijuana use.

"I’d like to see people use marijuana recreationally and at most receive a
fine, no jail time," said Phil Greazzo, president of the New Hampshire
group.

"The top issue at the moment is that every other country in the world
recognizes medical marijuana as medicine for certain people, except the
U.S.A.," he said.

Though several states have taken up the issue of medical marijuana,
California’s passage of a measure that makes it legal with a doctor’s
recommendation has been among the most contentious. The federal government
is fighting the measure.

Assistant U.S. Attorney David Vicinanzo said he respect’s Twomey, but
disagrees with him about decriminalizing marijuana use.

"In American there is perhaps no single greater cause of misery and disease
than alcohol, so we already have one evil, why do we want to legitimize
another mind-altering substance?"

And Col. Gary Sloper, commander of the state police, is unconvinced that
going easy on marijuana users is a good idea.

"We wouldn’t support changing any laws regarding marijuana or any controlled
drug. All you have to do is look at the history of substance abuse," he
said.

Rep. Derek Owen, D-Hopkinton, has been fighting this battle for a while. He
was the sponsor of legislation to legalize industrial hemp which was
defeated last year.

Though he says growing hemp and decriminalizing marijuana are vastly
different issues, he supports the latter.

"I’m for decriminalization. I think the war on drugs should be gone," he
said. "It’s like Prohibition. It didn’t work."

Rep. Timothy Robertson, D-Keene, is pushing for legalizing medical marijuana
and for decriminalizing its recreational use. He said the effort that goes
into the war on drugs would be better spent helping people overcoming their
addictions.

The 68-year-old lawmaker said he tried marijuana in the 1970s, but didn’t
use it much, mostly because it was illegal. He believes that eventually
people will demand a more common sense approach to drugs.

"Why did we do away with Prohibition? Because it was bringing the country to
a screaming crime wave," he said. "The rich never stopped drinking. The
bootlegger where we lived had a route like a milkman."