ARRESTS SOAR IN CRACKDOWN ON MARIJUANA

NEW YORK -- Arrests on marijuana charges here have jumped to a record level
this year, driven by the Giuliani administration's "zero tolerance"
approach that has police officers pursuing anyone found possessing, selling
or smoking even small amounts of marijuana.

Law enforcement officials project that at the current pace, the New York
City Police Department could arrest as many as 40,000 people by the end of
the year on charges of possessing or selling marijuana. That would be eight
times the number of arrests just six years ago.

The soaring tally is the result of routine sweeps by plainclothes police
details through known drug-dealing locations and unprecedented undercover
efforts in which officers pose as street-corner "smoke sellers" to catch
marijuana buyers, officials said.

The initiatives, part of a continuing assault on misdemeanor crimes that
police officials credit for curtailing more serious offenses, have already
led to the arrest of 31,330 people on marijuana charges this year. The vast
majority of those arrested -- 80 percent -- were accused of possessing, not
selling, the drug.

The surge in arrests is a drastic departure from the days, not so long ago,
when smoking a marijuana cigarette in public often drew no more than an
angry glare from a police officer.

"I don't think there is more marijuana on the street today," said Jack
Ryan, chief assistant district attorney in Queens. "There is probably less.
But you don't have a situation anymore where you can smoke a joint on the
subway and, if you do get caught, the cop just says, 'Throw it away."'

Most of those arrested today are held for arraignment and may spend 16, 24,
even 36 hours in custody before being released, in sharp contrast to the
past, when those arrested on low-level possession charges were often given
a summons and released. Some critics called the tougher handling of
marijuana offenders Draconian and inefficient.

"It is a waste of resources, a colossal waste," said Gerald Lefcourt, a
criminal defense lawyer who serves on a legal committee for NORML, a
national organization that advocates the reform of marijuana laws. "Most of
the people who are arrested for marijuana are no threat to anybody."

The increasing number of arrests in New York is part of a national trend by
law enforcement agencies to curb marijuana use, which the federal
government contends -- and some scientists deny -- is a greater health
threat than previously believed. Nationally, the number of marijuana
arrests has nearly doubled since 1992.

National surveys indicate that marijuana use is up, but the increase is not
nearly as steep as the surge in arrests. According to a University of
Michigan study last year, half of the high-school seniors surveyed said
they had tried the drug, up from a third who said they had used it six
years ago.

In New York, the increase in arrests grew out of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's
pledge last year to make the fight on drugs, including marijuana, a major
goal of his second term. The city's efforts have been particularly visible
in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The park once resembled a
farmer's market for marijuana sales, but now has its own police command
post and is monitored by closed-circuit cameras.

"The community in general is tired of walking through the park and being
hassled by having someone yelling 'Smoke, smoke' at them," said Arthur
Strickler, district manager of Community Board 2 in the Village.

So far this year, marijuana arrests have surpassed the 27,264 people
arrested in all of 1997 -- itself a record-setting year, police said. "We
have changed the traditional strategy," said Chief Martin O'Boyle,
commander of the Organized Crime Control Bureau, which oversees drug
enforcement efforts. He said officers now concentrate more on sting
operations against buyers and less on having undercover officers buy from
marijuana dealers, who even when caught do little jail time. "Now we try to
discourage the customers."

Although the arrest numbers are way up, those charged with misdemeanor
possession of marijuana do not face more severe penalties. First offenders
caught with as much as several ounces of the drug -- which sells for
roughly $125 per ounce depending on the strength -- are eligible for a
probation program known as adjournment contemplating dismissal, in which
charges are dismissed if a defendant stays out of trouble for a set period
of time.

During the last six months, for example, the Manhattan district attorney's
office said that 4,866 defendants were arraigned in Criminal Court on
charges of possessing less than an ounce of marijuana. Some 63 percent of
those cases were adjourned contemplating dismissal at arraignment,
according to Barbara Thompson, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's
office.

But by the time the defendants were arraigned, several criminal defense
lawyers said, their clients had already spent a half day or more in
custody, being fingerprinted, strip-searched and checked for possible
outstanding arrest warrants.

"We call that doing your jail time up front," said Tony Elitcher, a staff
lawyer with the Legal Aid Society's criminal defense division. "You are
doing your sentence before you ever get in front of the judge."

Even if the amount of marijuana involved is miniscule, police officials
said, the warrant and fingerprint checks made on those arrested often turn
up people sought for more serious offenses.

Also, said O'Boyle: "We should not be in a position of determining who we
arrest for breaking the law. We have to treat all of these folks equally."

Court officials said that channeling everyone accused of misdemeanor
offenses, such as marijuana possession, through the booking system has put
a strain on the Criminal Court, although they said more efficient
procedures have prevented the system from becoming overloaded.

"However, we are asking the Legislature for an increase of 23 judges
citywide to address the larger caseloads," said Mai Yee, a spokesperson for
the Office of Court Administration.

Checked-by: Pat Dolan