MARIJUANA LAW NIXED

Judge Rules New Criminalization Definition Illegal

A Juneau judge on Monday struck down part of a new Alaska law
criminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana, saying it
conflicts with past constitutional decisions made by the Alaska
Supreme Court.

"No specific argument has been advanced in this case that possession
of more than 1 ounce of marijuana, even within the privacy of the
home, is constitutionally protected conduct under Ravin or that any
plaintiff or ACLU of Alaska member actually possesses more than 1
ounce of marijuana in their homes," Collins wrote.

The new law makes possession of 4 ounces or more a felony. Possession
of 1 to 4 ounces is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.
The part the court ruled against was that less than 1 ounce would be a
misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in jail.

"Our initial interpretation of this case at this point is that Judge
Collins' decision makes it clear that the state has the ability to
regulate marijuana uses in amounts greater that 1 ounce," Department
of Law spokesman Mark Morones said.

The state Department of Law argued that new findings of marijuana's
increased potency since the 1975 decision justify reconsidering the
issue.

ACLU of Alaska executive director Michael Macleod-Ball lauded the
reasoning behind Collins' decision.

"If a lower court could just overturn a higher court's opinion at any
time, our court system would be in disarray," he said. "The notion of
privacy in one's home is upheld. That's what we've been saying all
along."