ABERNATHY ARRESTED WITH DRUGS

ATLANTA (AP) State Sen. Ralph David Abernathy III, son of the pioneering
civil rights leader, was fined $500 after he was found with a small
quantity of marijuana, a customs official said Wednesday.

Abernathy, 38, whose father, the Rev. Ralph Abernathy Jr., became head of
the Southern Christian Leadership Conference after the Rev. Martin Luther
King Jr. was slain in 1968, was stopped Monday after he drew the attention
of a drugsniffing dog at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport.

Abernathy was found to have been concealing about 6.9 grams of marijuana,
enough for several cigarettes, said Michael J. Vanacore, an official with
the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Atlanta.

Vanacore said customs agents have blanket permission from the U.S. attorney
to assess immediate fines on those found to be carrying small quantities of
drugs. Such cases are not prosecuted, he said.

Abernathy did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

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