VALLEY REHAB OFFICIAL: ALLOW, MONITOR USE OF GRASS

Legalizing marijuana, if done correctly, may not be such a bad idea,
a Valley drug rehabilitation official said Wednesday.

Valley prosecutors, however, are not as keen on the idea. Monitoring
marijuana use similar to that of alcohol could work because problems
derive from people abusing the narcotic rather than how easily they
access it, said Francis McAndrew, clinical director of White Deer Run
Drug & Alcohol Addiction Treatment in Allenwood.

"If we go on the assumption that nicotine and alcohol are the most
abused drugs and look at the costs associated with their abuse, I
think if we had to do it all over again we may have established more
regulations to control it," McAndrew said. "It may not mean
criminalizing (nicotine and alcohol), but something more restrictive
may have been effective. It's something to think about when we're
seeing several million people addicted to tobacco and alcohol."

McAndrew said the White Deer center counsels many drug and alcohol
addicts who have a history of marijuana use. About 75 percent of
addicts say they have tried marijuana at least once, he said.

"We do it see it as an addictive drug," McAndrew said.

Whether one drug leads to another isn't the key issue, McAndrew said:
It's teaching people about the consequences of abusing things they
find comfort in.

"If you use a mild dose of (marijuana), and it seems to enhance your
life, unless you get criminally prosecuted it doesn't seem to have
any consequences to you," McAndrew said. "It's much like alcohol.
I've never met a person who had a (driving under the influence
conviction), and it was their first time driving under the influence."

The consequences

According to McAndrew, there are two forms of consequences from drug
and alcohol abuse. The consequences can be felt with marijuana use as
well, McAndrew said, regardless of whether it's legally available.

"One consequence is natural," McAndrew said. "Smoking marijuana is
more dangerous than cigarette smoke. There is more tar and more
strange chemicals in marijuana leaves than tobacco leaves. The other
consequence is unnatural, where if it's illegal you may be arrested,
may lose your job, etc."

McAndrew said the best way to regulate marijuana use would be to set
a limit similar to the legal limit for blood-alcohol concentration.

"My approach would be not to legalize it but to decriminalize it,"
said McAndrew, adding he wasn't sure what the legal limit should be.
"If you're able to use marijuana responsibly, then fine. If you abuse
it, then there are consequences you face."

Montour County District Attorney Robert Buehner is opposed to
legalizing marijuana, calling it a gateway narcotic that sometimes
leads users to harder substances, such as cocaine and heroin.

"Many people I've prosecuted for serious drugs started with
marijuana," he said. "I've seen lives ravaged by drugs."

Said Union County District Attorney D. Peter Johnson: "From a
prosecutor's perspective, legalizing another intoxicant doesn't make sense."

Advocates continue to push the idea in a long-term strategy to
legalize all drugs, Johnson said.

Ex-cop: Legalize narcotics

A former police detective who claims drug policies have failed to
curb narcotics use and trafficking spoke Wednesday night in Sunbury
about legalizing marijuana.

Howard Wooldridge, of Washington D.C., is among the founders of Law
Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), which launched its effort six
years ago to shed light on the failures of drug policies. Wooldridge
worked 18 years as a police officer in Michigan before helping to
form the group.

Buehner called Wooldridge an "opportunist" who's making money
speaking to groups across the country based on a "myth" that
narcotics policies aren't working and penal institutions are
overcrowded with pot smokers.

In reality, the county prosecutor said, Pennsylvania has taken steps
to remedy jail overcrowding by adjusting the law regarding the sale
and possession of marijuana.

Under commonwealth law, the sentencing guideline for an offender with
no criminal history who's convicted of possessing a small amount of
marijuana ranges from probation to one month in jail.

For delivery of 10 pounds of marijuana or 20 live plants, an offender
faces a maximum nine months in jail. Legalizing marijuana won't
decrease the jail population, but increasing the availability of
treatment and government support of policies that provide educating
the public about addiction to narcotics would aid the effort, Johnson said.

Drug courts increase in state

A growing number of county courts in Pennsylvania are using drug
courts to provide nonviolent offenders convicted of drug-related
crimes a chance to beat their addiction and avoid jail by taking part
in a strictly supervised treatment program.

"The idea behind drug court is that incarceration isn't helping
overcome addiction," said President Judge Harold F. Woelfel Jr., who
oversees a newly created drug treatment court in Union and Snyder counties.

"If successful, it's much cheaper than jail and can be a
revenue-generator if an offender becomes a productive citizen," Woelfel said.

There is no drug court in Montour County, but Buehner said he offers
some offenders a chance to get credit on jail sentences for time
spent in rehabilitation facilities.