LAWMAKERS PROPOSE FINES, NOT ARREST, FOR SMALL AMOUNTS OF MARIJUANA

A proposal to decriminalize marijuana in Connecticut is not catching
fire with local legislators.

State Sen. Bob Duff, D-25, along with state Rep. Lawrence Cafero,
R-142, House minority leader, and state Rep. Bruce Morris, D-140,
said the detrimental effects of decriminalizing marijuana would
outweigh the benefits.

"This is always a more complicated issue than just decriminalizing
marijuana," said Duff. "We have to think about if it's the best thing
to do for our families and our children, and all that needs to be
weighed against the alleged benefits of decriminalizing marijuana."

State Sen. Martin Looney, D-11, Senate majority leader, and state
Sen. Toni Harp, D-10, want Connecticut to do what Massachusetts did
in November and impose fines on people caught with 1 ounce or less of
marijuana instead of arresting them. Looney and Harp said the cost of
legally processing small-time marijuana offenders is too high.

Harvard researchers found that Massachusetts state police had been
spending about $30 million a year on arresting and investigating
low-level marijuana users. There is no similar cost estimate for
Connecticut.

Looney and Harp hope the state's growing budget deficit helps
convince their peers that decriminalizing possession of small amounts
of marijuana is a good idea.

But Morris, Duff and Cafero believe the proposal will go up in
smoke.

Morris believes the money the state might save by decriminalizing
marijuana would be canceled out by the damage it could do to the
economy. He said marijuana users will put money toward the drug
instead of stimulating the local economy.

Cafero, who is the hearing officer for the Norwalk Board of
Education, said he has seen the negative effects marijuana has on teenagers.
He thinks giving fines for being in possession of the drug instead of
arresting an individual will send the wrong message to youths.

"When (teenagers) could say, 'What's the big deal? It's ike a
traffic ticket or a parking violation,' that's a problem," he said.
"That's why I have grave concerns about it."

Morris concurs: "If young kids believe this is no longer a dangerous
drug, we'll have more kids using it. We'll have poorer grades in
schools, and many of the people will turn to other drugs."

The Associated Press contributed to this story.