HARDSHIP OR NECESSARY JUSTICE?

RICHMOND -- When House of Delegates Republicans showed up for their
daily caucus huddle and strategy session in the Capitol late last
week, there was a plate of fresh brownies and a forged note waiting
for them.

"Friends, Please enjoy these homemade brownies! -- Harvey Morgan"
Conservative lawmakers pulled the munchies prank to tease Del. Harvey
Morgan, a Gloucester pharmacist and Republican whose push to
decriminalize pot possession and expand the state's medical marijuana
statute caught many political observers off guard. In his third decade
in the General Assembly, Morgan comes from the classic mold of the
Virginia gentleman.

Morgan has taken the gentle ribbing in stride and argued that
marijuana is no more harmful than alcohol or cigarettes. Morgan said
he doesn't want to see peoples' lives and careers ruined by criminal
convictions for small amounts of pot. Morgan has also offered a
pocketbook argument, saying that a money-starved state budget
considering teacher layoffs should overhaul the priorities of
overworked police officers, judges and sheriffs.

"In this time of economic hardship, we need to examine how our tax
dollars are spent," he said. "This idea is way overdue."

In Virginia, unlawful possession of marijuana is a misdemeanor and a
jail sentence of up to 30 days. The defendant can be fined up to $500.
First time offenders are often given probation by the court if they do
not have any prior convictions.

If someone is arrested for distribution or possession with intent to
sell, the law isn't as lenient. If they are found with less than a
half ounce of marijuana, it's considered a misdemeanor. More than an
ounce of marijuana is considered a felony. Possession of more than
five pounds of marijuana is a felony punishable from between five to
30 years in prison.

Under Morgan's bill, marijuana possession under an ounce would become
a civil offense triggering a $500 fine. According to Peninsula arrest
statistics, the overwhelming majority of pot busts are for simple
possession rather than distribution.

Still, local law enforcement officials aren't exactly flocking to
Morgan's proposal.

"I see so many young people use marijuana and the next thing they're
into is stealing," Newport News Police Chief James Fox said. "Then
they get involved with cocaine and heroin and their life is gone." Fox
said the department is putting more emphasis on marijuana because the
city's last two homicides involved the drug.

When police investigated the Jan. 8 shooting death of Lloyd George
Robinson, they found a small amount of marijuana. At the time of his
death, witnesses told police that the person who shot the 46-year-old
Robinson was after drugs.

In December, two masked men broke into Lafayette Bailey Jr.'s trailer
around 4 a.m. on Spur Drive and demanded drugs. Bailey was shot to
death in front of his fiancee and with his two young children in the
next room. Police found marijuana in Bailey's trailer during their
investigation.

"It's always been there, but just recently we're seeing more of the
violence and it's concerning me," Fox said, referring to the presence
of marijuana in the city.

For many legislators, Morgan's bills aren't as concerning as they are
toxic to re-election campaigns. Virginia has a law-and-order image --
polished by abolished parole and efforts to expand capital punishment
even as other states roll back the death penalty. Morgan said that
lawmakers would struggle to explain charges that they "relaxed drug
laws" on the trail.

"It's very hard to respond to that during a campaign," Morgan said.
Del. Dave Albo, R-Fairfax, is the chairman of the House Courts of
Justice Committee, the first panel that will hear Morgan's proposals.
Albo said last week that Morgan's bill will last about a "millisecond"
in front of the committee stocked with attorneys who craft the state's
criminal codes.

Albo predicted that lawmakers would be especially wary of
decriminalizing marijuana because over the past few decades savvy
growers and aggressive drug dealers have found ways to dramatically
increase the potency of their pot.

"Marijuana is different now," Albo said. "The stuff is really powerful
these days."

Lawmakers are cautiously watching how medical marijuana programs work
on the streets of other states. So far, 14 states have legalized
medical marijuana and the Washington D.C. City Council appears poised
to follow suit.

Parts of southern California are recognized for having an almost
anything goes medical marijuana industry in recent years. Voters
approved the medicinal program more than a decade ago and tiny
distribution centers have flooded the state. Marijuana supporters are
now pushing to legalize the drug, but there has also been blowback
over the open drug trade. Los Angeles County leaders are attempting to
crack down on illegally operating pot dispensaries.

Morgan stressed that he doesn't want to legalize the drug, and any
medical program would have to be strictly supervised by a physician.
"I would never ever want to see us go the route of California," Morgan
said. "Virginia is not California. Not as long as I'm here."