REFORMING THE MARIJUANA POLICY

Last week, columnist Aaron Applbaum argued that the possession of
marijuana should be legalized in the United States. Further, he
suggested in passing that even if the government does not heed his
call the University should at least modify its own marijuana policy.
The editorial board endorses the latter claim. The University should
cease its current policy of imposing disciplinary consequences on
students found in possession of marijuana in excess of those
regulations required by law.

As was well-argued last week, the legal prohibition on marijuana use
is simply silly. Marijuana is less addictive and less dangerous to
health than both alcohol and tobacco, two commonly used legal drugs;
in the absence of prohibitions against those drugs there is no good
reason for the government to forbid individuals from using marijuana
as well. In general, the University may have a variety of good reasons
for enacting regulations that mirror law. Many laws actually do
promote health, safety or public order. When a law is as pointless as
the marijuana prohibition, however - when the prohibited conduct isn't
harmful to individual students or to the University community - the
University lacks a good reason to ensure student compliance. There
already exist numerous local, state and federal government agencies
unnecessarily tasked with regulating marijuana use; the University
need not add its name to the list.

Of course, it is important that the University avoid legal liability.
The editorial board does not suggest that the University simply ignore
marijuana use on campus. Rather, the University should reform its
marijuana policy along the lines of the current alcohol policy,
reducing penalties for infractions and emphasizing the confiscation of
prohibited drugs rather than the imposition of punishments on students.

Currently, students found in possession of marijuana for the first
time are automatically put on probation, which then becomes part of
the student's permanent record. Mere possession of alcohol - even by
someone under the legal age limit - carries no penalty at all, and
first-time violations of the alcohol policy do not require such a
penalty. Furthermore, as many readers are no doubt aware, the Public
Safety officers who enforce the alcohol policy have substantial
discretion in responding to violations; frequently, officers will
confiscate alcohol but will not report the violator to University
disciplinary officials for further sanctions. The University should
lower the penalties imposed for violating the marijuana policy to the
standard set by the alcohol policy and instruct officers who encounter
students in possession of marijuana to focus on confiscation alone.
Such a scheme would enable the University to discharge any legal
obligation it might have to! stop the illegal possession of marijuana
on campus while limiting the unnecessary exercise of disciplinary
power. Alcohol, after all, is both more dangerous and the cause of
more campus disorder than is marijuana; it is rather odd that the
latter would carry more severe disciplinary consequences than the former.

As long as laws against marijuana possession are on the books, the
drug will have some role in the University's regulations. Rather than
the current system of regulation, however, the University should model
the marijuana policy on the alcohol policy. While the University
should not violate the law, it should do its best to ensure that as
few students as possible must suffer for something as unobjectionable
as marijuana possession.