MARIJUANA PETITIONS HAVE LOCAL ROOTS

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Two separate petitions with roots in Southwest
Nebraska seek to place legalization of marijuana on the Nebraska ballot.

The first, a petition circulated by Frank Shoemaker of Holbrook, seeks
to add Proposition XIX to the Nebraska Constitution which would
legalize marijuana for private, noncommercial use and cause the state
to set aside any previous marijunana convictions.

Shoemaker won the right to "NE 420" license plates after they were
first rejected, then approved, by the Nebraska Department of Motor
Vehicles after a lawsuit was threatened by the American Civil
Liberties Union. "420" is an underground drug reference to a good
time, or day, to smoke marijuana.

The proposed constitutional amendment was filed June 23, 2011, with
the Nebraska Secretary of State

Another petition, Proposition 22, the Nebraska Medical Initiative,
would establish state law to regulate medical marijuana to allow
patients or patients' caregivers to cultivate, possess and distribute
an approved amount of marijuana.

The related Measure 21 would also enact a law to allow medical
marijuana dispensaries.

The medical initiative also seeks a constitutional amendment
prohibiting lawmakers from preventing patients from possession of
marijuana used to treat a medical condition.

Both petitions are sponsored by NORML Nebraska, which lists John H.
Smith of McCook as executive director, Pat Wesch of McCook as
treasurer and Lorie L. Prestes of McCook as secretary.

Other officers are listed as Mark R. Skipton, assistant executive
director, of Kearney, and board members Kevin Sawyer of Omaha and
Misty Stinson of Alliance.