POT BILL LIGHTS UP DEBATE

BOSTON -- As advocates for substance abusers applaud legislation to
decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, some
crime watchdogs are slamming the measure they said would send a
mixed message on drug use. A legislative committee advanced a bill
on Monday that would make possession of less than one ounce of
marijuana a civil offense with a $250 fine for a first offense,
instead of a criminal infraction that could land a first-time
offender in jail for six months with a $500 fine.

Supporters said the bill that has languished in the Legislature in
past sessions may have fared better this time because it was weighed
by the Legislature 's new joint Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Committee. "I think as a committee we really do have a perspective
of focusing on education, prevention and treatment, and that's
different than the criminal justice tough-on-crime approach," said
the committee's House chairwoman, state Rep. Ruth Balser, D-Newton.

Supporters said decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of
marijuana would prevent offenders from having difficulty securing
federal student loans, jobs and housing because of criminal records.
A 2002 report by a Boston University economist estimates marijuana
possession arrests and bookings cost the state $24.3 million a year.
Balser said some of that money could be better spent on substance
abuse treatment. "There's way too many people with substance abuse
problems in jail and in the criminal justice system," said James
Cuddy, executive director of Framingham social service agency SMOC,
who applauded the legislation. The bill still would have to clear
several hurdles to become law -- approval first by the Senate, then
the House and Gov. Mitt Romney, and Romney's office has signaled he
may oppose it.

Spokeswomen for Senate President Robert Travaglini and House Speaker
Salvatore DiMasi could not confirm the legislative leaders' stances
on the bill yesterday. Framingham Police Chief Steven Carl said the
bill would "unnecessarily endanger the public in the big picture."

"On a daily basis, we deal with the issue of alcohol and driving
when intoxicated...and now we're going to say it's easier to use
marijuana?" Carl said. Carl said judges are the appropriate
caretakers to determine how to punish marijuana offenders. Many
first-time offenders, he said, have their cases continued without findings.

Milford Police Chief Thomas O'Loughlin said the bill would send a
mixed message to young adults.

"If the age is 18, are we sending messages to kids that are
different, (that) you can't have that can of beer but you can have
five or six joints in your pocket, that's OK?" O'Loughlin said.

He questioned how the bill would be enforced, saying many of the
offenders would not end up paying the civil fines.

State Rep. Karyn Polito, R-Shrewsbury, a member of the Mental Health
and Substance Abuse Committee, said the bill "sends the wrong
message." "I think it's a very narrow group of people that want the
passage of this law," said Polito, who was not present for the
committee's 6-1 vote. Fellow committee member Richard Ross,
R-Wrentham, said he dropped his initial opposition to the bill.

"The more I heard about how even a small infraction follows someone
for the rest of their lives, and (marijuana) has become such a
prevalent use in society, it seemed like an unfair tag to stick on
somebody," Ross said. Eleven other states have decriminalized
possession of marijuana to some extent, according to Whitney Taylor,
the executive director of the Drug Policy Forum of Massachusetts.