VOTE TO MAKE POSSESSION OF MARIJUANA A CIVIL VIOLATION

To the editor:

There is a second question on Franklin's ballot on Nov. 2. This question:
"Shall the state representative from this district be instructed to
introduce and vote in favor of legislation making possession of marijuana a
civil violation, like a traffic ticket instead of a criminal offense, and
requiring police to hold a person under 18 cited for possession until the
person is released to a parent or legal guardian or brought before a judge"
also appears as Question 1 in Medway's 2nd, 3rd and 4th precincts.

A yes vote on this question is a call for a return to the common law of
arrest when the offense is marijuana possession, which by only the greatest
stretch of the imagination can be considered by itself to be a breach of
the peace.

This will conserve first responders' time. The proposed policy also
conserves prosecutorial, public counsel and judicial resources. The cost of
current policy to just first responder budgets is estimated at over $24
million a year.

It gives back to cities and towns, like Franklin and Medway, as with
traffic tickets in general, one half of the fines collected on citations
issued in the town.

Now there will be "thunderers" as conservative icon William F. Buckley
calls them, who say we must stay the course and continue to criminally
prosecute some 12,000 or more people each year in order to show societal
disapproval or else marijuana use will increase and become more available.

Well, it is clear that current law reduces neither supply nor demand.
Anyone who wants marijuana can get it. Close to 50 percent of the voters on
Nov. 2 will have tried marijuana at least once in their lifetime. Most
never tried any other illicit drug. Almost all are good people. Some are
politicians.

End the arrest of people for possessing marijuana.

Vote yes on Question 1 in Medway and Question 2 in Franklin.

Steven S. Epstein

Georgetown