MARIJUANA DECRIMINALIZATION QUESTION IS ON BALLOT NOV. 2

On the national level Nov. 2, voters in Hingham, Cohasset, Hull, and
part of Scituate will decide which Presidential candidate to vote for
- - George Bush or John Kerry.

On the local level, voters in those four communities (Precinct 3 only
in Scituate) will be asked to vote either "yes" or "no" on a
non-binding marijuana decriminalization question.

The public policy question was placed on the ballot by the Drug Policy
Forum of Massachusetts (DPFMA) in the 3rd Plymouth Representative
District to measure how these communities feel about the issue.

Should the legislature at some point approve this proposed marijuana
decriminalization, the penalty for possession of one ounce or less of
marijuana by an adult would carry a $100 civil fine for both
first-time and subsequent offenses.

"The current penalty is criminal arrest and a severe and costly
punishment," said DPFMA Executive Director Whitney Taylor. "Each of
the 30 daily marijuana arrests in Massachusetts takes a police officer
off the street for hours and adds another case to the backlogged court
system."

The DPFMA chose this district because Rep. Garrett Bradley, who
represents the district, sits on the Legislature's Criminal Justice
Committee, "which will most likely vote on similar legislation in the
upcoming legislative session," Taylor said. "We want to take the
politics out of this discussion and see how the public feels about
current marijuana control policies. When Rep. Bradley votes on this
issue, he should be conveying the opinion of his constituency."

Hingham resident John Leonard was one of five Hingham residents among
the 200-plus citizens in Bradley's district who signed a citizen's
petition to get the non-binding question on the ballot. "Other
communities have passed questions with similar wording," he said.

Bradley noted, however, that proponents of marijuana decriminalization
talked with him about 18 months ago and proposed such a bill for the
last legislative session. The proposed legislation was studied by the
Criminal Justice Committee during a public hearing. Subsequently, the
bill was sent to a study committee due to "lack of support," Bradley
said. "That means it's virtually dead."

Bradley named some of the concerns centering around the issue. "Make
no mistake about it -- marijuana is a gateway drug that can lead to
cocaine, heroin, and other drug use," he said.

Stating that the reality of the situation isn't as "simple" as
Question 1 implies, Bradley further noted that the effort to
decriminalize marijuana "has nothing to do with medicinal use."
Besides, he said, "with a civil offense, there's no tracking system
[to indicate whether it's a first offense or multiple offenses]. I
believe the best way to handle this is within the criminal court
system because it is an established way of tracking whether someone is
abusing or selling marijuana. The prosecutor's office also has the
ability to handle cases properly if it's a first offense. If such a
case is tried in criminal court and the person is simply fined, then
it doesn't go on his or her record."

Diversion programs for those under age 21 caught with marijuana for
the first time are also available to help them deal with the issue of
drug use. Upon successful completion of the course, the case can be
dismissed without leaving the minor with a criminal record. Marijuana
is considered to be an illegal drug for people of any age.

Cohasset Police Chief James Hussey is concerned the forum may not be
balanced. " I hope that they are going to at least present both
sides," he said.

Hussey said he also believes marijuana leads to other drugs and has
yet to be convinced otherwise. "The youth population experiments with
that and then wants to try something else," Hussey said.

Marijuana not only affects one's decision-making capabilities, it also
affects the immune system, according to Hingham DARE Officer Michael
Peraino. "There's also more tar in marijuana than in cigarettes," he
said.

He went on to say, "We have enough trouble keeping alcohol out of the
kids' hands as it is. If we make marijuana possession a civil
violation, the marijuana use problem will explode because there will
be no consequences and kids would likely think it worth the risk."

In clarifying the reasoning behind the ballot question, Taylor
emphasized that it's not the intent of this question or of the DPFMA
that children fall under legislation that would decriminalize marijuana.

"We don't want to encourage kids to use drugs," Taylor said. Nor does
DPFMA want young people to "lose higher education and other
opportunities through a felony drug conviction." But, she said, "those
details will be worked out in the complicated legislative process. We
want to make public policy better for everybody in Massachusetts.
Maybe at some point we can work with drug and alcohol educators in the
school system."

The amount of marijuana given in Question 1 was set at an ounce or
less because that "would be considered personal use versus trafficking
or selling marijuana," according to Taylor.

In order to gauge how citizens feel about the issue, the DPFMA is
holding an open educational forum Wed., Oct. 27, at 7 p.m. at Hingham
Public Library, 66 Leavitt St. Guest speakers include Michael Cutler,
a Massachusetts criminal defense attorney, and Taylor. Their
presentation will be followed by a discussion period.

The purpose of the forum is to provide the community with an
opportunity to educate themselves about, and to discuss, the issues
prior to the election and to ask questions. The event is open to the
public.

"We will also be talking about the myths versus the facts," Taylor
said. "It has been scientifically proven that the health risks linked
to the use of marijuana are much less than those related to alcohol or
tobacco use." She further stated that the question refers to marijuana
decriminalization for personal possession only, or recreational use.

"The intent is that marijuana possession will still be illegal, but
we'd be taking it from a criminal to a civil penalty," Taylor said.
"So if someone is caught with a couple of joints, let's fine that
person but not waste funds on prosecuting [him or her]
criminally."

Furthermore, Taylor said, If someone caught with an ounce or less is
found to be driving under the influence of marijuana - or alcohol,
that's a different story. "We want them to be prosecuted. An
impairment test would show whether or not that was the case," she said.

The point is, said Bradley, that "marijuana is illegal. I think the
criminal court system can handle cases involving marijuana in an
appropriate way on a case-by-case basis, not just by issuing [the
equivalent of] a citation."

The DPFMA has been moving across the state since 2000 to present
policy questions. Other Massachusetts communities have passed the same
type of non-binding questions as the one facing Hingham, Hull,
Cohasset and some Scituate voters on Nov. 2. For example, the Fifth
Plymouth Representative District, which includes Hanover, Norwell, and
Rockland, passed the same non-binding question in 2002.