POT INITIATIVE MAY FACE PROMOTION PROBLEMS

Two years ago, Jennifer Knight voted against an initiative to legalize
marijuana possession in Nevada. Concerned it didn't address DUI
issues, she joined the majority in saying no to the 2002 measure.

But Knight now backs a new effort to legalize pot in the state -- one
that, when compared to the earlier measure, lessens the amount of
marijuana a person can legally possess, strengthens DUI laws and sets
harsher penalties for violators who supply minors under a state
regulated system. And she believes plenty of others, frustrated with
drug policy, are ready to switch sides.

"Our current laws aren't working. We need to take it off the streets,
put strict regulations on it and keep it out of the hands of the
kids," says Knight, spokeswoman for the Committee to Regulate and
Control Marijuana. "Voters told us if we addressed certain issues,
they'd approve it. We've done that."

The measure would allow adults over 21 to possess one ounce of
marijuana. It would also set penalties of up to 10 years in jail for
first-time offenders that provide pot to minors, and sentence anyone
convicted of vehicular manslaughter while under the influence to a
minimum of five years in prison.

But the committee faces a battle in convincing voters, not only from
opponents but in spreading its message. On the day Knight's group
filed the petition, the American Civil Liberties Union announced a
lawsuit against the federal government and the Washington Metropolitan
Area Transit Authority. The suit challenges a 2004 spending bill
amendment allowing Congress to deny federal aid to any local transit
agency that displays advertisements criticizing the government's "War
on Drugs." It's censorship, say civil libertarians, since anti-drug
groups are allowed space.

At stake in Las Vegas: $20 million, says ACLU aide Anjuli Verma. Asked
about the ad ban as he rushed across the UNLV campus recently, ACLU of
Nevada Executive Director Gary Peck shouted: "You can't allow some [to
advertise] and not others."

Knight says the committee is not looking that far ahead. Its focus now
is collecting signatures.