LEGAL POT SUPPORTERS BACK WITH NEW TACTIC

CARSON CITY -- The organization that tried unsuccessfully to change the law
last year to allow adults to smoke marijuana is back in Nevada testing a
new strategy.

Advertisements have been appearing on television stations in Reno sponsored
by the Marijuana Policy Project Foundation suggesting that more than 67
percent of teens in Nevada try marijuana before graduating from high school.

The advertisements say that compares with 28 percent of the teens in the
Netherlands, where marijuana use is allowed under some conditions.

Neal Levine, director of state policies for the foundation based in
Washington, D.C., said the comparison shows that Nevada's law is not
working. Reno is the first market in the United States where the
advertisement is airing, Levine said. He refused to say how much the
advertising cost or how long it would run.

In the Netherlands, adults can buy marijuana at certain stores but must
show proof of age if asked.

The foundation last year started an initiative petition in Nevada to allow
adults to possess up to three ounces of marijuana without being charged
with a crime. It would have set up a string of state-sanctioned shops where
marijuana could be sold. Voters rejected the petition 60.7 percent to 39.3
percent. In Clark County the tally was 188,757 against and 118,633 in favor.

Assemblywoman Chris Giunchigliani, D-Las Vegas, one of the few legislators
who publicly backed the initiative petition, said she has not had any
contact with the national marijuana foundation for some time.

She said she will be working in the 2005 Legislature to bring uniformity to
the laws regarding driving under the influence of marijuana and being found
under the influence while on the job.

Nevada law says a motorist is guilty of driving under the influence of
drugs if he is found to have 10 nanograms of THC in marijuana in his urine
or 2 nanograms in his blood.

But state Personnel Department rules say that a state worker who has 15
nanograms of THC of marijuana in his or her urine is considered under the
influence. The state standard is derived from the National Health Services
Administration guidelines.

Giunchigliani said that urine tests do not show the actual THC in marijuana
that can cause erratic behavior. "The blood (test) is more accurate," she said.

Giunchigliani said using the urine sample offers the chance for an attorney
to argue in court that the test is not valid.

Levine said the foundation wants to gauge the results of its TV advertising
program in Reno. It offers a website "Stopteenuse.com" to gather reaction
to the advertisement.

Levine said the government is not telling the truth about the use of
marijuana among minors. The 67 percent figure comes from White House
studies, according to the foundation.

While the foundation backs adults using marijuana, it is against kids using
it, Levine said.

Advocates of marijuana decriminalization have noted that during a debate in
Boston earlier this month, three of the six Democratic candidates for
president admitted they had smoked marijuana. Sens. John Kerry and John
Edwards and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean all said they had used
marijuana in the past.

Giunchigliani said their answers show that marijuana is not addictive
because they would not have risen to their present positions if they were
hooked on the drug.

Levine said he was not surprised by their comments but found them
interesting. He said Edwards has pushed for the Drug Enforcement
Administration to crack down on sales in California. He said Dean, as
governor of Vermont, helped defeat a medical marijuana bill.

At a later appearance in Iowa, Dean was asked if the drug should be
decriminalized. He answered that would not solve the problem. But he added,
"I think substance abuse should be treated as a medical problem, not a
judicial problem."

Those at the Boston debate who said they had not used marijuana were Rep.
Dennis Kucinich, the Rev. Al Sharpton and Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman.