COURT RULING SHELVES VALLEY MARIJUANA CASE

MAT-SU -- A recent ruling by the state Court of Appeals regarding
possession of small amounts of marijuana has prompted at least one
drug case to be dropped in the Valley.

Wasilla attorney Verne Rupright said one of his clients will avoid
pleading to a charge of misconduct involving a controlled substance
for possessing marijuana. Rupright said the court ruling prompted the
Palmer District Attorney's office to drop prosecution for the
misdemeanor offense involving a couple of ounces.

"We were just about to negotiate a settlement for a client who had the
requisite amount to trigger the very bottom end of the statute," he
said. "She clearly falls into the criteria.

"It's a young woman with no horrendous drug abuse problem, let alone
being a dealer. It turns out she has two herniated discs in her back.
Some people just don't have enough money to go to a doctor."

The appeals court ruled Aug. 29 that Alaska residents may possess less
than four ounces of marijuana in their home for personal use. That
unanimous decision reversed the 2001 conviction of a North Pole man
charged for having marijuana in his home, and challenges the 1990
Alaska ballot initiative that made it a crime to possess even the
smallest amount of the drug.

The Alaska Department of Law reportedly is considering an appeal but
no action had been taken as of Friday, temporarily throwing the issue
into limbo.

Gov. Frank Murkowski called the decision "regrettable," and asked the
state Attorney General to review the case and make a recommendation on
how to proceed.

Meanwhile, most law enforcement agencies say they will continue to
treat possession of less than four ounces as a crime.

"Right now it's just a ruling," said Wasilla Police Chief Don Savage.
"The law has not changed, so we are not going to be doing anything
different."

The Alaska Bureau of Alcohol and Drug Enforcement's Mat-Su office will
continue to make arrests for the crime, investigator Duane Shelton
said, although he emphasized they focus on felonies such as drug dealing.

Capt. Ed Harrington of the Alaska State Troopers' office in Palmer
said that agency, too, will continue business as usual. That means
seizing marijuana and issuing a summons to appear in court to anyone
with less than four ounces in their home.

Harrington added that troopers usually add the misdemeanor charge if
marijuana is discovered while investigating more serious crimes. It's
rarely the sole charge.

"We never did a lot of those cases," Harrington said, adding that
troopers wouldn't change policy without a directive from the Attorney
General's office or the Department of Law.

Neither office has indicated how long it will be before a formal
response is issued.

Palmer Police Chief Russ Boatwright referred the Frontiersman to its
Mat-Su Drug Team officer for department policy. However, the officer
was unavailable for comment.

The appeals court ruling, which is based on the Alaska Constitution's
right to privacy provisions, does not affect most marijuana laws.
Prosecution is still certain for selling the drug, possessing it
outside the home, or having more than four ounces within a residence.