MAN GETS JAIL TIME FOR DEALING IN KHAT

Saying she wanted to send the message "when in Wisconsin, follow the
laws in Wisconsin," a Dane County judge ordered a former Fitchburg
resident to serve 30 days in jail for possession with intent to
deliver a substance that is considered an illegal drug here but is
legal in Somalia and many European countries.

Dane County Circuit Court Judge Diane Nicks ordered the jail time as
a condition of three years of probation for Liban Moalin, 37, who was
convicted by a jury in November of possession of khat with intent to deliver.

Nicks acknowledged that in some places "there may be cultural
acceptance" of the plant, which has been chewed as a stimulant by
East Africans and Arabs for thousands of years. But though marijuana
may be legal in some places, "People know they can't come over and
traffic in marijuana," she said.

Moalin, who was born in Ethiopia and lived in Somalia, Italy and
Canada, where he has citizenship, now lives in St. Paul, Minn. He was
arrested in January after accepting delivery of khat from a friend in
Italy and told police it was to be given to another friend in
Minneapolis, where authorities are more watchful for the plants.

Assistant District Attorney Kenneth Farmer had asked for six months
in jail as a condition of probation, noting that the felony
conviction carries a maximum sentence of six years and a $10,000 fine.

Farmer described cathinone - the active ingredient in khat - as
"highly addictive," and said khat has become a problem in the
Midwest, particularly in the Minneapolis area, which has a large
Somalian population.

"It's not just a cultural thing. . . . There's money to be made from
it," he said. "If we don't nip this in the bud, so to speak, I think
it's likely to expand."

Defense attorney Jeffrey Nichols argued against jail time, saying it
was Moalin's first offense and his conviction could result in
deportation to Canada.

But Nicks said Moalin admitted receiving one or two shipments of khat
a month and attempted to hide an illegal enterprise from detection.

"This is not some harmless, caffeine-like stimulant," Nicks said,
adding she wanted others to know "you're going to see the inside of a
jail if you commit this offense."