Reefer madness
Marijuana is harmless and should he legalized
TIM SULLIVAN is a third
year law student and a
Daily Nebraskan colum
nist.
In 1937 our government made my
drug of choice illegal. I prefer mari
juana over alcohol or any other recre
ational drug.
Every year, millions of
Americans are destroying their livers,
families, marriages, relationships,
jobs and their very lives by consum
ing billions of dollars worth of a far
more dangerous drug.
Alcohol. Why is alcohol legal and
marijuana illegal?
When I meet people for the first
time, and they learn I’m a law stu
dent, they often ask if I have political
aspirations. Many in law school do.
I have to tell them I probably
couldn’t stand the public scrutiny that
goes with running for office. I tell
them I have a few too many skeletons
in the closet.
That’s right. I inhaled. (For
shame!)
I found the high to be euphoric,
with no ill effects. It wasn’t a “gate
way” drug for me either, leading me
to use harder drugs.
The real shame is that I can’t par
take of some good sinsemilla without
worrying about Johnny Law, or
worse yet, the bar association.
A conviction could cause me to
be denied permission to take the bar
exam next year.
If you drink, though, you don’t
have to worry about tossing your
empties into the garbage. But if you
like to smoke a little dope now and
then, tossing your seeds and stems
into the garbage could cause you
serious problems.
The police can rummage through
your garbage anytime they like.
That’s because you have no reason
able expectation of privacy when
it comes to your gart»a;
makes no difference if
your garbage cans are
on your property or
out in the alley,
either.
so tney can look
through your
garbage, and if
they find seeds or
stems, they can
get a warrant to
search your
residence. The ; /
seeds or stems V
they find in /\
your garbage / \
give them J
the proba- \
ble cause
they need for the search. >
In other words, the
police are able to tram- /
pie all over your rights
under the Fourth /
Amendment.
The Marijuana
Policy Project esti
mates that the war f.
on marijuana / , Jk
costs taxpayers ' *||jP
$7 bilhon annu- : W
ally. But >
decriminaliza- *
tion in Cahfomia saves
about $ 100 million per 1
year. I
Marijuana has been ^
decriminalized in nine
states, including i
Nebraska. That doesn’t f
mean it’s legal. It’s just \
not criminal. In Nebraska, •
any person knowingly or
intentionally possessing marijuana
weighing one ounce or less shall, for
the first offense, be guilty of an
infraction, receive a citation, be fined
$ 100 and be assigned to attend a
course if the judge determines that
attending such a course is in the best
interest of the individual defendant.
Neb. Rev. Stat. 28-416.
The other states that have decrim
inalized marijuana are California,
Colorado, Maine, Minnesota,
Mississippi, New York, North
Carolina and Ohio.
Oregon used to be among them,
but it recently re-criminalized mari
juana when Oregon Gov. John A.
Kitzhaber signed into law H.B. 3643
earlier this year. This made marijuana
possession of less than an ounce a
misdemeanor punishable by up to 30
days in jail and a $ 1,000 fine, plus a
six-month driver’s license suspension
for those who fail to complete a drug
treatment program.
Oregon residents unhappy with
the new law prevented it from taking
effect by forming the “Citizens for
Sensible Law Enforcement” and
gathering enough signatures to get
wauv/ wii uit uaiiui nils i'Nuvciiiuci.
Oregon voters will decide if they
support the legislature’s move to
increase marijuana penalties. If the
majority votes yes, then the legisla
ture’s 1997 law will immediately go
into effect; if the majority votes no,
then the legislature’s law will be nul
lified.
There is no doubt in my mind that
alcohol is a far more dangerous drug
than marijuana. The ability to safely
operate a motor vehicle under the
influence of alcohol is a prime exam
ple.
It’s illegal to operate a motor
vehicle in this state under the influ
ence of alcohol or drugs. The State
Patrol trains its officers to be able to
recognize drug-impaired drivers. If
you fail their field tests, they can
require you to submit to chemical
testing for the presence of marijuana
or other drugs.
Presumably, you can be found
guilty of driving under the influence
if your chemical test is positive for
marijuana. Your license can’t be
administratively revoked
positive drug test, though. That’s not
one of the issues in an administrative
license revocation hearing for driving
under the influence of alcohol or
refusing a chemical test for its pres
ence.
But because you still have to deal
with the criminal charge, I have to
question the accuracy of any chemi
cal test for marijuana that purports to
be able to say, with any degree of cer
tainty, that anyone was operating a
motor vehicle at a given moment
under the influence of marijuana.
I also question the wisdom of
making it a crime to drive under the
influence of marijuana. So what if I
drive a little slower?
But no one can dispute the fact
that drinking and driving don’t mix.
Alcohol inflicts a great many ills
upon society. Alcoholism is rampant.
Millions of people have lost their
lives at the hands of drunken drivers.
Unless you drink and drive, you
don’t have to worry about Johnny
Law.
Isn t there something odd about a
law that makes a virtually harmless
drug illegal? And a law that makes an
extremely dangerous drug legal?
My experience with marijuana
goes back to 1973 or so. I don’t recall
exactly when the first time I tried it
was, but I know I was 13 or 14.
I have, without success, tried to
understand why it should be illegal
ever since.
There were a number of studies
on marijuana that the government
ignored in deciding to criminalize it
and in maintaining its prohibition.
Every one of these comprehen
sive, objective government commis
sions has recommended against crim
inalization.
As college students or faculty and
staff members who may smoke a lit
tle reefer on occasion, you may be
interested in knowing that a one-year
minimum prison sentence is mandat
ed for “distributing” or “manufactur
ing” controlled substances within
1,000 feet of any school, university
or playground.
Most areas in a city fall within
these “drug-free zones.” An adult
who lives within this dis
tance from a university is
subject to a one-year
: mandatory minimum
ror selling an
| ounce of marijua
I na to another adult
- or even grow
ing one marijua
na plant in his
or her basement.
Someone has to
| sell it in order for
I you to buy it,
H r^l*V right?
So,
at least
Wl )for
[ now, or
| until I
A move to
l\ Amsterdam,
wi J! Netherlands,
jjfj £; or some
# j|. where like
| mm that, I’ll have
1 :Wm to live with
Ywjjk out it. That’s
I \ 11 the real
I \
Matt Haney/DN '
. At-vj
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