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Michigan — With less than a week before Election Day, confusion still reigns over the Lansing marijuana amendment on Tuesday's ballot. If the amendment passes, the city's charter would be amended to legalize the possession, use and transfer of an ounce of marijuana by any adult 21 years and older on private property. The amendment would add Lansing to the list of other Michigan cities that have decriminalized marijuana, including Detroit, Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor, and Flint. it is also on the ballot in the Detroit suburb of Ferndale.
Nationally, support for marijuana legalization is at an all-time high. Lansing's amendment serves as a de facto legalization of marijuana under specific circumstances. "Every city in Michigan that has had a cannabis reform issue come up for a vote has passed it," said attorney Jeffery Hank, chairman for a Coalition for a Safer Lansing which got the marijuana amendment on the ballot. "I do expect it to pass and we've been getting nothing but positive feedback. The majority of Lansing [political] candidates are supporting some type of cannabis reform in one way or another."
Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero has expressed support for the initiative. In a statement on August 5, he said that the prohibition of marijuana has been a "complete failure." "Our police officers and courts have more important things to do than pursue and prosecute these violations," Bernero said. While the mayor has been very open about his support, other candidates have expressed some skepticism about how it would work. My concerns about the issue, regardless of what happens with the amendment, are on the usage of marijuana and the lifelong effects it has," City Councilwoman Jessica Yorko said during a candidate forum on Oct. 24. She added that she would also like to see reforms in terms of penalties for possession of marijuana.
Yorko's opponent, Chong-Anna Canfora, also favors the ballot measure but feels that some of the inconsistencies in it could be problematic "Federal law and state law do not align with it," she said. "I do wish that the federal and state officials would really begin to take a look at the [marijuana] laws and how they affect the people of Michigan." At-large council candidate Judi Browne Clarke said that marijuana should be "treated just like alcohol." Meanwhile, at-large candidate Ted O'Dell told the Lansing City Pulse that while he supports medical marijuana, he feels legalization is best left to the federal level. "I believe there are genuine medical benefits for some people using marijuana but, if we are talking about asking our police officers to ignore federal drug enforcement law then my answer is no," O'Dell said on Oct. 5. "The federal law and guidelines regulating the use of marijuana is an issue best addressed by Congress." Incumbent councilwoman Kathie Dunbar said that the ballot initiative is a "feel good" spot on the ballot that "means nothing."
"We follow state law in the city of Lansing," she said. "Passage of this is not going to impact anything. It sends a message that maybe the public is more amenable to legalization but it creates a whole host of problems for our police officers." And that's where much of the debate begins. Attorney General Bill Schuette has already made it clear that he will continue to enforce the existing state and federal laws and ignore any vote passed in the city of Lansing. "Regardless of whether the proposed amendment is approved by the voters, marijuana will remain a controlled substance under state and federal law," Matthew Schneider, the Attorney General's chief legal counsel, wrote on Sept. 19. "City law enforcement will retain the authority to enforce criminal laws, without regard to any provision in the charter."
The letter also said that the proposal "does not inform the voters that the proposed amendment conflicts with state law" nor does it "inform the voters that state law will control regardless of whether the proposed amendment is adopted." For their part, the Lansing Police are opting to wait until after the election to announce their plan going forward. "The Lansing Police Department is doing our due diligence and is researching the initative," Lansing Police Information Officer Robert Merritt said. "We're not going to speculate about things that haven't happened and may not happen." Hank and other supporters of the initiative hope that, if passed, police will enforce local law - not the state.
"The Attorney General can instruct the state police to enforce state law, but the overwhelming majority of people in the city of Lansing are not going to be interacting with the state police," Hank said. "State police don't do much there. [Ingham] County police don't do much there." Hank feels the will of the people should be the deciding factor in how it would be enforced - not the enforcement question. As The City Pulse noted in its endorsement of the amendment, it's largely symbolic because "officials say Lansing police, employing state law, only bust for possession when pot is found in connection with another crime." One other point of confusion comes in how the amendment is described. It has been called in numerous publications — including MLive — a "decriminalization" amendment.
"I do not use the word decriminalization," he said. "Decriminalization typically means that there is still a civil fine or infraction involved. That's what Grand Rapids did." This Grand Rapids measure approved last year, allows possession under 2.5 ounces of marijuana to be considered a civil infraction with a fine of $100. Grand Rapids does not enforce state law in these situations. Hank prefers the term "re-legalization" when talking about this initiative. He references that prior to the 1930s, marijuana was not considered a controlled substance. "It was in the 1930s that this right was taken away," Hank said. "We try to educate people that these were rights that they had and were taken away. This is a step toward getting more of our rights back."
News Hawk - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Jay Scott Smith
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Lansing marijuana ballot initiative: Questions, confusion about enforcement | MLive.com
Nationally, support for marijuana legalization is at an all-time high. Lansing's amendment serves as a de facto legalization of marijuana under specific circumstances. "Every city in Michigan that has had a cannabis reform issue come up for a vote has passed it," said attorney Jeffery Hank, chairman for a Coalition for a Safer Lansing which got the marijuana amendment on the ballot. "I do expect it to pass and we've been getting nothing but positive feedback. The majority of Lansing [political] candidates are supporting some type of cannabis reform in one way or another."
Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero has expressed support for the initiative. In a statement on August 5, he said that the prohibition of marijuana has been a "complete failure." "Our police officers and courts have more important things to do than pursue and prosecute these violations," Bernero said. While the mayor has been very open about his support, other candidates have expressed some skepticism about how it would work. My concerns about the issue, regardless of what happens with the amendment, are on the usage of marijuana and the lifelong effects it has," City Councilwoman Jessica Yorko said during a candidate forum on Oct. 24. She added that she would also like to see reforms in terms of penalties for possession of marijuana.
Yorko's opponent, Chong-Anna Canfora, also favors the ballot measure but feels that some of the inconsistencies in it could be problematic "Federal law and state law do not align with it," she said. "I do wish that the federal and state officials would really begin to take a look at the [marijuana] laws and how they affect the people of Michigan." At-large council candidate Judi Browne Clarke said that marijuana should be "treated just like alcohol." Meanwhile, at-large candidate Ted O'Dell told the Lansing City Pulse that while he supports medical marijuana, he feels legalization is best left to the federal level. "I believe there are genuine medical benefits for some people using marijuana but, if we are talking about asking our police officers to ignore federal drug enforcement law then my answer is no," O'Dell said on Oct. 5. "The federal law and guidelines regulating the use of marijuana is an issue best addressed by Congress." Incumbent councilwoman Kathie Dunbar said that the ballot initiative is a "feel good" spot on the ballot that "means nothing."
"We follow state law in the city of Lansing," she said. "Passage of this is not going to impact anything. It sends a message that maybe the public is more amenable to legalization but it creates a whole host of problems for our police officers." And that's where much of the debate begins. Attorney General Bill Schuette has already made it clear that he will continue to enforce the existing state and federal laws and ignore any vote passed in the city of Lansing. "Regardless of whether the proposed amendment is approved by the voters, marijuana will remain a controlled substance under state and federal law," Matthew Schneider, the Attorney General's chief legal counsel, wrote on Sept. 19. "City law enforcement will retain the authority to enforce criminal laws, without regard to any provision in the charter."
The letter also said that the proposal "does not inform the voters that the proposed amendment conflicts with state law" nor does it "inform the voters that state law will control regardless of whether the proposed amendment is adopted." For their part, the Lansing Police are opting to wait until after the election to announce their plan going forward. "The Lansing Police Department is doing our due diligence and is researching the initative," Lansing Police Information Officer Robert Merritt said. "We're not going to speculate about things that haven't happened and may not happen." Hank and other supporters of the initiative hope that, if passed, police will enforce local law - not the state.
"The Attorney General can instruct the state police to enforce state law, but the overwhelming majority of people in the city of Lansing are not going to be interacting with the state police," Hank said. "State police don't do much there. [Ingham] County police don't do much there." Hank feels the will of the people should be the deciding factor in how it would be enforced - not the enforcement question. As The City Pulse noted in its endorsement of the amendment, it's largely symbolic because "officials say Lansing police, employing state law, only bust for possession when pot is found in connection with another crime." One other point of confusion comes in how the amendment is described. It has been called in numerous publications — including MLive — a "decriminalization" amendment.
"I do not use the word decriminalization," he said. "Decriminalization typically means that there is still a civil fine or infraction involved. That's what Grand Rapids did." This Grand Rapids measure approved last year, allows possession under 2.5 ounces of marijuana to be considered a civil infraction with a fine of $100. Grand Rapids does not enforce state law in these situations. Hank prefers the term "re-legalization" when talking about this initiative. He references that prior to the 1930s, marijuana was not considered a controlled substance. "It was in the 1930s that this right was taken away," Hank said. "We try to educate people that these were rights that they had and were taken away. This is a step toward getting more of our rights back."
News Hawk - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Mlive.com
Author: Jay Scott Smith
Contact: Contact Us - MLive Media Group
Website: Lansing marijuana ballot initiative: Questions, confusion about enforcement | MLive.com
