Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
Favian Quezada's career at Tyler Junior College was put on hold after an arrest for having about a handful of marijuana.
His teachers and even the dean of students rallied behind him to get reinstated in college, but at one point he sat 10 days in jail as a result of having that roughly three and a half grams.
"Jail is never fun. You go in there, and you kind of have an expectation about what's going to happen, " Quezada said. "Some can be nice, some can be violent, some don't even talk. Mentally it's terrible. You're sitting in there, you have nothing to do; time goes by slower. You're in a cage with 25 other people."
Quezada hopes Texas will join other state's in reforming its marijuana possession laws.
"I know in reality Texas won't decriminalize marijuana as a whole anytime soon," Quezada said. "But I'm hoping small amounts will be decriminalize because it's not hurting anybody."
State leaders aren't up to legalize marijuana any time soon, but decriminalizing efforts are in the works at the Legislature.
Public opinion is moving toward reforming how the state handles the drug and its users. Members of a state centered advocacy group, Progress Texas, say they've been getting intense interest in the topic, a coalition of conservative and liberal organizations has formed with one goal being decriminalizing marijuana.
"The biggest thing is it's going to save taxpayer money and free up time for law enforcement to focus on serious matters of public safety," said Phillip Martin with Progress Texas.
While not advocating for legalization, Martin said making penalties less serious could help move petty drugs cases through the state's justice system.
He noted $734 million a year is spent on prosecution, and 70,000 Texans spend time in jail for possession of small amounts.
"Gov. (Greg) Abbott supports current drug laws and opposes the legalization of marijuana," said governor's office spokesman John Whittman in a statement to Scripps.
In a more extensive interview with a San Antonio TV station, Abbott expressed support for marijuana reforms, although he didn't take a firm position.
"We don't want to put people behind bars who are not a real threat to the health and safety of others in this state," Abbott told KSAT. "Texas is not going to become like Colorado. However, Texas has shown that is has been the vanguard on being smart on crime."
The "smart on crime" refrain is the battle cry of diverse interest groups.
A group announced last year called Smart-On-Crime brings together organizations including the Texas Association of Business, Goodwill Central Texas, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, the left-leaning American Civil Liberties Union of Texas and the right-leaning Texas Public Policy Foundation think tank.
The group wants "punishment that actually fits the crime, protection for the innocent and a path to redemption for those convicted of nonviolent crimes so they can get back to work and be productive members of society," according to a Smart-On-Crime news release.
Specifically for drug crimes, the group's wants to "modify penalties for minor drug possession offenses and allow courts to divert individuals to a treatment program to address substance abuse, mental health, or other needs, when the offender is deemed by the court not to be a threat to public safety. Use the savings derived from diversion to strengthen existing treatment programs in the community or create tailored treatment programs, as necessary, to address possession offenses."
Taylor West with the National Cannabis Industry Association said Colorado has seen a boon from its decriminalization efforts that started in 2010. Marijuana possession arrests have dropped 50 percent since 2010, she said.
"You're talking about millions of dollars in savings," West said.
More importantly, people's lives aren't "turned upside down," she said.
Legislators, mostly Democrats, have filed a number of bills that could change laws surrounding the use of marijuana, especially punishment for having it unauthorized.
House Bill 507 from state Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, would change the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana to a civil penalty, akin to not wearing a seat belt or jaywalking. Anything more than an ounce would stay a Class B misdemeanor.
"I've had a lot of positive discussions with members on both sides of the aisle on the need to do something different in this arena," Moody said.
He said he has encountered concern about law enforcements' ability to arrest someone for intoxication, but he said his legislation applies only to simple possession. He also said it can be difficult to get across the distinction between decriminalization and legalization. He stressed his bill shouldn't be construed as a move toward legalization.
"We have to be very clear about what this bill does," Moody said.
Another bill, HB 414 from state Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, would make possession a citation offense.
Currently, punishment can include up to $2,000 in fines and 180 days of jail time.
The move to further decriminalize has proponents on both sides of the legislative isle. It's unclear whether Abbott would veto any such legislation if it were to reach his desk later this year.
According to a recent Texas Tribune/University of Texas poll, 3 percent of respondents said crime and drugs were the most important issues facing the state, tied with water supply, transportation and moral decline.
Specific to marijuana, a September 2013 poll from the Public Policy Polling group, said 60 percent of Texans favor decriminalizing the offense to civil one, and 58 percent supported medical marijuana laws.
A February 2014 poll found that 23 percent of Texans believe marijuana should be totally illegal.
"This is an important, bipartisan issue, and the polls reflect that," Martin said.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Laws aim to lessen penalties for marijuana use - Caller-Times
Author: Matthew Waller
Contact: matthew.waller@scripps.com
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: Corpus Christi Caller-Times | Local Corpus Christi, Texas News Delivered Throughout the Day
His teachers and even the dean of students rallied behind him to get reinstated in college, but at one point he sat 10 days in jail as a result of having that roughly three and a half grams.
"Jail is never fun. You go in there, and you kind of have an expectation about what's going to happen, " Quezada said. "Some can be nice, some can be violent, some don't even talk. Mentally it's terrible. You're sitting in there, you have nothing to do; time goes by slower. You're in a cage with 25 other people."
Quezada hopes Texas will join other state's in reforming its marijuana possession laws.
"I know in reality Texas won't decriminalize marijuana as a whole anytime soon," Quezada said. "But I'm hoping small amounts will be decriminalize because it's not hurting anybody."
State leaders aren't up to legalize marijuana any time soon, but decriminalizing efforts are in the works at the Legislature.
Public opinion is moving toward reforming how the state handles the drug and its users. Members of a state centered advocacy group, Progress Texas, say they've been getting intense interest in the topic, a coalition of conservative and liberal organizations has formed with one goal being decriminalizing marijuana.
"The biggest thing is it's going to save taxpayer money and free up time for law enforcement to focus on serious matters of public safety," said Phillip Martin with Progress Texas.
While not advocating for legalization, Martin said making penalties less serious could help move petty drugs cases through the state's justice system.
He noted $734 million a year is spent on prosecution, and 70,000 Texans spend time in jail for possession of small amounts.
"Gov. (Greg) Abbott supports current drug laws and opposes the legalization of marijuana," said governor's office spokesman John Whittman in a statement to Scripps.
In a more extensive interview with a San Antonio TV station, Abbott expressed support for marijuana reforms, although he didn't take a firm position.
"We don't want to put people behind bars who are not a real threat to the health and safety of others in this state," Abbott told KSAT. "Texas is not going to become like Colorado. However, Texas has shown that is has been the vanguard on being smart on crime."
The "smart on crime" refrain is the battle cry of diverse interest groups.
A group announced last year called Smart-On-Crime brings together organizations including the Texas Association of Business, Goodwill Central Texas, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, the left-leaning American Civil Liberties Union of Texas and the right-leaning Texas Public Policy Foundation think tank.
The group wants "punishment that actually fits the crime, protection for the innocent and a path to redemption for those convicted of nonviolent crimes so they can get back to work and be productive members of society," according to a Smart-On-Crime news release.
Specifically for drug crimes, the group's wants to "modify penalties for minor drug possession offenses and allow courts to divert individuals to a treatment program to address substance abuse, mental health, or other needs, when the offender is deemed by the court not to be a threat to public safety. Use the savings derived from diversion to strengthen existing treatment programs in the community or create tailored treatment programs, as necessary, to address possession offenses."
Taylor West with the National Cannabis Industry Association said Colorado has seen a boon from its decriminalization efforts that started in 2010. Marijuana possession arrests have dropped 50 percent since 2010, she said.
"You're talking about millions of dollars in savings," West said.
More importantly, people's lives aren't "turned upside down," she said.
Legislators, mostly Democrats, have filed a number of bills that could change laws surrounding the use of marijuana, especially punishment for having it unauthorized.
House Bill 507 from state Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, would change the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana to a civil penalty, akin to not wearing a seat belt or jaywalking. Anything more than an ounce would stay a Class B misdemeanor.
"I've had a lot of positive discussions with members on both sides of the aisle on the need to do something different in this arena," Moody said.
He said he has encountered concern about law enforcements' ability to arrest someone for intoxication, but he said his legislation applies only to simple possession. He also said it can be difficult to get across the distinction between decriminalization and legalization. He stressed his bill shouldn't be construed as a move toward legalization.
"We have to be very clear about what this bill does," Moody said.
Another bill, HB 414 from state Rep. Harold Dutton, D-Houston, would make possession a citation offense.
Currently, punishment can include up to $2,000 in fines and 180 days of jail time.
The move to further decriminalize has proponents on both sides of the legislative isle. It's unclear whether Abbott would veto any such legislation if it were to reach his desk later this year.
According to a recent Texas Tribune/University of Texas poll, 3 percent of respondents said crime and drugs were the most important issues facing the state, tied with water supply, transportation and moral decline.
Specific to marijuana, a September 2013 poll from the Public Policy Polling group, said 60 percent of Texans favor decriminalizing the offense to civil one, and 58 percent supported medical marijuana laws.
A February 2014 poll found that 23 percent of Texans believe marijuana should be totally illegal.
"This is an important, bipartisan issue, and the polls reflect that," Martin said.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Laws aim to lessen penalties for marijuana use - Caller-Times
Author: Matthew Waller
Contact: matthew.waller@scripps.com
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: Corpus Christi Caller-Times | Local Corpus Christi, Texas News Delivered Throughout the Day
