Group wants to decriminalize some marijuana violations

JOPLIN, Mo. -- Joplin residents may be asked to vote next year on a proposal to reduce the penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana and the paraphernalia that's used to smoke it.

A small group of supporters started the campaign to change the laws with a news conference Friday at Joplin's city hall.

Kelly Maddy, president of the Joplin chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, said he and others want to give Joplin residents a chance to "enact a more sensible marijuana policy."

Maddy was joined by Kris Krane, the executive director of the national organization Students for Sensible Drug Policy, and Ryan Denham, president of the Alliance for Drug Reform Policy in Arkansas.

More than 200 people were arrested in Joplin for marijuana use in 2005, said Maddy, who said police resources could be better used for more serious crime.

"Our city's marijuana laws are not only a waste of taxpayer money and police resources, they are by definition a failed policy," he said.

If approved by Joplin voters in November 2008, the ballot proposal, called the Sensible Sentencing Initiative, would make possession of a misdemeanor amount of marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia an administrative offense.

Under the proposal, adults arrested for simple possession of marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia would not be jailed or have to post bond. Those found guilty in municipal court would be subject to maximum fine of $250.

Under current law, those arrested and convicted of marijuana possession or possession of paraphernalia within the city of Joplin are subject to a $500 fine and/or 100 days or less in jail based on the judge's discretion.

Possession cases generally are not referred to the county prosecutor unless someone is holding 35 grams or more of marijuana, making it a felony offense, according to Cpl. Chuck Niess, a spokesman for the Joplin Police Department.

To get the initiative on the November 2008 ballot, supporters will have to collect valid signatures from 15 percent of registered voters in Joplin as of the April 2008 general municipal election. City clerk Barbara Hogelin estimated that would be close to 5,000 valid signatures.

Maddy said the proposal is essentially the same initiative that passed in Columbia in 2004 with 61 percent of the vote. A similar initiative passed in Eureka Springs, Ark., last November with 64 percent voter approval.

"We will have almost a year to collect the needed signatures and I think that it is a very doable thing," he said."

Opinion is already divided. R. Lewis Phillips, 69, of Joplin, said he would not support the initiative.

"It's (marijuana) a drug. I don't approve of drugs at all," Phillips said. "Marijuana, cocaine ... they are all the same. I don't think medical marijuana is the answer either. Once you open that can of worms, there is no end to it."

But Travis Morgan, 31, of Joplin said the measure might have some benefits.

"It sounds like it would be cheaper for the system and lessen the strain on the courts," he said. "It's not morally right, but I don't think it should be a criminal offense. Lying is not morally right, but I would not put someone in jail for it."

Joplin City Attorney Brian Head said many legal questions would have to be answered before the new ordinance could be adopted.

"It would be an awful radical departure for a conservative community like ours," he said. "But again, if the citizens choose that, we would be held to their determination as the charter and the law provides."