The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

Joplin Sensible Sentencing Initiative

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January 28, 2008

Pot petitions gaining ground

By Dave Woods

dwoods@joplinglobe.com

It might seem unlikely that an initiative petition aimed at decriminalizing possession of limited amounts of marijuana and the paraphernalia used to smoke it could make it onto the ballot in Joplin — let alone pass muster with voters.

But similar efforts have passed in nearby cities such as Columbia and Eureka Springs, Ark.

“We weren’t sure what to anticipate,” said Columbia police Chief Randy Boehm. The 31-year law-enforcement veteran, who has spent the past eight years heading up Columbia’s police force, said he and most of his officers were against the initiative in the beginning and are against it now. But, he said: “We really haven’t seen any significant changes in the way we do business since its passage.

“When we think marijuana arrests, it’s related to another arrest. It’s a negligible amount of time we spend on it, and we rarely make a misdemeanor marijuana case where that’s the only charge. We are usually investigating another crime, and it’s related to that charge.

“The majority of us thought that it sent the wrong message. But, we live in a university community, and sometimes that means you have a different take on things than other parts of Missouri.”

Soon after the measure passed in November 2004 with 61 percent of the vote, members of the Columbia Police Officers Association began circulating petitions aimed at putting the question before voters a second time, hoping for a different outcome.

A compromise between Boone County Prosecuting Attorney Kevin Crane and Dan Viets, an advocate for the initiative’s original language, met with mixed reviews from petition supporters but was adopted by the Columbia City Council in February 2006.

“Our job is to enforce the law, no matter what that is,” Boehm said.

‘A bit unfair’

In Eureka Springs, Alderman Joyce Zeller, 76, said passage of a measure regarding marijuana possession in November 2006 was much ado about nothing. Passage there also followed a petition procedure.

The petition sought to make arrests and prosecution for misdemeanor marijuana possession (1 ounce or less) a low priority.

“It passed because no one wanted to debate it,” Zeller said. “I never took it seriously because it went against federal law. Local government can’t supersede federal law. That’s it.”

Zeller, a self-described fiscal conservative, said that when it comes to issues of morality, “I’m really hard-core.”

Messages left for Eureka Springs police Chief Earl Hyatt went unreturned, but he has said simple possession of marijuana has been a low enforcement priority for his department.

Rae Hahn, an alderman who was elected last year, disagreed with Zeller. Hahn said she thinks the laws concerning marijuana possession are “a bit unfair.”

“I think it was just fine to decriminalize something that was not a violent crime,” she said. “I think we need to get the real violent criminals off the streets. I was for it in a nutshell. Have things changed? No. Did it affect my life? No. Would I vote for it again? Yes. It had been a low priority in many municipalities for a long time, and I think that law enforcement has bigger fish to fry.”

Dave Woods is the new media editor for The Joplin Globe.

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Joplin Sensible Sentencing Initiative
  • Organizers say petition drive on marijuana plan near goal A petition drive to put a marijuana-decriminalization proposal before the city of Joplin is close to having the necessary number of signatures, according to organizers.

    June 18, 2008

  • Voices: Unsupported criticisms The letter by Dianne Slater (Globe, Jan. 31) is based more on a logical fallacy than actual scientific data on behavioral patterns of marijuana users.

    Naturally, critics of such a move warn that decriminalizing cannabis will increase pot use among Joplin’s young people. Such concerns, while understandable, are not supported by epidemiological evidence.

    February 10, 2008

  • <img src=" http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/breaking.gif " Border=0> 11/21/07, 2:58 p.m. Marijuana decriminalization initiative petition announced On Friday afternoon, standing on the sidewalk at Joplin City Hall, Kelly Maddy, the president of the Joplin chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, flanked 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, fired the first shot in what will be a year-long battle to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana within the city of Joplin and the paraphernalia that’s used to smoke it.

    February 3, 2008

  • images_sizedimage_028235035 <img src="http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/extra.gif" border=0> Pot-signature drive kicks into gear <font color="#ff0000">w/ links Sensible Sentencing Initiative info, audio, video & petition language</font> Four months after Kelly Maddy stood on the sidewalk outside Joplin City Hall, flanked by supporters of his effort to decriminalize marijuana use in the city, the campaign is kicking into high gear.

    Maddy, president of the Joplin chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, spent several hours Sunday in front of Dillons grocery store, soliciting signatures for the Sensible Sentencing Initiative. He met with a couple of less-than-friendly responses.

    February 2, 2008 1 Photo 4 Links

  • images_sizedimage_033103148 Dave Woods: Readers fire shots in war on war on drugs I have to admit, I admire Kelly Maddy. I admire the grassroots political organizer’s commitment to the marijuana decriminalization cause and the work he has done in Joplin in support of the Sensible Sentencing Initiative.

    February 2, 2008 1 Photo 1 Link

  • images_sizedimage_033103638 Guest column: Legal marijuana would help millions Have you heard the news? There is now a low-cost drug proven to ease a cancer patient’s suffering. Not only does this drug reduce the physical and psychological pain of cancer, but, more importantly, it restores a chemotherapy patient’s appetite.

    The drug, of course, is marijuana.

    February 2, 2008 1 Photo

  • images_sizedimage_034193221 Pot petitions gaining ground It might seem unlikely that an initiative petition aimed at decriminalizing possession of limited amounts of marijuana and the paraphernalia used to smoke it could make it onto the ballot in Joplin — let alone pass muster with voters.

    But similar efforts have passed in nearby cities such as Columbia and Eureka Springs, Ark.

    “We weren’t sure what to anticipate,” said Columbia police Chief Randy Boehm.

    January 28, 2008 1 Photo

  • Voices: Give voters the choice Several letters to the editor have voiced concerns regarding the launch of our municipal initiative petition to lessen the criminal penalties associated with the possession of small amounts of marijuana. We understand those concerns and wish to address them.

    Currently, Joplin police arrest an estimated 230 people annually for violating marijuana laws.

    October 10, 2007

  • Voices: Legalize marijuana As a Christian, I wish Kelly Maddy and the Joplin chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws success, but for re-legalizing, not just decriminalizing, cannabis.

    September 30, 2007

  • images_sizedimage_033103148 Dave Woods: Pot stories keep comments section smokin' Joplin police Chief Lane J. Roberts was blunt about his past use of marijuana during a recent interview concerning the launch of the Sensible Sentencing Initiative.

    September 28, 2007 1 Photo 2 Links