Some US States, Cities To Vote Tuesday On Marijuan

[loves420]

High all, I found this on norml.org

 

 

Several States, Cities To Vote Tuesday On Marijuana Policy

Washington, DC: Voters in three states and numerous municipalities

will vote Tuesday on a variety of marijuana-law reform proposals. Below

is a summary of these pending state and regional ballot initiatives.

 

MEDICAL MARIJUANA

MONTANA: The Montana Medical Marijuana Act (I-148) allows qualified

patients to possess and cultivate marijuana for medicinal purposes under

the authorization of their physician. Patients registered with the state

are afforded protection under the act, which allows individuals to possess

up to six marijuana plants and one usable ounce of marijuana to treat

certain qualified medical conditions, including cancer, AIDS, and Multiple

Sclerosis.

 

OREGON: The Oregon Medical Marijuana Act (Measure 33) amends the state's

existing medicinal cannabis law to allow qualified patients to legally

possess up to ten marijuana plants at any one time and one pound of usable

marijuana. The proposal allows state-certified nurse practitioners and

naturopaths to recommend marijuana to their patients, and it expands the

definition of a qualifying medical condition to include "any other medical

condition for which, in the determination of the attending physician, the

medical use of marijuana would be beneficial." The proposal also mandates

the state legislature to promulgate rules to license and regulate medical

marijuana dispensaries "to ensure that medical marijuana is available to

qualified patients."

 

BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA: The Patients Access to Medical Cannabis Act

(Measure R) establishes new municipal guidelines enhancing the amount of

medicinal marijuana qualified patients may legally possess without

penalty. The proposal replaces Berkeley's 10-plant medical cannabis limit

with an amount in accordance with an individual "patient's needs," as

defined by the patient and his or her physician. It also calls on the city

to distribute medical marijuana if federal officials close Berkeley's four

private medicinal cannabis dispensaries.

 

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN: The Ann Arbor Medical Marijuana Act (Proposal C)

amends the Ann Arbor city charter to allow qualified patients to possess

and cultivate marijuana for medicinal purposes under the authorization of

their physician. The proposal mandates "no incarceration, probation, nor

any other punitive or rehabilitative measure" for qualified patients, and

establishes an "affirmative defense to a prosecution" for patients who use

cannabis medicinally.

 

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI: The Missouri Medical Marijuana Initiative

(Proposition 1) amends the Columbia city criminal code so that "adults who

obtain and use marijuana and/or marijuana paraphernalia for medical

purposes pursuant to the recommendation of a physician shall not be

subject to any arrest, prosecution, punishment, or sanction." It also

mandates that all cases pertaining to the medicinal use of marijuana

"shall only be referred to the Municipal Prosecuting Attorney, and no

other prosecuting attorney, and the Municipal Prosecuting Attorney shall

not refer the matter to any other prosecutor."

 

PERSONAL USE AND REGULATION

ALASKA: The Alaska Cannabis Decriminalization & Regulation Act (Measure

2) would mandate that "persons 21 years or older shall not be prosecuted,

be denied any right or privilege, nor be subject to criminal or civil

penalties for the possession, cultivation, distribution, or consumption"

of marijuana for medicinal, industrial, or recreational purposes. It also

encourages the state legislature to establish a system to regulate

marijuana "in a manner similar to alcohol or tobacco."

 

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: The Oakland Cannabis Regulation and Revenue

Ordinance (Measure Z) would establish new municipal guidelines directing

"the Oakland Police Department to make investigation, citation, and arrest

for private adult cannabis offenses the lowest law enforcement priority,

effective immediately upon passage of this ordinance." The proposal also

mandates the city of Oakland "to tax and regulate the sale of cannabis for

adult use, so as to keep it off the streets and away from children and to

raise revenue for the city, as soon as possible under state law."

 

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI: The Missouri Smart Sentencing Initiative (Proposition

2) amends the Columbia city criminal code to reduce misdemeanor penalties

on the possession of marijuana and/or paraphernalia to a fine-only

offense. It also mandates that all cases pertaining to the misdemeanor

possession of marijuana "shall only be referred to the Municipal

Prosecuting Attorney, and no other prosecuting attorney, and the Municipal

Prosecuting Attorney shall not refer the matter to any other prosecutor."

 

For more information, please contact either Keith Stroup or Paul

Armentano of NORML at (202) 483-5500. A detailed summary of pending state

and local ballot initiatives is available online at:

http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6172

[loves420]

MEDICAL MARIJUANA vote results

 

MONTANA PASSED

 

OREGON FAILED

 

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGANPASSED

 

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI PASSED

 

ALASKA:FAILED

[F420]

WOW Oregon FAILED?? I thought they would have passed for sure.

[loves420]

Many of us in Oregon are either pissed off and/or bummed out about measure 33. But we can try again.

 

This is from norml.org

Voters Nationwide Embrace Marijuana Law Reform Proposals

 

________________________________________________________

Voters Nationwide Embrace Marijuana Law Reform Proposals

Washington, DC: Voters nationwide approved numerous ballot proposals

liberalizing marijuana laws, including a statewide measure in Montana

legalizing the use of medicinal cannabis for medical purposes, and a

citywide proposal in Oakland mandating police to make the prosecution of

pot offenses the city's "lowest law enforcement priority."

While this year's election was not a clean sweep for marijuana law

reform initiatives, voters backed the majority of proposals put before

them, particularly on the municipal level.

In Oakland, California, 64 percent of voters approved Measure Z, which

directs the Oakland Police Department to make the "investigation,

citation, and arrest for private adult cannabis offenses the lowest law

enforcement priority, effective immediately upon passage of this

ordinance." Measure Z also mandates the city of Oakland "to tax and

regulate the sale of cannabis for adult use, so as to keep it off the

streets and away from children and to raise revenue for the city, as soon

as possible under state law."

In Columbia, Missouri, voters backed a pair of measures seeking to

liberalize local pot laws. Approximately 70 percent of voters approved

The Missouri Medical Marijuana Initiative (Proposition 1), which amends

the Columbia city criminal code so that "adults who obtain and use

marijuana and/or marijuana paraphernalia for medical purposes pursuant to

the recommendation of a physician shall not be subject to any arrest,

prosecution, punishment, or sanction."

Six out of ten Columbia voters also approved The Missouri Smart

Sentencing Initiative (Proposition 2), which amends the city criminal code

to depenalize the possession of marijuana and/or paraphernalia to a

fine-only offense.

In Michigan, an estimated 75 percent of voters in Ann Arbor approved

Proposal C, the Ann Arbor Medical Marijuana Act, which directs the city to

allow qualified patients to possess and cultivate marijuana for medicinal

purposes under the authorization of their physician. Detroit voters

endorsed a similar initiatives this past August.

In Montana, 63 percent of voters approved a similar statewide measure,

I-148, which legalizes authorized patients to possess up to six marijuana

plants and one usable ounce of marijuana to treat certain qualified

medical conditions, including cancer, AIDS, and Multiple Sclerosis.

Montana is the tenth state to exempt medicinal marijuana patients from

state criminal penalties, and is the seventh to do so via state

initiative. Other states that have enacted laws protecting qualified

patients who use marijuana include: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii,

Maine, Maryland, Nevada, Vermont and Washington.

In Massachusetts, voters in three state Senate and eight House

districts overwhelmingly backed several non-binding "public policy

questions" depenalizing the possession of marijuana for personal use, and

legalizing the medical use of cannabis for patients who possess a doctor's

authorization.

On the local level, only one marijuana law reform proposal - Berkeley,

California's Measure R, which sought to replace the city's 10-plant

medical cannabis limit with an amount in accordance with a patient's needs

- failed to gain majority support from voters.

At the state level, both Oregon's Measure 33, which sought to greatly

expand the state's existing medicinal cannabis law, and Alaska's Measure

2, which sought to eliminate all criminal penalties on the adult

possession and use of marijuana and encouraged the state legislature to

establish a system to regulate marijuana "in a manner similar to alcohol

or tobacco," failed to gain voter approval. Oregon voters rejected

Measure 33 by a vote of 58 to 42 percent, while Alaskans voted against

Measure 2 by a vote of 57 to 43 percent.

NORML Foundation Executive Director Keith Stroup said that the outcome

of yesterday's ballot initiatives was generally positive. "What these

results appear to be telling us is that Americans strongly support

reforming America's marijuana laws, but that they prefer to do so

incrementally," he said. "The results, once again, affirm that a majority

of US citizens strongly back the legalization of medical marijuana for

qualified patients, and that they don't want adults who use marijuana

responsibly to face arrest or jail."

For more information, please contact Keith Stroup or Allen St. Pierre

at (202) 483-5500.

Edited November 4, 2004 by loves420