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Mendocino Humboldt Counties say: Legalize Pot Conceding There's Little Hope of Success, Board of Supervisors Urges State, Feds to Change Law Mendocino County supervisors said Tuesday the war on marijuana is lost and it's time to legalize, regulate and tax the multibillion-dollar illicit crop. "Whether you love marijuana or hate marijuana, you can agree it's time for a change," said Supervisor John Pinches, part of a 4-1 board vote in support of a letter asking state and federal lawmakers to legalize marijuana. The letter, penned by Pinches, is addressed to North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson and copied to the governor, both California senators, other area representatives and President Bush. The Mendocino Board of Supervisors is the first North Coast government body to make the formal request, said Dale Gieringer, Bay Area coordinator for NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Other jurisdictions, including Santa Cruz and Oakland, plan to send similar letters, but they are being generated by voter-approved ordinances, not county legislators, he said. Mendocino County voters passed a similar measure in 2000, but it was nonbinding. "The time has come to call upon our leaders in federal government to initiate, sponsor and support legislation that calls for the legalization, regulation, and taxation of this multi-billion dollar crop," states the letter, signed by Board Chairman Kendall Smith and approved by the board. Supervisor Mike Delbar was the lone "no" vote, saying now is not the time to legalize marijuana. Thompson said it's doubtful the letters will have much impact on Congress. Noting that his efforts to legalize medical marijuana at the federal level have so far failed, a bill legalizing all marijuana would be "a long shot," Thompson said in an e-mailed response to a reporter's questions Tuesday. Supervisors said they expect the request to be largely ignored, but are hoping to stimulate debate. Supervisors said they do not advocate smoking marijuana, but said the war on its production not only has failed, it has made growing and selling marijuana increasingly popular, dangerous and lucrative. Currently, marijuana sells for between $3,000 and $4,000 a pound, Gieringer said. People are being robbed and killed over marijuana because it's so valuable, supervisors noted. Growers have come to Mendocino County from out of state because they erroneously believe it's legal to grow marijuana there, said attorney Susan Jordan, who has represented some of the growers in court and supports legalization. Rather than a reduction in the amount of marijuana being grown, Mendocino County has seen an increase in the number of plants, Pinches said. Last year, 227,019 plants were seized in Mendocino County, a record. This year is expected to yield at least that much. Mendocino County Sheriff Tom Allman did not attend Tuesday's meeting, but said he neither opposed nor supported the letter. He said the problem in California is a lack of consistency in the law. "Wherever we go, I hope it is on a trial basis to see if we can work for public safety," Allman said. "Is legalizing marijuana increasing public safety? I don't know the answer." He said even the record seizures are barely scratching the surface. "I don't believe that we are getting 10 percent of the illegal marijuana in Mendocino County," he said. The letter claims marijuana is a $5 billion crop in Mendocino County, a figure provided previously by former District Attorney Norm Vroman, who died last year. Pinches said the crop could generate $50 million a year for Mendocino County in taxes. But that figure was based on the current street value for pot; the price is expected to drop if it is legalized. Supes Vote To Ask Thompson To Support
Legalizing, Taxing Pot In a 4-0 decision, with Supervisor Jimmy Smith abstaining, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to send a letter to U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson ( D-St. Helena ) in support of legalizing marijuana. The letter, which Supervisor Roger Rodoni proposed to the board, states, in part, "( U.S. Rep. ) Thompson, the Humboldt County Board of Supervisors requests your support in helping to initiate legislation which will legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana." In response to a request for comment, Thompson's office provided a previous position statement in which he stated, "the likelihood of passing a bill that legalizes all marijuana is a real long shot at this time." In a phone conversation, Rodoni said he would not have been able to pen the letter, or even raise the topic, when he first came to office. He said the issue was an elephant in the room no one wanted to recognize. But, he said, "Times have changed." Rodoni said he didn't anticipate the board's receptive vote. "I was prepared to consider it a furthering of the conversation," he said, adding that he was pleasantly surprised by the support. Timing was the key issue, Supervisor Jill Geist said in a phone interview. She cited a similar letter endorsed by the Mendocino County Board of Supervisors last month (see above article). Both letters signal a shift within Northern California constituencies that have lived with legalized medicinal marijuana for more than 10 years, she said. "Communities are ready to take a look at what is and is not working," Geist said. During board comments on the issue, Geist said the letter is not implicit support for illegal activity. "We are duty-bound to make sure that we are upholding the law," she said. Geist later said support of local law enforcement is important and clarifying the discrepancies between federal and state law would assist them in performing their job. "We support them 100 percent," she said. Numerous attempts to contact local and federal law enforcement for comments yielded no response. Most public comments at the meeting were in support of the measure. During the meeting, Supervisor John Woolley said the potential revenue from regulating and taxing marijuana could be used to tackle drug problems such as methamphetamine abuse. The California branch of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Law recently released a study that estimates legalized and taxed marijuana could yield $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion annually for California's coffers. Smith said he abstained from voting because of conflicts with his position on the American Cancer Society board, as well as his concerns about the juvenile justice system. When Geist was asked whether she thought the request by the board would have any impact at the federal level, she said, "I respect that in the grand priorities of the nation, this isn't going to be a high one." Webmaster Note: This should be a high priority if you know what is going on the street. But unfortunately most people in law enforcement or at the legislative level (local, state and national) are more concerned about their job security than public health or safety. And so we rumble on, 70 years and counting... However, we must be grateful for the honesty and courage of the supervisors in Mendocino and Humboldt counties for not only voicing their thoughts but for putting them into action. Hopefully more of them will be speaking out soon and then we can abolish a policy of prohibition which has never worked no matter what the substance. Please also read: Long Term Exposure To Cannabis |
