Philadelphia's New Marijuana Law Starts Today

In an attempt to unclog their courts, Philadelphia is allowing some marijuana possession charges of one ounce or less to be downgraded from a misdeameanor to a summary offense. Law enforcement will still process the offenders after taking a class and paying a $200 fine, most can have their records expunged. 

Take a class, pay a $200 fine and any record would be expunged - that's what is likely to happen now in several thousand cases a year, said Deputy District Attorney Ed McCann.

Just don't expect hands-off treatment by police, if you're caught with a small amount of marijuana, defined as 30 grams or less.

"You're still arrested, you're still brought in, you're still fingerprinted, you're still given a prelim," said Tasha Jamerson, spokeswoman for the District Attorney's Office.

Only at the preliminary arraignment are procedures changing, as many cases will be "diverted" from misdemeanor charges, said McCann.

That won't be automatic either.

Obviously Philly could do more to unclog their court system with marijuana offenders but this is a positive and sensible change. With some more SSDP chapters in PA, maybe we could get other cities to follow suit!

A poll at Philly.com asked readers "Should marijuana be legalized?" 79% have answered yes.

Iowa SSDPer Engages Senator Grassley in Op-Ed

University of Iowa SSDP chapter leader, Marni Steadham, has not only gotten an excellent Op-Ed published in the Des Moines Register, but also succeeded in eliciting a response by US Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA)!

Students can play a leading role in opening up an open, honest, and rational discussion of alternatives to the failed war on drugs...in the pages of their state's largest newspaper no less!

Marni's OP-Ed does an excellent job of balancing between being too caustic/presumptuous while still challenging Sen. Grassley:

Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley proposed an amendment to the bill that would prevent discussion or even examination of the possibility that drugs, including medical marijuana, should be decriminalized or legalized. Grassley's weak justification for attempting to suppress these viable policy options is: "The point is, for them to do what we tell them to do." This assertion undermines the very purpose of the commission: For experts to recommend to the Senate alternatives to our current approach to incarceration, regardless of whether these findings conflict with our current "get-tough" approach.

Sen. Grassley's response contains some head-scratching logic:

Finally, I put forward an amendment to address the issue of decriminalization and legalization of any controlled substance. I filed this amendment in an effort to start a debate on this important issue.

While his amendment has sparked some debate on the pages of the Des Moies Register and admirable actions by groups like LEAP, it's hard to see how restricting a commission from considering what is arguably the most sensible means of reducing our prison population will allow for serious consideration of this "important issue."

An examination of decriminalization or legalization in a national commission would not preclude such a discussion in Congress. In fact, it may demonstrate to many legislators the increasing evidence from either our past or from overseas that these alternatives are not only effective at reducing the harms associated with drug use, but also can keep thousands of non-violent offenders from wasting their time and our money behind bars.