http://www.mpp.org/NV/news/10686.mpp
CARSON CITY — The leader of Citizens to Regulate and Control Marijuana said Friday he is growing more confident that Nevadans next year will legalize in-home use of marijuana by adults.
Neal Levine said the vote Nov. 1 to legalize pot in Denver is a sign that “the mainstream” population now believes the private use of marijuana by adults should be permitted.
Citizens there, by a 54 percent to 47 percent vote, approved the possession of an ounce or less of marijuana by people 21 or older.
Because of a successful petition drive by the organization last year, Nevadans will be asked a similar ballot question in the November 2006 election. Approval would require the state Department of Taxation to set up a system to issue licenses for farms to grow marijuana and for retail businesses to sell the drug.
Under the proposal, the drug could not be used by anyone in a school or any public place or locations exposed to public view. No store within 500 feet of a school or place of worship could sell the drug. Neither could gas stations, convenience stores, nightclubs, dance halls or casinos. Advertisements on the sale of legal marijuana would be prohibited.
Clark County District Attorney David Roger did not respond to a call for a comment Friday.
But Roger, Clark County Sheriff Bill Young and other law enforcement officials spoke out against the marijuana proposal when it was debated in the Legislature in March.
Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, said during the hearing that in his career as a deputy police chief he had arrested many people who committed crimes while under the influence of marijuana.
“Does this committee, this Legislature want to send a message to our youth that using a drug is a good thing?” asked Perkins in speaking out against legal marijuana.
Levine said the ballot initiative is far more restrictive than the measure that drew only 39 percent of the votes when it appeared on the Nevada ballot in 2002.
That proposal called for the legalization of 3 ounces. The current proposal would legalize an ounce.
“We have been working in the state since 2001 and talking to Nevada people every day,” he said. “It is based on what people have told us they would like to see. We talked to real people and have come up with a solution. People are going to use marijuana, regardless. The current laws don’t work.”
Citizens to Regulate and Control Marijuana is an offshoot of the Marijuana Policy Project of Washington, D.C. The policy project funded the drive that placed the initiative on the ballot in 2002 and the one on next year’s ballot. Levine has served as director of state policies for the group and has moved with his family to Southern Nevada.
More than legalizing marijuana, the petition would tightly regulate the use of a drug people now are using and will continue to use anyway, Levine said.
He pointed to provisions that would double penalties for selling or giving the drug to minors and for driving under the influence of marijuana or alcohol.
Under their proposal, for example, an adult who sells or gives marijuana to someone under age 18 would be subject to a one- to eight-year term in prison and a $10,000 fine. Under current Nevada law, possession of an ounce or less of marijuana is a misdemeanor subject to a $600 penalty.
Levine also noted a tax of $45 per ounce would be collected on marijuana. The money would be given to the state general fund with half earmarked for programs to assist people struggling with problems with alcohol, controlled substances and tobacco.
CARSON CITY — The leader of Citizens to Regulate and Control Marijuana said Friday he is growing more confident that Nevadans next year will legalize in-home use of marijuana by adults.
Neal Levine said the vote Nov. 1 to legalize pot in Denver is a sign that “the mainstream” population now believes the private use of marijuana by adults should be permitted.
Citizens there, by a 54 percent to 47 percent vote, approved the possession of an ounce or less of marijuana by people 21 or older.
Because of a successful petition drive by the organization last year, Nevadans will be asked a similar ballot question in the November 2006 election. Approval would require the state Department of Taxation to set up a system to issue licenses for farms to grow marijuana and for retail businesses to sell the drug.
Under the proposal, the drug could not be used by anyone in a school or any public place or locations exposed to public view. No store within 500 feet of a school or place of worship could sell the drug. Neither could gas stations, convenience stores, nightclubs, dance halls or casinos. Advertisements on the sale of legal marijuana would be prohibited.
Clark County District Attorney David Roger did not respond to a call for a comment Friday.
But Roger, Clark County Sheriff Bill Young and other law enforcement officials spoke out against the marijuana proposal when it was debated in the Legislature in March.
Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, said during the hearing that in his career as a deputy police chief he had arrested many people who committed crimes while under the influence of marijuana.
“Does this committee, this Legislature want to send a message to our youth that using a drug is a good thing?” asked Perkins in speaking out against legal marijuana.
Levine said the ballot initiative is far more restrictive than the measure that drew only 39 percent of the votes when it appeared on the Nevada ballot in 2002.
That proposal called for the legalization of 3 ounces. The current proposal would legalize an ounce.
“We have been working in the state since 2001 and talking to Nevada people every day,” he said. “It is based on what people have told us they would like to see. We talked to real people and have come up with a solution. People are going to use marijuana, regardless. The current laws don’t work.”
Citizens to Regulate and Control Marijuana is an offshoot of the Marijuana Policy Project of Washington, D.C. The policy project funded the drive that placed the initiative on the ballot in 2002 and the one on next year’s ballot. Levine has served as director of state policies for the group and has moved with his family to Southern Nevada.
More than legalizing marijuana, the petition would tightly regulate the use of a drug people now are using and will continue to use anyway, Levine said.
He pointed to provisions that would double penalties for selling or giving the drug to minors and for driving under the influence of marijuana or alcohol.
Under their proposal, for example, an adult who sells or gives marijuana to someone under age 18 would be subject to a one- to eight-year term in prison and a $10,000 fine. Under current Nevada law, possession of an ounce or less of marijuana is a misdemeanor subject to a $600 penalty.
Levine also noted a tax of $45 per ounce would be collected on marijuana. The money would be given to the state general fund with half earmarked for programs to assist people struggling with problems with alcohol, controlled substances and tobacco.
