DrugSense

Daily Item, 11 Jun 2012 – PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Once consigned to the political fringe, marijuana policy is appearing on legislative agendas around the country thanks to an energized base of supporters and an increasingly openminded public. Lawmakers from Rhode Island to Colorado are mulling medical marijuana programs, pot dispensaries, decriminalization and even legalization. Rhode Island is poised to become the 15th state to decriminalize marijuana possession. The state’s General Assembly passed legislation last week that would eliminate the threat of big fines or even jail time for the possession of an ounce or less of pot. Instead, adults caught with small amounts of marijuana would face a $150 civil fine. Police would confiscate the marijuana, but the incident would not appear on a person’s criminal record. – — MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom

Daily Item, 11 Jun 2012 – PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Once consigned to the political fringe, marijuana policy is appearing on legislative agendas around the country thanks to an energized base of supporters and an increasingly openminded public. Lawmakers from Rhode Island to Colorado are mulling medical marijuana programs, pot dispensaries, decriminalization and even legalization. Rhode Island is poised to become the 15th state to decriminalize marijuana possession. The state’s General Assembly passed legislation last week that would eliminate the threat of big fines or even jail time for the possession of an ounce or less of pot. Instead, adults caught with small amounts of marijuana would face a $150 civil fine. Police would confiscate the marijuana, but the incident would not appear on a person’s criminal record. – — MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom

The Day, 26 Mar 2012 – Providence (AP)- Legislation to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Rhode Island is heading to a hearing in the state Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to hear from both sides of the legalization debate Tuesday at the Statehouse.

The Day, 26 Mar 2012 – Providence (AP)- Legislation to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in Rhode Island is heading to a hearing in the state Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to hear from both sides of the legalization debate Tuesday at the Statehouse.

DrugSense

The Providence Journal, 16 Aug 2010 – It took time, but Congress has finally tightened the egregious sentencing gap between crimes involving crack cocaine and those linked to the powder form. In legislation signed by President Obama Aug. 3 – a disparity that had been 100 to 1 was trimmed to 18 to 1. Under previous law, a person charged in federal court with possessing 5 grams of crack faced a mandatory minimum of five years in jail. But someone with the powder form had to possess 500 grams to incur the same penalty. Along with narrowing this gap, the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 makes several improvements. The mandatory minimum sentence for first-time simple possession is gone. This should help bolster an important distinction between users (especially casual or first-time offenders) and dealers. The strongest punishment should be focused on the latter. Now, it will take 28 grams of crack cocaine, an amount a dealer might carry, to trigger a five-year sentence.