Publisher’s Note: You may have seen our op-ed a few weeks ago about the fairly unnoticed issue of the November 4th ballot on legalizing possession of MJ in the District of Columbia. With this WaPo article we can see the true juxtaposition of federal vs. local laws (“semi-state” law in this case as D.C. is a federal city-state.) The ballot only goes half-way…you can possess it, even grow it…but how do you procure it? And if a D.C. citizen pulled over by a Capitol Police (prevalent around the landmarks) vehicle and you have MJ in the car … what jurisdiction will prevail? The groundswell of support in D.C. - a largely African-American town - with a disproportionate number of small-possession MJ arrests, has changed its stance on the issue. In the next month, we can assure you’ll see the D.C. ballot initiative gaining media prominence that will equal or exceed Alaska (RMJ), Oregon (RMJ) and Florida (MMJ) as a touchstone for the legalization movement. IF the Nation’s Capital tips … we see many state and local legislatures–regardless of party prominence–taking a look at this issue, at least as far as MMJ. Lucky for this writer, I get to witness it firsthand as a local. Kudos to WaPo for stating their case (anti-RMJ), but leveraging a balanced article here. More to come. —TH
Voters in the District of Columbia are poised to follow Colorado and Washington state into a closely watched experiment to legalize marijuana, according to a new NBC4/Washington Post/Marist poll.
By an almost 2-to-1 margin, likely voters in the city’s Nov. 4 election say they support Initiative 71, a ballot measure that would legalize possession, home cultivation and the sale of paraphernalia to smoke marijuana in the nation’s capital.
The results show an electorate unshaken – even emboldened – nine months after legal marijuana sales began in Colorado and six months after D.C. lawmakers stripped away jail time for possession, making it just a $25 offense.
