Columbia, MO: A municipal initiative calling for the decriminalization of small amounts of marijuana, and limiting the criminal prosecution of medicinal marijuana patients gained only 42 percent of voters’ support on Tuesday’s special election.
Dan Viets, state coordinator for Missouri NORML which co-sponsored the Columbia initiative said that low voter turnout and a last minute lobbying blitz from the U.S. Drug’s Czar’s office likely played a role in defeating the measure. Representatives from the White House Office of Drug Policy (ONDCP) traveled to Columbia last week and held a series of press conferences speaking out against the initiative.
Despite Tuesday’s vote, Proposition 1 backers claimed a partial victorybecause they persuaded the Columbia police to institute a policy that would refer all marijuana offenses involving less than 35 grams to municipal – not circuit – court. Under this change, students charged with pot possession in Columbia will not lose their financial aid eligibility. Currently, provisions to the Higher Education Act law bar federal student aid to anyone with a federal or state marijuana conviction; however those charged in municipal court do not risk losing their student aid.
For more information, please contact either Keith Stroup, NORML Executive Director, at (202) 483-5500 or Dan Viets, Esq. of Missouri NORML at (573) 443-6866.