NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR THE REFORM OF MARIJUANA LAWS
1001 CONNECTICUT AVENUE NW
SUITE 1010
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20036
TEL 202-483-5500 * FAX 202-483-0057
E-MAIL natlnorml@aol.com
Internet http://www.norml.org/
    ... a weekly service for the media on news items related to Marijuana
                                Prohibition.
                              December 12, 1996
               Drug Reform Measure Signed Into Law In Arizona
      December 9, 1996, Phoenix, AZ:  Arizona Gov. Fife Symington has
signed Proposition 200 into law.  The voter-approved measure, formally known
as the "Drug Medicalization, Prevention and Control Act," drastically
reforms state drug policy by shifting the emphasis from law enforcement to
treatment and education.  Symington had threatened to veto the measure last
month despite it having passed with 65 percent of the vote.
      Although more attention has been paid to California's recenfly
approved medical marijuana law, Arizona's measure is a far more radical
departure from current anti-drag strategies.  Specifically, Proposition 200
states the following:
      * Any person convicted of the personal possession or use of a
controlled substance shall be eligible for probation.  Eligibility for
probation is limited to first and/or second time offenders and is contingent
upon an individuals participation in an "appropriate drug treatment or
education program."  State funds will be set aside and made avallable to
those unable to pay for such programs.
      * Non-violent persons currently in prison for personal possession of
illegal drugs and not serving a concurrent sentence for another crime shall
be made eligible for immediate parole and drug treatment, education and
community service.  Prisoners so eligible must be deemed not to be a "danger
to the general public" by the Arizona Board of Executive Clemency.
Currentiy, the state Department of Corrections has identified 976 inmates
who are eligible for release under the new law.
      * Any person who commits a violent crime while under the influence of
illegal drugs should serve 100 percent of his or her sentence with
absolutely no early release.
      * Any medical doctor licensed to practice in Arizona may prescribe a
controlled substance included in Schedule I to treat a disease, or to
relieve the paln and suffering of a seriously or terminally ill patient.  In
order for the prescription to be valid, Proposition 200 requires the
prescribing physician to "obtain the written opinion of a second medical
doctor [stating] that the prescribing of the controlled substance is
appropriate."  In addition, the prescribing physician must document that
scientific research exists which supports the use of the Schedule I drug
being prescribed.  Drafters of the legislation maintain that this last
clause currently limits the Schedule I drugs that may be prescribed solely
to marijuana.
      * A nine-member Parents Commission on Drug Education and Prevention
shall be created to establish programs that will increase parental
involvement and education about the risks and public health problems caused
by the abuse of alcohol and controlled substances.  Members of the
commission shall be appointed by the governor for a term of two years.
      "Taken as a whole, the message sent by 65 percent of the Arizona
voters who supported Proposition 200 is staggering," announced NORML Deputy
Director Allen St. Pierre.  "Never in recent memory have such a large number
of American voters so resolutely rejected our nation's federal policy of 'Do
Drugs, Do Time.'"
      "This could be a crack in the Berlin Wall," rejoiced Phoenix surgeon
Jeffrey Singer, who campaigned for the law.  "Five years from now, people
will see Arizona is not suffering from mass addictions and, perhaps, even
having rational discussions about decriminalization of all drugs -- that's
what the drug warriors fear most."
      "As with We fall of Communism, the drug wars will be over in a few
years and America will be safer for it," agreed Arizona NORML Chairman Peter
Wilson.  Wilson and other AZ4NORML members are hoping to work with the
offices of Gov. Symington and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio to
establish "tolerance zones" where patients with marijuana prescriptions may
have them filled by state licensed marijuana dealers.
      "Arizona can take pride in being the first state in the nation to
realize the 'War on Drugs' is a dismal failure and has gone on long enough,"
summarized Arizona NORML Secretary William Green, who is licensed by the
state to sell and possess marijuana.  "Arizona is set to lead the nation out
of the nightmarish 'War on Drugs.'"
      For more information or copies of Proposition 200, please contact
Allen St Pierre of NORML @ (202) 483-5500.  Additional information is
available from Peter Wilson of AZ4NORML @ (602) 395-0353 or from Sam Vagenas
of Arizonans for Drug Policy Reform @ (602) 285-0468. AZ4NORML may be
contacted on the Internet @ http://www.amug.org/~az4norml.
         (Meanwhile) Drug Czar, Secretary Of Transportation Reaffirm
                          Federal Drug Testing Laws
      December 12, 1996, Washington, D.C.:  Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey and
Department of Transportation Secretary Federico Penn held a joint press
conference today to issue a strong national warning from the Clinton
Administration that the federal transportation drug testing laws will
continue to be fully enforced without any effect whatsoever from the recent
passage of Proposition 215 in California or Proposition 200 in Arizona.
      The [federal] law is clear," said McCaffrey and Pena.  "If you are a
safety-sensitive transportation worker and you're caught using drugs, these
propositions don't mean a thing.  You're out of a job."
      The Drug Czar elaborated that users of medical marijuana will not be
granted an exemption from federal drug testing regulations.  "The use ... of
marijuana under California Proposition 215 or of any Schedule I drug under
Arizona Proposition 200 is not a legitimate explanation," he emphasized.
"As a matter of fact and a matter of federal law, marijuana and other drugs
listed on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act do not have legitimate
medical use in the United States.  Thus, if you test positive for marijuana,
and tell the MRO that a doctor recommended or prescribed the use of
marijuana for you, the MRO will [still] verify the test positive" and you
will lose your job.
      "Since the passage of these initiatives, it has been clear that the
administration would rather work against the will of the voters rather than
with them," said NORML deputy Director Allen St. Pierre.
      For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre of NORML @
(202) 483-5500.
              Dennis Peron, Others To Appear In Court Next Week
      December 12, 1996, San Francisco, CA:  San Francisco Buyers' Club
founder and co-author of California's Proposition 215, Dennis Peron, will
appear in Alameda County Superior Court on December 17 to request Judge
Larry Goodman for a change of venue.  Peron and five others are charged with
several felony marijuana counts stemming from an August 4 raid by state law
enforcement on the nearly 12,000 member club.  The defendants contend that
the trial should be moved from Oakland to San Francisco because that is
where the club was located.
      Peron told reporters that he is looking forward to the trial.  "It's
going to be the funniest case in the history of the U.S.," he said.  "They
have no proof that we sold pot to anyone who wasn't in legitimate need of
it.  This will be the trial that legalizes marijuana [for medical purposes]
in the United States."
      Peron also announced that he will reopen the controversial San
Francisco club in January to distribute marijuana to people with physicians'
recommendations.
      For more information, please contact Californians for Compassionate
Use @ (415) 621-3986.  CCU may be contacted on the Internet @:
http://www.marijuana.org.
                                    -END-
   MORE THAN 10 MILLION MARIJUANA ARRESTS SINCE 1965 ...
   ANOTHER EVERY 54 SECONDS!
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