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   . . . a weekly service for the media on news items related to marijuana
                                prohibition.
                                June 12, 1997
      House Judiciary Members Voice Support For Forfeiture Reform Bill
          June 12, 1997, Washington, D.C.:  Several members of the House
Judiciary Committee voiced their support on Wednesday for a civil forfeiture
reform bill (H.R. 1835) introduced by Committee Chairman Henry Hyde (R-Ill.)
          "Some of our civil asset seizure laws are being used in terribly
unjust ways and depriving innocent citizens of their property with nothing
that can be called due process," said Hyde, who announced that he will move
quickly for Congressional passage of his bill.  Hyde received bi-partisan
support from many committee members, including Ranking Democrat John Conyers
(D-Mich.), Barney Frank of Massachusetts (D), and Bob Barr of Georgia (R),
all of whom have signed on as co-sponsors.
          Under civil forfeiture laws, federal and state governments have
seized billions of dollars worth of assets over the past decade.  The law
permits law enforcement to confiscate an individual's assets, including both
property and cash, if their exists probable cause that the assets may be
derived from criminal activity or facilitated in the commission of certain
crimes.  The owner does not have to be found guilty or even formally charged
with any crime for the seizure to occur.  In 1993, Hyde reported that 80
percent of the individuals whose assets are seized by the federal government
under drug-forfeiture laws are never charged with a crime.
          "We cannot continue to unjustly take assets from property owners
unlucky enough to be caught up in civil forfeiture proceedings," Hyde
argued.  "Nothing less than the sanctity of private property is at stake
here."
          Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) agreed.  "In the name of the War on
Drugs, we have been surrendering our Constitutional rights wholesale," he
said.  "The Gestapo should ask for [the] powers [permitted under current
forfeiture laws,] not the United States Justice Department."
          The "Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act," introduced by Hyde on
June 10, proposes seven major changes in current asset seizure laws:
          * It shifts the burden of proof to the government, rather than the
property owner.
          * It mandates that property owners who take reasonable steps to
prevent others from using their property for illegal purposes can get their
property back.
          * It provides for the appointment of legal counsel for indigent
owners.
          * It eliminates the 10 percent cash bond requirement for those
seeking to appeal government seizure actions.
          * It grants property owners 30 days from the time of the seizure
to contest a forfeiture -- not the current 10-20 days allowed by law.
          * It allows for the release of property pending final disposition
of a case.
          * It allows property owners to sue the federal government for
negligence in its handling or storage of property.
          NORML Executive Director R. Keith Stroup said that he supported
Hyde's forfeiture reform provisions.  "The property and cash of individuals
suspected of marijuana-related violations are often unfairly targeted for
forfeiture by law enforcement officials," Stroup noted.  "Hyde's bill puts
some common sense limits on this abusive and runaway practice."
          For more information, please contact R. Keith Stroup of NORML @
(202) 483-5500 or Forfeiture Endangers American Rights (FEAR) @ (305)
952-0799.  Copies of the "Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act" are available
from NORML upon request.
Oregon Bill To Recriminalize Marijuana Moves One Step Closer To Becoming Law
          June 12, 1997, Salem, OR:  A Republican-sponsored bill that would
recriminalize the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana passed a
Joint Ways and Means subcommittee on Tuesday by a 5-3 vote.  The measure
passed the Oregon House of Representatives in April.
          "This bill is not about health or a message to kids; it is about
partisan politics and control," testified long-time drug-law reform activist
Sandee Burbank of Mothers Against Misuse and Abuse (MAMA).  Burbank said
that recriminalizing marijuana would unfairly and unnecessarily burden
taxpayers.  She added that individuals convicted under the new law could
lose their driving privileges for six months.
          Under the provisions of House Bill 3643, possession of less than
an ounce of marijuana would be increased from a "violation" to a class C
misdemeanor crime.
          Oregon was the first state to decriminalize the possession of
small amounts of marijuana in 1973.  Presently, marijuana decriminalization
laws remain in effect in ten states: California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota,
Mississippi, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, and Oregon.
          For more information, please contact either Sandee Burbank of MAMA
@ (541) 298-1031 or Paul Stanford of the Campaign for the Restoration and
Regulation of Hemp @ (503) 235-4606.
          Site Of Marijuana Festival Could Be Subject Of Forfeiture
          June 12, 1997, Ferryville, WI:  Property that was home to this
year's annual "Weedstock" music festival could be seized by law enforcement,
according to statements made by a Wisconsin prosecutor.
          Mark Peterson, Crawford County corporation counsel, said he warned
festival organizers before the event that forfeiture laws permit authorities
to seize property that has been a site for illegal drug use.  Peterson is
citing the 42 drug-related arrests made by police during the three-day event
as evidence that illegal drugs were used on the premises.  The site of the
event was leased to festival organizers by a Ferryville farmer.
          Rally organizer Ben Masel said that he and others would defend the
farmer's property if authorities tried to confiscate the land.  "A First
Amendment protected activity is not a basis for forfeiture," Masel said.
Organizers estimated that 3,500 people attended the weekend festival.
          Although local sheriff William Fillbach told reporters that this
years festival went "very smoothly," Peterson said that he is still
considering filing a petition in either state or federal court to initiate
forfeiture proceedings.
          For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre of The NORML
Foundation @ (202) 483-8751.
       Weld's Support For Medical Marijuana May Jeopardize Nomination
          June 12, 1997, Washington, D.C.:  Senate Foreign Relations
Committee Chairman Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) is objecting to President Clinton's
choice for U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Massachusetts Gov. William Weld,
because he supports legal access to medical marijuana.
          Helms, whose committee must approve all ambassadorial nominees,
said that he did not feel Weld was "ambassador quality" and criticized his
support for the use of marijuana as a medicine.  Tolerance toward the use of
medical marijuana could make Weld unsuitable to be an ambassador of a major
drug producing and trafficking nation like Mexico, Helms stated.
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