Spring Break
Support mounts for looser pot penalties
Ben Slivnick
Issue date: 2/28/07 Section: News
The RHA narrowly passed a resolution to decrease penalties for dorm-room marijuana use at a meeting last night - a triumph for many activists who rallied behind the proposition with fervor since its failure last year.
In its closest vote of the year - 20 to 17 - the organization approved a recommendation that, if approved by the Resident Life department, would lower the punishment for marijuana possession in dorms from potential housing termination to the same citation underage students receive for being caught drinking.
The vote is largely symbolic, as both the university and the Board of Regents would have to approve the changes. The Residence Halls Association's support, however, could attract more attention to a cause that has evoked strong feelings from students.
RHA Sen. Erik Rasmussen, who authored the bill, said it was designed to equalize the penalties with those faced by students who caught drinking in the dorms, reducing it from what Residence Halls Rules classify as an A-level violation to a B-level violation. Currently, an A-level violation includes offenses such as arson, assault and rape.
At this point, Resident Life Director Deb Grandner said she opposes the RHA's decision because reducing penalties could increase the drug market on the campus and lead to more crime.
"Right now I believe that our students take our drug policy seriously, and I want them to continue to take it seriously," she said.
She added that if Resident Life rejects the RHA's recommendation, students would be able to appeal to Vice President for Student Affairs Linda Clement.
More than a dozen student groups were in attendance last night, led by Students for a Sensible Drug Policy, which put together a lobbying blitz in anticipation for yesterday's vote: chalking up sidewalks to promote turnout and encouraging dorm students to e-mail their RHA representatives.
More than 30 students attended last night's meeting, a year high for the RHA. Many RHA senators who weren't accustomed to the extra attention said there was an added pressure in the room, and after receiving multiple e-mails from residents in the dorm she represents, Sen. Elyse Berkowitz said she felt a renewed obligation to represent the concerns of her constituents.
"People come to our activities all the time, but for them to get involved in our senate is pretty unusual," she said.
Last semester, the RHA rejected a similar resolution when many senators got hung up on its confusing wording and vague recommendations. This semester's resolution excluded some of the controversial clauses that riddled last semester's bill, such as a section telling Resident Assistants not to call police upon discovering marijuana use.
Despite the revisions, the resolution's consequences split the organization, which debated the bill for more than hour, hearing recommendations from SSDP as well as from University Police.
Details in the wording still bothered many senators, but others preferred to look at the bill's broader message. These schisms even tore the RHA's top leadership.
Vice President Sumner Handy said the bill still has minor flaws, but he said he voted in favor of the legislation because he feels Resident Life's punishments for marijuana do not fit the crime.
"I wouldn't argue that this bill is fantastically written, but I'm going for the bottom line," he said. "Using marijuana is not setting a fire, it's not raping someone. The only person that it hurts physically is the user. I don't think it's fair that it's classified as an A-level violation."
President Mike LaBattaglia voted against the recommendation, sharing many of Grandner's concerns.
"We're taking what's essentially an illegal market and saying that it's OK to move it into the residence halls," he said. "We have to be very mindful that something like this wouldn't increase any kind of crime rate that was associated with drug use."
SSDP President Stacia Cosner said last night's vote was a landmark hurdle the organization needed to pass before approaching administrators. Coupled with a Student Government Association poll last year that found 65 percent of the 4,376 students who voted in their election last year supported lower penalties for marijuana use, she said she was confident as the policy moved on to administrators.
"If the RHA and the SGA both voted in favor of this, it's going to be really difficult for the administration not to adopt these changes," she said.
Contact reporter Ben Slivnick at slivnickdbk@gmail.com.
In its closest vote of the year - 20 to 17 - the organization approved a recommendation that, if approved by the Resident Life department, would lower the punishment for marijuana possession in dorms from potential housing termination to the same citation underage students receive for being caught drinking.
The vote is largely symbolic, as both the university and the Board of Regents would have to approve the changes. The Residence Halls Association's support, however, could attract more attention to a cause that has evoked strong feelings from students.
RHA Sen. Erik Rasmussen, who authored the bill, said it was designed to equalize the penalties with those faced by students who caught drinking in the dorms, reducing it from what Residence Halls Rules classify as an A-level violation to a B-level violation. Currently, an A-level violation includes offenses such as arson, assault and rape.
At this point, Resident Life Director Deb Grandner said she opposes the RHA's decision because reducing penalties could increase the drug market on the campus and lead to more crime.
"Right now I believe that our students take our drug policy seriously, and I want them to continue to take it seriously," she said.
She added that if Resident Life rejects the RHA's recommendation, students would be able to appeal to Vice President for Student Affairs Linda Clement.
More than a dozen student groups were in attendance last night, led by Students for a Sensible Drug Policy, which put together a lobbying blitz in anticipation for yesterday's vote: chalking up sidewalks to promote turnout and encouraging dorm students to e-mail their RHA representatives.
More than 30 students attended last night's meeting, a year high for the RHA. Many RHA senators who weren't accustomed to the extra attention said there was an added pressure in the room, and after receiving multiple e-mails from residents in the dorm she represents, Sen. Elyse Berkowitz said she felt a renewed obligation to represent the concerns of her constituents.
"People come to our activities all the time, but for them to get involved in our senate is pretty unusual," she said.
Last semester, the RHA rejected a similar resolution when many senators got hung up on its confusing wording and vague recommendations. This semester's resolution excluded some of the controversial clauses that riddled last semester's bill, such as a section telling Resident Assistants not to call police upon discovering marijuana use.
Despite the revisions, the resolution's consequences split the organization, which debated the bill for more than hour, hearing recommendations from SSDP as well as from University Police.
Details in the wording still bothered many senators, but others preferred to look at the bill's broader message. These schisms even tore the RHA's top leadership.
Vice President Sumner Handy said the bill still has minor flaws, but he said he voted in favor of the legislation because he feels Resident Life's punishments for marijuana do not fit the crime.
"I wouldn't argue that this bill is fantastically written, but I'm going for the bottom line," he said. "Using marijuana is not setting a fire, it's not raping someone. The only person that it hurts physically is the user. I don't think it's fair that it's classified as an A-level violation."
President Mike LaBattaglia voted against the recommendation, sharing many of Grandner's concerns.
"We're taking what's essentially an illegal market and saying that it's OK to move it into the residence halls," he said. "We have to be very mindful that something like this wouldn't increase any kind of crime rate that was associated with drug use."
SSDP President Stacia Cosner said last night's vote was a landmark hurdle the organization needed to pass before approaching administrators. Coupled with a Student Government Association poll last year that found 65 percent of the 4,376 students who voted in their election last year supported lower penalties for marijuana use, she said she was confident as the policy moved on to administrators.
"If the RHA and the SGA both voted in favor of this, it's going to be really difficult for the administration not to adopt these changes," she said.
Contact reporter Ben Slivnick at slivnickdbk@gmail.com.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
Brad
posted 2/28/07 @ 4:29 AM EST
If the penalty for speeding or pirating music was death who would do it? While harsh penalties are effective, they are immoral! Of course the universitie's current policy towards marijuana use is effective but it is also "cruel and unusual punishment. (Continued…)
Damien
Damien
posted 2/28/07 @ 11:29 AM EST
Brad, while I appreciate and agree with your thoughts on the immorality of overly harsh punishment and your views on Democratically-made decisions, I completely disagree with your remarks about harsh punishments being effective. (Continued…)
Alex Beuchler
posted 2/28/07 @ 1:20 PM EST
I would just like to point out that saying going against 65% of students is un-democratic is irrelevant because it is not 65% of all students. Only about 4500 students voted, which is less than 15% of all students, which means that really only about 10% of students supported the SGA bill. (Continued…)
Brad
posted 2/28/07 @ 3:06 PM EST
Damien, I agree that there is already a drug market and that harsh penalties force students to be more secretive but harsh penalties do discourage crime. (Continued…)
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