The Committee for a Safer Michigan, a Detroit-based organization, is sponsoring a campaign to amend the state’s constitution to legalize marijuana.
The proposed amendment would end Michigan’s prohibition of marijuana, and cover the cultivation, sale, use as well as distribution of the pot plant for persons over the age of 21.
The 2012 Michigan Ballot Initiative to End Marijuana Prohibition, help.repealtoday.org, is a coalition of Michigan teachers, parents, attorneys, physicians, health professionals, former law enforcers, and many others with a wide range of backgrounds and beliefs according to their website.
They believe police should cease enforcing marijuana prohibition, and reset their sights, and priorities on violent criminals, and other threats to public safety.
Help.repealtoday.org has the proposed Amendment on their website and is below.
The Amendment
Constitutional Amendment To End Marijuana Prohibition in Michigan
A Petition to amend the Michigan Constitution, Article 1, to add:
Article 1 Section 28. Repeal of Marijuana Prohibition.
For persons who are at least 21 years of age who are not incarcerated, marijuana acquisition, cultivation, manufacture, sale, delivery, transfer, transportation, possession, ingestion, presence in or on the body, religious, medical, industrial, agricultural, commercial or personal use, or possession or use of paraphernalia shall not be prohibited, abridged or penalized in any manner, nor subject to civil forfeiture; provided that no person shall be permitted to operate an aircraft, motor vehicle, motorboat, ORV, snowmobile, train, or other heavy or dangerous equipment or machinery by marijuana.
Charmie Gholson, communications director for the Committee for a Safer Michigan told Huffington Post Detroit, "Organizers are still waiting for the exact formatting of the proposal to be approved by the State of Michigan, but expect to make a formal announcement next week."
Michigan's Attorney General Bill Shuette will have his thumb all over this as he has stated in the past that, "The courts have made it clear that marijuana sales and so-called dispensaries are illegal under state law," according to the Detroit Free Press.
Since taking office in 2011, Shuette has worked to shutter marijuana clinics, and prosecute carded patients in the state's marijuana registry. There is a recall effort underway for Shuette right now.
With 129,600 people registered in Michigan to use medical marijuana, Shuette, many law enforcement agencies, and community politicians would rather focus their efforts on making criminals out of these people. The federal government is one of the worse offenders just by keeping marijuana a Schedule 1 drug which means it has no uses for medical reasons.
It all sounds like a big game, and one that is costing billions and billions to feed the sucking war on drugs.
Legal or not, people will continue to smoke pot. Legalizing it will not increase it's use in any statistically significant manner.
The circus that is going on today with regard to medical marijuana is simply, flat-out stupid.
Peace...
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If you or a loved one needs help with any type of drug abuse/addiction problem, contact these sites depending on where you live. SEMCA (Wayne County residents), CARE (Macomb County residents), PACE (Oakland County residents), Drug Free Detroit (City of Detroit residents). For those residing outside the State of Michigan, contact SAMHSA for assistance. For assistance with medical marijuana issues contact The Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, Michigan Medical Marijuana Certification Center, or greentreesdetroit.com, phone number: (313) 967-9999, or (248) 677-2888.
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