Could New Hampshire See Marijuana Decriminalized?
According to an article by Tom Angell, of Marijuana.com, the New Hampshire House of Representatives approved a bill on March 10, that would decriminalize the possession of up to half an ounce of marijuana. Currently, New Hampshire state law considers the possession of any amount of cannabis to be a misdemeanor worth of a fine of up to $2,000 as well as up to one year in prison.
The new bill, however, would replace the criminal penalties with fines, increasing with the number of violations. For instance, $100 for a first-time offense, $200 for a second, and $500 for a third or subsequent offenses. According Angell, the passage of this bill by the House actually reverses a recommendation by the Chambers Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee which voted against decriminalization.
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In an interview with Marijuana.com, the New England political director for the Marijuana Policy Project stated that,
The Senate almost worked out a governor-supported compromise that would have decriminalized first offenses only, 1/4 ounce or less, but the deal fell apart on the Senate floor the last day of session. By passing this bill we are essentially giving the Senate and governor a ‘do-over.’ It seems likely that we’ll be able to get something done, but it probably won’t be as good as decrim laws in other New England states.
Governor Maggie Hassan now also a candidate for the U.S. Senate has unfortunately been a Luddite when it comes to marijuana legislation despite some positive moves regarding scaling back the increasingly obvious failure of the drug war, she strongly opposes any legalization, an issue which is likely to threaten the ultimate passage of the bill.
HB 1631 now heads to the New Hampshire State Senate.
Photo Courtesy of Allie Beckett on Marijuana.com
This article (Could New Hampshire See Marijuana Decriminalized?) can be republished under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Brandon Turbeville and Natural Blaze.com.
Brandon Turbeville – article archive here – is an author out of Florence, South Carolina. He is the author of six books, Codex Alimentarius — The End of Health Freedom, 7 Real Conspiracies,Five Sense SolutionsandDispatches From a Dissident, volume 1and volume 2, The Road to Damascus: The Anglo-American Assault on Syria, and The Difference it Makes: 36 Reasons Why Hillary Clinton Should Never Be President. Turbeville has published over 600 articles dealing on a wide variety of subjects including health, economics, government corruption, and civil liberties. Brandon Turbeville’s podcast Truth on The Tracks can be found every Monday night 9 pm EST at UCYTV. He is available for radio and TV interviews. Please contact activistpost (at) gmail.com.
