I Found a Unicorn
White House Drug Czar John Walters told the press last month that “people don’t go to jail for the possession of marijuana” and challenged MPP to prove him wrong. In his words, “if you find the unicorn … I’ll buy you a steak dinner.” Well Mr. Walters, it took nearly three minutes on Google, but I found your unicorn. Seven of them, actually.
On August 13, 2008, the Clinton County Municipal Court near Jackson, Mississippi sentenced seven people, in unrelated cases, to jail for simple possession of marijuana. That’s seven in one day – an eighth person was sentenced to jail for paraphernalia. And guess what? A quick spot check of the county’s court dockets revealed that this happens all the time.
Jonathan L. Brister – 45 days in jail, $749.50 fine
Michael A. Bryant – 45 days in jail, $769.50 fine
Dwayne B. Thompson – 50 days in jail, $834.51 fine
Alexander Mack Watson – 45 days in jail, $749.50 fine
William P. Lancaster – 45 days in jail, $749.50 fine
Jacob Falcon – 45 days in jail, $749.50 fine
James A. Dugas – 45 days in jail, $769.50 fine
Sharon A. Watson was sentenced to 30 days in jail and a $769.50 fine for possession of paraphernalia.
(Source)
These individuals were arrested with between 1 and 30 grams of marijuana and were not suspected of selling the drug – which is Mississippi’s definition of simple possession. They were sentenced based on an obscure law that calls for jail time when marijuana is found in a motor vehicle (§ 41-29-139(c)(2)(B)). The law has nothing to do with operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of the drug (DWI is a separate charge that these folks did not receive); it is just a straightforward example of people going to to jail for marijuana possession.
Mississippi is considered one of the 11 states with “decriminalized” marijuana laws. In the other 39 states, the courts don’t even need an obscure motor vehicle law to sentence someone to jail for possession. However, Mr. Walters still claims that jail sentences are reserved for drug dealers. It’s not the case.
I found the unicorn(s) … Now where’s my steak dinner?
7 comments
This John Walters guy he seems somewone that doesnt care about kids im 17 i smoke marijuana and i shouldnt go to jail for i mean the tobaco company theyve killed like a million people are 1 of them in jail john walters marijuana doesnt kill not even one person theyr are thousands in jail for nothing marijuana doesnt kill besides who the hell are you to say what i cann smoke or not i dont want to smoke tobaco iu discusting it tastes bad and the first time i inhaled it i coughed marijuana didnt make me cough and i love it it makes me relax helps me with mi asma and some other stuff(Even helps me sleep alot better)so mhhh marijuana doesnt kill you guys do with your wars and your guns and bombs.even food kills more than marijuana lol i know silly but true i dont understand why the goverment hasnt legalized it yet it should have been the 1st drug to be legalized in the history of america…a litle word for you john i smoke weed i love marijuana i go to school i help mi mom as best i can with her bills i dont kill nowone i dont make nowone go to jail or get theyr lives ruined especiallly kids what about you john if theyr were alot of people in the goverment like me and less people like you maybe the usa would be a better place to live.you care nothing and why should you you got it all but we dont.im Gabriel Robles i live in puerto rico gurabo i study in ramey job corps you got something bad to say about marijuana or its users come and GET ME IM RIGHT HERE WAITING!!!
3 minutes! was google down for 2 of them? lol
I am 22 years old and will be graduating from an acredited 4 year state university in May of 2009, I pay my bills, my rent, vehicle insurance, and everyday living expenses easily and then some working 35 hours a week and I smoke EVERY DAY! It is my “cocktail” after work to put me in the place I need to be to let go of the day’s stress and settle down so I can study b/c I hold a 3.5 GPA! There is no way in Hell that I could possibly do this w/out marijuana. I have extreme ADHD, Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, but with marijuana I have been able to control and use my “Disorder” to my own advantage in tapping my own mental abilities. I say all this b/c I feel that the ridiculous “Reefer Madness” ploys need to end. If there was better a time to legalize, now must surely be it. If a realistic plan could be formulated to allow for the taxation of the substance, whether it be in the form of a Personal Cultivation/Consumption License, or a form of moderate sales tax, the revenue created could be a terrific catalyst for change in the current economic atmosphere.
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800,000 people are arrested on marijuana charges each year. These arrests make up half of all drug arrests in the U.S. Nearly 90% of these arrests are for marijuana possession.
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60,000 individuals are incarcerated for marijuana charges, costing taxpayers $1.2 billion annually.
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Punishments for marijuana-related convictions include eviction from public housing, loss of federal financial aid for college, and loss of welfare benefits
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Federal agents continue to raid medical marijuana hospices, arresting AIDS, cancer and other terminally individuals in states where voters have overwhelmingly supported the medical use of marijuana
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Police arrest more Americans per year on marijuana charges than for all violent crimes combined, including murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/pressroom/pressrelease/pr102902.cfm
Imagine the money saved and new stream of money coming in if all the innocent users of marijuana, whether it be for medical, religious, or recreational purposes, were allowed to toke freely!
In Ga your second offense for possesion will get you a year in jail and I believe they try to hang a felony with that too.
Uh…wait. Are these first-time offenders? That’s kinda the Drug Czar’s point. Are you stoned?
I found a unicorn mien drug czar! A man paralyzed from age four doing something that made him feel better you hypocrites killed the poor young man. When you die you will be haunted by the souls of men like this one.
Can you find one? The drug czar said anyone jailed for possession was a unicorn and did not exist?
Help end the War On US (drugs)
Twenty-seven-year-old Jonathan Magbie died while serving a 10-day sentence for marijuana possession in a Washington, D.C., jail. Magbie, a quadriplegic since age 4, used his chin to operate a motorized wheelchair and required a ventilator to help him breathe. The jail could not provide the medical help he needed, and by the time he was taken to a hospital, he was dead. Magbie was a first-time offender who told the judge that marijuana made him feel better and that he didn’t think there was anything wrong with using it.
Cherokee Fred Hussein
Fighting this war daily please help THEY LIE WE FIGHT!
hood1@hoodstuff .com
Can you find one?
I didn’t go to jail….
BUT that’s only because I sold out and gave them what they really wanted. MONEY!!! But then, I guess I wasn’t convicted of a marijuana crime. I was convicted of possessing paraphernalia. Which could be anything. So, while I didn’t go to jail for my Cannabis, I wasn’t convicted of a ‘marijuana related’ crime either. Cannabis is why the cops showed up, but that’s not what I paid for!
And before anyone gets on about me being connected, having a great lawyer or whatever. No, I had a court appointed slack off that really did nothing. Even sitting in the lobby the day of court, he did not know he was supposed to be there for me that day. I’m just your everyday regular joe.
This is just the way the system works. They want money. They come to your house if it smells like cannabis. (or your neighbors say so. Which ’such-and-such said…’ is hearsay by any other means.) They tear your house upside down for a single bud. (which I gave them BTW, the search was not necessary) They take you to jail. You pay money to get out. You go to a preliminary hearing for your plea. You come back later for court. (It was almost 6 months for me.) Your representation talks to the judge and they almost always ask you to pay a fine for a lesser charge. (mine was paraphernalia, Class C Mis. like writing a bad check) You pay money. (lots, $786 here, not including the bond or transportation back and forth.) They let you go home to smoke your cannabis and provide some income for them later whenever they want to come back again.
THAT is the way they like it. It makes them money. If you say no to the plea bargain and go to court for possession of marijuana, you WILL most likely sit in jail. (With a hefty fine of course!) A jury will be your only hope there. For this article’s sake, there ARE at least SOME people who are in jail right now for simple possession of small amounts.
There is no such thing as a unicorn. There def. ARE people in jail for minor simple possession, as sited above. Logic dictates that simple possession offenders are not unicorns.
I think the unicorns we are searching for are the drug czar’s brain cells. Either that or his honesty. Remember, unicorns do not exist.
-Dan
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