Indiana State Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell created a stir last week when he said that if left to him, he would legalize and then tax marijuana. Left to us, and we suspect to a majority of Hoosiers, it is not going to happen anytime soon.
One day, it will likely happen in Indiana and most other states — that is, the decriminalization of marijuana use. Fifteen states have already decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana, as two Indiana lawmakers have proposed. And just last month, Colorado and Washington voted to legalize the use of marijuana, while voters in one other state, Oregon, turned down legalization this year.
Clearly, American values about marijuana are changing, though it is unlikely that conservative old Indiana would be among the leaders; not so libertarians who generally oppose drug laws.
In Indiana, possessing 30 grams or less of marijuana is a Class A misdemeanor on the first offense, with a sentence up to one year. Possession of more than 30 grams is a Class D felony that carries a sentence of one to three years in prison. Supporters of decriminalization believe those sentences unnecessary crowd state prisons and jails.
Whitsell made headlines last month when, in answering a question from the State Budget Committee, told lawmakers that he believes legalization of marijuana is here to stay. Indiana Democratic Rep. Sheila Klinker responded in an Associated Press report that drug cartels now control marijuana use, getting money from it, rather than having states such as Indiana tax and control it.
There is merit in Klinker's logic, and it may eventually be a factor in decriminalization.
But for now, a legislative majority in Indiana is more likely to agree with Vanderburgh County Sheriff Eric Williams and Vanderburgh County Prosecutor Nick Hermann.
Williams said he is not in agreement with Whitesell at this time. He said he thinks he understands Whitesell's position, but he said that saying "we give up" is not the best attitude.
Hermann said that before thoughts of decriminalization are discussed, the state must first determine how to judge legal driving status for marijuana users.
"You can be just as intoxicated on marijuana as you can on as alcohol. The difference right now is that we can give you a test on the side of the road — and set a level 0.08 — and we can tell if you're too intoxicated to drive or not. For marijuana we don't have that kind of test," Hermann told Courier & Press staff writer Richard Gootee.
Regardless, neither Williams nor Hermann expect Indiana law to change anytime soon, and neither do we.