INDIANAPOLIS | Indiana's marijuana laws would be the subject of a legislative study with an eye toward possible legalization under a measure introduced Tuesday by state Sen. Karen Tallian, D-Ogden Dunes.
Senate Bill 192 directs the General Assembly's Sentencing Policy Study Committee to examine marijuana criminal sentencing policy, possession laws, medical use and other issues and make recommendations the legislature could act on in 2012.
"We're putting the marijuana issue on the table," Tallian said. "This bill starts the conversation in Indiana."
Tallian said marijuana possession cases cost the state millions of dollars annually for police arrests, court prosecutions, jail time, treatment and probation supervision. More than 10,000 Hoosiers a year are charged with marijuana possession.
"We have limited amounts of tax dollars, and the public has told us stop spending money," Tallian said. "So I think we need to examine now if we want to spend our tax dollars on marijuana arrests or on public education. Do we want to spend it on marijuana arrests or infrastructure?"
"We need to talk about this," she said.
Indiana's current marijuana laws are among the most punitive in the nation.
Possession of a single marijuana cigarette can result in one year in prison and a $5,000 fine. A person possessing more than 1 ounce of marijuana, enough for about 30 marijuana cigarettes, can be sentenced to up to three years in prison.
"I'm tired of seeing people thrown in jail for what I think is something that's the equivalent of alcohol," Tallian said.
Tallian said she's been promised a Senate committee hearing on her legislation setting up the marijuana study, likely in February.
Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels has endorsed separate legislation moving through the General Assembly that is intended to save the state money by sentencing low-level felony offenders to community corrections programs rather than prison. That legislation does not directly address Indiana marijuana issues.