INDIANAPOLIS —
In the flurry of activity at the Statehouse in recent weeks, I missed reporting some sad news for stoners: The legislation to decriminalize marijuana is dead.
State Sen. Karen Tallian’s bill to make possession of 2 ounces of marijuana into an infraction, like a speeding ticket, died when it didn’t get a hearing in the Committee on Corrections and Criminal Law before a critical deadline passed.
Tallian’s response was anything but mellow. The Democratic grandmother from Ogden Dunes told The Times of Northwest Indiana reporter Dan Carden: “I don’t understand why they refused to even hear it. We have certainly heard some really idiotic bills in that committee.”
Setting aside the question of idiocy in the General Assembly, here’s news that may hearten those who’ve been following the pot debate: Legislation that would roll back Indiana’s marijuana laws — some of the toughest in the nation — is still very much alive.
Tucked inside a 400-plus page bill to overhaul Indiana’s criminal code is language that would turn most felony-level marijuana crimes into mere misdemeanors. It puts an end to the reefer madness of a past General Assembly that made possession of marijuana a felony if you’d been caught once before or had more than 1 ounce.
So it would still be a crime to get caught with cannabis, but no longer a crime that could land you in prison or make you automatically lose your driver’s license.
The four co-authors of the criminal code reform bill make for an interesting alliance. The two conservative Republican authors are Hendricks County lawyer Greg Steuerwald and former deputy prosecutor Jud McMillin of Brookville. The two liberal Democratic authors are Bloomington lawyer Matt Pierce and retired Hammond police officer Linda Lawson.
They all had a role to play in crafting a bill that’s been several years in the making and has won strong bipartisan support. The full House is expected to vote on the bill Monday then send it to the Senate where the legislation has strong allies.
At a media availability last week to talk about the bill, none of the co-authors said the word “marijuana,” though I think they should have if they wanted to get good media coverage.
As Time magazine reported last week, “pot is having a political moment” as the push to lessen penalties for marijuana has moved from the margins to mainstream.
Tallian’s bill was a pipe dream — no way is this current General Assembly ready to join the 14 states that have decriminalized possession (or the handful of other states that have started down that path.)
But it wasn’t without some hope: Late last year, the Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Brent Steele — a rock-ribbed, law-and-order guy if there ever was one — came out in support of Tallian’s proposal. He likened Indiana’s marijuana laws to “smashing an ant with a sledgehammer.”
Steele backed off after he decided the idea wasn’t politically palatable to his conservative colleagues — at least not yet.
Remember that committee chairman who wouldn’t give Tallian’s bill a hearing? He’s promised Tallian that he’ll research the issue before next year’s session. Maybe that’s a sign that decriminalization isn’t dead, just dormant.
Maureen Hayden covers the Statehouse for CNHI newspapers in Indiana. She can be reached at maureen.hayden@indianamediagroup.com.
CNHI Special Projects
Related Photos
-
CNHI statehouse reporter Maureen Hayden
Maureen Hayden: Pot debate still included in criminal code overhaul
- CNHI Special Projects
-
-
Boy Scouts: Yes to gay youths, no to adults
The Boy Scouts of America on Thursday ended its ban on openly gay youths but maintained a prohibition on gay adult leaders, a decision framed as a compromise but one that could lead to litigation and thousands of defections from one of America's largest youth organizations.
-
State won’t use free lunch program as poverty indicator
Indiana is changing the way it counts low-income students in public schools because Republican legislators suspect fraud in the federal school-lunch program used to measure poverty.
-
Siblings withstand storm in fridge
Brother and sister co-owners of a Chinese takeout restaurant huddled inside a refrigerator to survive Monday’s deadly tornado that claimed 24 lives.
-
AUDIO: Residents share their tornado experiences
Moore, Okla., residents talk about living through Monday's EF-5 tornado.
-
Report: State is both ‘leader and laggard’
A newly released report card on where Indiana ranks nationally in key economic measures shows the state is both “a leader and a laggard” in areas that signal potential for more prosperity.
-
Audio: How can we better prepare for tornadoes?
An NPR broadcast examines the question of how communities can better prepare for tornadoes like the one that struck Moore, Okla. on Monday. The broadcast features commentary from Michael Fitzgerald, who reported a five-part disaster series for the CNHI News Service.
-
Photos: Aftermath of massive tornado in Moore
Storm victims were pulled from the rubble and residents began surveying the damage late Monday and early Tuesday in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, where a powerful tornado destroyed entire neighborhoods and left dozens dead.
-
Okla. front pages capture tornado aftermath
View how several Oklahoma newspapers covered Monday's massive tornado in Moore. Please note that officials revised the death toll downward early Tuesday morning after some papers were printed, but it is expected to climb again as recovery efforts continue.
-
SLIDESHOW: Tornado passes through Oklahoma
A fast-moving storm brought rain, hail and tornadoes to Oklahoma late Sunday afternoon and evening.
-
Officer treated and released after injuries from Oklahoma windstorm
Enid, Okla. police officer Lee Friesendahl was treated and released at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center Saturday night after his patrol car was struck by a strong windstorm triggered by a heat burst.
- More CNHI Special Projects Headlines
-
Boy Scouts: Yes to gay youths, no to adults
