Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / June 2, 1977, edition 1 / Page 5
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-A Thursday, June 2, 1977 The Tar Heel 5 Chapel Hill police Lt. says pot arrests low on University campus By NANCY HARTIS Staff Writer Legislation currently in the General Assembly to ease the penalty for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana probably won't have any affect on the enforcement of pot laws in Chapel Hill, except to make state law a common Chapel Hill police practice. Chapel Hill Police Lt. Detective Don Truelove said "We don't try to bust those who have marijuana in relatively small quantities for personal use. Nowadays, an ounce is no big deal." He said that those who are arrested for possession of small quantities of pot receive a written citation, similar to a speeding ticket, and are required only to appear in court to pay a fine, usually under $100. The proposed legislation would make that $100 fine the maximum state penalty for the possession of less than an ounce. Truelove said Tuesday that the drug situation at UNC has been drawing less attention than it used to. He said police concentrate mainly on drug dealers, rather than users. There have been no raids on the UNC campus for drugs of any kind since September 1975, Truelove said, although there have been several major individual arrests over the past two years involving larger than average amounts of drugs. Although simple possession of small amounts of pot won't incur strict police action, the penalties imposed on student offenders by the University may be more serious. According to Associate Dean Fred Schroeder, the punishment a student receives for simple possession ranges from suspension to probation to official censure. Both suspension and probation notices could appear on the student's official record. Shroeder said the severity of punishment depends on the judgment of the undergraduate court, or during the summer a University or administrative hearing. He said such judgements vary with the complexity of the case. r 0 I LJA & I Easing of penalties object of bill From staff and wire reports A bill easing the penalty for the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana was introduced into the N.C. House Monday by Rep. Al Adams (D-Wake County). Adams bill would reduce the maximum penalty for first offenders from six months in jail and a $500 fine to a $100 fine and no jail term. Penalties for possession of more than an ounce and penalties for dealing would not be affected under the proposal. Adams said the bill, signed by 47 House supporters, faced a good chance of passage in the Senate. The proposal comes at a time when one in four adults and over half of Americans under how d teDp DOT 2 (( r 0 HJ hot, fresh, free home delivery r JOS 2)412- 5 II 30 have smoked marijuana, according to Gallup polls. Arguments for decriminalization of marijuana are heard as high as Dr. Peter Bourne, President Carter's nominee to head the Office of Drug Abuse Policy, who told a Senate committee that he had smoked pot and considered it less harmful than cigarettes. In Mississippi, the most recent state to decriminalize marijuana, prison authorities argued that the prison environment was probably more harmful to pot offenders than the drug itself. Adams' bill would also reduce the penalty for second offenders, from a possible two years in jail and a $2,000 fine to 30 days in jail and a $200 fine. YOGHURT BARN, Ltd. 132 E. Franklin St. Rotating 20 Flavors of YUKON SOFT FROZEN YOGHURT June is One of Twelve! Tfa In University Mall and at 119 E. Franklin St. Chapel Hill Open Evenings til 10 When it comes to Food RTA.comes to you
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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June 2, 1977, edition 1
5
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