Author: CMA 303

By Tatyanna Hunter Frederick delegates recently voted on two important matters relating to marijuana. The two important matters are medical marijuana and decriminalization of marijuana. For the legalization of medical marijuana, the House had 126 people voting yea, 10 who voted nay, two who did not vote, and three absent from voting. For the legalization of medical marijuana, the Senate had 44 people voting yea, two who voted nay, and one who did not vote. For the decriminalization of marijuana, the House had 78 people who voted yea, 55 who voted nay, and eight who were absent. For the decriminalization of marijuana, the Senate had 34 people who voted yea, eight who voted nay, and five who did not vote. Delegate Clagett voted for decriminalization and he voted for medical marijuana. Delegate Schultz voted for medical marijuana and against decriminalization. Delegate Hough voted against decriminalization and against medical marijuana. Delegate Brinkely voted for decriminalization and for medical marijuana. Delegate Hogan voted for medical marijuana and against decriminalization....

Lanee Higgins, the president of the Black Student Union of Hood College, believes the bill will decrease a racially-biased system of law enforcement in Maryland. “I think with the decriminalization of marijuana, you won’t see as many police cars riding through neighborhoods looking to frisk people, just to arrest them, just to get the numbers up, just to discriminate against them,” she said. Many civil rights organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union indicate that the “War on Drugs” and particularly the illegality of marijuana possession, has had a negative effect on the black community. According to a report by the ACLU, a Black person was about 4 times more likely than a White person to be arrested for marijuana in Maryland despite marijuana use by Blacks and Whites being almost equal. In 2010, Maryland had the seventh highest amount of arrests for marijuana possession and the fourth highest arrest rate marijuana possession in the country. “The prohibition of marijuana has led to both...

By: Samantha Helmold Medicinal marijuana is known to help cases where epilepsy is a problem. It is known to calm the disorder and make it where the seizures don’t reoccur often. In attempts to find solutions for such serious conditions, two mothers work diligently to help their children out in the best way possible. Epilepsy is a brain disorder in which a person has repeated seizures (convulsions) over time. Seizures are episodes of disturbed brain activity that cause changes in attention or behavior. Shannon Moore, mother of 3½ year old twins, both suffer from a rare condition known as Miller-Dieker Syndrome, where they have upwards of 100 seizures a day, which is characterized by a pattern of abnormal brain developments known as lissencephaly, which means smooth brain, which is a rare condition that is caused from lack of development. “I started to notice that something wasn’t exactly right when they were 4 months old.” Moore said, “Nicolas did a repetitive motion with his arm...

Administrators of the Frederick County Drug Treatment Court program said they are opposed to the recent decriminalization of marijuana in Maryland, fearing the message it sends and the effects on young people. About 75 percent of participants in the program have used marijuana, said program coordinator Paul Wolford. “It’s a gateway, what people first started using,” he said. Wolford said he fears that marijuana causes delays in brain development, as the frontal lobe is not developed until the early to mid-20s. “My biggest fear for relaxation of marijuana laws is the dumbing down of a generation of good people,” he said. “It’s not a risk I’m comfortable taking, but I don’t make the policy.” Mickey Stenger, the resource specialist for the drug court, said he thinks decriminalization will affect the program and crime in a negative way. “Marijuana was already accessible, now it’s even worse,” he said. He referred to the fact that almost every person that’s gone through Drug Court began using drugs through marijuana and...