Indiana lawmaker pushes to decriminalize marijuana

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH/AP) - Advocates for legalizing marijuana call it their biggest victory yet. On Tuesday, voters in Colorado and Washington decided to legalize the recreational use of pot.

The initiatives would regulate the production, possession, and distribution of marijuana for people 21 and older.

The Washington referendum also calls for a 25 percent tax to be imposed three times: when the grower sells it to the processor, when the processor sells it to the retailer, and when the retailer sells it to the customer.

But Colorado's governor is telling pro-pot voters to not celebrate just yet.

He says it's still an illegal drug under federal law and is waiting to see what Attorney General Eric Holder says about it.

Meanwhile, one Indiana lawmaker says she wants to decriminalize the drug here.

"It takes too much toll on the criminal justice system and it accomplishes absolutely nothing," said Sen. Karen Tallian, D-Portage, "Prohibition didn't work. This doesn't work. It's time to get rid of it."

She wants Indiana to join 14 other states where marijuana has been decriminalized - where getting caught with a small amount of pot is an infraction instead of a criminal misdemeanor. That means a ticket instead of jail time and a permanent mark on your criminal record.

Some advocates say removing criminal penalties appeal to both sides of the aisle.

“The state spends many millions of dollars to investigate, arrest, prosecute, and incarcerate more than 10,000 Hoosiers every year for marijuana. This revenue could be much better spent on honest drug education, treatment, and pursuing violent criminals, where it will actually help increase public safety and decrease use rates,” said Morgan Fox, Communications Manager at the Washington D.C.-based Marijuana Policy Project. “Arresting and jailing marijuana users accomplishes neither of these goals, and at great cost to the taxpayers. At a time when state and local budgets are in severe trouble, it makes absolutely no sense to use our limited resources to keep adults in jail for a year, or even a day, simply for using a substance that is demonstrably safer than alcohol," said Fox.

But Randy Miller says "hold on."

"Marijuana's not a benign drug and there are consequences that come with that," said Miller, Executive Director of Drug Free Marion County.

Miller said he's open to discussing the modification of sentencing guidelines for marijuana possession, but added he’s concerned it sends a dangerous mixed message to teens.

"I'm not going to say marijuana's the most dangerous drug out there, But that's sort of like saying a small package of fries isn't as unhealthy for you as supersized fries. It doesn't mean it's not unhealthy - just maybe not as unhealthy."

Tallian said she introduced a bill in the 2012 legislative session, but it didn’t reach the floor for a vote. She plans to introduce the bill again in January.

In September, Republican state Sen. Brent Steele of Bedford said he too will introduce a bill to decriminalize marijuana. The bill would make possession of 10 grams or less an infraction, rather than a criminal misdemeanor. Ten grams is equivalent to about one-third of an ounce or roughly enough to make 20 to 30 marijuana cigarettes.

Many other states and college campuses already treat possession of small amounts of pot as an infraction, which means the offender is ticketed, not arrested.

Steele told the Indianapolis Business Journal that in those states "society didn't melt down" or "turn into a drug-crazed culture."

Steele chairs the Senate committee on corrections, criminal and civil matters.