The ACLU of MAINE will be weighing in on at least ten bills next week. Among those, we're particularly concerned about bills that increase penalties for drug possession and use. The United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the world. Our prison population has quadrupled since 1980, largely because of the war on drugs. That's why we think it's a bad idea to increase criminal penalties for drug possession. Prison and jail is the wrong place to warehouse people addicted to drugs.
On Thursday, March 17th at 1 pm in Room 436 of the State House, the Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice will hold public hearings on four bills, two bad and two good. First, the bills that we oppose:
- LD 44: An Act To Increase Potential Criminal Penalties for the Possession of Cocaine and Cocaine Base
- LD 773: An Act To Further Restrict the Availability of Methamphetamine and Amphetamine Pills
Even as some legislators seek to increase prison sentences for drug offenders, Representative Ben Chipman (I-Portland) is sponsoring two bills seeking to decriminalize marijuana, and we applaud him for it. His bills will also be heard on Thursday, March 17 before the Criminal Justice Committee:
- LD 750: An Act To Decriminalize Possession of 6 or Fewer Marijuana Plants
- LD 754: An Act To Remove Criminal Penalties for Possession of up to 5 Ounces of Marijuana