Idaho

By TONY EVANS, Express Staff Writer

The city of Hailey's Marijuana Oversight Committee is hoping to move forward in its role as a recommending body without causing confrontations with city or state officials. With the help of city staff, the committee will form a mission statement in time for the city's strategic planning session in March 2010.

"The citizens of Hailey are imploring us to do something," said committee member Pete Kramer. "But I would not advise taking on the state of Idaho."

The committee was formed earlier this year after three controversial marijuana initiatives were passed by Hailey voters. The initiatives proposed allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, legalizing industrial hemp and making enforcement of marijuana laws the lowest priority for Hailey police.

Portions of all three ordinances were redacted by 5th District Judge Robert Elgee, but the oversight committee was formed and charged with gathering information and making recommendations to the City Council on how the city should handle several issues regarding marijuana policy.

In September, the committee decided to focus efforts on supporting the medical use of marijuana. Since that time, committee members have researched legalization efforts in other mountain communities such as Breckenridge, Colo., where legalization was passed by 72 percent of voters in November.

By Tony Evans, Idaho Mountain Express

Hailey residents will not be able to use marijuana for medical purposes, despite the fact that voters twice passed initiatives in support of its legal use. Whether they will be allowed to grow it for industrial uses, or get less heat from Hailey police for smoking it, is yet to be seen.

Fifth District Judge Robert Elgee ruled on Monday that a provision in the Medical Marijuana Act, passed by Hailey voters last summer, represents an attempt to pre-empt state law and is therefore illegal. The provision allowed possession of up to 35 grams of marijuana for use by seriously ill people with a doctor’s consent.

Attorney Keith Roark made a motion for summary judgement on Monday aimed at throwing out three controversial marijuana initiatives passed by Hailey voters last year. The initiatives allowed the use of marijuana for medical purposes, legalized industrial hemp and called for placing enforcement of marijuana laws as the lowest priority for Hailey police.

Mayor Rick Davis, Councilman Don Kiern and Police Chief Jeff Gunter filed a lawsuit against the city in May, claiming that the new laws were unconstitutional.

Roark argued on Monday that Gunter and his officers were sworn to uphold state law prohibiting the use of marijuana for any reason, and that deviating from that stance would jeopardize the police department’s ability to obtain federal funding and participate in various drug enforcement activities in the city.