Alaska D.A. Asks Court to Review Marijuana Law December 20, 2004
News Summary
The Anchorage district attorney has requested that a judge re-examine the 1975 Alaska Supreme Court ruling that allows adults to possess up to four ounces of marijuana for personal use in their own homes, the Anchorage Daily News reported Dec. 16.The ruling in the Ravin v. State case concluded that marijuana in small amounts is harmless to adults and not dangerous enough to supersede Alaska's constitutional right to privacy at home.
"The idea that marijuana is a harmless substance is contrary to all the scientific studies that exist today," said John Novak, chief assistant district attorney and one of the prosecutors who filed the motion in Anchorage Superior Court.
It was believed that the ruling was rendered moot when Alaskans voted in 1990 to re-criminalize possession of any amount of marijuana. However, the state Court of Appeals determined that the Ravin ruling could not be replaced by a ballot initiative.
However, the state appeals courts has agreed to reconsider the Ravin ruling if sufficient new evidence is presented that shows that small amounts of marijuana are harmful.
"We're asking the court to see if the factual underpinning of Ravin is still valid. We've learned a lot since then," said Novak.
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