US HI: Police Chief's Comments Net Complaint

[The GCW]

Pubdate: Thu, 13 Nov 2008

Source: West Hawaii Today (HI)

POLICE CHIEF'S COMMENTS NET COMPLAINT

HILO -- A complaint was filed Wednesday with the Hawaii County Police Commission against Police Chief Lawrence Mahuna regarding his recent comments about the voter-approved marijuana initiative.

Roger Christie, pastor of the THC Cannabis Ministry in Hilo, said Wednesday he filed the complaint because of comments Mahuna made in two Nov. 7 newspaper articles.

The initiative, which was approved by voters in the Nov. 4 election, made marijuana enforcement the lowest police priority when it's intended for adult personal use.

Mahuna stated in the articles that nothing will change in how the Police Department deals with marijuana enforcement.

Christie complains that Mahuna's views go against commission regulations that require officers and employees to "observe and obey all federal and state laws ( and ) ordinances of the county."

Although Mahuna views the initiative as a resolution and not law, Christie said it is an ordinance.

The complaint also states that some of Mahuna's other comments, such as people who are pro-marijuana are "automatically pro-terrorist" were "over the line of common sense."

Mahuna said Wednesday that some people misunderstood his comments.

He said the county didn't need a new ordinance to make the private adult use of marijuana a low priority because it already is.

Mahuna, who is to retire Dec. 31, said the department is, for the most part, interested in the big commercial growers and the dealers selling pot to juveniles.

"We're not going to do something to somebody who's smoking a couple of joints per night," he said. "If a guy grows a couple of plants, and smokes it in his house, how the heck are we going to know?"

Deputy Corporation Counsel Brandon Gonzalez said his office hadn't yet reviewed the complaint and could not comment on it.

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1032/a02.html?1294

[Brother Adam]

[Brother Adam]

[The GCW]

Pubdate: Fri, 21 Nov 2008

Source: West Hawaii Today (HI)

Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08.n1032.a02.html


CHIEF'S COMMENT

A Dangerous Position

Recently our police chief stated: "If you're pro-drug, or pro-marijuana, you're automatically pro-terrorist."

Please tell me he was misquoted. He's probably correct that "some terrorists profit from the sale of illegal drugs like marijuana," but an illogical conclusion like that would brand us all terrorists for consuming oil -- a commodity that funnels major amounts of money to radical terrorist causes.

Does Chief Mahuna realize that the poppy fields of Afghanistan ( the source of huge amounts of heroin in this country ) are ignored by U.S. forces because of the intricate relationship between the Afghan warlords and the occupying forces there?

Using the word "terrorist" to label those opposed to one's views has become the new "communist" for those of us old enough to remember McCarthyism. Lumping all illegal drugs together is a naive and dangerous position for someone who is in charge.

Does he also have a medical degree that no one knows about? He said, "I may have seen one ( medical certificate ) that was in compliance" out of more than 1,300 medical marijuana users on this island.

Has he really reviewed all 1,300? And he's also a religious leader who professes to know that God( s ) doesn't want anybody to be stoned. Where does he get this stuff?

Chief Mahuna must still be living in a "plantation" society, where governance comes down from above. The will of the people doesn't seem to matter. To support his opposition to the recently approved initiative, he compares domestic violence to pot use. Again, I hope he was misquoted, because this sort of fallacious thinking only makes intelligent discussion impossible.

As signified by the recent elections in our country, hopefully, we are entering a progressive era of government, where the politics of stupid and uninformed have been rejected in favor of the politics of intelligence, where decisions will be based on evidence and reasoned analysis rather than on "gut" feelings or the propaganda of yesteryear. "Reefer Madness" was not a documentary.

If you don't like marijuana, then by all means don't use it -- there'll be more for the rest of us.

Donald Gross

Kailua-Kona

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1056/a09.html?397

Contacts: Editor
rflickinger@westhawaiitoday.com

Contact: http://www.westhawaiitoday.com/contact_us/letters/


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[The GCW]

US HI: Review Of Pot Stance Shelved

Pubdate: Sat, 20 Dec 2008 -
Source: Hawaii Tribune Herald (Hilo, HI)

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1157/a07.html?397

Panel Postpones Complaint Against Mahuna Over His Marijuana Views

The Police Commission on Friday shelved a misconduct complaint against outgoing Chief Lawrence Mahuna over his words about the county's new marijuana law.

Marijuana proponent Roger Christie had claimed that Mahuna's statements to the Hawaii Tribune-Herald after voters passed the Peaceful Sky initiative -- which makes marijuana possession for personal use the county's lowest law enforcement priority -- violate the police department's own rules, which state "Officers and employees of the department shall observe and obey all Federal and State laws, Ordinances of the County of Hawaii, and all orders, policies, directives, regulations, etc. of the department."

Mahuna told the Tribune-Herald that Peaceful Sky is "not a law. It's a resolution." He also said there "will be no change in how we prioritize the enforcement of marijuana."

Christie's complaint asked that Mahuna, who is retiring Dec. 31, "obey the new ordinance of Hawaii County and to make it clear to his Department that the new law is the will of the people and the law of the land."

Christie also alleged that Mahuna violated a rule stating: "Officers and employees shall conduct their lives in such a manner as to avoid bringing themselves or the department into disrepute."

Christie said Mahuna violated that directive with comments to the press that included, "If you're pro-drug or pro-marijuana, you're automatically pro-terrorist." Mahuna also stated that he believes those with medical marijuana permits are abusing their rights to use the drug, and "I don't think any god wants anybody to be stoned." Christie is the founder of the THC Ministry and said he believes the phrase "God most high" ( Genesis 14:18-19 ) is not a coincidence.

After private deliberations, the commission moved to defer Christie's complaint pending an opinion by state Attorney General Mark Bennett on the "lowest law enforcement priority" initiative, an opinion sought by county Prosecutor Jay Kimura. He told the Tribune-Herald on Nov. 29 the law "appears to violate the separation of powers requirement under the ( County ) Charter and as far as the state marijuana laws, there is a pre-emption issue."

According to county Corporation Counsel Lincoln Ashida, the commission has a rule requiring citizens file complaints against officers within 60 days of the alleged misconduct. The commission's deferral waives that rule to allow Christie to renew his complaint should Bennett rule that Peaceful Sky is, in fact, enforceable.

Christie said that he was treated respectfully by the commission, but was "undersatisfied" with their decision to defer.

"I think they passed the buck somewhat," he said. "It's like we're moving down the field to score and they move the goal posts on us. And they held ( deliberations on the complaint ) in a closed session. Not the best thing for a democracy to have decisions made behind closed doors.

"I do have respect for Lincoln and for everybody on the commission, but it just feels a little funky. But I'm willing to see how this plays out before I give it my final judgment, because I want to be fair to the commission."

Also unsatisfied with the commission's deferral was Adam Lehmann, Peaceful Sky chairman, who said he thinks that it's "embarrassing that both Lincoln Ashida and Jay Kimura, as lawyers, have so much time to study this new ordinance and they're still not able to speak about this new ordinance accurately without any reference to the law."