Last week, a bill sponsored by Keene Democrat Steven Lindsey proposing some measures to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana reached the floor of the New Hampshire House, seven months after Governor John Lynch vetoed a bill legalizing the medical use of the plant.
Lindsey’s bill would legalize the transport by adults of amounts under a quarter ounce. Those under the age of 18 would get a $200 fine, and the parents would be notified. Youth failing to take a drug awareness class and perform community service would be fined $1,000.
In 2008 the House passed a similar bill that reduced the penalty for carrying a quarter-ounce of pot from potentially a year in jail and a $2,000 fine to a misdemeanor with a $200 fine. The governor vetoed the bill on the grounds that it didn’t have a provision for minors and sent them the wrong message.
