The following letter to the Editor was published in West Hawaii Today on January 15, 2010.
Deputy Prosecutor Rick Damerville testified at the recent committee meeting on marijuana decriminalization held by the Hawaii County Council. During his presentation against the resolution, he trumpeted the words of King James I, who in 1604 issued a proclamation about the health hazards of tobacco.
What Mr. Damerville neglected to mention was that the king did not throw people in jail for possessing a substance used by consenting adults. Such a policy would have filled the jails and reduced productivity across the land. Instead, he took a wiser course. He educated his subjects about the dangers of tobacco and he regulated and controlled its use by applying tax rates as high as six shillings and 10 pence per imported pound.
As a Canadian police officer visiting Hawaii for the first time, I was surprised by Mr. Damerville’s opposition marijuana reform. While off-duty, I volunteer with an international non-profit organization called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. LEAP is group of judges, prosecutors, police officers and correctional staff who seek to end the global war on drugs. We don’t support or encourage drug abuse, or breaking the law. However, we believe that a system of regulation would be more ethical and less harmful than prohibition. We seek gradually to legalize and regulate all drugs in order to minimize the crime, addiction, disease and death generated by the black market for illegal drugs.
Perhaps Mr. Damerville will consider joining us?
David Bratzer
Victoria, BC Canada
