Conn. Marijuana Decriminalization Bill Dies in Legislature

A campaign to decriminalize possession of up to half an ounce of marijuana for personal use has ground to a halt in the Connecticut legislature, in part because of a filibuster and an e-mailed threat directed at a bill opponent by a reform advocate.

The Connecticut Post reported May 13 that Republican bill opponent Sen. Antoinietta Boucher held the floor and talked about her concerns about the measure until a committee deadline for action on the measure passed on Tuesday afternoon, effectively killing the bill.

The decriminalization bill had the support of Senate Majority Leader Martin M. Looney, but lost some momentum when Dominic Vita, vice chairman of the state chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, threatened to “go postal” on Boucher for opposing the measure. Vita was subsequently arrested by Capitol police and charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

The threat led committee members to agree to let the bill die in the current session. “I think the threat to Sen. Boucher and the committee overrode any other concern,” said Eileen M. Daily, a Democrat and co-chair of the Senate Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee, who said she otherwise would have voted in favor of the bill. “And out of respect to Sen. Boucher and the committee, we welcomed the debate on the bill as well as the filibustering all day.”

“There are a number of Republican legislators who appear to have reconsidered their position on the bill as the result of the abusive e-mail received by Sen. Boucher,” said Sen. Andrew McDonald. “It’s never appropriate to threaten a legislator as was done in the e-mail sent to Sen. Boucher. There’s no doubt that the e-mail clouded the merits of the issue and mortally wounded its chances.”

There is an off chance that the bill could be considered as an amendment to another piece of legislation, but observers consider that unlikely this year.