New Hampshire House Votes To Decriminalize Small Amounts Of Pot

Ignoring advice from the House Criminal Justice Committee, the New Hampshire House voted yesterday to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana. Gov. John Lynch quickly threatened a veto if the bill were to pass in the Senate, however Senate Majority Leader Joseph Foster predicts the Senate will kill the bill.

The House Criminal Justice committee voted 13-5 in favor of killing the bill, but the House approved the bill anyways. The House vote gives New Hampshire residents hope that their state may be the 13^th state to decriminalize pot.

The bill would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, however it would still remain a misdemeanor for possessing marijuana in a motor vehicle and a felony for selling marijuana. Opponents of the bill claim it will send a bad message to teens who will think all of the areas of marijuana prohibition have been weakened, while proponents of the bill feel the current penalties for marijuana possession are unjust and disproportionate.

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