Three
by M. Jas Tynan | 
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When marijuana activists Ron Kiczenski, Craig Steffens and Doug Weissmann heard that it was legal to sell marijuana in Arizona, they knew they had to move there immediately, to join the fight for the cause of legalization. |
On November 1st, 1995, an Arizona judge dismissed marijuana possession charges against Peter Wilson, president of the Arizona chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (AZ4NORML). Northwest Phoenix Justice Court Judge John Barclay cited the double jeopardy clause of the Fifth Amendment to the US Constitution, which essentially states that a person cannot be punished twice for the same crime.
Wilson had purchased a $100 cannabis dealer's license and fifty ounces worth of cannabis tax stamps at $10 per ounce from the Arizona Department of Revenue in July of 1994. He obtained the license under a 1983 Arizona state marijuana and controlled substances tax law, which was passed by conservative lawmakers intent on charging back taxes to convicted drug dealers, in addition to usual criminal penalties. Appropriate Arizona Department of Revenue gram or ounce tax stamps are to be affixed to a container of cannabis within 24 hours of possession.
In his verdict, Judge Barclay ruled against further proceedings "because the tax imposed, prior to prosecution, served a punitive purpose." He supported his judgment with a 1994 US Supreme Court decision that ruled a similar Montana law unconstitutional. The Maricopa County Attorney's office, the prosecutors in Wilson's case, said they plan to appeal Judge Barclay's ruling.
There are many opinions on what the rulingÕs short and long term effects are. Wilson has boldly proclaimed that "pot is legal in Arizona," while law enforcement officials have expressed that they will continue to make marijuana busts as usual. The only certainty in all the confusion is that the word is getting out. Eighty percent of cannabis tax stamps sold since 1983 have been purchased since Judge Barclay's verdict.
Enter Kczenski, Steffens and Weissmann, also known as "Three Hawk." The trio made recent headlines when a jury acquitted them of cultivating marijuana in California. They had planted hemp seeds off a California highway in protest of US laws which forbid industrial hemp farming, and were arrested upon notifying auth orities of their effort.
Kiczenski is also known for sending a quarter pound of pot via registered mail to US President Bill Clinton, along with a letter extolling the vast benefits of hemp, printed on hemp paper. A standard thank-you letter was sent from the President's office in response.
Three Hawk was joined by Richard Davis, founder of the World Cannabis Foundation, and curator of the travelling USA Hemp Museum.
After purchasing their cannabis dealer's licenses in Phoenix on November 27th, the group designed various packaging complete with brand names for their buds. All packaging included extensive information on hemp uses and history. The packages were sold with much success and several press conferences were held, one just outside the offices of the Arizona Department of Revenue.
Kiczenski made it clear in radio interviews that he and his compatriots were going to sell pot at the Super Bowl on January 28th,
and that they felt they would be doing so legally. Law enforcement officials continued to state that the licenses were meaningless and that they would bust the pot activists if they tried to deal at the big game.
Richard Davis was arrested the day before Superbowl Sunday for possessing and selling marijuana, and he was temporarily jailed. The Hemp Museum truck, with approximately half a pound of marijuana and appropriate tax stamps inside, was impounded and remains in police possession. No charges have been filed against Davis, who in 30 years of marijuana activism has yet to be charged with a crime.
"I don't know what's going to happen," said Davis, "but we made every effort to conform with the law, so I don't see how they can charge me. I was trying to legitimately operate a business and they put a stop to it." Davis may file a civil suit of some sort, but is waiting out to see what happens first.
Peter Wilson said he thinks it is outrageous that Davis was arrested. "We have a situation where one judge says 'We have a constitution here,' and another off icial has said 'No we don't,'" explained Wilson. "We're getting back to the kind of complaints that started the American Revolution: the seizure of property without due process."
While rights may be an issue, the concept of selling weed at the Super Bowl made for easy publicity and allowed the activists to get a deeper message across.
"The most important thing isn't our right to get high," explain ed Steffens, "it's our responsibility to our children to take care of our Mother Earth." The Supherb Bowl idea of legal marijuana dealing on Superbowl Sunday may be what gained such vast media attention for the activists, who did over 160 radio interviews and were written up in Time magazine and The Wall Street Journal. On every interview Kiczenski did, he spent much of his time explaining the far-reaching benefits of hemp, environmentally, industrially, and medicinally.
The champions of hemp are now trying to clear the confusion over the cannabis tax in Arizona, by introducing new legislation which would clearly legalize and tax industrial hemp in the state.
"Arizona is owed millions in back taxes from busted drug dealers," explained Kiczenski, "they're never going to get it. With our proposal, the state would receive millions of dollars in marijuana tax moneys, and our planet could be saved from its current path toward environmental destruction. It's that simple." The advocates of the leafy green have spent most of their time since the Superbowl at the state capitol, trying to win support for their proposal. They hope to introduce legislation before the end of the current session in April.
While Kiczenski and company were working the trenches, lobbying the government at the capitol in downtown Phoenix, the first commercial hemp cultivation in America took root on March 17th, just miles away in northeastern Arizona. The Coalition for Hemp Awareness (CHA) and the Native Americans of the Wide Ruins chapter of the Navajo Nation have been working towards this historic planting since 1992, with a resolution outlining the project passed unanimously by the Navajo chapter in 1994.
The first planting was a small seed crop of industrial hemp, but the project has over 30,000 acres of land available for planting. There are currently enough viable seeds to cover four or five acres, but the project needs help finding seeds so more of the available land can be planted. Christie Bohling, founder of CHA, explained that future plans include cultivation projects with tribes in New Mexico.
The future of the law in Arizona may not be certain, but progress is being made, historic progress in terms of the marijuana law reform movement.
"Go to your state governments and let them know about the issues," urged Kiczenski. "They need to be told this information on the benefits of legalizing. Hemp is legally a state's issue, and the state lawmakers we've talked to actually care to listen. They just need to know all of the information, and that we, the voters, believe in hemp. Rallies are an important part of the movement, but we need lobbying as well if we hope to change the laws and improve our world.
"We don't have to wait anymore. Now is the time and we can make a difference."
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