WM GROUP WANTS DRUG-POLICY REFORM

WILLIAMSBURG -- Tyler Smith and his classmates at the College of
William and Mary turned some heads earlier this semester when they
spent a Sunday in the Sunken Garden dressed in hippie gear and took
tokes from hand-rolled cigarettes and a nearly-3-foot-tall water bong.

"We had families walking by and gawking at us," said Smith, adding
that the only thing they were smoking was cherry-flavored tobacco.
"Our point was we can sit here and legally smoke something that is
much worse for us and much more addictive," than marijuana.

The fake "smoke-out" was one of several events held this past year by
a new student organization Smith founded at William and Mary:
Students for a Sensible Drug Policy.

The organization is finishing up its first year as a group recognized
by the college. Smith says the group's mission is to educate people
about national issues pertaining to drug-enforcement laws,
particularly marijuana, and lobby for reform of the college's
policies.

The group wants changes to what they consider a zero-tolerance drug
policy on campus. Smith said the policy severely punishes everyone
caught in violation even if they are experimenting with marijuana for
the first time.

"I'd like the school to be more pragmatic about it," Smith said. "It
should not be treated as a crime if you're not hurting anyone."

He added, "The only victims of pot smoking are a bag of chips and two
hours of free time."

College health officials dispute the group's "harmless" take on
marijuana use and point to research that shows the drug causes
short-term and long-term health problems.

"When you look at marijuana, there are all kinds of risks," said Mary
Crozier, substance-abuse educator at the college. "I see marijuana
dependency, and possibly addiction."

Other long-term effects from marijuana use include respiratory
problems, psychological issues and dependency, she said. Citing
national research, Crozier said the amount of tar and carbon monoxide
in one marijuana joint is equivalent to smoking 20 tobacco cigarettes.

"They're not looking at the whole scope of research that is out
there," Crozier said.

Smith, a junior, started the SSDP chapter at William and Mary after
attending a National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
conference last year in Washington, D.C.

A national organization with 156 chapters at universities and high
schools across the country, SSDP has chapters at other state schools,
including the University of Virginia.

At William and Mary, anywhere from 12 to 20 students meet each
Monday, Smith said. The group also holds events such as the fake
smoke-out and a screening of the documentary film "Grass."

Smith said campus issues are just one part of the organization's
mission. He said it plans to bring speakers to campus next year to
address national SSDP issues such as changes to the Drug-Free Student
Aid Provision, an amendment to the Higher Education Act of 1998, a
provision that denies students with past drug convictions access to
federal financial aid.

Other issues include lobbying against drug testing in schools and
lobbying for more state and federal money for drug treatment instead
of building more prisons, Smith said.

"Why don't we find a more efficient way - a more humanitarian way -
to treat non-violent drug offenders?" Smith asked. "And keep the real
violent criminals behind bars."

Sam Sadler, vice president for student affairs, said Smith's group is
recognized as an official student organization, and they have a right
to advocate for whatever change they want.

But, he added, "I don't look for any change," to the college's drug policies.

According to the William and Mary Student Handbook, sanctions for
manufacturing or distributing drugs on campus range from suspension
to dismissal. Sanctions for possessing drugs on campus range from
probation to dismissal. The students also face criminal prosecution.
Many other colleges in the state, including U.Va., enforce similar
policies.

According to Sadler, there were 21 on-campus drug arrests in 2000 -
the latest calendar year for which statistics are available - and all
but four involved non-students. Sadler said punishment in the four
cases involving students ranged from probation and removal from
student housing for a minor offense to dismissal in a case involving
a larger amount of drugs.

"We look at every situation and judge every situation on its own
merits," said Sadler.

A student found using marijuana in a dorm is likely to be removed
from campus housing, put on probation and possibly suspended, he
added.

"What the students are talking about is illegal behavior," he said.
"We simply can't condone that and we will respond to it every time we
have evidence that someone has violated the law."