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Marijuana Ranks High in 2012 Local Ballot Initiatives

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WKAR-MSU

The city of Detroit this week officially joined three other cities in Michigan that already placed marijuana questions on their November ballots.

The ballot question will ask Detroiters of they want to decriminalize possessing small amounts of marijuana.       

The Detroit elections board complied with a state Supreme Court order after a two-year fight about whether the question would go before voters. Flint and Grand Rapids will also vote in November on similar measures. The local ordinances would have no effect on state or federal laws that outlaw marijuana possession.

Michigan voters in 2008 approved an amendment that allows certified patients and caregivers to have medical marijuana, but marijuana advocates say there are still too many restrictions on the drug.

Kalamazoo will vote in November on a measure to allow three medical marijuana dispensaries inside city limits after they were all but outlawed last year by the Michigan Court of Appeals.

Rick Pluta is Senior Capitol Correspondent for the Michigan Public Radio Network. He has been covering Michigan’s Capitol, government, and politics since 1987. His journalism background includes stints with UPI, The Elizabeth (NJ) Daily Journal, The (Pontiac, MI) Oakland Press, and WJR. He is also a lifelong public radio listener.
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