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Investigator Says Marijuana As Socially Acceptable As Alcohol
Jeff Dankert | Winona Daily News | 02/21/2006

Marijuana is as common and socially acceptable as alcohol, according to a Winona County sheriff’s investigator talking Monday about local drug and alcohol problems and a recent marijuana bust.

Kraig Glover said marijuana remains a popular recreational drug with a wide belief among young adults that pot is harmless.

“It’s quite a bit like alcohol,” Glover said. “It’s socially acceptable.”

Marijuana also is more statutorily acceptable in Minnesota. While possession of even the smallest fragment of cocaine, methamphetamine or heroin is a felony, 42.5 grams or less of marijuana constitutes only a petty misdemeanor punishable by a fine up to $200.

Glover pointed to an epidemic of drug-related traffic deaths of Lewiston-Altura students in the past five years as a sign of the growing drug problem. However, when asked what drugs caused these accidents, Glover said alcohol was the main cause.

Glover questioned the effectiveness of the War on Drugs and said local investigators may start focusing more on users. Most busts focus on dealers with a philosophy this will cut off the flow and drug use will drop.

It hasn’t. This was the admission last year from Winona Police Chief Frank Pomeroy and one of the city’s drug investigators, who said a broad user base attracts other dealers to replace those arrested.

In late January and early February, Glover, other officers and police informants made three undercover buys of 16 grams of marijuana at a Goodview apartment.

On Feb. 7, officers used a search warrant to enter the apartment, recovered marijuana, questioned two women and released them. One suspect is a 33-year-old Goodview resident and the other is a 19-year-old graduate of Lewiston-Altura High School.

Glover recommends the county attorney’s office charge them with selling marijuana and possession with intent to sell, as well as child endangerment because a child was in the apartment during one undercover buy, he said.

Reporter Jeff Dankert can be reached at (507) 453-3513, or e-mail jdankert@winona dailynews.com.

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