Marijuana Policy Project

Amidst debate over whether the Board of Regents should take stances on political issues, a proposal by Regent Stavros Anthony to publicly denounce the ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in Nevada narrowly failed.

The measure was one vote shy of the required seven to pass a motion. Four regents voted "no" on the measure. One regent abstained and two did not vote.

Regents Anthony, Thalia Dondero, Dorothy Gallagher, Jack Schofield, Bret Whipple and Michael Wixom voted in support of denouncing the ballot initiative.

Regents Jason Geddes, Linda Howard, Howard Rosenberg and Steve Sisolak voted against it.

Regent James Leavitt abstained and Regents Jill Derby and Mark Alden were absent for the vote.

Anthony, a Las Vegas police chief, said he proposed the item at the Friday Board of Regents meetings because he felt the board should send a message that they don't support use of the drug.

Some of the regents questioned if the board, as a non-partisan entity, should take a stance in what can be perceived as a partisan question.

The regents in favor of the proposal said the question was more ethical than political.

"I don't think this is partisan, it's not Democrat, it's not Republican," Anthony said. "I look at this as right and wrong. I think it is wrong to smoke marijuana and it shouldn't be legalized."

Anthony listed a number of reasons why he felt marijuana use was wrong, including that it is a gateway drug and that marijuana is psychologically addictive. Anthony said if Nevada passed the initiative, it would be the only state in the nation to have legalized marijuana and would put the state in violation of federal law.

Leavitt said he abstained from voting because, regardless of right or wrong, it's not the place of the board to take political stands.

Geddes voted no for the same reasons.

Sisolak said the board has taken political stances before, but only after discussing and meeting with advocates of both sides.

There were no advocates of the marijuana initiative at the meeting.

"We've brought in political candidates, but we've brought in all the political candidates," he said. "I think if we are going to take a political stance then it's fair we look at all sides of the issue."

Rosenberg and Anthony both said they hoped pro-marijuana advocates would have shown up to argue Anthony's points.

Rosenberg was the only regent to argue for the marijuana initiative. He paralleled the marijuana ban to the alcohol prohibition in the 1920s. He said striking down the ballot initiative wasn't the right thing to do.

"I don't think anybody can legislate what a person can or can't do," Rosenberg said. "Let them make their own decision." Schofield said he would never support a pro-marijuana stance for the same reason he would support banning alcohol at football games - people don't act the same under the influence of a controlled substance.

"It's a matter of right and wrong, and as long as I'm on this board I'm going to try and do what's right," he said.

Schofield, 82, said he hated marijuana and wouldn't want any of his grandchildren to be tempted by it.

Before the vote, Dondero said she would vote for Anthony's proposal because legalized marijuana would directly affect students in Nevada. Wixom voted for the proposal for the same reason.

"You're talking about the health, the reasoning of students, their ability to attend classes," Dondero said.