See
How The War On Marijuana Really Works:
Great Journalism That Should Serve As A Template For Local Publications Around The Country.
POT HOLES

Mayor Sue Bauman, responding to Isthmus’ July 30 article on criminal prosecutions for marijuana possession, says she "continues to believe that small amounts of marijuana for personal use should be handled through the Madison ordinance," rather than charged as crimes, as Madison police are now doing in the majority of cases.

Noting that officers have discretion in handling these cases, Bauman says Assistant Police Chief Ted Balistreri "has agreed to review the police reports to determine whether, with hindsight, more citations and less criminal com plaints should have been issued."

"We want to take a look at developing a policy that offers direction to officers,’ says Balistreri, adding that the department wants its enforcement priorities to reflect community opinion. Hopes to have a new interim policy in place in two or three weeks.

Both Bauman and Balistreri are stumped by a claim made by Assistant Dane County District Attorney Ken Farmer in a Feb. 2 memo to District Attorney Diane Nicks that "police are against" reducing charges to city ordinance violations. "I have no idea where Ken Farmer got that information or what he is referring to," says Bauman. Balistreri is meeting with Nicks this week to resolve this and other issues.

Nicks did not return a phone call from Isthmus. But someone from her office did call John Nichols of The Capital Times to chide him for using Isthmus’ story as the basis for an Aug. 4 editorial taking Nicks to task for failing to follow through on campaign promises to make pot prosecutions a low priority.

See
Madison Capital Times Reacts To Isthmus Story On Marijuana Prosecutions:
DA Is On The Spot.
"Tax dollars and lives are being wasted on a fool’s mission that
sensible Madisonians thought they had ended more than two decades ago."