MWC Establishes Campus NORML
Dublin Core
Title
MWC Establishes Campus NORML
Subject
Marijuana--Law and legislation
Description
The establishment of the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) at Mary Washington College was the first attempt by any college in Virginia to have this organization on campus. With acting president Michael Mello, MWC NORML will contribute funds to the hiring of a personal lobbyist to go before the General Assembly and hold various meetings with the intention of overcoming apathy regarding marijuana laws.
Creator
Mello, Michael A.
Source
The Bullet
Publisher
HIST 298, University of Mary Washington
Date
1976-09-27
Rights
The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source.
Format
2 JPG
300 dpi
Language
English
Coverage
Fredericksburg, VA
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
[Photo Caption] LOBBYING AGAINST MARIJUANA DECRIMINALIZATION, conducting local polls and obtaining guest speakers are some of the objectives of Mary Washington College's new chapter of the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws.
Legally marijuana is any part of the marijuana plant, except for sterile seeds and the stalks of the major plant. Hashish is marijuana. Hash oil in marijuana only if it contains less than 15 per cent tetra hydro-cannobinol.
In Virginia, the penalty for possession of marijuana of a fan up to $1000 and a jail sentence up to 12 months. Possession of hash oil and other drugs such as heroin and LSD warrants up to ten years in the penitentiary. The penalty for manufacturing marijuana, hashish or hash oil is from five to 40 years in the penitentiary and a fine up to $25,000. The penalty for sale or distribution of marijuana or hash oil is from five to 40 years in the penitentiary and a fine of up to $25,000 -- unless a person proves that he was given away the drug or selling it for no profit, for which case the penalty is the same as that of possession. If a person 18 or over gives any drug, including marijuana to someone under 18 and at least 3 years younger than the donor, the penalty is a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 50 years and a fine of up to $50,000. If a person is found guilty of possession of any drug and he has never been convicted of a drug-related offense before, the judge may put him on probation. After the probationary period the judge may dismiss the case.
The National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) would like to see these laws concerning the criminalization of marijuana changes. The recent establishment of NORML at Mary Washington College is the first attempt by any college in Virginia to have this organization on campus/. Supervised by six faculty advisers and presently headed by Acting President Michael Mello, NORML held its first meeting Thursday, September 23 in Lounge A. There was standing room only.
Roy Sherrer, a registered lobbyist for the Virginians for the Study of Marijuana Laws (VSML), spoke at the meeting.
Lobbyists have made possible the exclusion of drug possession as grounds for legal wiretapping, the change of sharing marijuana from a felony to misdemeanor. They have stopped attempts of search without a warrant of suspicion and they have killed attempts to raise the maximum penalty for selling most drugs to life imprisonment.
MWC's NORML plans to contribute funds to the hiring of a professional lobbyist to go before the General Assembly. The original hopes to conduct surveys concerning opinions on marijuana laws, show movies to the public such as "Reefer Madness," "Marijuana: Assasin of Youth" and "Marijuana: The New Prohibition," and hopes to get several speakers including John Zwerling, head of Virginia NORML.
"The biggest obstacle to pot law reform isn’t the congress in Washington, the state Legislator in Richmond or Judge Gouldman in Fredericksburg. The biggest obstacle is apathy," remarked Mello at the meeting. "So long as we continue to tolerate this prohibition, we will have it around our necks forever. But, when we let our opinions be known by our elected officials these laws will change."
The next NORML meeting will be on Thursday, October 7 in ACL.
Mello commented that he has heard a lot of students did not attend the first normal meeting by fear of harassment by the police or campus administrators.
"There is absolutely no evidence of harassment of any member of NORML by any member of the administration," said Mello. He mentioned the progress he had made towards the decriminalization for marijuana by lobbying before the General Assembly since 1972. For further information concerning membership in NORML. contact Mike Mello at extension 422.
In Virginia, the penalty for possession of marijuana of a fan up to $1000 and a jail sentence up to 12 months. Possession of hash oil and other drugs such as heroin and LSD warrants up to ten years in the penitentiary. The penalty for manufacturing marijuana, hashish or hash oil is from five to 40 years in the penitentiary and a fine up to $25,000. The penalty for sale or distribution of marijuana or hash oil is from five to 40 years in the penitentiary and a fine of up to $25,000 -- unless a person proves that he was given away the drug or selling it for no profit, for which case the penalty is the same as that of possession. If a person 18 or over gives any drug, including marijuana to someone under 18 and at least 3 years younger than the donor, the penalty is a minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 50 years and a fine of up to $50,000. If a person is found guilty of possession of any drug and he has never been convicted of a drug-related offense before, the judge may put him on probation. After the probationary period the judge may dismiss the case.
The National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) would like to see these laws concerning the criminalization of marijuana changes. The recent establishment of NORML at Mary Washington College is the first attempt by any college in Virginia to have this organization on campus/. Supervised by six faculty advisers and presently headed by Acting President Michael Mello, NORML held its first meeting Thursday, September 23 in Lounge A. There was standing room only.
Roy Sherrer, a registered lobbyist for the Virginians for the Study of Marijuana Laws (VSML), spoke at the meeting.
Lobbyists have made possible the exclusion of drug possession as grounds for legal wiretapping, the change of sharing marijuana from a felony to misdemeanor. They have stopped attempts of search without a warrant of suspicion and they have killed attempts to raise the maximum penalty for selling most drugs to life imprisonment.
MWC's NORML plans to contribute funds to the hiring of a professional lobbyist to go before the General Assembly. The original hopes to conduct surveys concerning opinions on marijuana laws, show movies to the public such as "Reefer Madness," "Marijuana: Assasin of Youth" and "Marijuana: The New Prohibition," and hopes to get several speakers including John Zwerling, head of Virginia NORML.
"The biggest obstacle to pot law reform isn’t the congress in Washington, the state Legislator in Richmond or Judge Gouldman in Fredericksburg. The biggest obstacle is apathy," remarked Mello at the meeting. "So long as we continue to tolerate this prohibition, we will have it around our necks forever. But, when we let our opinions be known by our elected officials these laws will change."
The next NORML meeting will be on Thursday, October 7 in ACL.
Mello commented that he has heard a lot of students did not attend the first normal meeting by fear of harassment by the police or campus administrators.
"There is absolutely no evidence of harassment of any member of NORML by any member of the administration," said Mello. He mentioned the progress he had made towards the decriminalization for marijuana by lobbying before the General Assembly since 1972. For further information concerning membership in NORML. contact Mike Mello at extension 422.
Original Format
Newspaper
Contributor of the Digital Item
Clark, Jessica N.
Student Editor of the Digital Item
Williams, Megan
Files
Citation
Mello, Michael A., “MWC Establishes Campus NORML,” HIST299, accessed March 12, 2026, https://hist299.umwhistory.org/items/show/32.