Mitch Daniels' Pot Luck

HYPOCRISY WATCH

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Governor's Escape From Prison Taught Him Importance Of Being Tough On Drug Users

Reason

Mitch Daniels, Indiana's governor, told The Daily Princetonian that "justice was served" when he was arrested for marijuana possession during his junior year at Princeton. But like many pot smokers who became politicians, Daniels, a potential contender for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, seems to have two standards of justice: one for him and one for anyone else who does what he did.

Although Daniels was caught with enough marijuana to trigger a prison sentence, he got off with a $350 fine. Yet he has advocated "jail time" for "casual users"—a stark illustration of the schizophrenic attitudes that help perpetuate drug policies widely recognized as unjust.

According to the Princetonian, "officers found enough marijuana in [Daniels'] room to fill two size 12 shoe boxes." Under current New Jersey law, possessing more than 50 grams (about 1.8 ounces) of marijuana is a felony punishable by up to 18 months in prison. Given the amount of pot Daniels had, he easily could have been charged with intent to distribute, which under current law triggers a penalty of three to five years.

At the time of Daniels' arrest in May 1970, New Jersey's marijuana penalties were even more severe. Six months after his arrest, the New Jersey Supreme Court decided a case involving an 18-year-old who received a sentence of two to three years in prison after police found a pot pipe and part of a joint in his house.

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Daily Princetonian

After Mitch Daniels ’71 was arrested, indicted and convicted on charges of drug use as an undergraduate in May 1970, he said that he thought his aspiring political career was doomed. “Any goal I might have had for competing for public office were shot,” he told The Daily Princetonian in September 1988.

More than 20 years later, Daniels, now the governor of Indiana, has proved his own nay-saying wrong, emerging as a national political figure that many speculate will make a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. His four years at Princeton, most prominently marked by the legal problems of his junior year, reveal a complicated man that bridged seeming contradictions in both his academic and extracurricular lives.

Perhaps the most pivotal day of Daniels’ four years at Princeton was May 14, 1970 — the day of the drug arrest that Daniels thought would sully his political future. Officers found enough marijuana in his room to fill two size 12 shoe boxes, reports of the incident say. He and the other inhabitants of the room were also charged with possession of LSD and prescription drugs without a prescription. Daniels and his two roommates in 111 Cuyler Hall, Marc Stuart ’71 and Richard Stockton ’71, were arrested and, after plea bargaining, Daniels eventually escaped with a $350 fine for “maintaining a common nuisance.” The charges against Stockton were eventually dropped.

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Comments

[S. Gompers]

Don't worry, Mitch Daniels won't run. He has done such a "wonderful" job privatizing prisons, and screwing up protecting children from abuse.

http://revealtruth.new.newsvine.com/_news/2008/03/25/1390232-child-protection-services-a-human-trafficking-business-for-federal-money-to-profit-states

http://www.indianapolisrecorder.com/opinion/article_bf8707be-9ef3-59b5-a09b-66bb900dfbbe.html

http://mothersoflostchildren.wordpress.com/category/child-protective-services/

We won't even go into the states new warrant less searches. Police state anyone?

[TaterSalad]

We can now add that Barack Obama used cocaine before, by his own admission with NO charges!.

[Cheyenne]

Merciful Jesus, that's about 4 pounds of weed, putting the "punishment" at about 20 cents a gram. Indiana pols are the worst. Here in Vietnam, ex-Rep. Mark Souder was a multi-term Republican who never came across a bailout or a war he didn't like. Styling himself a Christian, he made a mock-interview video with a cute assistant who probed Mark about the benefits of abstinence education. Turns out Mark was in turn probing her, quite literally, on the side, which led to his ignominious resignation. I think he teached ethics now at Da Nang University.

Is it any wonder Indiana is a police state? It's gotten so bad that not even the AG can defend the IN Supreme Court's wholesale annihilation without a paper bag over his head. The lead prosecutor himself, despite his "success," is calling for reconsideration.

Word to the wise: if you ever drive through NE Indiana, wear your seat belt and set the cruise control to match the speed limit. It's seriously un-chill around here.

[Jack F. Sneed]

Mr. Daniels.....you got caught doing the very last thing you needed to be caught doing.....and you paid a fine. I don't know what all went into the courts deciding to fine you rather than hitting you with a stiffer penalty.....but you probably "got on your knees " maybe for the first time in your life and thanked God for protecting your future political career.

My goodness, if I had been caught doing all the things I actually did while in High School and college, I probably would still be in jail and I 72 today.....and I think a whole lot of us can say the very same thing. I had no political aspirations, but I did have some ministerial aspirations.....and let me tell you, some of the stuff I did really does not do my resume any good at all....BUT I DID NOT GET CAUGHT!

I am glad you got "straightened out, as you continued to "grow up" and begin your real "adult" life....and I am glad you are not afraid to "stick it to anyone that fools with drugs" ---- maybe it will have the same affect. that it had on you and straighten out another young man or woman!..