Maine Democrat Lawmakers Move to Soften Crack Cocaine Laws, Citing Systemic Inequality | Cannabis Law Report | Where to buy Skittles Moonrock online

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A Democrat-led bill aimed at softening the criminal possession thresholds for crack cocaine was advanced by the Maine Legislature’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee after a work session on Thursday.

State Rep. Nina Milliken (D-Blue Hill) sponsored LD 1366, “An Act to Amend Certain Provisions of the Drug Laws Related to Cocaine Base,” to address what she believes to be longstanding injustice in Maine’s drug laws.

The bill, cosponsored by Portland Democratic Rep. Grayson Looker, proposes eliminating the stricter criminal possession limits for cocaine base — more commonly referred to as crack cocaine — and to bring them in line with the criminal possession thresholds for powder cocaine.

Under current state law, possession of more than four grams of crack cocaine is a Class B crime of unlawful possession of scheduled drugs. The threshold for powder cocaine under the same statute is 14 grams.

The bill would also remove language specific to crack cocaine from the criminal code for the Class A crime of aggravated illegal importation of cocaine that establishes a threshold of 32 grams for crack cocaine, to bring it in line with the higher threshold of 112 grams for powder cocaine.

“This is not just a matter of policy – it’s a matter of justice,” said Rep. Milliken when introducing her bill to the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee during an April 14 public hearing.

“Crack has long been associated with lower-income communities, while powder cocaine is more often linked with wealthier, white individuals,” Milliken said. “The disparity in the law, in effect, punishes people more harshly not based on the drug itself, but based on who they are and where they come from.”

Milliken claimed that state law as it stands leads to low-income Mainers being more likely to be arrested for possession of crack and to face more serious charges, while “someone in a more affluent neighborhood” would face lesser charges for “essentially the same conduct.”

“That is not justice–it is a clear reflection of systemic inequality,” she said.