INSIDE: Trifling with truffles, Island Life, A10
Record South Whidbey
saturDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2012 | Vol. 88, No. 90 | www.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.com | 75¢
County takes initiative to stop prosecuting pot users BY JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter The day when adults old enough to drink alcohol and smoke pot without fear of handcuffs may be close at hand, or already here. The initiative legalizing marijuana already has had an impact in Island County, even though it’s not set to go into effect until Dec. 6. Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks said his office will no longer prosecute marijuana possession cases that fall under the “safe harbor provisions” of the new law. Specifically, that refers to adults
21 years old and older who possess an ounce or less of pot. Moreover, Banks said his office is throwing out current cases in which an individual was charged with pot possession, if the case falls under the safe harbor provision. He said about 12 cases will be dismissed. Banks said his office could technically still prosecute those pot cases, since they occurred before the initiative was even voted on. But he said that would be pointless. “I don’t think a jury is going to convict in this county given the overwhelming support for the measure,” he said.
Initiative 502, the measure to legalize marijuana, was supported by nearly 56 percent of Island County voters, according to the latest count. That’s just slightly ahead of statewide results, which have just over 55 percent of voters in support of legal pot. Island County Sheriff Mark Brown said he hasn’t made any policy changes yet regarding marijuana, but he said deputies obviously won’t arrest people 21 years old and older for possessing an ounce or less of pot starting Dec. 6. He said it will be a bit of a culture shift in the office. He’s invited an officer from the state Liquor Control Board, which will regulate marijuana, to talk with law enforcement officials on the island. “Not to say I was in favor of the initiative, but now it’s important to move forward in a practical way,” he said. The initiative creates a per se limit of blood THC level for driving under the influence. Since there is no breath test for pot, a suspect would have to undergo a blood test.
Ben Watanabe / Record file
Smoking cannabis, like this grown on South Whidbey, will soon be legal in Washington. Brown points out that the medical marijuana law is still on the books; it allows people with a doctor’s authorization to possess larger
amounts of pot. See Pot, A8
Levy lift approval floods South End fire district with work BY BEN WATANABE Staff reporter South Whidbey Fire/EMS will have its money. Thanks to almost 60-percent voter approval of the district’s levy lift Tuesday, the South End’s firefighters and EMTs avoided service and staff cuts. “We greatly appreciate the support the community has given us,” said Fire Chief Rusty Palmer. “Residents are going to see the continued response,” he added. “We won’t have to cut back our level of service. Had we not gotten it, we would have been in some dire straits.” As of Thursday, the levy lift was approved by 5,785 voters (about 59 percent). The lift needed a simple majority for approval, which will increase the levy from 61 cent per $1,000 of assessed valuation to 76 cents. Depending on property values, which will soon be determined by Island County, South Whidbey Fire/EMS’ $2.2 million budget will increase by about $500,000. “We’re going to be really conservative with the money this year to not get to this point again … so we don’t have to come back to the citizens for a long, long time,” Palmer said. “It’s a lot of money, we understand that,” he added. “We’re going to take our time to make sure we’re frugal with it.” Fire commissioners and Palmer may take their time, but they already know how the money will be spent. A $200,000 revenue decrease over the past few years forced Palmer to delay a long list of maintenance issues for facilities and engines. Seven district-owned vehicles including general work trucks and fire engines need to be replaced. New fire engines range from $120,000 to $1.5 million, depending on its abilities. Last year, the district retired one of its oldest engines after 24 years in service. Some of the district’s engines have served long past their projected work life of about 15 years. “As I look out 20 years from now, we’ve got millions of dollars of capital funds to replace during that time,” Palmer said. Money became more scarce this year when the district
Ben Watanabe / The Record
Charlie Bieber and Clinton station Lieutenant Gary Guernsey demonstrate the fire engine’s capabilities. The rig is one of South Whidbey Fire/EMS’s newest, but is part of a fleet with seven vehicles in need of repairs or replacing. learned its Maxwelton and Bayview stations required asbestos abatement. Bringing the stations up to code will cost about $63,000, but the district had only budgeted $36,000 for general maintenance issues at the stations. Increased insulation in the ceilings, energy-efficient lighting and replacing furnaces with heat pumps will be added to the abatement project, which will be delayed until December. “It really sucked down the funding we needed,” Palmer said.
Opponents of the levy lift urged the district to consider new financial policies. South Whidbey Fire/EMS has been a debt-free agency for some 20 years, largely because of a commissioners’ policy. It’s a rule the current commissioners, Chairman Kenon Simmons, Mike Helland and Bob Elliott, See Levy, A8