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Medical Marijuana-Hating Assemblyman Busted For Pot Possession
By
Garth Johnston
Published Mar 15, 2013
Modified Mar 15, 2013
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Mar 15, 2013
Modified Mar 15, 2013
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If you had to be stuck in Albany amidst the budget negotiations wouldn't you want to be high? That, at least, is our response to the fact that Republican Assemblyman Steve Katz was charged with marijuana possession after a traffic stop on the New York State Thruway yesterday morning.
The 59-year-old Katz, 59, was pulled over after allegedly driving 80 MPH in a 65 zone at around 10 a.m. yesterday. According to a state police spokeswoman, the trooper who pulled Katz over "noticed an odor of marijuana" coming from the car and upon further inspection found a small bag containing less than 25 grams of pot.
The conservative Katz—who was first elected to the state Assembly in 2010, was re-elected last November and sits on the Assembly committees for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse and Higher Education.—voted "no" on a bill to legalize marijuana last June (it passed 91-52 but never came to a vote in the Senate). He has been charged with possession of marijuana and speeding and was released on an appearance ticket. He's due back in court on March 28. A spokeswoman at his district office in Mahopac said Katz had no immediate comment but was planning to issue a statement later Friday or on Saturday.
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