Marijuana prosecution causes financial burden, humiliation

Last fall, Dona Saforek, 64, was home alone when the doorbell rang. She opened the door to find three men dressed in plain clothes; she did not know they were members of the Johnson County Drug Task Force. Four hours later, with a total of seven officers present, she was handcuffed and taken to jail (mug shot, fingerprints, strip search) before being celled overnight. She got no dinner because she arrived after 4:30 p.m. and breakfast was a granola bar.

She was released on her own recognizance. Her crime: possessing 42.5 grams of marijuana and failing to have a drug tax stamp.

County Attorney Janet Lyness did not have to prosecute this woman, but did so because her office prosecutes marijuana charges. Saforek was put on leave from her job at Kirkwood Community College, her only source of income, and had to rely on help from friends to pay bills. She worried about how she would survive if she did not get her job back.

The humiliation, mental anguish and financial burden Saforek was subjected to for the act of having marijuana for her own use in her own home is infuriating. How can the county attorney possibly believe these prosecutions are keeping us safe or benefiting society?

Marijuana is a major issue in this campaign and voters who wish to spare people the mental anguish suffered by Saforek and others such as her would be advised to vote for John Zimmerman.

Carol deProsse

Iowa City