National Organiization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws Elects New Board Chair, Five New Board Members

Acting at its annual meeting in Washington, DC on February 23, the NORML board of directors elected Ft. Lauderdale, FL attorney and publisher Norm Kent as the new chair of its board, replacing Paul Kuhn from Nashville, TN.

A former board chair Steve Dillon, a respected criminal defense lawyer from Indianapolis, IN was elected to the post of board vice-chair.

Columbia, MO criminal defense attorney Dan Viets retained his position as board secretary, and high-tech businessman Justin Hartfield (founder of WeedMaps), a newly elected board member, was named as board treasurer, replacing CA NORML director Dale Gieringer.

In addition, current board members Steve Dillon, Allen St. Pierre, Keith Saunders and Jeffrey Steinbornwere all re-elected to a new three-year term on the NORML board.

Five new individuals were added to the board, which now includes 20 members from regions all across America. The new directors, who have accepted their positions, include travel author and public television host Rick Steves from Edmonton, WA; Professor Mitch Earleywine, PhD, from Albany, NY; political activist and vice-chair of the NORML Women’s Alliance, Diane Fornbacher from Philadelphia, PA; High Times associate publisher Rick Cusick from Upper Montclair, NJ; and WeedMaps founder and businessman Justin Hartfield from Irvine, CA.

The board tabled action on a number of other individuals who had been nominated for the board.

NORML board chair Norm Kent said “While NORML received the names of more nominees that it could possibly elect to its board, and necessarily tabled some applications, the organization is always seeking new candidates who will widely represent the marijuana law reform movement in terms of gender and ethnic diversity, geographic disparity, age variance, and breath of professional backgrounds.”

The board also gave approval to the NORML Women’s Alliance to spin-off as an autonomous 501(C)(3) non-profit foundation, which will operate in tandem with NORML, but with its own board of directors.

For more information, contact Allen St. Pierre at the national office, 202-483-5500