Miss Teen Louisiana, Lindsey Evans, Loses Her Crown

Two of the most notable effects of marijuana use are that it makes a person hungry and it makes a person forgetful. Maybe that's what was happening with Lindsey Evans, Miss Teen Louisiana, over the weekend.

First, being hungry, Lindsey Evans was hanging out with a trio of friends on Saturday in Bossier City, La. They ran a tab of $46.07, which means they must have been eating pretty good, but they departed without paying the check.

That could have been either a petty crime, or forgetfulness. But a definite act of forgetfulness was that Lindsey Evans left her pocketbook behind. Police said they found her driver's license inside, along with the pot. Charges and criminal penalties are pending, but one immediate consequence is that 18-year-old Lindsey Evans no longer is Miss Teen Louisiana. The sponsor, RPM Productions Inc., stripped her of the crown on Tuesday. She was scheduled to give it up anyway on Nov. 1, but the pageant directors felt that they couldn't just wait it out.

The inevitable jokes and barbs and ridicule already are underway. One of the themes is that for Lindsey Evans to not only conduct a restaurant no-pay walkout, but to leave behind a pocketbook with marijuana inside, shows that somebody in Louisiana is dumber than members of the Spears' family.

Is it possible that even though the public likes a juicy story, maybe folks could give this a rest? We've had presidents of the United States, and Supreme Court nominees, who have admitted to smoking the stuff. When New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was asked if he ever had partaken, he answered, "You bet I did. And I enjoyed it." Past or president board members for the National Association for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, NORML, include such luminaries as county singer Willie Nelson (surprised?), political satirist Bill Maher, and comic/actor Woody Harrelson.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that 15 percent of 10th grade students - a couple years younger than Lindsey Evans - say that have imbibed in pot at some point during the past month. Among high school seniors, the ratio is 20 percent.

Lindsey Evans' behavior is not to be condoned, but a good number of people will say that removal of her Miss Teen Louisiana crown is a sanctimonious and extreme act.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hHIMp7jlMrKpUKakbxa57N_4h-vgD93VL1AG2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Organization_for_the_Reform_of_Marijuana_Laws