Proposed law might outlaw smoking on beaches, pier
By Daily Press staff — John Wood
Smoking is already a crime in Santa Monica parks. And if some officials have their way, it also will be illegal to light up on the pier or at the beach.
The cost of a ticket? $750.
At the request of Mayor Richard Bloom, the City Council last week voted 6-1 to have staffers draft two new ordinances outlawing smoking and return the laws to be voted on by council members at an upcoming meeting.
Councilwoman Pam O’Connor cast the lone vote against drafting the proposed ordinances.
“It just gets down to it’s a legal entity, smoking, and I still think it’s a free country,” she said. “And it’s a big enough open space that it should be able to accommodate people who smoke, in some areas, and people who don’t smoke.”
O’Connor added that it would be difficult to educate people about the law. But the bottom line, she said, is banning smoking everywhere isn’t right.
“At what point do you say people don’t drive SUVs because they’re polluting my air? When do we stop regulating?” she said. “If it’s legal, people are making their own decisions about it.”
The two laws are expected to be modeled after a February law that made it illegal to light up in area parks. Deputy City Attorney Adam Radisnky said violators of that law pay $750, once all court fees and penalties are totaled.
Bloom said the reasoning behind the laws was clear.
“I’m not going to belabor the importance of this as a health issue in our community, because we have debated the subject a number of times before,” he said.
— John Wood
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 1, 2003. Read the original PDF.