The Mendocino County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 Tuesday to send a letter to state and federal legislators, and even the president, supporting the legalization, regulation and taxation of marijuana.

"After 40 years, I don't think that anybody can deny that what we're doing has failed and failed dramatically," Supervisor John Pinches said of the war on the substance that has become synonymous with Mendocino County. "Whether you love marijuana or you hate marijuana, in my opinion, it makes little sense to have it in the status that it's in right now."

By legalizing the substance, Pinches said a jurisdiction would then be able to regulate it in a way it sees fit. As with alcohol, rules regarding who could purchase marijuana, who could sell it and where it could be sold could be imposed.

In addition, he said, tax collected on the crop valued at approximately $5 billion could practically double county revenues.

Mendocino County Undersheriff Gary Hudson, in attendance at the meeting, however, said "anything that continues to send a message that our county is open to growers or friendly to growers is a concern."

Large-scale gardens on both private and public lands are often protected by the use of violence, and anything that might encourage more people to plant in the county could potentially put the public at greater risk, he said.

Supervisor Michael Delbar cited the county's reputation as a haven for pot growers as his reason for providing the sole vote

"I believe sending a letter asking for legalization is a bad message, the wrong message, to send when we already have a problem," Delbar said. "I don't believe legalization is the answer to it."

Katie Mintz can be reached at udjkm@pacific.net.