Why is Marijuana still illegal in most of America?

[jessemoore97 1,295]

This is the new Jim Crow in the south - African Americans arrested for possession & jailed for felonies. It has the added bonus of keeping them from voting in elections.

 

Jim Crow been argued the same for the North as well. I call BS and ask the stat crunchers to specifically account for every person who has been incarcerated in PRISON for any significant period for minor/simple possession of MJ. I've seen how the NAACP and other legal defense groups play with statistics in order to make a case for their cause. They conveniently leave out many important factors as it relates incarceration figures.

 

As I maintained in my earlier posts, MJ will be de-criminalized in my lifetime. I don't necessarily have a problem with that if the laws governing intoxication and driving etc, similar to alcohol, are able to be enforced.

[stdntDrvr 12]

This is the new Jim Crow in the south - African Americans arrested for possession & jailed for felonies. It has the added bonus of keeping them from voting in elections.

 

wow...that is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever read on any forum.

[jessemoore97 1,295]

I see the harassment of minority communities every day with the ridiculous stop & frisk policy which leads to countless arrests for possession - disproportionately in minority communities. Now in NYC possession is a misdemeanor, but in many states, it is not.

 

Not being an officer in NYC or seeing first hand what is going on there, I can't speak for everything they are doing. Terry vs Ohio does allow officers to stop if they have reasonable suspicion that the person is involved in a crime or crime is afoot. Now the frisk part of the equation allows for an officer to frisk someone for weapons if the officers has a reasonable belief that they are in danger. Frisking for weapons is different than a search. If the person gave permission or consent for a search or the officers had other PC justifying a search, that is different than a frisk for weapons.

 

Regarding the harassment of the minority community, again I don't know what NYC "stats" on the matter are regarding field contacts, calls for service, etc as it relates to individual race. I will say that profiling is an ugly word tossed around by defense attorneys, Rev Jesse and Al, etc. Profiling is a part of police work and can be a very effective tool for officers in combating crime of all sorts. For instance if I want to combat meth makers, users, and the associated crimes "meth-heads" are involved with, there are certain profiles I'm going to have built into my mind.

 

As an example I'm going to be picking on "whitey", because frankly meth is a white person's drug of choice and I have only known maybe 3-4 minorities who would consider touching the stuff around here. I'm probably going to be targeting older, junker vehicles for traffic stops, because when Bubba and Jimbo are out cooking they aren't doing it in a brand new Caddy. If I want to catch them in crimes besides meth they are more than likely to be involved in, I'll probably hang out around construction sites or businesses that have lots of construction materials ripe for the taking ie copper wire or aluminum. Meth heads are notorious scrap metal thieves and pilferers of construction equipment.

 

I could name other examples but I don't want to offend anyone or rile up the PC crowd.

[lucid 0]

The city was sued over the drug arrests associated with the stop and frisk policy, prompting the governor to introduce legislation making marijuana possession a ticketable offense of $100, preventing the cost of arrests and misdemeanor convictions. Of course the republican senate won't pass it.

 

As for other issues, in 2010 there were 850,000 arrests for marijuana in the country. That constituted 52% of all drug related arrests. Of those, 750,000 were for possession - these figures are from the FBI's own report on the issue. Of course the arrests are hugely disproportionate in minority communities.

 

And, yes I wish I was just cynical, but a large, unspoken motivation behind the continuation of the costly and miserably failing drug war is the disenfranchisement of minorities. Even in the north. There's a reason why the penalties for possession of crack and powder cocaine are so disproportionate - one is a drug of the white, upper middle class & one is a drug of poor minorities. Guess which one usually results in misdemeanor charges?

 

If you're interested in looking at a good aggregator of national articles on marijuana, this looks like a reasonably good site.

marijuana-arrests.com/index.html

[jessemoore97 1,295]

The city was sued over the drug arrests associated with the stop and frisk policy, prompting the governor to introduce legislation making marijuana possession a ticketable offense of $100, preventing the cost of arrests and misdemeanor convictions. Of course the republican senate won't pass it.

 

As for other issues, in 2010 there were 850,000 arrests for marijuana in the country. That constituted 52% of all drug related arrests. Of those, 750,000 were for possession - these figures are from the FBI's own report on the issue. Of course the arrests are hugely disproportionate in minority communities.

 

And, yes I wish I was just cynical, but a large, unspoken motivation behind the continuation of the costly and miserably failing drug war is the disenfranchisement of minorities. Even in the north. There's a reason why the penalties for possession of crack and powder cocaine are so disproportionate - one is a drug of the white, upper middle class & one is a drug of poor minorities. Guess which one usually results in misdemeanor charges?

 

If you're interested in looking at a good aggregator of national articles on marijuana, this looks like a reasonably good site.

marijuana-arrests.com/index.html

 

I haven't read enough about the NYC lawsuit to know what happened. I do know that many local governments will often settle lawsuits, regardless if they are in the right or wrong, because it's "cheaper" to settle than go to court. Risk management is what the city insurers will say. I will say that NYC lawsuit is hardly a new one claiming police wrong doing.

 

FBI statistics are good. However they don't address the issue I have with actual incarceration for simple possession charges. Arrest doesn't even mean they went to jail for an overnight. For instance more often than not I allow a consent to delay on the MJ simple possession, thereby the person goes to jail to fingerprinted/photographed and usually leave under an hour to go home or whereever. They appear in court for the charge at a later date like a traffic citation. It still counts as an "arrest". Many times I may not arrest at all for small quantities, take their stuff and send them on their way.

 

Crack and cocaine for simple possession are the same charge, same penalties. When you begin to discuss weight/amount is when the differences change but not the penalties.

[lucid 0]

Unless I missed something in the last couple of years, though the horrendous rockefeller laws from the '70's were repealed in new york after significant activism by Russell Simmons and others, there still exist federal mandatory minimums which treat 5 grams of crack as the equivalent of 500 grams of powder.

[lucid 0]

Also, when I have some time on my hands this weekend I'll look around for felony jail time stats. Between work & playing a show tonight. I don't have time to look for data right now. Bear in mind that the manner in which police deal with the issue not only varies based in state policy, but local policy as well. One thing that often doesn't show up in national stats is the some 700,000 people locked up in local prisons.

[AlabamaDuck 0]

First of all, congrats to Colorado and Washington for finally doing the right thing on this one.

 

Secondly, let me state, I tried marijuana once in college. Didn't do anything for me and have never felt compelled to try it again. I don't smoke tobacco either. I see it as a total waste of money if nothing else.

 

That said, America needs to pull its head out of its a$$ on this one. When you sit down and look at the facts of the situation, I can't even fathom the logic used to keep it illegal.

 

1) Saying its a gateway drug is a total cop-out. Every person I've ever heard of that do "hardcore" drugs started with smoking tobacco and/or drinking alcohol. So why aren't those gateway drugs? Sorry, that's just total BS to me.

 

2) The stuff is readily available at ANY high school in America. Its everywhere already. The war is over on this one. What's worse is all the money is going to VERY bad men that mean to do America harm. The Mexican drug lords thank American morale victories for their giant mansions and gold plated guns.

 

3) I hear about drunk drivers killing someone nearly every single day. I hear about drunk fathers coming home and abusing their wives and children all the time. I read about smokers getting cancer all the time. Does it suck? Yes. Would society be better off without these drugs? Yes. Is that going to happen? Nope. I don't hear too much about high drivers killing anyone or high fathers coming home and beating their wives and kids.

 

Sorry but at some point you have to pull your head out of the sand, stop with the wishful thinking and address the reality of the situation. I honestly can't even believe people against its legalization think they have a leg to stand on besides "its bad"

 

 

 

You live in a small world. Besides that, you determined all of this after smoking one joint?

You make a good case that Alcohol should be banned also. I agree, ban them both.

[Irish4life 0]

wow...that is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever read on any forum.

 

Agreed... Wow

[Green Goblin 114]

You live in a small world. Besides that, you determined all of this after smoking one joint?

You make a good case that Alcohol should be banned also. I agree, ban them both.

 

If I chain smoked blunts for the next year -- one after the next -- would that magically change the facts that America is more aggressive on marijuana possession than any other country on planet Earth? And that the outcome of years and years of this policy, and hundreds of billions of dollars spent on it, is that marijuana is readily available in EVERY college, every high school, and probably the vast majority of middle schools in America?

 

Ruthless Mexican Cartels thank guys like you for keeping marijuana "illegal". You ever see the stuff they do and buy with all the money that could be going to build schools, roads and healthcare in America, Mr. Small-World? I have. Would you like me to give you a peek?

 

So please tell me, Mr. Small-World, when will this ban on marijuana actually ever start to work?

 

Dope.

Edited November 17, 2012 by Green Goblin

[ND3 0]

If I chain smoked blunts for the next year -- one after the next -- would that magically change the facts that America is more aggressive on marijuana possession than any other country on planet Earth? And that the outcome of years and years of this policy, and hundreds of billions of dollars spent on it, is that marijuana is readily available in EVERY college, every high school, and probably the vast majority of middle schools in America?

 

Ruthless Mexican Cartels thank guys like you for keeping marijuana "illegal". You ever see the stuff they do and buy with all the money that could be going to build schools, roads and healthcare in America, Mr. Small-World? I have. Would you like me to give you a peek?

 

So please tell me, Mr. Small-World, when will this ban on marijuana actually ever start to work?

 

Dope.

 

Are you, perhaps, talking about this?

[jessemoore97 1,295]

Also, when I have some time on my hands this weekend I'll look around for felony jail time stats. Between work & playing a show tonight. I don't have time to look for data right now. Bear in mind that the manner in which police deal with the issue not only varies based in state policy, but local policy as well. One thing that often doesn't show up in national stats is the some 700,000 people locked up in local prisons.

 

That's fine. Look up felony prison stats, I've maintained over and over that people are NOT serving prison time locked away indefinitely for misdemeanor amounts of any drug especially MJ, many barely serve even a few days in jail. What constitutes felony possession? You're right that can and does vary by state.

 

I can absolutely guarantee you that the Feds will not pick up a case based soley on the weight possessed. Other determining factors often go into the decision to indict someone Federally, not just because a police agency submitted it. Reasons may vary case by case, but criminal history, presence of firearms, gang affiliation, type of drug, etc are considered by Fed prosecutors before they file a case against someone. Believe me I know.

 

Again my problem with the pro-MJ campaign is the distorted information about how people charged with mere misdemeanor possession of MARIJUANA are overflowing our nations prison system. This is a complete and utter falsehood that is routinely passed off as fact.

[AlabamaDuck 0]

That's fine. Look up felony prison stats, I've maintained over and over that people are NOT serving prison time locked away indefinitely for misdemeanor amounts of any drug especially MJ, many barely serve even a few days in jail. What constitutes felony possession? You're right that can and does vary by state.

 

I can absolutely guarantee you that the Feds will not pick up a case based soley on the weight possessed. Other determining factors often go into the decision to indict someone Federally, not just because a police agency submitted it. Reasons may vary case by case, but criminal history, presence of firearms, gang affiliation, type of drug, etc are considered by Fed prosecutors before they file a case against someone. Believe me I know.

 

Again my problem with the pro-MJ campaign is the distorted information about how people charged with mere misdemeanor possession of MARIJUANA are overflowing our nations prison system. This is a complete and utter falsehood that is routinely passed off as fact.

 

 

Please don`t confuse GG by using facts. His opinion is much more important.

[Green Goblin 114]

Please don`t confuse GG by using facts. His opinion is much more important.

I see no links to any credible facts or sources. If one watches ESPN for a week, any week, you are assured to see at least one athlete stopped or arrested for marijuana possession. I'm not saying they are imprisoned for all of time but the vastness of the problem creates a huge and unnecessary drag on the taxpayer and the court system.

 

So what is your position exactly? Is it anything beyond, "Bobobo...marijuana's bad for you!"?

 

Can you admit that outlawing marijuana has been a complete and utter failure? That it is readily available in all colleges and high schools coast to coast despite being illegal?

 

Do you deny the fact that the Mexican cartels and terrorist organizations actually benefit monetarily from marijuana being outlawed here?

 

And did you vote for George W. Bush?

Edited November 17, 2012 by Green Goblin