6.2. As an illegal drug, marijuana is looked at by the police through three distinct lenses: 1. Its impact on the crime figures; 2. The violence that is associated with the marijuana trade in an attempt to protect turf; and 3. The levels of resources required to fighting the trade, resources they consider could better be directed to more serious crimes. 6.3. Law enforcement personnel also confirmed two important matters. First, they reported that marijuana arrests do focus more on low income communities and persons. Second, they reported that the police often do not enforce the law in full, “turning a blind eye’’, especially for The prohibition of users, because of the belief that the law is too harsh, or unjust for what they see cannabis and as non-violent conduct and because the police have much more important offences to address. criminalization of its 6.4. While there is large support among law enforcement for reform of marijuana laws, there are differing views about the approach, whether decriminalisation, or total removal of prohibitions. However, given the challenge of other serious crimes, this is not considered a priority for senior law enforcement operatives.
users does not deter people from consuming it.
Prohibition is Ineffective and Inefficient
6.5. In the Consultations of the Commission, a significant factor was the repeated information from law enforcement officials, including senior enforcement officers, who saw the current prohibitive laws as not only inefficient and ineffective, but unjust and leading to criminality, because of gangs and drug cartels. 6.6. Law enforcement voices continually emphasise that the relatively high numbers of arrests for cannabis is counterproductive to fighting serious crime initiatives. Information on ages of persons arrested and socio-economic profile reveal that many more men are arrested than women and many of these are young people, at their most productive ages. More importantly, despite draconian laws, such figures did not decrease unless law enforcement used a ‘blind eye’ approach to the problem.
6.7. The views of law enforcement are borne out by the research data worldwide. “The prohibition of cannabis and criminalization of its users does not deter people from consuming it. The evidence on this point is clear: tougher penalties do not lead to lower rates of cannabis use.144 In jurisdictions like Canada where cannabis use is prohibited, large proportions of the population use it nonetheless – often at higher levels than jurisdictions with more relaxed cannabis control regimes – exposing themselves to criminality and risking being caught up in the criminal justice system. People who are already vulnerable are affected disproportionately; evidence suggests that “police often use the charge of cannabis possession as an easy way of harassing or making life difficult for marginalized populations.”145
Law enforcement voices continually emphasise that the relatively high numbers of arrests for cannabis is counterproductive to fighting serious crime initiatives.
6.8. The numbers of persons incarcerated for possession of small amounts of cannabis/ marijuana have remained high over the years, seeing little change except for the recent decriminalisation intervention in Jamaica. Statistics presented by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission for seizures of illegal drugs and the corresponding arrests made in 2000, are
144 145
Room R, Fischer B, Hall W, Lenton S, Reuter P (2010). Cannabis Policy: Moving Beyond Stalemate. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Room et al, ibid, at p. 72.
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