Question by Itstartshere27: What does law enforcement think of the legalization of marijuana?
The Indiana police chief Paul Whitesell just came out and said he is for marijuana legalization.”If it were up to me, I do believe I would legalize it and tax it, particularly in sight of the fact that several other states have now come to that part of their legal system as well”. Also, 73 current and former police officers, judges, prosecutors, and federal agents to Attorney General Eric Holder at the Justice Department asking them to abide the will of the voters in Washington and Colorado. I also have heard personally, current, and former police officers say they wouldn’t oppose marijuana legalization. I was watching a documentary and a detective driving around the streets of New Orleans was saying how he opposes drugs, but that the problem wouldn’t be as big if the consumption wasn’t there. He believed that education is the best prevention, rather than prosecution and incarceration. I took criminal justice in college and my professor (who had over 30 years of LEO experience in NYC and became a detective) said the same exact thing. Now I do believe there are social costs to drug use, but marijuana should not be a Schedule 1 narcotic (along with heroin, meth, and LSD). So I was just wondering, how do other LEO’s feel about it? I for one do not drink, but I do smoke marijuana occasionally when I go out if it is around because I feel it is a safe alternative as long as I am not driving. Thanks.    Read more...