Most
Wisconsinites would likely be very surprised to learn that if they’ve
simply possessed marijuana on two or more occasions, no matter how tiny
the amount, they’ve committed a felony under current Wisconsin law. It’s
a draconian, outdated law that needs to be changed.
Marijuana use in the United States is higher than ever. It is estimated that well over 100 million Americans have used it. Ever since Gallup began asking Americans whether they have tried marijuana, the percentage of people who answered “yes” has gone from 4% in 1969 to 44% in 2015.
As Americans recognize the abject failure of the “War on Drugs”, especially as it relates to marijuana, the move away from harsh penalties continues in many areas of the country. Some states have legalized marijuana for recreational use. Other states have legalized it for medicinal use. Some municipalities have decriminalized simple possession by essentially choosing not to prosecute persons for small amounts of marijuana.
The data is clear: Decades of research demonstrates that harsher and harsher penalties for possession of marijuana and billions of dollars spent annually to enforce the law have not stifled usage of marijuana; in fact, marijuana usage has gone up.
Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana. The medicinal benefits of marijuana are still debated, but the trend is moving toward recognizing benefits, such as nausea relief from chemotherapy. Cannabidiol (CBD), a marijuana extract, has been shown to be effective at reducing seizures as a life-saving treatment.
Medical research and pleas from parents of children with forms of epilepsy and other ailments have led to some states relaxing the rules prohibiting CBD. But in Wisconsin, our legislators recently failed to vote on legislation that would have allowed parents to have legal access to CBD oil.
Cannabis is still listed as a Schedule I substance according to the Controlled Substances Act, the highest classification for a drug. Marijuana is, for example, classified on the same level as heroin under the act, meaning it is considered to have no medicinal value and be highly addictive. But now, even the Drug Enforcement Administration is considering re-classifying marijuana to a less restrictive category.
A majority of Americans, 53 percent, support marijuana legalization, according to 2015 Pew Research polling. This finding may not be surprising given the far more disastrous effects that alcohol (a legal substance) has on people every day; especially in Wisconsin where we have the highest binge-drinking rate in the nation. Nearly 70 percent of Americans believe that alcohol is more harmful to health than marijuana.
The prohibition on marijuana possession places an incredibly heavy burden on valuable law enforcement resources. In 2012, FBI statistics showed that there were 658,000 arrests for marijuana possession and only 256,000 for “cocaine, heroin and their derivatives.” Enforcing possession of marijuana laws is extraordinarily costly; almost $4 billion annually in the United States is spent on the effort.
Wisconsin prosecutors have
discretion in charging, but it is common for persons facing second
offense possession of marijuana to be charged as felons, given the state
of our law.Marijuana use in the United States is higher than ever. It is estimated that well over 100 million Americans have used it. Ever since Gallup began asking Americans whether they have tried marijuana, the percentage of people who answered “yes” has gone from 4% in 1969 to 44% in 2015.
As Americans recognize the abject failure of the “War on Drugs”, especially as it relates to marijuana, the move away from harsh penalties continues in many areas of the country. Some states have legalized marijuana for recreational use. Other states have legalized it for medicinal use. Some municipalities have decriminalized simple possession by essentially choosing not to prosecute persons for small amounts of marijuana.
The data is clear: Decades of research demonstrates that harsher and harsher penalties for possession of marijuana and billions of dollars spent annually to enforce the law have not stifled usage of marijuana; in fact, marijuana usage has gone up.
Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana. The medicinal benefits of marijuana are still debated, but the trend is moving toward recognizing benefits, such as nausea relief from chemotherapy. Cannabidiol (CBD), a marijuana extract, has been shown to be effective at reducing seizures as a life-saving treatment.
Medical research and pleas from parents of children with forms of epilepsy and other ailments have led to some states relaxing the rules prohibiting CBD. But in Wisconsin, our legislators recently failed to vote on legislation that would have allowed parents to have legal access to CBD oil.
Cannabis is still listed as a Schedule I substance according to the Controlled Substances Act, the highest classification for a drug. Marijuana is, for example, classified on the same level as heroin under the act, meaning it is considered to have no medicinal value and be highly addictive. But now, even the Drug Enforcement Administration is considering re-classifying marijuana to a less restrictive category.
A majority of Americans, 53 percent, support marijuana legalization, according to 2015 Pew Research polling. This finding may not be surprising given the far more disastrous effects that alcohol (a legal substance) has on people every day; especially in Wisconsin where we have the highest binge-drinking rate in the nation. Nearly 70 percent of Americans believe that alcohol is more harmful to health than marijuana.
The prohibition on marijuana possession places an incredibly heavy burden on valuable law enforcement resources. In 2012, FBI statistics showed that there were 658,000 arrests for marijuana possession and only 256,000 for “cocaine, heroin and their derivatives.” Enforcing possession of marijuana laws is extraordinarily costly; almost $4 billion annually in the United States is spent on the effort.
To be sure, marijuana can be abused and is not without societal costs, but that does not justify the felony classification for persons convicted of possessing marijuana on more than one occasion.
It is nearly impossible to overemphasize the negative effects that a felony conviction has on a person’s chances at success in life. It is like a scarlet letter - job prospects close, housing options dry up, educational opportunities vanish, friends disappear. The effects are especially detrimental to young people just starting out in life. We are supposed to reserve felony offenses for the most serious of crimes.
The “Gateway Drug” theory, which essentially says that marijuana use leads to the use of harder drugs like heroin and meth, is grossly overemphasized. Research shows that the majority of persons who use marijuana never go on to use any other drug.
A peer-reviewed study published by the Journal of School Health concluded that the gateway theory is associated with alcohol, rather than marijuana use. Persons who do use harder drugs are likely to do so because of far more powerful influencing factors, such as their social environment, negative peer groups, mental illness, and poverty.
Wisconsin is among the harshest states when it comes to making simple possession of marijuana for a second or subsequent offense, no matter how tiny the amount, a felony offense punishable by up to 3.5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, or both. It is long past time to revisit ours draconian laws regarding possession of marijuana.
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