Legal Commentary

Drug Czar and Obama Make Strong Statement Against Legalizing Marijuana

By Jeralyn

Newsweek has a copy of the March, 2010 draft of the much delayed National Drug Control Strategy (available here.) It makes a strong statement against legalizing marijuana.

Keeping drugs illegal reduces their availability and lessens willingness to use them. That is why this Administration firmly opposes the legalization of marijuana or any other illicit drug. Legalizing drugs would increase accessibility and encourage promotion and acceptance of use. Diagnostic, laboratory, clinical, and epidemiological studies clearly indicate that marijuana use is associated with dependence, respiratory and mental illness, poor motor performance, and cognitive impairment, among other negative effects , and legalization would only exacerbate these problems. (my emphasis.)

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The plan touts its increased funding for drug prevention and treatment, but there's a lot of troubling things in the enforcement section, aside from the predictable enhance the border and spend more money in Africa projects.

Like supporting a zero tolerance proposal for DUID (driving under the influence of drugs):

Fifteen states have passed laws clarifying that the presence of any illegal drug in a driver’s body is per se evidence of impaired driving. ONDCP will work with states to expand the use of this standard to other states and explore other ways to increase the enforcement of existing DUID laws.(emphasis supplied.)

Indoor marijuana grows will face increased busts:

The use of indoor grow operations and other technological advances have enabled traffickers to increase the potency of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis plants. In 2008, DEA and partner agencies seized in excess of 4,100 indoor grow operations.... DEA, in coordination with state, and local agencies, must aggressively deploy resources as efficiently as possible in close partnership with state agencies to eradicate the marijuana and dismantle organizations that produce it.

Watch out for your cash, increased emphasis will be placed on seizing it. The plan calls for treating bulk cash the same as drugs. And, they will ramp up prosecutions of those found with cash, to convert them into snitches and help them with controlled buys of drugs.

Drug War Rant weighs in here.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on May 03, 2010 (boomark / email).