A note of marijuana legalization and arrest rates in the United States

Marijuana legalization is a controversial topic in the United States. While Governor Andrew Guomo proposed to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana in public view in May 2012, many Americans viewed the movement of marijuana legalization as “insanity. ” From the criminal justice administration perspective, the motivation for Guomo’s measure is most likely driven by the high number of arrests annually for the possession of small amounts of marijuana. In New York City alone, over 50,000 people were arrested for marijuana possession and those arrests cost the city over $75 million annually. In the era of tight budget for the public sector, the release of budget from the marijuana arrests would help police to focus on fighting against other much severer crimes. Presently, twenty states and the District of Columbia have passed medical marijuana laws legalizing the use and production of medical marijuana for qualifying patients under state law. However, the medical use of marijuana remains illegal under federal law. Patients and providers in the medical marijuana states are still vulnerable to arrest from federal law enforcement. Do medical marijuana legalization states have less marijuana possession arrests? To answer this question, this paper compare marijuana arrest rates before and after medical marijuana legalization in Colorado by examining official data. The finding and related policy implications are noted