Meet The Group Of Cops That Are Fighting For Marijuana Legalization

Flowering_male_marijuana_plantSurprisingly, there are actually a number of police officers in the US who are working to end prohibition because they have recognized that it does not work and that it causes numerous other problems in society, namely crime and gang violence.

One of the leading groups of law enforcers working to end the drug war is LEAP or Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.  According to their official website, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition is an international 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization of criminal justice professionals who bear personal witness to the wasteful futility and harms of our current drug policies.

However, there are obviously many police who see financial benefits from the war on drugs, and many more who have refused to look past the propaganda, so this group is incredibly controversial in police departments.

A recent report in Florida showed the divide among many in law enforcement on the issue of marijuana.

“Sixty-thousand people get arrested every year for marijuana possession. That’s a waste of law-enforcement resources,” Ray Strack of LEAP told reporters.

However, Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummel is opposed to the group working in his district.

“No, I don’t want to see that in Florida. We want to be known for our sunshine, our beaches, and Mickey Mouse. We don’t want to be known for marijuana. I’m just kind of surprised that fellow law enforcement are ‘pro’ this,” Prummel said.

Prummel went on to claim that drug users are career criminals and should be in jail anyway.

“I don’t see it as a waste of time because, like I stated before, they’re likely involved in something else, or they’re going to expand into something,” he said.

Strack of LEAP argued that marijuana would be safer if it was sold on the legal market.

“We believe strongly in a regulated market. That’s what we have [with] alcohol and tobacco,” said Strack.

According to the Oregon Retailers of Cannabis Association, the state sold over $11 million dollars worth of marijuana in the first week of legalization. The sales in Oregon on the first week actually outshined both Colorado and Washington state where the plant was legalized just a few years ago.

A new study, published in the journal, ‘Scientific Reports,’ suggests that smoking cannabis is roughly 114 times safer than drinking alcohol. Ironically, out of all the drugs that were researched in the study, alcohol was actually the most dangerous, and it was the only legal drug on the list.

Prohibitions of any kind should be opposed, for the reasons I have laid out in the past. However, marijuana is of a specific immediate importance, though, because of its ability to heal sick people and create more environmentally friendly industrial products. It is also one of the safest drugs known to our species.

ABC-7.com WZVN News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral


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John Vibes is an author and researcher who organizes a number of large events including the Free Your Mind Conference. He also has a publishing company where he offers a censorship free platform for both fiction and non-fiction writers. You can contact him and stay connected to his work at his Facebook page. You can purchase his books, or get your own book published at his website www.JohnVibes.com.

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