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veggie

Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 17,504
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Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor
#14275884 - 04/12/11 12:16 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor, not felony April 11, 2011 - Los Angeles Times
A strong majority of California voters believe the penalty for possession of a small amount of an illegal drug for personal use should be reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor, according to a poll released Monday by organizations seeking to relax drug laws.
The survey conducted by a professional polling firm found that almost 75% of California voters likely to cast ballots in 2012 believe the crime should be downgraded to a misdemeanor. And 40% went even further, saying they think it should be dropped to an infraction, which is the equivalent of a speeding ticket and carries no prison time.
The poll did not define what is considered a small amount of a drug. Possession of controlled substances, such as cocaine and heroin, is a felony, although charges are sometimes reduced. Marijuana is treated separately, and possession of an ounce or less is an infraction. A majority of voters also said California sends too many people to prison. And almost 75% agreed that in the midst of a budget crisis, the state should instead use the millions of dollars spent to imprison drug users on schools, healthcare and law enforcement.
"The point here is that this is an overwhelming majority of California voters," said Margaret Dooley-Sammuli, the deputy state director for Southern California for the Drug Policy Alliance, a national organization that supports efforts to reduce drug sentences. "Californians don't want to waste money on incarcerating people for drug possession. They'd rather see that money go for something else."
The poll was released by the Drug Policy Alliance along with the ACLU of Northern California in San Francisco and the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in Oakland. It was designed and administered by Lake Research Partners, a Democratic polling firm.
Support for reducing drug possession penalties crosses party lines, drawing favor from substantial majorities of Democratic, Republican and nonpartisan voters. Most voters in every region of the state also back the change. Voters also indicated they are more inclined to reelect state lawmakers who vote to reduce the penalties for drug possession.
Nearly a quarter of the voters surveyed said Californians caught with a small amount of an illegal drug for personal use should not spend any time behind bars, while 27% said they should be locked up for less than three months. Just 8% suggested incarceration for a year or more.
The statewide poll surveyed 800 voters who intend to vote in the 2012 general election. They were questioned between March 21 and 24. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
The results and analysis can be viewed at www.lakeresearch.com.
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AbstraKt_I_Am


Registered: 12/21/10
Posts: 1,898
Loc: Abroad.
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: veggie]
#14276438 - 04/12/11 03:21 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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If this goes through and a small amount means a little bit of mushies, DMT, LSD ect.. Then I think Cali is worth the move.
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Joolz


Registered: 09/19/10
Posts: 3,614
Last seen: 11 years, 2 months
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: AbstraKt_I_Am]
#14276448 - 04/12/11 03:28 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Job market is pretty shitty though. The weed market is super saturated, so if you just wanna buy to smoke that's a plus!
-------------------- Prohibition didn't work for God; Eve ate the fruit.
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AbstraKt_I_Am


Registered: 12/21/10
Posts: 1,898
Loc: Abroad.
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: Joolz]
#14276556 - 04/12/11 04:57 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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I thankfully have decent income, If I did growing in Cali. Id be an asshole and let my pounds go for half of the average street price. I undercut people where I currently live. They hate me
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Alan Rockefeller
Mycologist


Registered: 03/10/07
Posts: 48,276
Last seen: 11 hours, 44 minutes
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: veggie]
#14276689 - 04/12/11 06:27 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
Joolz said: Job market is pretty shitty though.
No its not.
Quote:
veggie said: The survey conducted by a professional polling firm found that almost 75% of California voters likely to cast ballots in 2012 believe the crime should be downgraded to a misdemeanor. And 40% went even further, saying they think it should be dropped to an infraction, which is the equivalent of a speeding ticket and carries no prison time.
Excellent use of statistics. When my paycheck comes I am definitely giving some of it to the DPA. When I saw the title of this article I knew they were behind this, no one else does this kind of work.
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Picoloco
Stranger


Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 176
Last seen: 10 years, 11 months
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: Alan Rockefeller]
#14277107 - 04/12/11 09:36 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
The statewide poll surveyed 800 voters
pretty sure there are alot more people in california than that... i dont think a poll of 800 can give an idea of what the millions of people that live there would vote for. The only way we can really know is to put it to vote. I hope it passes
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Run
Questioning my existance



Registered: 10/22/09
Posts: 488
Last seen: 10 years, 3 months
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: Picoloco]
#14277946 - 04/12/11 01:11 PM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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Quote:
The statewide poll surveyed 800 voters
-------------------- You, me, this point in existence is undeniably so unique, we take everything for granite ,life , comprehension, feelings, thought, so accustomed to understanding that we've lost the meaning of fully understanding who we are..... we are the extra terrestrial, we are the unknown, we are the mystical...
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2859558484
Growery is Better



Registered: 01/10/06
Posts: 8,752
Last seen: 3 years, 4 months
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Re: Most California voters say possessing small amount of illegal drugs should be misdemeanor [Re: Run]
#14282614 - 04/13/11 08:03 AM (12 years, 9 months ago) |
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a sample size of 800 is more than enough.
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