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veggie

Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 17,504
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Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization?
#7462210 - 09/27/07 09:17 PM (16 years, 4 months ago) |
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Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? September 26, 2007 - Drug War Chronicle
The superb efforts of our friends at Law Enforcement Against Prohibition notwithstanding, police generally oppose efforts to reform marijuana laws. Initiatives in Colorado and Nevada were vehemently contested by law-enforcement interests, who claimed that reform would invite crime and undermine community safety. Sheriff Fred Wagner of Park County, CO even tried to link marijuana reform efforts to a recent school shooting.
Intuitively, there's nothing surprising about police lobbying to retain the gratuitous powers granted them by the war on drugs. Yet, as marijuana arrests reach a new record high each year, it becomes increasingly difficult to point towards any societal benefit to these costly attacks on otherwise law-abiding Americans. Because I believe most officers really do want to protect the communities they serve and make a difference, I have often pondered their willful enforcement of, and political support for, a war that endangers communities while failing to a make a difference.
I was pleasantly surprised, therefore, to learn that Joplin, MO Police Chief Lane Roberts has pledged not to oppose a local marijuana decriminalization initiative. Roberts correctly defines his role as defending the constitution rather than opining on what the law ought to be. But he goes on to explain that officers sometimes overreact to policy changes that reduce police authority:
When asked how his officers had reacted to the decriminalization of pot possession in Oregon and in Washington State where he previously headed up departments, Roberts reclined in his office chair and smiled.
"When that law was first passed, most police officers thought that the end of the world as we know it was about to occur," he said. "But, we thought the same thing when the Miranda decision came down." [Joplin Globe]
Miranda is such a wonderful analogy for law-enforcement's knee-jerk assumption that any restriction on police power will invite pure chaos. The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Miranda v. Arizona that police must inform criminal suspects of their 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination before conducting interrogations provoked panic among police. Murderers and rapists would go free, we were told, and crimes of the most despicable nature would become unsolvable.
The result was nothing of the sort. Police simply became more professional. It turned out that the freakiest psycho killers still insisted on confessing their misdeeds, while the rest got taken down through good old-fashioned police work. "You have the right to remain silent…" has become a popular and familiar symbol of due process, and the horror show predicted by law enforcement has been long forgotten.
The point here is that it was the experts, the interrogation specialists themselves, who were so wrong about Miranda. Today, when police speak out against marijuana reform, they are motivated not by experience at all, but rather a fear of the unknown. Indeed, today's officers simply have no real frame of reference for what law-enforcement in a post-drug war America would look like.
I'm optimistic, however, that whatever our friends at LEAP can't explain to their colleagues will ultimately find a way to explain itself. Inevitably, the truth about drug policy reform will become self-evident each and every time it is given the opportunity to do so.
LEAP director Jack Cole has told me that police constantly admit to him in confidence that they agree with LEAP's arguments. Former Seattle Police Chief and LEAP speaker Norm Stamper has also stated that several high-ranking police officials have privately commended his efforts to end the drug war.
How then do we explain the behavior of police who carry out a war they don't believe in? Are they just following orders and collecting their paychecks? Are they fearful that speaking out will compromise their status within a profession they otherwise enjoy? Do they believe the laws are here to stay, so someone has to enforce them? Are some just waiting for their pension to kick in before joining LEAP?
I'm sure all of these factors contribute here, but I suspect that many officers have a more nuanced view of drug enforcement. I once asked a highly-regarded police sergeant what he thought of a controversial teenage curfew law aimed at curbing crime in D.C. "It's a useful tool," he replied, meaning that it gave him the authority to take action against suspicious youths in the absence of other evidence. If he can't prove they're out tagging cars, he can at least stop them and send them home.
Drug laws, particularly marijuana, perform a similar function by granting police the discretion to forgive or destroy individual suspects based solely on their demeanor and the contents of their pockets. Police can ignore the smell of marijuana when dealing with a polite citizen, or fabricate it entirely when they believe someone's hiding something. A law that criminalizes vast portions of the population, justifying detentions, searches and arrests, is a "useful tool" indeed. Officers needn't believe they're winning the war on drugs to find value in the vast authority it bestows upon them.
Wielding inflated drug war powers with the best of intentions may help some officers justify their participation in something they otherwise find distasteful. Of course, none of this justifies the massive collateral damage that occurs in the process, but it might help explain how conscientious people could engage in behavior that shocks the conscience.
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simplystoned
Tree Wizard




Registered: 03/28/07
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Loc: K-Town up in this biache
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: veggie]
#7462314 - 09/27/07 09:43 PM (16 years, 4 months ago) |
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Quote:
sergeant what he thought of a controversial teenage curfew law aimed at curbing crime in D.C. "It's a useful tool," he replied, meaning that it gave him the authority to take action against suspicious youths in the absence of other evidence. If he can't prove they're out tagging cars, he can at least stop them and send them home.
I'm pretty sure he actually meant that he can search any juvenile caught out after curfew. They used that here. I actually got busted when I was 17 for being in a car with friends at like 11:30. They searched the car and found nothing, escorted me home.
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"Your pain is the breaking of the shell which encloses your understanding. It is the bitter potion by which the physician within you heals your sick self. Therefore trust the physician, and drink his remedy in silence and tranquility: For his hand, though heavy and hard, is guided by the tender hand of the Unseen, And the cup he brings, though it burn your lips, has been fashioned of the clay which the Potter has moistened with His own sacred tears." - Kahlil Gibran
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SneezingPenis
ACHOOOOOOOOO!!!!!111!

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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: simplystoned]
#7462416 - 09/27/07 10:23 PM (16 years, 4 months ago) |
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I always like seeing a war on drugs type commercial followed by a wellbutrin commercial. poetry in motion.
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highdroponics
Professional Deadhead



Registered: 11/14/06
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: veggie]
#7462551 - 09/27/07 11:26 PM (16 years, 4 months ago) |
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"The superb efforts of our friends at Law Enforcement Against Prohibition notwithstanding, police generally oppose efforts to reform marijuana laws. Initiatives in Colorado and Nevada were vehemently contested by law-enforcement interests, who claimed that reform would invite crime and undermine community safety. Sheriff Fred Wagner of Park County, CO even tried to link marijuana reform efforts to a recent school shooting."
ok, drugs DO NOT lead to crime, rather crime is attracted to drugs. smoking a joint is not gonna make you go out and kill mass amounts of people, but if you come home from killing mass amounts of people you may wanna sit down and smoke a joint. drugs are used by criminals because they lead pretty intense stressful lives(a lot of them self medicate), it helps them to escape the stress and relax a bit. drugs are also used by gangs/terrorists to gain more money to buy more illegal things, is this a reason to leave drugs illegal? i dont think so. to stop the gangs' source of income you MUST decriminalize and regulate most drugs, and some drugs can be moved up to full legalization like marijuana. there is no other option in the US, other then to decriminalize/legalize, unless we abandon democracy, which i wouldnt be surprised if we do. the US prison system is larger than any other country's, hell, i heard from somewhere we have more people in our prisons than china, russia, and a few other countries combined, does this not prove that we are filling the prisons with the wrong type of people? focus more on true crimes is all im saying, stop playing this pyramid scheme where you start at the bottom(which this bottom plays no role truly) that you seem to think will work, it hasn't, it doesn't, and it won't, ever.
another thing, about kids and drug use. you want it to stop or atleast slow down progression? L-E-G-A-L-I-S-E it. lots of kids do illegal things **JUST** because it makes them so called 'cool' or whatever you kids are using these days to describe someone with tons of respect, you eliminate the 'coolness' on drugs, you make them move on to bigger, badder crimes, which will put them into deeper shit, which will, in the end, stop them from thinking its cool to be a criminal. dont think for one second that this will make it any easier for the kids to get a hold of, i remember when i was in school the two hardest drugs to get a hold of were tobacco and alcohol and they are legal(to a certain age atleast). adults are not going to risk their freedom on a bunch of dumb kids, i know this because i was told that soooo many times.
as for addicting drugs, heroin, cocaine, crystal meth, etc. decriminalize them(allow absolutely NO advertising). this will give us the ability to list 100% TRUE risks(instead of the serving of bullshit weve been getting for the past hundred years or so) on the packaging labels. once people see these risks i highly doubt they will pick that drug up...shit id rather be dead than to go through opiate withdrawal again. it would also make these drugs safer, the ones sold on the street are usually made by some unprofessional addict that is not very clean and cannot be trusted with what is put into these drugs, having professionally trained people make these drugs will make them safer, not that they are to be considered in any way safe, but they will be safer than the ones being made up by crackhead johnny in his bathtub. as for those who think people will still continue using the drug, oh well, their own dumb fault, let them become addicted, let them ruin their lives to the point that they are in a back ally fighting with a rat over a banana peel, if they want to quit they will seek help through rehab. i know its harsh to think this way but this world does need population control,... well, here it is. the weak must die for the strong to flourish, this is the way of nature...something us humans have been trying to alter since we have had the ability to.
-------------------- Dr says to stop trying to treat the side-effects of big government and focus on the core issues. End the Federal Reserve/audit the gold reserves at Fort Knox, abolish the IRS, end all wars and occupancies, stop the building of an empire that will inevitably fail, and cut all unconstitutional federal programs. Put the power back in the peoples' hands by ending this nanny-state.
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joekenorer
The Joekenorer



Registered: 05/22/07
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Loc: Pensacola, FL.
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: highdroponics]
#7463198 - 09/28/07 06:12 AM (16 years, 4 months ago) |
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Quote:
highdroponics said: smoking a joint is not gonna make you go out and kill mass amounts of people, but if you come home from killing mass amounts of people you may wanna sit down and smoke a joint.
-------------------- My favorites are weeping willows, which aren't really weeping at all. They're very wispy, witty and will dance in the breeze with you. Nothing like a tree that wants to dance with you. Although it doesn't like its thin limbs being pulled at all, it absolutely LOVES it when you walk through them, letting them gently slide over your face and shoulders. If you're naked, the willow considers it to be sex. It will orgasm on your mind and you will blow dream chunks into outer space. All very fun until your neighbor sees you. -The Joekenorer
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Cannabischarlie
Resident badass


Registered: 11/28/05
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: joekenorer]
#7702197 - 12/01/07 09:53 AM (16 years, 2 months ago) |
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I dont think this thread is too old to bump, especially given its importance. I am not necessarily against curfew laws for the safety of minors, although parental permission such as a call to the parents or a not or something is not out of the question.
also my buddy got pulled over and a cop found a pipe on him. She just gave it back to him and didnt even give him a ticket. weird....
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we could all use a little more sunshine.
yeah, she's funny and somewhat interesting. not a beauty queen, but not bad lookin. i'd feel quite honored to fuck janine garofalo. -tiny_rabid_birds
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Cannabischarlie
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: Cannabischarlie]
#7702216 - 12/01/07 10:02 AM (16 years, 2 months ago) |
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Also wanted to say that many cops dont want to be in fear that the traffic stop they made will end in them being shot by someone with drugs who doesnt want to get caught (which is pretty dumb to do because murder is way worse than getting caught with a trunk full of drugs)
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we could all use a little more sunshine.
yeah, she's funny and somewhat interesting. not a beauty queen, but not bad lookin. i'd feel quite honored to fuck janine garofalo. -tiny_rabid_birds
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johnm214



Registered: 05/31/07
Posts: 17,582
Loc: Americas
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: Cannabischarlie]
#7702248 - 12/01/07 10:19 AM (16 years, 2 months ago) |
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Quote:
Cannabischarlie said: Also wanted to say that many cops dont want to be in fear that the traffic stop they made will end in them being shot by someone with drugs who doesnt want to get caught (which is pretty dumb to do because murder is way worse than getting caught with a trunk full of drugs)
not really...
If you've got priors, and a gun w/ quantity of drugs, you're looking at getting out of jail when your middle aged or older even if you're in your twenties...
Prohibition creates these scenarios, shoot a cop and have a chance to escape or do nothing and go to jail for 30 years anyways
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wps
Well-PaidScientist


Registered: 09/22/07
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: veggie]
#7702327 - 12/01/07 10:51 AM (16 years, 2 months ago) |
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now that the DEA has become a political lobby, we can see the true intent of drug war advocates: the erosion of civil liberties.
they don't advocate the drug war because it is right, they advocate it because they don't want to give up the power the drug war has given them to stomp on the rights of the individual.
-------------------- "America touts itself as the land of the free, but the number one freedom that you and I have is the freedom to enter into a subservient role in the workplace. Once you exercise this freedom you've lost all control over what you do, what is produced, and how it is produced. And in the end, the product doesn't belong to you. The only way you can avoid bosses and jobs is if you don't care about making a living. Which leads to the second freedom: the freedom to starve." - Tom Morello
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DNKYD
Turtle!

Registered: 09/23/04
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Re: Why Do Police Really Oppose Marijuana Legalization? [Re: wps]
#7708609 - 12/02/07 09:45 PM (16 years, 1 month ago) |
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It's not just the allure of more power that keeps law enforcement officials from supporting decriminalization or legalization. Police departments the nation over receive absurd amounts of money from drug busts. If they take down a grow house with $100,000 in cash stashed in a closet, they get a cut of that. When you take that kind of money away from their budgets of course you're going to get a bunch of negative reactions. It's greed of power and money. Very sad.
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