Pubdate: Tue, 04 Mar 2014
Source: Baltimore Sun (MD)
Copyright: 2014 The Baltimore Sun Company
Contact:  http://www.baltimoresun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/37
Authors: Anthony G. Brown and Joseph T. Jones Jr.
Note: Anthony G. Brown is lieutenant governor of Maryland and a 
gubernatorial candidate. Joseph T. Jones Jr. is founder and CEO of 
the Baltimore-based Center for Urban Families.

BUILDING SAFE AND JUST COMMUNITIES

Marylanders are ready for an open and serious discussion about our 
state's laws pertaining to the possession of small amounts of 
marijuana. As currently constructed and enforced, these laws are 
costly, ineffective and racially biased, and they result in a 
permanent blot on the records of too many of our young adults. 
Criminal arrest and prosecution for small amounts of marijuana is not 
the most effective strategy to keep our neighborhoods safe, and it 
draws resources away from the fight against violent crime.

It's time for these laws to change.

We support decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of 
marijuana because our justice system must be fair, treat all 
Marylanders equally and give all of our young people the same 
opportunity for a brighter future.

But make no mistake: decriminalizing the possession of small amounts 
of marijuana does not mean we'll stop going after the real dangers in 
our communities - the distributors, the dealers and violent criminals 
who do real harm in our neighborhoods. It does not mean we'll stop 
educating our children about the risks associated with marijuana use. 
And it does not mean we're interested in legalization; that's another 
conversation for another time

We're interested in what people here in Baltimore and throughout our 
state want: a safe place to live, work and raise a family. 
Decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana supports 
this goal. It addresses the reality that no matter where you go in 
Maryland, law enforcement and local leaders have to make choices 
about where to deploy the resources needed to fight crime.

And in our day-to-day work (as an elected public official and the 
leader of a nonprofit dedicated to supporting families in our city), 
we've seen that Marylanders don't want their law enforcement resources wasted.

According to the ACLU, it costs Maryland $106.7 million to enforce 
our marijuana possession laws. That represents resources we could 
(and should) be using to put police officers where they're needed, 
along with funding additional substance abuse treatment, education, 
drug prevention and job training efforts for our young men and women 
looking to get ahead.

As we make our communities stronger, we also have a responsibility to 
root out any biases in our justice system.

Because when any Marylander is treated unfairly or is subject to 
different treatment, all of us suffer.

And as a result, our justice system is weakened, not made stronger.

While our current possession laws affect all Marylanders, there's no 
doubt that they impact some more than others.

The fact is that in our state, African-Americans and white 
Marylanders use marijuana at nearly identical rates, but in 2010 
African-Americans in Maryland were almost three times more likely to 
be arrested for marijuana possession than their white counterparts. 
African-Americans represent almost 58 percent of all marijuana 
possession arrests in Maryland but only 30 percent of Maryland's population.

These young African-American men aren't just statistics - they're our 
family members and our neighbors.

They're our fathers and sons; men we meet every day at the Center for 
Urban Families and in communities throughout Maryland. And they're 
part of a growing class of Marylanders who are unable to achieve 
their full potential, as an arrest for even a small amount of 
marijuana makes it more difficult to get accepted into school, find a 
job or even find a place to live. Their arrest is a permanent shadow: 
a minor mistake that follows them for the rest of their lives, 
preventing them from pursuing a path toward success.

We don't endorse using marijuana, any more than we endorse a minor 
traffic violation or a minor's use of alcohol.

But by decriminalizing possession for small amounts of marijuana, we 
can ensure that in all three cases, a bad choice will end with a fine 
instead of a jail term and criminal record.

To that end, decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of 
marijuana cannot be a signal to our young people that it is OK to use 
drugs. And any efforts at decriminalization must be coupled with 
education - teaching our children about the dangers of drug use and 
helping them make better choices.

While violent crime throughout our state is at an all-time low, we 
must continue to make our state safer.

Each and every day, we're working with community leaders, local 
elected officials and law enforcement, getting them the resources 
they need to protect our communities. We're going to continue those 
efforts and programs like the Violence Prevention Initiative, where 
we track and go after our most violent offenders.

But to be effective, we should move away from arresting Marylanders 
for possession of small amounts of marijuana and put our resources 
where they belong: going after the real and violent crime in our communities.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom