Pubdate: Wed, 11 May 2016
Source: Frederick News Post (MD)
Copyright: 2016 Randall Family, LLC.
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/Z0khz4CI
Website: http://www.fredericknewspost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/814
Author: Karl Bickel, Board Of Contributors
Note: Karl Bickel, who is retired from the Department of Justice, has 
been a major city police officer, assistant professor and was second 
in command of the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. He writes from Monrovia.

MEDICAL MARIJUANA CAUSES INCREASED CRIME? NO

Would the cultivation of medical marijuana in our community bring
additional crime to Frederick County? Some who stand against
cultivation of medical marijuana in our county believe so. With all
the rhetoric we have been exposed to for these many years during the
unsuccessful prosecution of the war on drugs, and the fear-mongering
tactics employed by some, it is understandable that people might have
concerns over the possibility of more crime.

As for the assertion by those who say the cultivation of medical
marijuana would attract crime to a community like ours, there is
significant credible evidence to disabuse us of that notion. Reliable
information that has been gathered since the legalization of medical
marijuana, as well as the legalization of marijuana for recreational
use, suggests that fears of additional crime are unfounded.

In Colorado, where cultivation and sale of marijuana has been
legalized, a 2015 report, "Marijuana Legalization in Colorado: One
Year Status Report," found:

"[T]he first ten months of legal marijuana sales have resulted in
nearly $40 million in tax revenue. The city of Denver saw a decrease
in violent crime rates in the first 11 months of 2014, following a
similar trend in 2013. Statewide traffic fatalities continue to
decline, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
Upwards of $8 million has been allocated to fund youth education and
drug prevention efforts. And the state is enjoying economic growth and
the lowest unemployment rate in years."

A UCLA study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the
National Institutes of Health and published in the Journal of Studies
on Alcohol and Drugs found that even at the point of retail sales
there was no evidence that having a higher density of medical
marijuana dispensaries was related to higher rates of violent crime or
property crime.

When knowledgeable police professionals have looked at the issue of
medical marijuana and its relationship to crime, findings have been
similar. Chief Charlie Beck of the Los Angeles Police Department had
his department look at crime in the vicinity of medical marijuana
dispensaries. The LAPD did not find an increase in crime. Although
this examination was limited in scope, the LAPD found that with nearly
three times as many marijuana dispensaries as banks, during the period
of examination, there were 71 bank robberies and 47 robberies at
marijuana dispensaries.

Last July, in Colorado Springs, The Gazette reported that "medical
marijuana shops and dispensary-related crime in Colorado Springs had
fallen over the past five years."

According to one news report, in 2009 the Denver Police Department
estimated that about 17 percent of marijuana shops had been robbed or
burglarized. This was a bit less than liquor stores (20 percent) and
banks (34 percent).

In February of this year, The Denver Post reported that
marijuana-related crime accounted for less than 1 percent of total
offenses in any given year since legalization in that city.

It is important to remember that what is currently being discussed in
our community is the cultivation of medical marijuana and not the
retail sale of either medical or recreational marijuana. Most of the
available information related to crime focuses on the retail sales
point, dispensaries, as the most vulnerable point for crime.

As our community struggles to find sufficient funding to support our
schools, fire/rescue services and a variety of social service needs,
the cultivation of medical marijuana could bring in added revenue to
help without adversely affecting our county's taxpayers. It would be
analogous to having a profitable, tax-paying pharmaceutical plant in
our community.

You may object to the cultivation of marijuana in our county for a
variety of reasons, but don't let one of those reasons be fear of
increased crime. It is just not a legitimate fear or reason for
objecting to the cultivation of medical marijuana in Frederick County.

Karl Bickel, who is retired from the Department of Justice, has been a
major city police officer, assistant professor and was second in
command of the Frederick County Sheriff's Office. He writes from Monrovia.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D