[tbird5]

Good.

[robertpaulsen]

"and free officers to focus on more serious crimes."

They already are focused on more serious crimes. That's how they're making these marijuana arrests.

Does anybody with two neurons to rub together believe that the Chicago Police Department (or any other police department) is rabidly going after marijuana users in order to bust them for possessing 1/2 ounce of marijuana?

Get real.

[robertpaulsen]

"... since Mirken contends there are no studies indicating a definitive link between tough laws and lower marijuana usage."

BWAHAHAHAHA! Not when you're throwing out 99% of the arrests!

Give these dopers a mandatory 60 days in the hoosegow, then see if there's a lowering of marijuana usage.

[ikka]

Daley said the volume of marijuana cases that are tossed out by local courts -- upwards of 90 percent, according to one recent study -- mean minor possession is virtually decriminalized in Chicago now. "If 99 percent of the cases are thrown out, when is there a credible arrest for marijuana?" Daley said last week. "They throw all the cases out. It doesn't mean anything."

Once money for the govt and money for court costs is involved, expect these numbers to do a 180 - 90 per cent will be upheld.

[SteveMcKing]

Chicago can do that. Chicago must also bow down to federal drug laws, or else get the smacking they deserve.

[Wolfie]

ping

[LadyDoc]

Don't know where the "but the judges throw them out anyway" comes from , but I suspect most of these "marijuana" users are poly pharmacy types...

But THC tends to test positive for three months, and crank and crack only for 48 hours...

So they are essentially going to allow all druggies a free pass...after all, they aren't harming anyone are they? Sarcasm...except for their spouses, kids, etc.

The next time you hear about the suicide rate in teenagers, just remember they are probably products of a druggie parent, and probably are using drugs too...

But the scientologists are only upset about prozac, not meth...