Last year there were more arrests for cannabis than there were for violent crime.
According to the latest Uniform Crime report from the FBI, the overall drug arrests increased in 2016 to 1.57 million. This was an increase of 5.63% compared to 2015.
Of these arrests, marijuana arrests jumped over 75,000 compared to 2015, which was an increase of 12%.
On a per minute basis, this means that every minute last year there were three drug arrests.
The MPP communications director, Morgan Fox, commented, “Arresting and citing nearly half a million people a year for a substance that is objectively safer than alcohol is a travesty. Despite a steady shift in public opinion away from marijuana prohibition, and the growing number of states that are regulating marijuana like alcohol, marijuana consumers continue to be treated like criminals throughout the country. This is a shameful waste of resources and can create lifelong consequences for the people arrested.”
