Police chief, county criminal justice administrators opposed to Prop 64
Submitted by Jerel Haley
Chief Of Police, Atascadero Police Department / CJAA Chair
–Proposition 64, the California Marijuana Legalization Initiative, will go before voters on November 8. Prop 64 permits adult recreational use, commercial cultivation, manufacturing, transportation and sales. Atascadero Police Chief Jerel Haley and the San Luis Obispo County Criminal Justice Administrators Association stand united and strongly opposed to Proposition 64.
California voters are being told that legalizing recreational marijuana will free up law enforcement to work on other criminal activities. That statement is not based on any fact. Factually, the Denver police department is dealing with a 900-percent increase in unlawful distribution of marijuana and marijuana concentrate. Unlawful public consumption has increased over 300-percent and unlawful public display increased over 950-percent. Colorado has seen a 48-percent increase in traffic related marijuana deaths since 2013 and marijuana related emergency room visits have increased 49-percent. Homelessness is something we in San Luis Obispo are already struggling to reduce. Homelessness in Denver has increased over 150-percent. Colorado had a 400-percent increase in organized crime control filings, and over a 7,700-percent increase in illegal marijuana diversion. Homicides in Colorado rose 14.7-percent, stolen vehicles went up 27.7-percent and the list goes on and on.
Attractively packaged and potent edibles pose a significant danger to our children. One medical center in Colorado recently reported their hospital has seen a 51-percent increase in the number of children 18 years and younger being treated in its emergency rooms for marijuana-related conditions over the past two years. A Pueblo hospital recently shared statistics reporting nearly half of babies born in that hospital during one month tested positive for THC—the main psychoactive component in cannabis.
If Colorado does not have enough statistics that outline clear reasons to say no to Proposition 64, consider Humboldt County. Humboldt County’s homicide rate has increased steadily since 2012 with 19 homicides so far this year. The county’s per-capita homicide rate (rate per 100,000 population) over the past two years was nearly double that of the state’s mean rate. Most of these homicides are believed to be drug-related. The Humboldt County Chief Deputy Coroner, and Sheriff Mike Downey attributed “most” of the homicides in 2014 to be connected to marijuana and other drugs.
After the passage of Proposition 47, Californians experienced an increase in crime of over 15-percent while cities in the rest of the United States realized significant decreases. The increased workload on our already taxed police departments is not one we can withstand. The passage of Proposition 64 will only work to further increase the victimization of our communities.
Proposition 64 is the wrong initiative, at the wrong time, for the wrong motive. We urge patience so Californians can make a more informed and responsible decision. Let’s be smart, wait on legalization, and allow time for California to watch and learn from other states’ post-legalization experiments.
