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Florida Police Chiefs Reaffirm Their Strong Opposition to the Legalization of Marijuana for Medical Use.

This information has been provided with the assistance of FDLE to our Members so that as questions arise regarding the legalization of marijuana they can better address this issue within their local communities.

BACKGROUND OF LEGALIZING MARIJUANA

  • These campaigns found new life in 1996 because they were very well financed, well-organized and skillfully masked their true objective. The compassionate pleas for comforting the sick and dying are a great "smoke screen" for their much broader objective ­ full legalization."


  • The 'Ballot approach' to obtaining change has been quite successful ­ more so than the Legislative approach. It enables them to proclaim the "will of the people" ­ by the confusing and misleading wording on ballots ­ and be safe from the Governor's veto. Both California and Arizona voters have approved the "medical marijuana" provision.


  • Post balloting surveys in Arizona have shown that the voters were clearly deceived.
  • A major tactic is to confuse voters by the way that constitutional issues are worded.
  • In Florida, the voter will only see the following title and summary taken from Florida Constitutional Amendment Petition Form:
    § Title: Freedom to Use Medicinal Marijuana for Specific Certified Medical Purposes.

    § Summary: Establishes a Right of individuals to choose to obtain and use marijuana for Specific Medical Purposes when certified as Medically Appropriate by a licensed physician; protects physicians and third parties who recommend or provide medicinal marijuana and allows Penalties for Fraudulent Certification or Use.

    FDLE REPORT TO CABINET

    In January 1998, The Florida Department of Law Enforcement presented a report to the Florida Cabinet on the issue of legalizing marijuana. The major points from that report are listed here. They were used also by Commissioner Tim Moore in a speech to the Florida Narcotics Officers Association in June 1998. Those Five Points Are:

  • Keeping All Illicit Drugs Illegal Holds Down Abuse, Addiction.
  • Increased Drug Availability And Use Will Worsen Our Crime Problem.
  • Legalization Of Marijuana For Alleged Medical Purposes Sends The Absolutely Wrong Message To Our Youth At The Absolutely Worst Possible Time.
  • Marijuana Legalization Efforts Are More About Profit Than Compassion.
  • Marijuana Legalization Efforts Are More About Profit Than Compassion. Marijuana Is Not A Harmless Drug-- There Are Safe, Proven Alternatives Available For Those Truly Suffering.


SPEAKING POINTS FOR EMPHASIS

  • Clearly, Legalization Proponents Are Exploiting Sick And Dying In Order To Overturn This Nation's Drug Laws.
  • These laws are preventing even greater increases in illicit drug use, abuse, addiction and death that legalization would bring.
  • We Know That Drug Use Increases Dramatically When Society Re-Enforces Acceptability Of Drug Use.
  • In 1962, Fewer Than 4 Million Americans Had Ever Tried Illicit Drugs--
  • Since Then, Many Pro-Legalization And Decriminalization Proponents Actively Sought To Broaden Public Acceptance Of Dug Use And Our Society Saw The Number Of Drug User Increase Steadily.
  • Our Drug Problem Worsened Most Significantly In The 1970's And 80's.
  • Then, After A Period Of Aggressive Law Enforcement, Anti-Drug Education, And A Society Shift From Drug Abuse The Number Of Regular Users Of Illegal Drugs Was Actually Reduced By 50% Between 1985 And 1995 (23.3 Million To 12.8 Million)
  • This Proves That We Can Make Real Progress In The "War On Drugs."
  • But, We Are Now Seeing An Increase In Drug Abuse--Especially Among Young People.
  • This Increase Is Partially Due To The Diminished Perceptions Of Risk, Reductions In The Frequency Of Media Coverage Of The Dangers Of Drugs And A General Ambivalence About Drug Use.
  • We Are Convinced That The Legalization Movement And The Resultant De-Stigmatization Of Drugs, Along With The Confusing Message About The Beneficial Properties Of Substances Like Marijuana, Will Result In Further Decreases In The Perception Of Risk And Greater Increase In Abuse.
    Our Two Legal Addictive Drugs Illustrate The Point:
  • 109 Million Americans Use Alcohol Regularly, 62 Million Use Tobacco.
  • These Levels Of Use Produce 500,000 Deaths And $171 Billion In Economic Costs Yearly.
  • In Contrast, About 13 Million Americans Regularly Use Illicit Drugs, Producing An Estimated 14,000 Deaths Per Year.
  • Drug Abuse Already Cost Americans Almost $67 Billion Each Year--Equating To About $1,000 For Every American To Pay Each Year To Cover Health Care, Criminal Justice, Car Crashes, Crime And Lost Productivity Due To Drug Abuse.
  • The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Reported In 1993 That 18% Of 2,000 Fatally Injured Drivers From Seven States Had Drugs Other Than Alcohol In Their System At The Time Of Death.
  • Many Experts In Crime And Violence Believe That Drug Use And Crime Go Hand In Hand.
  • Drug Abuse Is A Major, If Not The Top Causal Factor In Virtually Ever Category Of Crime.
  • Crime Is Committed Not Only Because People Want To Buy Drugs But Also Because People Use Drugs.
  • Drug Use Changes Thought Processes And Behavior Which Contributes To Criminal Activity.
  • A 1996 National Institute Of Justice Report Found That A Median Of 68% Of All Arrestees Test Positive For At Least One Drug At The Time Of Arrest.
  • Remember The Period Between 1986 And 1992, In Which The State (And Nation) Experienced The Major Crack Cocaine Epidemic--And The Drug-Related Violence It Bred?
  • The Outrage Of That Situation (Which By The Way We Are Still Very Much Suffering From--Crack Babies For Example) Led To Vigorous Prevention, Policing And Prison Efforts Which Resulted In A Significant Reversal Of Drug Abuse And Serious Crime.
  • We Know That Strong Law Enforcement And Effective Prevention Efforts--Including Targeting Drug Law Violations --Has A Material Affect On Reducing Violent Crime In Our Communities.
  • After Experiencing This Reversal In Violence, We Should Not Erode This Success By Implementing Policies Such As Legalization Which We Know Will Lead To More Crime.
  • Unfortunately, We Are Already Seeing The Result Of Less Emphasis On Anti-Drug Efforts--Especially Prevention And Education.
  • Drug Use Is Up Dramatically--And Crime Statistics Are One Indication.
  • Between 1992 And 1995, Florida Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Show An Almost 23% Increase In The Rate (Per 100,000 Population) Of Drug Possession Offenses.
  • Legalization Of Marijuana For Alleged Medical Purposes Sends The Absolutely Wrong Message To Our Youth And The Absolutely Worst Possible Time.
  • The Move To Legalize Marijuana As Medicine Legitimizes The Drug And Creates An Acceptance Of Its Use.
  • This Impression That, Since Medicine Is Helpful And Not Harmful, Sends Mixed Messages About How Dangerous This Drug Really Is At A Time When The Rates Of Experimentation And Habitual Use Are Going Up Dramatically.
  • While Marijuana Use By 8th, 10th And 12th Graders Declined Steadily From 1980 To 1992 The Trend Has Changed.
  • From 1992 To 1996, Such Use Dramatically Increased --By 253% Among 8th Graders, 151% Among 10th Graders, And 84% Among 12th Graders.
  • According To The National Center For Addiction & Substance Abuse, Children Now Rate Drugs Their Number One Problem, And The Percentage Of Children Who Say They Are Likely To Try Drugs Doubled 1995 To 1996.
  • That Same Center Provides The Following Facts From Their Annual Study Of Drug Attitudes And Usage Among Teenagers: By The Time The Average Teenager Reaches Age 17--
  • A Study Released In March 1997 By The Partnership For A Drug-Free America Found: Marijuana Use Among Preteens (ages 9-12) Doubled Between 1995 And 1996. Since 1993, Children Reported A Decrease In The Amount Of Anti-Drug Information They Were Getting From Outside Sources Such As School, Television, and Movies. Also, 8% Of Sixth Graders (Nationally) Have Experimented With Marijuana -- 23% Of 7th Graders And 33% Of Eighth Graders Have Tried The Drug
  • The 1997 National Education Goals Report Found That Drug Use Is Skyrocketing. Revealed That 40% Of 10th Graders Surveyed Admitted Using Drugs During Their Freshman Year Of High School. The Percentage Reported In 1992 Was Only 24%.
  • The Office Of National Drug Control Policy Has Reported That American Children Aged 12-17 Who Use Marijuana Are 85 Times More Likely To Use Cocaine Than Those Who Don't--
  • A Correlation Eight Times Stronger Than The Link Between Smoking And Lung Cancer.
  • 20 Times Stronger Than Between High Cholesterol And Heart Disease And 17 Times Stronger Than The Link Between Lung Cancer And Exposure To Asbestos.
  • In The Words Of Donna Shalala, Secretary Of The Department Of Health And Human Services, "Everyone Needs To Give Our Young People The Clear And Unambiguous Message That Drugs Are Illegal, Dangerous, Unhealthy, And Wrong. The Core Of The Problem Is Marijuana."
  • It Is Very Important To Know That In October, After 24 Years Of Very Liberal Marijuana Laws, Oregon, Re-Criminalized Marijuana Use In Their State, Citing Increased Tolerance Of Marijuana By Juveniles As One Motivation For The Change.
  • In Florida, A Survey By FSU And FDLE Found That Over 30% Of Floridians Are "Very Worried" About Their Children Becoming Addicted To Drugs.

IT IS OUR POSITION THAT:

  • Keeping Illicit Drugs Illegal Holds Down Abuse And Addiction.
  • Increased Drug Availability And Use Will Worsen Our Crime Problem.
  • Legalization Of Marijuana For Alleged Medical Purposes Sends The Absolutely Wrong Message To Our Youth At The Absolutely Worst Possible Time.
  • General Barry R. McCaffrey, Dir., Office Of National Drug Control Policy (October 1997): "At The Heart Of The Response To Marijuana Legalization Efforts Is The Preservation Of The Longstanding, Established Medical-Scientific Process For Ensuring That Any Substance Purporting To Be A Medicine Must Undergo The Rigorous Evaluation Of The Scientific Process. To Exempt Any Substance From This Time Honored Procedure Will Undermine The Established Process That Has Long Protected The American Public So Well."
  • Clearly, The Efforts To Legalize Marijuana For Medical Use Represent A Continuation Of A Strategy To "Chip Away" At Our Nation's Drug Laws Rather Than An Effort To Provide Relief To The Suffering And Dying.
  • With Medical Marijuana, Proponents Have Found A Way To Deceive Americans Into Thinking They Are Voting For Compassion When They Are Actually Legalizing Drugs.
  • That Action Would Be Disastrous For Our State And Our Future.


MARIJUANA OFFENDERS IN FLORIDA PRISIONS

  • Persons convicted of marijuana offenses are NOT crowding Florida's prisons
  • According to Florida Department of Corrections, only 13 (.02%) of the 65,092 inmates in Florida's prisons on 9/5/97 (latest figures available) were incarcerated for the primary offense of possession of marijuana. Only one percent is in prison for marijuana production.
  • In all 14 cases, the possession was for over 20 grams of marijuana (felony amount) and all had previous criminal histories ­ some for cocaine and other dangerous drug offenses, as well as violent offenses such as homicide, domestic violence, aggravated battery, and robbery. Two inmates were sentenced under Florida's habitual offender laws.
  • There is no one in a Florida prison with only one conviction for a marijuana offense.

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