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Marijuana Legalization

The ramifications of marijuana legislation on police departments and their hiring processes
Cannabis legalization is already happening, but federal action has been absent
Here’s what Oregonians can expect to see from the state’s recent decriminalization of small amounts of heroin and other street drugs
911
Shoplifting without evidence and juvenile problems without a nexus to crime are among the calls Henrico Police patrol officers will no longer respond to
“It’s really not fair to discriminate against these people who use a legal product,” Kingston Mayor Steve Noble said; recreational cannabis use has been legal in the state of New York since 2021
Police Recruitment
Some leaders are asking that the time frame recruits must abstain from marijuana use before being hired by a law enforcement agency be lowered from two years to six months
Appellate courts have split on the issue since marijuana possession was legalized in 2020
“Having a legal drug become a barrier to increasing law enforcement seems like it’s a bad policy,” a county official stated
Drug detection K-9s that alert to marijuana will not be able to assist in traffic stops as they have in the past, as marijuana possession no longer constitutes probable cause
Police Recruitment
Several northeast Ohio departments will continue to screen for marijuana, as the law permits employers to bar applicants who use it
Under the proposal, the first $40 million in adult use marijuana tax revenue each year over the next two years would go to Law Enforcement Assistance Fund for training
States with legal recreational cannabis markets had a 10% increase in MVA deaths
Lawyers argued their client’s Second Amendment right was violated by law that makes it illegal for “unlawful users of controlled substances” to possess firearms
Volunteers smoked or consumed marijuana while police observed their reactions so that authorities could analyze how cannabis impairs drivers
Some parts of Oregon have seen record seizures as police raid plantation after plantation
The pardon applies to convictions for possession of 1 ounce or less of marijuana when the person was 21 or older
Officers will collect breath samples from drivers suspected of being impaired by cannabis using the breathalyzer and then sending those samples to be processed
The president is also calling on governors to issue similar pardons for those convicted of state marijuana offenses
A Los Angeles Times investigation finds Proposition 64 triggered a surge in illegal cannabis on a scale California has never before witnessed
Recruits must still pass a drug test if selected for the academy and abstain from drug use while employed
Funds spread over 45 communities for law enforcement toxicology crime labs, and education and enforcement programs
A Q&A with Chief Joseph Sinagra about legal cannabis enforcement in New York state
Since recreational weed became legal in Connecticut last year, Chief William Baldwin wants as many DRE-trained officers as possible
The call comes after legal weed sales began in the Garden State last month
In question is the protocol and use of specially trained officers known as Drug Recognition Experts, who perform marijuana sobriety tests
“The water is pretty murky and we don’t want anybody to be the test case,” said a police union president
As New Jersey lawmakers debate if off-duty cops should be allowed to use recreational marijuana, one local comedian decided to get in on the action
“You start regulating people’s behavior when they’re on their own time — I think that’s a very dangerous slippery slope”
While dispensaries have not yet opened in New York outside of tribal reservations, local law enforcement officials worry cannabis DUIs could become a real issue