TRENDS IN DRUG USE BY JENNA RICHARDSON, COMPASS DRUG SCREENING In the Wake of Legalized Marijuana A


s the days have ticked by since marijuana legalization, people from both sides of the debate are looking


for evidence to say, “I told you so.” Pro-legalization camps look for statistics


that prove crime is down and overdose rates are falling. Anti-legalization advocates scour the internet for evidence that fatal vehicle crashes and high school dropout rates are skyrocketing. No mater which side of the debate you find yourself on, there is plenty of “evidence” to reinforce your beliefs. In 2014, the Washington Post published


an article pointing to the “mounting body of research” that teen drug and alcohol use continued to fall, and that behavior of California teens actually improved dramatically aſter marijuana was effectively legalized.1


Less than a year later, Newsweek


published an article claiming that teen drug-related school expulsions were on the rise due to increased marijuana use, resulting in educational problems in middle schools and high schools.2 So which is it? Are the states that have


now legalized marijuana reveling in their wisdom, and enjoying the utopia they knew would arrive? Or are they experiencing apocalyptic consequences, having played with fire? As in all fact-finding missions, the source of our facts is crucial. Both articles cited above are opinion pieces that sound well- versed in scholarly research; but do the personal biases of authors dictate which statistics to report and which to omit? I will admit that I have a strong opinion on one side of this debate. When I am researching the latest trends, I have to work hard to focus on my genuine desire to know how things are going in the states that have legalized marijuana, even if that means adjusting my own opinions. It is important to consider the sources of our


34 datia focus


“facts,” and take care to be informed, not just opinionated. While it is true that we are in the early


stages of marijuana legalization—and that it may take many more years to know the real results—there are preliminary trends that we can identify at this point, including crime, unemployment, and highway safety; issues that can be quantified and analyzed more easily than others. For this article, we will be comparing the data from government reports on Colorado, Washington, Alaska, and Oregon. Tese four states were the first to legalize both recreational and medicinal marijuana and, because of the longer duration since legalization, they are our best hope in the search for emerging trends. First, we will address crime rates reported


since legalization in the states of interest: • Alaska boasts some encouraging statistics over the last few years. Te Alaska Bureau of Investigations Statewide Drug Enforcement Unit reports that marijuana- related arrests went from 49 percent (716 arrests) in 2014 to 28 percent (290 arrests) in 2015. Seizures were down as well, from 2,621 plants seized in 2014 to 1,871 in 2015. However, when we read the report closely, we find that, despite their assertion that the demand for Alaskan-grown marijuana remains high as a result of is exceptional THC3


content,


the Alaskan State Troopers Drug and Alcohol Enforcement Unit (SDEU) does not place an emphasis on illegal marijuana enforcement unless it interferes with federal regulations.


• Oregon’s statistics for marijuana arrests are down as well. Te arrests detailed in the below graph were for marijuana possession, delivery, manufacturing, delivery near a school, and manufacturing near a school. Of course, it cannot be overlooked that


behaviors that were illegal at the start of this period became legal by the end of it. As of July 1, 2015, Oregon residents were allowed to possess “one ounce of usable marijuana, 16 ounces of a cannabinoid product in solid form, 72 ounces of a cannabinoid product in liquid form, five grams of cannabinoid extracts or concentrates, whether sold alone or contained in an inhalant delivery system, four immature marijuana plants, and ten marijuana seeds.”4


Possession exceeding


these limits, public consumption, unlawful distribution, and other acts in contradiction to regulations will still constitute arrest.


• Te 2016 Washington State Marijuana Impact Report claims that marijuana- related crimes are on the rise, despite the fact that, “marijuana is the lowest priority for law enforcement.” Marijuana-related crimes deal with forms of possession, theſt, and harassment. According to data from the Spokane Valley Police Department, “possession-related crimes increased significantly in 2014, the year commercial sales of marijuana commenced. Concurrently, theſts also reached a three-year high totaling fiſteen instances.” Tis report suggests that if things continue as they are currently, crime rates will continue to rise in Washington.


• Finally, the Colorado Department of Safety reports that, “the total number of marijuanma arrests decreased by 6 percent between 2012 and 2014. Marijuana possession arrests, which make up the majority of all marijuana arrests, were nearly cut in half (47 percent). Marijuana sales arrests decreased by 24 percent, while arrests for marijuana production did not change appreciably (two percent).”


summer 2017


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