cannabisnews.com: City's Marijuana Arrests Increase





City's Marijuana Arrests Increase
Posted by CN Staff on July 18, 2004 at 10:30:29 PT
By Tara Deering, Tribune Staff Reporter
Source: Chicago Tribune 
The number of marijuana arrests in Chicago increased 12 percent last year, while arrests for dealing and possession of all other controlled substances in the city fell slightly, according to state crime figures to be released Sunday.Some of the largest increases in marijuana arrests were reported in the Englewood, Chicago Lawn, Marquette, Shakespeare and Albany Park Districts, all of which saw at least a 20 percent rise in arrests, according to 2003 numbers issued by each police district.
Each year, the Illinois State Police publishes "Crime in Illinois," a compilation of reports on the eight most serious violent and property crimes from hundreds of local law-enforcement agencies.The 2003 report found statewide decreases in crimes from murder and rape to burglary and arson, with corresponding decreases in arrests. Overall, the Illinois crime rate fell 4.8 percent last year to a level last reported in 1972.Statewide, however, marijuana arrests increased 9.5 percent in 2003, and Chicago's 12.1 percent increase in marijuana arrests exceeded the statewide surge.Police said the increase in marijuana arrests isn't the result of their ongoing operation in which police infiltrate drug areas by arresting dealers and replacing them with undercover officers. Heroin and cocaine dealers and users are targeted during these busts, police said.Rather, the rise in marijuana arrests may stem from police focusing on ridding the city's neighborhood of gangs, drugs and guns, police spokesman Pat Camden said. "We are paying more attention to controlled substances across the board," he said.Officers are seeing marijuana more often during traffic stops and while conducting other investigations, Camden said.The increase in marijuana arrests in Chicago doesn't mean usage of the drug has increased, experts said."This sort of increase almost always indicates a change in police policy rather than any change in the amount of use," said Paul Goldstein, professor of epidemiology at the University of Illinois at Chicago.Although community activists welcome the attention police have given crime-plagued neighborhoods they feel were once largely ignored, many worry police aren't going after the right criminals."The problem with this approach is that they're creating records for people who are basically people with drug problems and generally young people who are making a mistake," said Madeline Talbott, head organizer with Illinois ACORN, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now."The youth who are not necessarily involved with other crimes are being painted with this broad brush," Talbott said, "and it makes it that much harder for them to get on the right road if they end up with this on their record."Rev. Robin Hood, 42, the community organizer for ACORN, who leads efforts to decrease violence in Englewood, said the neighborhood needs more drug-rehabilitation centers.Bryan Brickner, chairman of Illinois NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, helps people who have been convicted of a marijuana charge find jobs. With a felony on their record, many of them have trouble finding work, he said.Brickner said Illinois should follow the lead of Ohio, which decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana."I think there's recognition that the drug war is changing," he said. "Decriminalizing cannabis would take a lot of people out of the criminal system, and the police could focus on other crimes."But anti-drug advocates say more lenient drug laws and less enforcement are not the answer."If we're going to reduce the number of arrests and reduce the number of people using drugs, we have to increase prevention education up front," said Tari Marshall, spokeswoman for Prevention First, a non-profit drug-prevention group."The problem with marijuana today compared to 20 years ago is it's much more potent. ... The dangers of marijuana are greater now than they were in the past," Marshall saidJames W. Compton, president of the Chicago Urban League, is among community leaders who would like to see substance-abuse treatment as an alternative to incarceration for those convicted of drug offenses."I think it's been proven that incarceration in and of itself does not have a great influence on usage," Compton said. Tribune staff reporter Carlos Sadovi contributed to this report.Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)Author: Tara Deering, Tribune Staff ReporterPublished: July 18, 2004Copyright: 2004 Chicago Tribune CompanyContact: ctc-TribLetter Tribune.comWebsite: http://www.chicagotribune.com/Illinois NORMLhttp://www.illinoisnorml.org/CannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by RasAric on July 18, 2004 at 23:12:01 PT
Denial can only last so long
"The increase in marijuana arrests in Chicago doesn't mean usage of the drug has increased, experts said."I'll let this quote just sit here and speak volumes of the finest bullsh t that money can buy.
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 18, 2004 at 10:32:19 PT
Just a Note
There are stats on the above article but I didn't add them to the article because they didn't set up correctly. Here's the link. The stats are at the bottom of the article.http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chicago/chi-0407180326jul18,1,488589.story
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