Marijuana arrests outnumber those for violent crimes, study finds

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A new study has found that marijuana arrests outnumbered all those for violent crimes last year.

The study, released on Wednesday by the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch, found that arrests for marijuana were up 13.6 percent as compared to all violent crimes, including rape and murder.

“Most people don’t think drug possession is the No. 1 public safety concern, but that’s what we’re seeing,” said Tess Borden, a fellow at Human Rights Watch and the ACLU. Borden also found that the drop in crime over the last few decades has occurred even as arrests for drug-related crimes continue to rise.

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Most concerning is the fact that a disproportionate number of the arrests are African-American, and the study found that the disparity between white and black arrests for marijuana persists no matter the concentration of minorities in an area. African-Americans are also more likely to be prosecuted for small amounts of marijuana meant for personal use, according to the study, which can lead to overwhelmed courts.

What’s more, the high rates of marijuana arrests stand in stark contrast to shifting public perception of the drug, which has been legalized in several states, with support for legalization growing across the country.

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