British Police Promise To No Longer Prosecute Those Who Smoke Or Grow Marijuana

(Article by M. David)
Via: countercurrentnews.com

In the United Kingdom, the Durham Police Department has taken a controversial stand on letting marijuana users and cultivators escape prosecution.

Those caught cultivating the plant will now receive only a warning or “slap on the wrist,” as the department says, to order “caution”.

The Durham Police Force posted the right portion of the image above, as a picture on Facebook to revealed that the grower only received a warning for this huge plant.

Ron Hogg, the police and crime commissioner for the area, says that he wants to “deal” with those who use small amounts of marijuana in a “fair and measured way.”

“We are not prioritizing people who have a small number of cannabis plants for their own use. In low-level cases we say it is better to work with them and put them in a position where they can recover,” he said.

“In these cases the most likely way of dealing with them would be with a caution and by taking the plants away and disposing of them. It is unlikely that a case like that would be brought before a court,” he added.

He stopped short of calling advocating full legalization, saying “Cannabis use is still illegal and smoking it is still a crime, but if you are caught, you will get this opportunity to stop re offending.

Hogg said that “his force will only prosecute ‘blatant’ in order to cut costs” and that “by and large we are saying it is not the top of our list to go out and try to pick up people smoking joints on street corners but if it’s blatant or we get complaints, officers will act.

“It’s about keeping people out of the criminal justice system and reducing costs, it’s about being more productive with the way we approach things.

“It’s also about seeking to prevent future use by keeping people out of prison.”

Mary Brett, of the campaign group Cannabis Skunk Sense, said that many British departments have already been doing the same thing without making the same formal declarations.

But she’s not happy.

“It’s a dangerous message to send out to kids. Police are just issuing cautions and giving a slap on the wrist. The kids are laughing at the law; they can’t take it seriously.”

She said her “concern is for that part of the cannabis-using population who go on to suffer from psychosis and mental health problems.”

Watch the video below…