The Federal Supreme Court (STF) of Brazil formed a majority this Tuesday (25) to decriminalize the possession of marijuana for personal use. The action raised a red alert for the possible consequences of this measure.
Looking at the United States, specifically the states of California and Oregon, it is possible to observe the negative impacts that such policies have had on society.
In Oregon, the experiment with the decriminalization of drugs, including the hardest ones, which began in 2020, after the approval of the so-called Measure 110, bet that the focus on treating users instead of punishing them would revolutionize the way the state dealt with combating addiction.
However, shortly after the measure came into force, the state began to face several severe problems. Authorities have had to deal with an increase in the number of homeless people, the flight of businesses from cities and record numbers of homicides.
Added to these problems is the rapid spread of fentanyl, the increase in consumption of the most varied types of drugs and also the high number of overdose deaths.
O The Atlantic reported more recent information from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which pointed to a 41.6% increase in the number of drug overdose deaths in Oregon between the end of 2022 and September 2023.
A Brewer City Police Department Studylocated in the state of Maine, dated February 2023, also evaluated the impact of drug decriminalization in Oregon following the passage of Measure 110.
Based on a survey of 86 state police officers, and an online meeting with police chiefs and a prosecutor, Brewer’s department developed a report that revealed significant increases in violent crimes, property crimes and outdoor drug use. in Oregon since decriminalization.
About 86% of Oregon officials who participated in the study said they noticed an increase in the availability of heroin and fentanyl in the state after the passage of Measure 110, while 76% reported they saw more cases related to drug overdoses. 71% observed more drug overdose deaths, and 93% of police officers expressed greater concerns about the safety of communities, highlighting a substantial increase in public disorder crimes.
Oregon officials who responded to the survey called the state’s decriminalization law a failure, linking it to a host of exacerbated social and criminal problems.
O The Atlantic revealed that violent crime in Oregon has increased by 17% since drug decriminalization. According to Newsweekneighborhoods became more unsafe, considering that drug addicts, who could no longer be arrested, began to resort to theft and other crimes to finance their addiction.
The widespread chaos resulting from decriminalization culminated in the reevaluation of measure 110 by the authorities. After the deluge of overdose deaths, Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek signed into law a measure passed by the state House this year to restore criminal penalties for drug possession. The new law comes into force in September.
Another problem in California
California, for its part, has faced an unsettling paradox. The state has seen the illegal marijuana market not only persist, but flourish with renewed vigor since the legalization of marijuana in 2016, which promised precisely the end of clandestinity.
According to information from NPR, decriminalization, which was supposed to weaken illegal trade, had the opposite effect. Instead of eradicating clandestine cartels, the measure strengthened them. The ease of access to legalized marijuana also attracted more consumers, while the illegal market adapted, offering lower prices.
Efforts to combat this trend have been insufficient. As revealed by NPRCalifornia authorities already admit that the black market is currently more widespread in the state than the legal one.
According to AFPthe illegal marijuana market in California has grown mainly in rural areas, also increasing the number of violent crimes, such as homicides, in these regions.
California government data indicates that the state’s violent crime rate rose 6.1% in 2022, while property crimes rose 6.2%.
Since legalization, California has also become a major exporter of illegal marijuana to other American states where the herb is not yet legal, which has attracted the attention of criminal cartels in Mexico and criminal networks in China, as revealed by the Daily Mail.
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