#NORML #News
Source: @norml
Posted By: norml@weedconnection.com
media :: news
- Sun, 22 Sep 2013 04:20:21 PST

Annual Total Of Marijuana Arrests Holds Steady In 2012

Washington, DC: Police made an estimated 750,000 arrests for violations of marijuana laws in 2012 according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's annual Uniform Crime Report, a total that is largely unchanged from 2011 figures, but represents a decline from the record annual highs reported between the years 2006 and 2010.

According to the report, marijuana arrests comprise nearly half (48.3 percent) of the 1.5 million annual illicit drug arrests in the United States.

"As in past years, the so-called 'drug war' remains fueled by the arrests of minor marijuana possession offenders," NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano said. "Cannabis prohibition financially burdens taxpayers, encroaches upon civil liberties, engenders disrespect for the law, impedes upon legitimate scientific research into the plant's medicinal properties, and disproportionately impacts communities of color. It is time for lawmakers and law enforcement to listen to the voters and to stop stigmatizing and criminalizing tens of millions of Americans for choosing to consume a substance that is safer than either tobacco or alcohol."

Of those charged in 2011 with marijuana law violations, 658,231 (86 percent) were arrested for marijuana offenses involving possession only. The remaining 91,593 individuals were charged with "sale/manufacture," a category that includes virtually all cultivation offenses.

The arrest totals come at a time when numerous state and national polls indicate that strong majorities of American voters no longer support arresting or criminally prosecuting adults who possess or consume cannabis.

By region, the percentage of marijuana arrests was highest in the Midwest and in the South (52 percent and 51 percent of all illicit drug arrests respectively) and was lowest in the west, where cannabis violations comprised only 22 percent of total drug arrests.

THC Increases Brain Activity In Response To Positive Stimuli

London, United Kingdom: The administration of THC, the primary psychoactive component in cannabis, modulates emotional processing in healthy volunteers, according to placebo-controlled crossover trial data published online by the journal European Neuropsychopharmacology.

Investigators from the United Kingdom and the Netherlands performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) on 11 healthy male subjects. Following the administration of THC or placebo, researchers assessed subjects' brain activity during their exposure to stimuli with a negative ('fearful faces') content or a positive content ('happy faces'). They hypothesized that THC administration would reduce subjects' negative bias in emotional processing and shift it towards a positive bias. A bias toward negative stimuli has been linked to diagnoses of certain mental illnesses such as depression.

As anticipated, authors reported reduced brain activity after THC administration when subjects' processed stimuli with a negative emotional content. Conversely, researchers reported increased brain activity following THC administration when subjects' processed stimuli with a positive emotional content.

They concluded: "These results indicate that THC administration reduces the negative bias in emotional processing. This adds human evidence to support the hypothesis that the endocannabinoid system is involved in modulation of emotional processing. Our findings also suggest a possible role for the endocannabinoid system in abnormal emotional processing, and may thus be relevant for psychiatric disorders such as major depression."

Full text of the study, "The endocannabinoid system and emotional processing: A pharmacological fMRI study with Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol," will appear in European Neurophyscopharmacology.

Oklahoma: Majority Of Voters Endorse Marijuana Law Reform

Oklahoma, City, OK: A majority of likely Oklahoma voters back legalizing the use of medical marijuana and also support depenalizing pot possession penalties for recreational users, according to survey data released by SoonerPoll.com and commissioned by the Oklahoma state affiliate of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).

Seventy-one percent of respondents said that they support amending state law to allow for physician-authorized patients to consume cannabis for therapeutic purposes. Twenty states and Washington, DC, have enacted similar policies since 1996.

Oklahoma citizens also strongly backed amending state criminal laws that presently outlaw the plant's social use. Fifty-seven percent of respondents said that they preferred treating minor marijuana violations as a non-criminal, fine-only offense. Violators of such a policy would not be subject to arrest, face jail time, or receive a criminal record. Sixteen states already impose similar 'depenalization' policies. Two states, Colorado and Washington, have eliminated all criminal and civil penalties surrounding the possession of small quantities of marijuana by adults.

Finally, over 81 percent of Oklahoma respondents agreed that state lawmakers, not the federal government, ought to be the final arbiters to decide whether "[state] laws regarding whether the use of marijuana [are] legal or not."

Over 400 hundred likely voters participated in the statewide scientific poll, which possesses a margin or error of ±4.9 percent.

Oklahoma's marijuana penalties are among the most punitive in the county. Sales of any amount of cannabis are punishable by two years to life in prison. Subsequent minor marijuana possession offenses are punishable by two to ten years in prison.



#NORML #News



Bookmark and Share Subscribe

>> View All Media
>> View All Reviews


(c) Copyright 2006-2420 - WeedConnection LLC - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

#Support Your #OG @WeedConnection! (Click Here)








WeedConnection @ Twitter   @WeedConnection @ Facebook   @WeedConnection @ LinkedIn   @WeedConnection @ Foursquare   @WeedConnection @ Spotify   @WeedConnection @ YouTube   @WeedConnection @ Yelp   @WeedConnection @ Google+   @WeedConnection @ instaGram

weedconnection.com