Bloomberg Locked Up Nearly Half a Million People on Marijuana Charges

Former mayor now campaigning on decriminalization

Yuichiro Kakutani
February 28, 2020 5:00 AM

Presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg argued on the debate stage that people shouldn't be arrested for marijuana possession, but as the mayor of New York City, he arrested 471,000 people on possession charges, more than the three previous mayors combined.

Harris: Marijuana Offenders Should Be ‘First in Line’ for Cannabis Industry Jobs

2020 candidate says they've got experience 'selling weed'

David Rutz
December 2, 2019 11:10 AM

Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.) said Sunday that people convicted for marijuana charges should be first in line for jobs in the legalized cannabis industry, noting with amusement they had experience "selling weed."

Kamala Harris Blames Weed Arrests for Mass Incarceration

1,974 people were put in prison for weed on Harris's watch

Alex Griswold
November 22, 2019 2:25 PM

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris lamented the mass incarceration of those convicted of marijuana-related offenses Thursday, without acknowledging the thousands who were incarcerated in California under her watch.

Analysis Casts Doubt on Weed’s Ability to Fight Opioid Epidemic

Researchers dispute major marijuana lobby talking point

Charles Fain Lehman
November 20, 2019 5:00 AM

Marijuana may not be an effective tool for those struggling with opioid addiction, according to a new analysis. While marijuana advocates have claimed that the drug can help fight the opioid epidemic, an analysis published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal finds the science behind this claim is equivocal at best.

Sanders Policy Chief Pushes Marijuana-Incarceration Myth

Calls legalization a 'racial justice issue'

Charles Fain Lehman
October 25, 2019 3:15 PM

A top adviser with the Bernie Sanders campaign repeated questionable claims and statistical myths to push the Vermont senator's marijuana legalization plan.

Surgeon General: Weed Legalization ‘A Massive Public Health Experiment’

'We don't know what we don't know'

Charles Fain Lehman
October 23, 2019 5:55 PM

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams called the spread of state marijuana legalization "a massive public health experiment on our citizenry."

2020 Dems Lean on Myth of Marijuana-Incarceration Link

Progressive criminal justice plans turn on claims debunked by data

Charles Fain Lehman
October 20, 2019 5:00 AM

Marijuana legalization features prominently in 2020 Democrats' criminal justice reform plans, but many repeat the common misbelief that the drug plays a major role in mass incarceration.

House Dems Pass Weed Banking Bill

Experts warn SAFE Banking Act could be a boon to drug traffickers

Charles Fain Lehman
September 25, 2019 5:56 PM

Marijuana companies will be able to do business with banks under a proposal passed by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives, raising concerns from drug policy experts that drug traffickers will benefit.

Harris Agrees With Salon Editor on Police Officers: They ‘Just Harass and Take Up Space In Poor Communities’

'We shouldn't have to acknowledge their trauma because they're paid to be there'

Cameron Cawthorne
September 9, 2019 7:55 PM

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris (Calif.) on acknowledged that Salon's editor-at-large D. Watkins was “right” about police officers after he claimed they “they just harass and take up space in poor communities.”

Colorado Doctor Sounds Alarm on Marijuana Legalization

High hopes dashed

Charles Fain Lehman
September 6, 2019 4:00 PM

Colorado's experiment with marijuana legalization has been an epic disaster, according to one doctor seeing its effects on the front lines. Dr. Karen Randall, an emergency room physician certified in "cannabis science and medicine," said the legalization of marijuana has damaged, rather than helped her home state.