Marijuana Reform Reduces Racial Injustice, American Medical Association Study Reveals

By Nina Zdinjak

Can Legalizing Marijuana Help Reduce Crime? It seems so. A new study published by the American Medical Association found that states with legalized or decriminalized cannabis have seen “a large decrease in racial arrests of adults,” reported Marijuana Moment.

And let’s face it, any racial arrest is a crime.

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Researchers at Eastern Virginia Medical School and Saint Louis University analyzed data from 43 states and identified a specific pattern suggesting that the repeal or relaxation of laws surrounding marijuana is associated with a significant decrease in arrest rates compared to states that do Believed cannabis to be illegal.

The study, which mainly focused on racial patterns, examined data collected from 2008 to 2019. The results showed that states that legally accepted marijuana had an average of 561 fewer arrests per 100,000 blacks and 195 fewer arrests for whites.

The decriminalization, while giving somewhat “lower results”, also resulted in 449 fewer arrests per 100,000 blacks and 117 fewer arrests for 100,000 whites.

Racial differences are increasing in states where cannabis is banned

The study, published last week in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Forum, also found that “cannabis arrests for adults and adolescents in states that have not changed cannabis policy have increased over time.”

In addition, racial disparities in arrest rates have increased in states that have maintained the ban and decreased in states that have introduced reform policies.

RELATED: The Role of Marijuana Legalization Can Play in Fighting Racial Injustice

“States that have made no policy change showed no significant changes in white arrests and an increase in blacks, increasing the disparity in arrest rates over time,” the study concluded.

Interestingly, however, the study also found that teenagers had a lower risk of being arrested in states that were decriminalizing versus legalizing.

RELATED: Draft Law to Repeal Marijuana Prohibition Adopts Critical House Committee

In the end, the study indicated that while the results “do not clearly favor decriminalization or legalization, the increase in disparities in arrest rates in states without either directive underscores the need for targeted interventions to combat racial injustice”.

The American Medical Association, a professional body and lobby group of doctors and medical students, was founded in 1847.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.