Supreme Court Report: Cannabis Prosecutions Down 19% in 2018

An end-of-year report by U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts indicates that federal prosecution for cannabis crimes declined 19 percent in 2018, Marijuana Moment reports.

Chief Justice Robert’s report covers fiscal year 2018. During that period, several new states launched cannabis sales or continued the roll out of their new cannabis programs.

“Drug crime defendants, who accounted for 28 percent of total filings, grew two percent, although defendants accused of crimes associated with marijuana decreased 19 percent.” — Excerpt from Chief Justice Roberts’ report

States factoring into the report that launched legal cannabis programs during this time period include California, Nevada, Massachusetts, and Maine.

The news from the Supreme Court follows last week’s report that cannabis smuggling has declined significantly since the start of the cannabis legalization movement in the U.S.

It seems that there are many indicators — as cannabis advocates have argued for decades — that ending cannabis prohibition does indeed produce positive outcomes, not the least of which is a reduction in law enforcement costs and freeing up valuable police time for investigating and preventing more serious crimes.