Contact: Mikayla Hellwich
media@leap.cc - 240.461.3066
For Immediate Release: Thursday, July 14, 2016
LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PROHIBITION (LEAP) THROWS SUPPORT BEHIND MAINE MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION, BALLOT QUESTION 1
Criminal Justice Experts Endorse Maine Campaign to Legalize Marijuana to Promote Public Safety
Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap has announced that Question 1 on Maine’s November ballot will be an initiative to legalize marijuana. Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a nonprofit organization of police, judges, prosecutors, and other criminal justice professionals advocating for marijuana legalization, endorses the measure as a means of refocusing the justice system on more serious matters and improving the relationship between communities and police. As summarized by the Maine Secretary of State, Question 1 will "allow the possession and use of marijuana under state law by persons who are at least 21 years of age, and allow the cultivation, manufacture, distribution, testing, and sale of marijuana and marijuana products subject to state regulation, taxation and local ordinance."
“Legalizing, taxing, and regulating marijuana is already proving successful in other states,” said Maj. Neill Franklin (Ret.), LEAP’s executive director. “We have a duty to ensure law enforcement prioritizes public safety above the responsible behavior of otherwise law-abiding adults.”
The campaign collected more than the 61,123 signatures required to qualify for the ballot.
Question 1 would allocate marijuana taxes to Maine’s General Fund to bolster local budgets.
Marijuana is legal for adult use in Colorado, Washington, Alaska, Oregon, and the District of Columbia. Twenty-five states and D.C. have legalized some form of medical marijuana access.
LEAP is committed to ending decades of failed marijuana policies that have damaged the lives of countless Americans and their families, slowed the justice system at every level, and eroded trust between communities and police.
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