Pot Arrests in Pennsylvania still high during Pandemic

Pennsylvania police made 20,200 arrests for marijuana possession in 2020 - a year marked by the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent classification of cannabis businesses as essential services in many jurisdictions. Pennsylvania State Police arrest data showed that an average of 55 adults per day were arrested in the state for cannabis possession over the past year. The data, which includes arrests by state and local police across Keystone State, was collected by Chris Goldstein, a regional coordinator for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). Goldstein helped draft Philadelphia's 2014 Cannabis Decriminalization Ordinance, a move that was followed by measures to reform marijuana laws in more than a dozen other Pennsylvania cities, including the state capital, Harrisburg. "Cannabis users were even targeted during the Covid-19 pandemic," Goldstein said in a statement from NORML. "This shows how aggressively Prohibition is being enforced, despite the unprecedented public health risks in our communities. It is time to stop the marijuana arrests, and now." Law enforcement data shows that Pennsylvania police made more arrests for marijuana possession than for all other illicit substances combined, making a total of 17,425 arrests. Analysis of the data showed large racial gaps in marijuana possession arrests in Pennsylvania last year. Although blacks make up only 12% of the state's population, 32% of those arrested for marijuana were black. The imbalance comes despite studies that have consistently shown comparable rates of cannabis use among blacks and whites. "Marijuana should not be used as an excuse for law enforcement agencies to interact with otherwise law-abiding members of the public, especially during a global pandemic," said NORML State Policies Manager Carly Wolf. "The ongoing marijuana ban in Pennsylvania encroaches on civil liberties and disproportionately affects colored communities. It is time lawmakers took action to stop marijuana users from being treated as second-class citizens." Another analysis shows that 461 blacks per 100,000 Pennsylvania residents were arrested for marijuana possession, while only 131 whites per 100,000 Pennsylvania residents were arrested for weed. Taken together, the per capita figures show that blacks are about 3.5 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession in Pennsylvania than their whites. Jeff Riedy, executive director of Lehigh Valley NORML, noted that racial disparities in arrest dates in Pennsylvania reflect the disproportionate enforcement of drug laws across the United States. "These numbers remind us of the persistent impact of domestic cannabis criminalization while also reflecting the racial inequality in arrests across the country," said Riedy in the statement by the cannabis policy reform group. "The only real solution is the immediate decriminalization and eventual legalization of cannabis in Pennsylvania. We know too many people's lives are ruined for simple possession charges, and it must stop now! We're talking about a plant here."