Majority of Police Officers Would Like More Relaxed Cannabis Laws

Police officers are reflecting the public’s opinion that cannabis laws should be lessened, according to the data revealed in a recent Pew Research Center Survey. The poll asked both the generation population and police officers whether they believed “Marijuana use by adults” either “Should be legal for medical and personal use,” “Should be legal for medical use only” or “Should not be legal.”

While 84 percent of the public believed that cannabis consumption by adults should either be legal for medical use only or medical and personal use, a similar belief was also held by a large majority of police officers. Sixty-eight percent of police officers also approved either medical only consumption or medical and personal consumption by adults.

Only 30 percent of police officers gave their opinion that cannabis consumption by adults should not be legal. The study also determined that a police officer’s age was likely to have an impact on their opinions on cannabis. There was a higher percent of support for recreational cannabis by 37 percent of police officers who were under the age of 35. Only 27 percent of officers between the ages of 50 and 60 supported recreational cannabis legalization. The general public also reflected that age matters, with 67 percent of people under 35 supporting recreational cannabis and only 45 percent of those ages 50 and 60 in support.

Police officers are dealing with criminals day in and day out, and if two-thirds of police officers believe that prohibiting cannabis is unnecessary, it’s time we take notice and listen. Although there are a majority of states that allow medical consumption of cannabis by adults with qualifying conditions, there are still states that prohibit cannabis completely.

Studies like this are important in showing that even the police officers, who are on the front line of the “War on Drugs,” see a need for improvement by lowering restrictions on cannabis.