Several Arrested at 1st Annual Congressional # JointSession

On April 20, the DCMJ, an advocacy group that sponsored Initiative 71, held the 1st Annual Joint Session in Washington D.C. and gave out two free pre-rolls to members of Congress, Congressional staffers, journalists, support staff, interns and Capitol Hill workers 21-or-older with valid Congressional identification. However during the event, at least seven individuals were arrested while legally giving out pre-rolls to adults.

The DCMJ issued a statement about the unfortunate turn of events. “We firmly believe that these politically motivated arrests were directly ordered by the U.S. Capitol Police Chief in an attempt to suppress Americans’ right to free speech and peaceful demonstration—an unlawful violation of our most basic civil liberties,” stated Nikolas Schiller, co-founder of the DCMJ. “Due to these politically motivated arrests, certain individuals will be wrongfully barred from peacefully participating in DCMJ’s #Reschedule420 Smoke-In at the Capitol, which will happen on Monday, April 24, 2017 at high noon.  We call on legalization activists from across the country to join us on Monday as we urge Congress to support the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2017 (H.R. 1227), which would finally put an end to the federal prohibition of cannabis.”

The individuals were arrested on Washington D.C. land, and not on federal property.  According to Washington D.C. law, adults 21 years of age or older may possess up to two ounces of cannabis legally.

The DCMJ will continue to lobby Congress to maintain the legal status of cannabis in Washington D.C. as well as on a federal level. “At no point in our nation’s history has there been more support from mainstream America for taking cartel cash off of our streets, cannabis out of the hands of criminals, and putting it behind a legal, taxed and, regulated counter,” Schiller said. “Our policymakers should accept and recognize this—not ignore it.”