POT BUSTS BY THE NUMBERS

Risk of Marijuana Arrest Varies Greatly from State to State, County to
County Across America

The risk of being arrested for marijuana smoking is far greater in some
states than others, and far greater in some counties within a state than in
other counties. So says a surprising new report that demonstrates the
enormous inconsistency in the enforcement of drug laws across America.

An unlucky marijuana smoker in Alaska or New York, for example, is three
times more likely to be arrested than a marijuana smoker in Pennsylvania,
North Dakota or Hawaii. Similarly, a smoker in New York City is nine times
more likely to be arrested than a smoker in Nassau County, NY, a suburb of
the city.

On the west coast, a smoker in California's Trinity County (adjacent to
Humboldt County, legendary home of much marijuana cultivation) is nine times
more likely to be arrested than a smoker in Lassen County, which is only
separated from Trinity by one county.

The statistics all come from the NORML Foundation's most recent study, and
were reported by the online drug reform magazine DRCNet. According to the
study's author, public policy analyst Jon Gettman, 38 percent of all
marijuana arrests in the United States -- nearly 700,000 each year -- occur
in only 10 counties.

"Very often, during academic or public debates with individuals who support
marijuana prohibition, I'm confronted with the terrible myth that 'no one
gets arrested for marijuana anymore!'" explained Alan St. Pierre, executive
director of NORML. "Obviously this is not true."

The NORML Foundation's report seeks to dispel that myth and demonstrate the
massive scope and burden of marijuana arrests on America's already
overburdened criminal justice system. At the NORML web site, citizens can
now look up marijuana arrests for the last three statistical years, for
nearly every county in the United States. Not only is there a shockingly
high amount of marijuana arrests -- an arrest every 45 seconds -- but the
vast majority of marijuana arrests (85 percent) are for possession only.

The report reveals a number of social trends and law enforcement patterns,
including the high incidences of marijuana arrests in the following places:

where major state and federal highways intersect

border regions with Mexico and Canada

international airports ski resorts

State or National Parks/Wilderness Areas;

university or college towns

amusement and theme parks

sports complexes and music venues

Gettman's study reviews county and state marijuana arrest data nationwide
from 1995-97 (though detailed data was not available for the District of
Columbia, Kansas or Vermont). Arrest counts and rates are provided in the
report for 2,951 of the nation's 3,140 counties, accounting for 95.5 percent
of the total estimated marijuana arrests for the year.

In terms of state-wide numbers, Alaska had the highest arrest rate with
417.71 people arrested on marijuana charges per 100,000 population, followed
closely by New York at 404.59. The marijuana arrest rate was the lowest in
Pennsylvania with 125.57 per 100,000 population, followed by North Dakota
(131.05). The national average marijuana arrest rate was 259.61 per 100,000,
an increase of 15.8 percent over 1995.

North Carolina ranked 12th in the nation, with 259.61 arrests per 100,000,
an increase of 43.34 percent. South Carolina ranked fifth in the US, with
379.44 arrests per 100,000, an increase of 19 percent over 1995. More
complete regional stats can be found in this story's sidebar.

According to St. Pierre, the NORML foundation believes that "one of the
prime reasons for the increased number of marijuana-related arrests is the
specter of forfeiture. Since the mid-1980s, law enforcement has been given
awesome powers to seize assets from suspected (not convicted, or even
arrested) citizens. And unlike other branches of government, law enforcement
agencies can fund themselves with what they can rustle up on the side of the
road, principally in the form of a traffic stop turned drug arrest." This
financial incentive may motivate police to turn a simple traffic stop into a
full blown search and seizure.

NORML's complete study, including state and national maps, Dr. Gettman's
commentary and analysis, and charts ranking the 50 states and counties
within each state, is available.