US MARIJUANA BUSTS REMAINED HIGH IN 1998

The number of marijuana arrests last year remained near the 1997 record
high and surpassed those for murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault
combined, a group that lobbies for the reform of marijuana laws reported
Sunday.

Citing statistics from the FBI's report of crime statistics for 1998, the
Washington-based Marijuana Policy Project said there were 682,885 arrests
related to the drug in 1998, down 1.8 percent from the record high of
695,200 in 1997. "This is a tremendous waste of criminal justice
resources,'' said Chuck Thomas, spokesman for the group, which lobbies
lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana prescribed by doctors for illnesses
that cause pain or discomfort associated with the treatment of cancer or AIDS.

The 1998 marijuana arrests, 88 percent of which were for possession as
opposed to sale or manufacture, exceeded last year's arrests for murder,
rape, robbery and aggravated assault combined, the Marijuana Policy project
said in its statement.

The FBI report that contained the drug data also showed that the United
States had the lowest murder rate in more than 30 years and that the
overall number of serious crimes reported in 1998 fell 5 percent, the
seventh consecutive annual decline.

Citing other government statistics, the Marijuana Policy Project has
reported that there are 59,300 marijuana offenders in U.S. prisons and
jails at any given time.

"It is time to stop arresting adults who grow and consume their own
marijuana at home -- and instead put these public resources into
violent-crime enforcement and effective drug education,'' said Thomas.