Marijuana is seen as a trivial drug to the majority of the population and college students worldwide. But some parts of the nation, including the federal court, view the drug as serious as some threatening felonies. According to norml.org, the first-time charge for possession of any amount of marijuana, as little as one joint can cost you a year in jail and up to $1,000 in fines. The same fine you'd receive for burglary in the state of Vermont. (criminal defense lawyer) Smoke that same joint for a third time, and that will score you up to three years in a prison and a $5,000 fine. Mississippi state law reads that a 21-year-old who commits statuary rape on a 14-year-old must pay up to a $5,000 fine and serve only two years longer in prison as an 18-year-old smoking a joint in his dorm room.
Should the United States, on a federal level, decriminalize their punishment for the recreational drug? I interviewed a college student in Burlington who had a particular opinion, "I'm not hurting anyone," he stated passionately. "I'm lucky to live in a state which is more tolerant toward marijuana, it's not fair that people can go out and deliberately hurt someone and face a smaller penalty than for what I am doing." A popular website for debating controversial topics, debate.org shows that 79% of the online population agree that consumption of marijuana should be legalized. Is it fair for people, young people especially, to have to face such harsh punishment for recreational use?
A drug bust in South Burlington, Vermont raised a lot of eyebrows in the city. South Burlington fire department ran to the scene of a fire in an apartment complex. While inside the building, police and firefighters discovered a "significant marijuana grow" on the second floor of the apartment. A 29-year-old man and 27-year-old woman were charged with cultivation of marijuana after police applied for and received a search warrant and found a large quantity of marijuana and items to assist the grow, as stated by the Burlington Free Press. An anonymous Burlington business figure discussed this incident with me in an interview. "These young people are going to have their lives ruined by something so trivial, they're not hurting anybody and they're getting punished the same as if someone were."
Although many cases are against the decriminalization of marijuana. "It's stupid really." Another student told me. "Why would you waste your time and money on something that does nothing but distract you from real life goals. Drugs are dangerous and cause gang fights, and drug lords cause major wars." He then went on to say, "The misjudgment that all young adults or even all college students partake in illegal activity is totally false. There are tons of activities on and off campus that support students who chose to go substance free."
The legalization of marijuana is a hot button topic due to the presidential elections. It seems like everyone has an opinion on the legalization or decriminalization of marijuana. It's time we get down to the roots of the problem: So what is worse- The fact that penalty for a recreational drug is so high, or that charges for offenses like statutory rape are so low?
