With only six days left before ballots are due, 30 law enforcement officials from across the western half of the United States have endorsed Oregon’s Measure 91 to regulate marijuana.
The endorsers include former Seattle police chief Norm Stamper, former Multnomah County Sheriff Don Clark, former Denver Police Department Lieutenant Tony Ryan and Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Stephen Downing.
The Yes on 91 campaign announced their support as part of a press conference today featuring former U.S. Attorney Kris Olson; former Oregon Supreme Court Justice Bill Riggs; 30-year law enforcement veteran Paul Steigleder; and Partnership for Safety and Justice director Cassandra Villanueva.
“Marijuana prohibition has a disproportionate and disparate impact on people of color and youth — fueling their existence and penetration in the criminal and justice systems,” Villanueva said. “It is not an effective use of taxpayer dollars or reflect the value of Oregonians.”
People of color in Oregon are arrested twice as often for marijuana despite no evidence of disparity in use, according to an ACLU analysis of FBI crime data. Seven percent of all arrests for any crime in Oregon are for simple marijuana possession, according to The Oregonian.
New advertisements have hit the television and radio airwaves for Measure 91, featuring Oregon’s former chief federal prosecutor Kris Olson, retired Oregon Supreme Court Justice Bill Riggs, former Multnomah County drug unit prosecutor Darian Stanford, former prosecutor Inge Fryklund and others.