On Sept. 30 the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office announced that it will no longer prosecute simple marijuana possession. Citing the disproportionate impact of marijuana enforcement on people of color, the resulting clogging of court system and jails and the taxing of limited resources, County Prosecutor Mears stated he’s found no connection between people arrested for small amounts of marijuana and violent crime. Mears joins a growing list of prosecutors in other municipalities around the country that are enacting similar policies and in some cases dropping all marijuana prosecution.
A recent WTHR/Howey Politics Indiana poll found that 73 percent of Hoosiers support the legalization of medical marijuana with broad support across Republicans, Democrats and Independents. Another survey conducted by Ball State University showed 39 percent of Indiana residents support recreational use. Ohio allows medical marijuana with Michigan currently and Illinois beginning in 2020 allowing recreational.
The Libertarian Party has long advocated for the decriminalization of marijuana for both recreational and medical use. The Libertarian Party of Montgomery County applauds Mears’ fact-based decision and we call on Montgomery County Prosecutor Joseph Buser to follow Mears’ lead.
Thomas Knueven
Chairman of the Montgomery County
Libertarian Party
