Respect for the principles of democracy; respect for the states to make decisions on matters that primarily affect the residents of those states; the chance to conserve scarce federal financial resources — these we believe are many strong reasons for you to defer to the state decisions.
Rep. Barney Frank and Rep. Ron Paul • In an open letter to President Obama, asking that his administration not interfere with recently passed ballot measures that legalized the recreational usage of marijuana in Washington and Colorado. The retiring House members have both long been advocates of reforming existing drug laws, and have repeatedly introduced federal decriminalization legislation in the past. The Department of Justice and Drug Enforcement Agency have remained relatively mum on the new laws, outside of signaling disapproval, though many expect to hear some word on the federal government’s stance in the days and weeks ahead. source
220misdemeanor marijuana charges have been dropped by prosecutors in King and Pierce counties before a new law legalizing possession of the (still federally controlled) substance takes effect next month. Washington’s widely publicized legalization initiative is set to become the law of the land on Dec. 6, barring federal intervention in the interim, but local authorities see little point in trying to enforce laws that will soon expire. ““I think when the people voted to change the policy, they weren’t focused on when the effective date of the new policy would be,” said King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg. “They spoke loudly and clearly that we should not treat small amounts of marijuana as an offense.”source
