The Justice Department’s watchdog took over a year before responding to an attorney who raised concerns about the apparent flaws in the way the Federal Bureau of Investigation collects and reports information on arrests for marijuana possession. Finally, the Justice Department suggested that the FBI investigate themselves.
Eric Sterling, an activist for drug policy reform and former congressional staffer who has been active in the field of drug policy reform, wrote a letter, in May 2022 to the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Justice (DOJ), claiming that he had discovered a Maryland Police department was reporting cannabis possession citations under the state’s law decriminalization at the time, as arrests, as part of the long-standing partnership between FBI and the FBI. Sterling argued that if other state and local agencies grouped these penalties together in the same way, it could have a significant impact on FBI’s annual report, which is used to inform policymaking and public reporting.
Include simple citations issued for marijuana possession under the same category of arrests – where people are arrested, booked, and processed – would inflate the recorded number of arrests. This could lead to a distorted public perception of police priorities and paint an inaccurate picture about how decriminalization or legalization policies are being implemented.
Sterling, who is a member of the Montgomery County Police Advisory Commission, Maryland, has recommended that an investigation be launched by the DOJ Inspector General’s Office.
The office responded last week, about 14 months after Sterling’s inquiry. The OIG investigation division, rather than address the apparent issue, said that it “determined that the issues that you raised would be better reviewed by another office within DOJ”, and referred to the FBI’s inspection division.
Sterling, in a telephone interview with Marijuana Moment on Monday, said that the delay suggests DOJ investigators “are overwhelmed and not able process the incoming complaint in any sort of timely manner and their ability to respond much more serious incidents of misconduct is compromised.”
It is important to act quickly, because if the issue is left unresolved for over a year, the FBI could produce another Uniform Crime Report that does not accurately reflect the cannabis policy changes implemented across the nation.
A spokesperson from the Office of the Inspector General of the DOJ declined to comment and referred Marijuana Moment to the FBI “for any further questions regarding this topic.” FBI did not respond immediately to a comment request.
This issue is particularly relevant for jurisdictions that have decriminalized marijuana. These policies usually maintain a civil penalty of some kind for possession, which could be reported as an arrest.
“We have very senior members of Congress who are proposing major federal reforms to the marijuana laws. State after state is seriously considering abandoning marijuana prohibition. In so many states, the primary question is: “How much does marijuana prohibition cost and how can it be enforced?” Sterling founded the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, and has served as a board member of numerous drug policy reform organizations. Arrests are a major driver of these costs.
He claimed that the FBI “handicapping the debate” over marijuana policy reform by generating data which leads to distorted images of what the police do.
Proponents of decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana, for example, often claim that this policy change will free up resources in law enforcement, which can then be used to focus on other priorities. By misclassifying citations and arrests, you could understate the impact of this change. You might even exaggerate crime rates.
The FBI’s reporting on cannabis enforcement is also compromised because local and state law enforcement are not required by federal regulations to share information with the FBI to produce its annual report. This means that provides an incomplete picture of national law enforcement activity. According to the agency, certain data might not be comparable with previous years due to different levels of participation. The most recent quarterly report, released in June, included data from “12 518 of 18 900 law enforcement agencies across the country.”
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The FBI has been criticized for its reporting, but recent trends still seem to be in line with what was expected. In fact, the agency shows that cannabis arrests have declined over the past few years, as more states are moving towards legalization.
The Drug Enforcement Administration also claims it made fewer arrests for marijuana last year even though the number of cannabis plants destroyed by the agency grew.
The federal data released by Customs and Border Protection in January indicates that cannabis seizure rates fell to an all-time low during Fiscal Year 2022.
A Report from the Government Accountability Office, released last year, also gives a better picture of those who are caught up in enforcement. Agents at checkpoints in the United States are more likely to seize small amounts of marijuana than large shipments coming from international cartels.
In line with and other federal reports the analysis of last year showed that cannabis seizures have declined significantly at checkpoints since 2016. Border Patrol seized 70 058 pounds at checkpoints of marijuana in 2016, compared to only 30,828 pounds by 2020.
In a report published last year, the Congressional Research Service stated that state-level marijuana legalization combined with international reforms had reduced demand from Mexico. has been cited by Congressional legislators in recent times to describe the impact that legalization can have on transnational drug cartel operations.
Sterling’s response to the DOJ IG is below.
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The post After being confronted with errors in FBI marijuana data for more than a year, DOJ punts investigation to FBI itself first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
