Crime & Safety
Study Shows Disproportionate Amount of Marijuana Arrests for African Americans
An ACLU study says a racial-based disparity exists in state marijuana possession arrests.
Written by Nate Adams
A black person in Pennsylvania is more than five times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than a white person, at least according to one study.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) conducted a study looking at marijuana possession arrests between 2001 and 2010.The group found a national disparity between the arrest rates of white people and black people for the same crime."On average, a black person is 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than a white person, even though blacks and whites use marijuana at similar rates," the study's report says. The findings say that this disparity exists in "all regions of the country … with large and small black populations."
The report states that black people are 5.19 times more likely to be arrested for possession in Pennsylvania than white people are, making the state one of the top-10 in the nation for this disparity.
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Pennsylvania was one of the states with the highest marijuana possession rates. More than 21,000 possession arrests were made in 2010 alone, the study states.
According to the arrest statistics in the study, which were provided by the FBI, 40 percent of possession arrests in 2010 were black. Pennsylvania's black population makes up 11 percent of the state's total residents.
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The ACLU study suggests that legalizing marijuana use for people age 21 and older could be a way to reduce both racial disparities and costs to the states.
"The most effective way to eliminate arrests for marijuana use and possessions [and] the racial disparities among such arrests … is to legalize marijuana."
Pennsylvania spent more than $100 million on marijuana enforcement in 2010.
Check out the info below to see what the arrest disparity is in the Greater Philadelphia Area:
- In Philadelphia County in 2010, there were 137 white people and 672 black people arrested for marijuana, meaning blacks were 4.9 times more likely to be arrested for the same crime.
- In Montgomery County in 2010, there were 106 white people and 448 black people arrested for marijuana, meaning blacks were 4.2 times more likely to be arrested for the same crime.
- In Delaware County in 2010, there were 131 white people and 434 black people arrested for marijuana, meaning blacks were 3.3 times more likely to be arrested for the same crime.
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