- While Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy admits he's "not a fan" of a plan to fully decriminalize the possession of marijuana, he does believe there is a happy medium between that and taking a possessor into custody: ticketing.
"I'm not a fan of decriminalization," McCarthy told reporters Tuesday. "However, we don't have to process that arrest with an in-custody arrest. If you receive a ticket for it, the officer is still on the street and at the same time that person has to answer for their actions."
McCarthy's problem with all-out decriminalization stems from his years with the New York Police Department. In New York, decriminalization led to an increase in marijuana-related violence.
"marijuana-related violence"? Maybe from the dealers, but we don't really see stoners as being aggressively combative - it kind of runs against the entire marijuana-related experience.
But back on topic, we see the "more with less" philosophy leading to exactly this type of experiment being rolled out within the next year or two, tactical teams being the hardest hit for head counts and court time.