Between 2011 to 2015, there was about 471,000 cases of cannabis possession and only about 27 percent of them saw charges while the others were given only a warning. That means that roughly 1 in four saw charges while the rest saw only warnings. But 1 in 4 is still 1 too many that has to be hassled, kidnapped, or extorted, over a victimless crime.
It's suggested that police forces have an increasingly lax view when it comes to the plant, choosing to instead focus their resources on other initiatives. Are more officers coming around to the notion that the drug war should be ended and that people should be allowed to make their own choice when it comes to what they put into their own body?
Chief constable Mike Barton says that even targeting growers isn't a high priority for him any longer. And he surprisingly holds the view that all class A and B drugs should be made legal. Research also has indicated that prosecution levels have fallen in recent years. And drug-war advocates have launched complaint over the neglect to enforce prohibition more heavily, saying it supposedly risks the protection of young people.
Of 31 different England and Wales police forces that took the time to respond to freedom of information requests, it was found that there was about 471,202 cases related to cannabis possession. Those cases range from 2011 to 2015. Now their police forces will have more time to focus on things like terrorism, theft, fraud, and other more pressing matters.