Proposition 19 allows adults 21 years old and older to possess and grow small amounts of their own marijuana for personal use. Consumption would be allowed at home, in non-public spaces, and in licensed public places. Penalties for giving or selling marijuana to minors would range up to imprisonment for five years. In addition, local governments would be able to collect taxes on marijuana and regulate its sale and production.
ACLU Stance: This year, an estimated 60,000 people in California will be arrested for having small amounts of marijuana for personal use. These non-violent, minor infractions overload our courts and jails and cost police time and money that could be spent addressing violent crime.
Criminalization of marijuana use and possession disproportionately affects people of color and youth. The impact of a misdemeanor conviction for marijuana possession creates barriers to finding a house, a job, or even a school loan. Marijuana prohibition and the “War on Drugs” is failing. We have a chance to move marijuana policy in a direction that makes sense.
Vote YES on Prop. 19.
