Puerto Rican officials push to legalize marijuana
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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A former health secretary and an ex-university president want to legalize marijuana in Puerto Rico, saying it will reduce a burgeoning prison population and prevent young adults from being exposed to violent criminals.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A former health secretary and an ex-university president want to legalize marijuana in Puerto Rico, saying it will reduce a burgeoning prison population and prevent young adults from being exposed to violent criminals.
Under the plan, marijuana would be taxed as liquor and tobacco are now, with proceeds going toward drug-treatment programs, said former Health Secretary Enrique Vazquez Quintana.
The proposal, also supported by other former public officials and a medical doctor, calls for stricter penalties against drug traffickers, and comes as the U.S. Caribbean territory prepares to launch drug-treatment programs to wean addicts from crack, heroin and other substances.
About 24 percent of the island's 13,500 inmates have been convicted on drug charges, and an estimated 80 percent of crimes are drug-related, according to the Department of Corrections.
"The fight against drugs, using punishment, has not worked," said Jose Manuel Saldana, former president of the University of Puerto Rico. "This is a social reality.
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