New FBI Marijuana Arrest Data Riddled With Inconsistencies As Agency Touts Changes To Reporting System

October 6, 2022 ·

FBI has spent the past seven years and millions of tax dollars working to update its crime statistics reporting system—and the end result for 2021 data is raising more questions than answers for people tracking drug enforcement trends including marijuana-related arrests.

Still, the agency’s fragmented data on drug criminalization released on Wednesday continues to show that cannabis is the primary driver of the drug war—with marijuana and hashish accounting for almost half of all drug-related seizure incidents, for example.

The transition to FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS) was meant to provide refined, nationally representative information about crime trends in the U.S., but the new data paints an incomplete picture, particularly as it concerns drug arrests across the U.S. over the last year.

The newly reformatted statistics and terminology don’t clearly depict those arrests, or what percentages are related to cannabis and other substances. And while FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program has historically been limited by the fact that not all local and state law enforcement agencies report their individual data or do so consistently, there are even wider gaps this year.

Just 19 states fully transitioned to NIBRS as of April, with 31 others having only partially made the transition. That seems to fall significantly short of the agency’s goal to have 75 percent of law enforcement on the new program in 2021. (marijuanamoment.net) Full Story

In category:Politics
Next Post

California Funds Research On Blocking Marijuana Monopolies And Protecting ‘Legacy’ Cannabis Strains

California officials announced on Wednesday that the state will be awarding up to $20 million in marijuana tax-funded grants to universities that carry out research into cannabis science and policy—including studies on preventing monopolies in the legal industry and securing…
Read
Previous Post

More Than 3,500 Pennsylvanians Apply For Marijuana Pardons Under Governor’s Expedited Relief Program

More than 3,500 people applied for pardons for past cannabis convictions as part of a one-month Pennsylvania initiative spearheaded by the governor and lieutenant governor, a top state pardons official told Marijuana Moment on Wednesday. A final push from lawmakers…
Read
Random Post

Illinois cannabis delivery providers file complaint over unlicensed operators

Thirteen cannabis delivery service providers in central Illinois filed a complaint against state regulators, alleging that they are allowing unlicensed operators to transport product. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the Circuit Court of Sangamon County, claims the Illinois Department of Agriculture and…
Read
Random Post

Washington Lawmakers Approve Bill To Allow Cross-Border Marijuana Sales

Legislation to eventually allow Washington State marijuana companies to engage in interstate commerce passed out of a House committee on Tuesday. A companion bill on the Senate side cleared its own committee hurdle last month. If the legislation is enacted, interstate…
Read
Random Post

USDA Teaches Hemp Farmers How To Use Ghostbusters-Like Device To Collect Cannabis Pollen

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is encouraging hemp growers to construct a Ghostbusters-like backpack vacuum that will allow them to collect up to 10 grams of cannabis pollen in less than a minute. It’s part of an effort to…
Read
Random Post

innesota Lawmakers Vote To Legalize Drug Paraphernalia, Residue, Testing And Syringe Services

The Minnesota legislature has approved large-scale legislation that contains provisions to legalize drug paraphernalia possession, syringe services, residue and testing—a win for harm reduction advocates in the state. As part of a criminal justice and public safety omnibus bill, bicameral…
Read