Archives for: April 27th, 2015

Colorado Marijuana Public Display and Consumption Charges Rise

Criminal justice in Colorado has undergone some drastic changes since the state legalized the recreational use and sale of marijuana in 2012.

According to a report from the Drug Policy Alliance, the number of marijuana charges for possession, distribution, and cultivation fell by 95 percent between 2010 and 2014. Possession charges dropped from 30,428 in 2010 to 1,922 in 2014, while distribution and cultivation charges have become nearly nonexistent.

However, though possession, distribution, and cultivation charges have dropped, there has [...]

Juvenile Marijuana Crimes on the Rise

In the past few years, Colorado has been receiving a lot of national media attention for becoming the first state to legalize recreational marijuana use. Despite the fact that plenty of popular news outlets have been playing up this new legislation and pointing out its positive aspects, the legalization of marijuana has not been without negative side effects.

According to the Durango Herald, Colorado schools saw a record number of drug use violations in the months following marijuana legalization. [...]

The Dangers of Juvenile Incarceration

While our nation’s youth crime rates have declined considerably in the last 20 years, the US continues to put more children and teenagers in juvenile detention centers than any other developed country. Our juvenile incarceration rate is seven times higher than Britain’s, and 18 times higher than France’s rate. Each year, we spend millions of taxpayer dollars keeping children and teens behind bars.

While these numbers are frightening on their own, it’s even more frightening to consider the effects of [...]

What Happens If Your Teen Gets a Minor in Possession Charge?

Your teen is an honors student. She aces all her classes. She’s involved in all kinds of extra-curricular activities. She has an impeccable driving record. You’ve done a great job as a parent.

And then you get the shocking call: your teen has been busted for a minor in possession (MIP). How can this have happened? Where did you go wrong? You know that she’s a good kid, but now it seems like that doesn’t matter. What’s going to happen [...]