Mexico looks to decriminalize pot use in small amounts
In an effort to focus on large-scale drug trafficking, Mexico President Felipe Calderon is seeking to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana and cocaine use in the country.
Mexican President Felipe Calderon, locked in a bloody battle with drug cartels, wants to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of street drugs in a plan likely to irk Washington.
Calderon, a conservative in power nearly two years, sent a proposal to Congress on Thursday that would scrap the penalties for drugs including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, opium and marijuana.
“What we are seeking is to not treat an addict as a criminal, but rather as a sick person and give them psychological and medical treatment,” said Sen. Alejandro Gonzalez, head of the Senate’s justice committee.
Under Calderon’s plan, people carrying up to 2 grams (0.07 ounces) of marijuana or opium, half a gram of cocaine, 50 milligrams of heroin or 40 milligrams of methamphetamine would face no criminal charges.
It would also give Mexican states the power to try drug dealers in local courts instead of at the federal level.
