There was some surprise when voters approved medical marijuana in Arkansas in a voter referendum in 2016. Arkansas was one of the first Red states in the South to approve medical marijuana. There has been frustration that it has taken so long after the vote for medical marijuana to hit the shelves with some people expressing the sentiment that the slow rollout was by design as some health officials in the state express doubt about whether marijuana is really that therapeutic.
And don’t think because medical marijuana is now legal if you have a card that there have been any changes to the laws for illegal possession of even small amounts of marijuana in Arkansas. According to the Medical Marijuana Project, Arkansas has some of the harshest marijuana laws in the nation despite increasing interest around the country for improvements to marijuana laws.
“The Arkansas Legislature has shown little interest in changing its cannabis laws. Possessing less than four ounces of marijuana is a misdemeanor carrying up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500,” MMP said. “Possessing an ounce of marijuana or more by those who have twice been convicted of possession is a felony punishable by up to six years in prison and a fine of up to $6,000.
“A decriminalization bill was introduced in 2019 but did not advance before the legislature adjourned. Contact your lawmakers and ask them to make marijuana decriminalization a priority in 2020. Let your lawmakers know its long past time for a more proportionate and fiscally sound approach to marijuana. Twenty-six states – including Mississippi, North Carolina and Missouri – have decriminalized or legalized marijuana. Ask your legislators to impose a civil fine on marijuana possession or to regulate marijuana like alcohol.”
In 2012, there were at least 5,718 marijuana arrests in Arkansas. Of those arrests, over 90 percent were for possession. During the same year, 91 percent of all reported burglaries, including home invasions, and over 90 percent of all motor vehicle thefts went unsolved. Law enforcement should stop wasting time on marijuana-related offenses and use its resources to stop real crime.
“In addition to wasting law enforcement time on victimless marijuana offenses, marijuana enforcement has been extremely unequal in Arkansas,” MPP said. “African Americans in Arkansas are over three times more likely to be arrested for possession of marijuana compared with whites, although both black and white populations consume marijuana at similar rates.”
Voters in Eureka Springs and Fayetteville made marijuana enforcement a low enforcement priority in 2006 and 2008. However, a 2019 report by the Arkansas Justice Collective found that marijuana arrests actually increased by 44 percent in Fayetteville since the measure passed.