Massachusetts decriminalized possession of less than an ounce of marijuana last week, and the cops are complaining.
OK, maybe crying and whining would be a better description:
Ain't it just amazing? Creating new forms and procedures for laws that restrict the rights of citizens are rarely if ever a problem for law enforcement. But give the people more freedom, and there's no question that people are going to try to take advantage of this.
I've got it! We'll establish a new Law Enforcement Review Board to invalidate any legislation that police officers find to be incompatible with their sense of how society should be run.
OK, maybe crying and whining would be a better description:
"It's definitely going to make it more complicated for us to do our job," said Pittsfield Police Capt. Michael J. Wynn, the ranking officer in charge of the Berkshires' largest police department. "It sets up this huge realm of questions."
Wynn said the Pittsfield Police Department will have to develop a new citation and documentation system, for example, leading to administrative and legal headaches, not to mention additional costs.
It also creates a whole new set of questions for a police officer who confronts a person caught with just under an ounce of pot.
"Can we interview them? Can we interrogate them?" Wynn wondered. "It's going to be real tricky to figure out what this means, and there's no question that people are going to try to take advantage of this."
Ain't it just amazing? Creating new forms and procedures for laws that restrict the rights of citizens are rarely if ever a problem for law enforcement. But give the people more freedom, and there's no question that people are going to try to take advantage of this.
I've got it! We'll establish a new Law Enforcement Review Board to invalidate any legislation that police officers find to be incompatible with their sense of how society should be run.
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