With the legalization of recreational marijuana use, local law enforcement agencies say the number of narcotics violations has noticeably decreased.
In July 2021, at-home marijuana consumption and possession of up to an ounce was legalized by Virginia’s General Assembly. Retail sales, however, are not scheduled to become legal until 2024.
Lawmakers also passed a statute preventing law enforcement agencies from using the smell of marijuana as probable cause to charge a person or further investigate any criminal activity.
The Virginia State Police Annual Crime in Virginia Report, released last month, shows law enforcement agencies in Warren and Shenandoah counties saw drugs/narcotics violations drop 28% with 1,030 charges in 2020 to 738 in 2021.
Statewide drug/narcotics offenses decreased by 37% from 47,583 in 2020 to 29,556 in 2021.
Shenandoah County Sheriff’s Capt. Kolter Stroop said it would be nice if the decreased narcotics violations were the result of fewer people using “harder” drugs such as opioids and methamphetamines. However, he said it was the legalization of marijuana that led to the difference.
“I think the overdose numbers have been pretty similar this past year than they were in years prior. I don’t think less people are using them,” Stroop said.
In Shenandoah County, there were seven overdose deaths in 2020 for a rate…
