$75 Million a Year

The Cost of New York City's

Marijuana Possession Arrests



x InNewYorkState,carryingasmallamountofmarijuanainapocket,backpackorpurse
isaviolation,likeatrafficviolation,andisnotacrime.Nonetheless,in2010theNew
YorkPoliceDepartmentmade50,300arrestsformarijuanapossession–morethanfor
anyotheroffenseandoneoutofsevenarrestsinNewYorkCity.

x Overthelast15years,asinglearrestformarijuanapossession,includingallpoliceand
courtexpenses,hascostfrom$1,000to$2,000ormore,conservativelyestimated.

x In2010,NewYorkCityspent$75millionarrestingandjailingmostlyyoungpeople
simplyforpossessingsmallamountsofmarijuana.

x From1997through2010theNYPDmade536,000arrestsformarijuanapossession.
Thishascosttaxpayers$500milliontoover$1billion.

x Marijuanapossessionarrestsalsohaveserioushumancostsandconsequences.They
createpermanentcriminalrecordsthatcanbeeasilyfoundontheInternetby
employers,landlords,schools,creditagencies,licensingboards,andbanks.

x Governmenthealthsurveysfindthatyoungwhitesusemarijuanaathigherratesthan
youngblacksandLatinos.ButtheNYPDarrestsblacksformarijuanapossessionat
seventimestherateofwhitesandLatinosatnearlyfourtimestherateofwhites.




Drug Policy Alliance 

70 West 36th Street, 16th Floor
New York, NY 10018

www.drugpolicy.org
March 2011
About:

"$75MillionAYear"waspreparedbyHarryG.LevineandLorenSiegeloftheMarijuanaArrest
ResearchProject.HarryG.Levine,PhD,isaprofessorofsociologyatQueensCollege,City
UniversityofNewYork.Heistheauthorofnumerousworksondrugpolicyandmarijuana
arrests.LorenSiegel,JD,wasformanyyearsthedirectorofpubliceducationfortheAmerican
CivilLibertiesUnion.Sheisacommunicationsconsultantforprominentmediaandadvocacy
organizations.In2010,Levine,SiegelandcriminaljusticeresearcherJonGettmanissueda
seriesofreportsfortheDrugPolicyAllianceandtheNAACPaboutraciallybiasedmarijuana
arrestsinCalifornia.

TheDrugPolicyAlliance(DPA)isthenation'sleadingorganizationpromotingalternativestothe
drugwarthataregroundedinscience,compassion,healthandhumanrights.

Contact:GabrielSayegh,StateDirector,NewYork,DrugPolicyAlliance.
gsayegh@drugpolicy.org|212.613.8048
70W.36thStreet,16thFloor,NewYork,NY10018
www.drugpolicy.org
______________________________________________________________________________________

2
 30YearsofMarijuanaPossessionArrests
inNewYorkCity,19811995&19962010
550,000

500,000 536,322
450,000

400,000

350,000

300,000

250,000

200,000

150,000

100,000

50,000

0
33,775

19811995 19962010

MarijuanaPossessionArrestsinNewYorkCity,19782010
55,000

50,000

45,000

40,000

35,000

30,000

25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

0
78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Source:NewYorkStateDivisionofCriminalJusticeServices,ComputerizedCriminalHistorySystem(Feb2011).Includesall
fingerprintablemisdemeanorarrestsforNYSPenalLawArticle221.10asthemostseriouschargeinanarrestevent.Ages
16andolder.Thesetablesshowonlythelowestlevelmisdemeanormarijuanapossessionarrestsandcharges.
HarryG.Levine,SociologyDepartment,QueensCollegeandtheGraduateCenter,CityUniversityofNewYork.Feb2011 3
_________________________________________________________________________

TheCostofNewYorkCity's
MarijuanaPossessionArrests

 Inrecentyearsreportsbyacademics,researchers,andjournalistshavedocumentedthe
largenumberofarrestsforpossessionofmarijuanamadebypoliceinNewYorkCity.TheNYPD
made46,400ofthesemisdemeanorarrestsin2009,and50,300ofthemin2010–thetwomost
recentyearsinthecity'sfifteenyearmarijuanaarrestcrusade.1

 Forcomparison,from1981to1995,underthreedifferentmayors,NewYorkCitymadea
totalof33,700marijuanapossessionarrests,averagingonly2,300peryear.Forthepastfifteen
years,however,NewYorkaveraged36,000marijuanapossessionarrestsayear.In2010theNYPD
arrestedpeopleformarijuanapossessionatnearlysixteentimestherateofearlieryears.
 
 Theseareallarrestswherethehighestoronlychargewaspossessingasmallamountof
marijuana,usuallyatinybagoracigarette(ajointorblunt).Thosearrestedwereoverwhelmingly
teenagersandyoungpeopleintheirtwenties,and87%ofthemwereblackorLatino.

 InNewYorkState,possessinglessthananounceofmarijuanaisnotacrimeforwhich
someonecanbearrestedandfingerprinted.Itisonlyacrimeifthemarijuanaisopenly
displayedorsmoked,whichwasnotthecaseformostpeoplearrested.Therefore,Inorderto
makethesepossessionarrests,thepoliceusuallyhadtotrickorintimidateyoungpeopleinto
revealingtheirmarijuana,orsearchtheperson'spocketsandpossessions,oftenillegally.2

 Thepeoplearrestedwerehandcuffed,takentothepolicestation,fingerprinted,
photographed,andtheirinformationwaspermanentlyenteredintocriminaldatabases.They
werethentakentothecentralbookingjailatoneofthecity'scriminalcourts.After24ormore
hoursincustody,theyfinallyappearedinarraignmentcourtwheretheircaseswerehandledby
assistantdistrictattorneys,publicdefenders,criminalcourtjudges,andothercourtpersonnel.3

 In2010,oneoutofeverysevenarrestsforalloffensesinNewYorkCity,andoneoutof
fiveofallmisdemeanorarrests,wasalowestlevelmarijuanapossessionarrest.Since
BloombergbecameMayorin2002,theNYPDhasmade350,000ofthesearrests,morethan
underMayorsKoch,DinkinsandGiulianicombined.4

 HowmuchmoneydoesitcostNewYorkCitytomakeandprocessallthesearrests?
Nooneknows.Otherthanthetopmanagersofthepolicedepartmentandthemayor’soffice,no
onehasaccesstotheinformationandtherearelimitedwaystoobtainit.Asadistrictattorney
fromanotherlargecitysuggestedtous,theNewYorkCityCouncilorStateLegislature,orboth,
couldholdhearingsandrequiretheNYPDandothercriminaljusticeagenciestodisclosethese
costs.Or,awellfundedteamofexperiencedinvestigatorscouldgothroughpublicrecords,sue
foraccesstoothers,andusethatinformationtoestimatethecostsofthecity'smarijuana
possessionarrests.Atpresent,theinformationneededtopreciselycalculatethecostofNew
YorkCity'stensofthousandsofannualmarijuanaarrestsishiddenandinaccessible.

4
_________________________________________________________________________
 
 Inordertodeterminethecostsofbothcrimeandenforcement,manyresearchershave
soughttomeasurevariouscriminaljusticecosts.Muchofthatworkhasfocusedonprison
expensesandthefinancialcostoflostpropertyandliferesultingfromseriousfelonies.
Howeverinthelasttwentyyearsanumberofresearchershavestudiedpoliceandcourtcostsin
differentstatesandcitiesinordertodeterminethecostsofparticulartypesofcrimes.These
estimatesvary,withcostsgenerallyincreasingeverywhereovertime.Butthereisconsiderable
agreementandthestudiesconvergeonaminimalpoliceandcourtcostrangeof$1,000to
$2,000ormoreforabasic,custodialmisdemeanorarrestandcourtarraignment.

 MarkA.Cohen,aneconomistandveterancriminaljusticeresearcheratVanderbilt
University,whoseworkhasbeenpublishedbytheU.S.NationalInstituteofJustice,hasbeen
examiningthecostsofcrimeandofthecriminaljusticesystemsincetheearly1990s.Aspartof
astudyfortheNationalResearchCouncil,Cohenandothersuseddatafromseveral
jurisdictionsandcalculatedallpoliceandcourtcoststobeabout$2,000forarapearrest,about
$1,100forarobberyarrest,andabout$1,200foranaggravatedassaultarrest–in1987dollars.5

 Severalotherstudieshaveproducedroughlycomparablefigures.Inevaluatingcriminal
justiceandmandatorysentencingcostsinCaliforniafortheRandCorporation,Greenwoodand
hiscoauthorsestimated$624inpolicecostsand$1,100intotalcourtcostsperarrest–in1993
dollars.6AstudybyMasseyaboutcontrollingillegalimmigrationfoundthecostofonearrestat
thebordertobe$1,700in2002.7ArecentdetailedstudyofdiversionprogramsintheSan
Antoniometropolitanarea,byTheResearchTriangleInstitute,reportedthecostofanarrest
from"theinitialpeaceofficerinteractionthroughbooking"tobe$2,860in2007dollars.8

 Thepremierstudyofthecostsofarrestsandprosecutionsisa180pagereport,The
ComparativeCostsAndBenefitsOfProgramsToReduceCrime.Itwaspreparedin2001byAos,
Phipps,Barnoski,andLiebfortheWashingtonStateInstituteforPublicPolicy.Thestudy
calculatedaveragepoliceandcourtcostsperarrestforanumberofcrimecategoriesinall
jurisdictionsinthestateofWashington.9Thecostofonearrestformurderwasthemost
expensivefollowed,indecliningorder,byarrestsforrape,robbery,aggravatedassault,
propertycrime,drugcrime,andmisdemeanors.Aosandhisteamfoundthatthetotalpolice
costsforapropertycrimeordrugcrimewere$1,890anarrest,andthecourtcostswere$1,670
–equaling$3,560totalcostsperarrest(excludingjailandprisonexpenses).

 Foramisdemeanorarrest,suchasamarijuanapossessionarrest,policecostswere
$764andthecourtcostswere$336,foratotalof$1,100–in1995dollars.(SeeAppendixfora
copyofthecoststablefromthereport.)Thiswouldbeover$1,500in2010dollarsin
WashingtonState.SincethecostoflivingishigherinNewYorkCity,itseemsreasonableto
concludethatthepoliceandcourtcostsforasinglemisdemeanormarijuanaarrestinNewYork
Cityisbynowatleast$1,500toover$2,000.Thiscoversallpolicetimeincludingovertimepay
forarrestingofficersandsupervisors,allprearraignmentjailcosts,andallcourtexpenses.10For
2010thisworksouttoatleast$75million.

 

5
 _________________________________________________________________________
 
 Usingthreedifferentcostfiguresproducesthefollowingrangeofestimatesforthe
50,300marijuanapossessionarreststheNYPDmadein2010:

$1,000anarrestX50,300arrests=$50,300,000
$1,500anarrestX50,300arrests=$75,450,000
$2,000anarrestX50,300arrests=$100,600,000

ItisfairtosaythatNewYorkiscurrentlyspendingfrom$50milliontoover$100millionayear
toarrestandprocesspeoplesimplyforpossessingsmallamountsofmarijuana.11

 Inthelastfifteenyears,from1996through2010,NewYorkCitymadeatotalof
536,0000arrestsforpossessingsmallamountsofmarijuana.Usingtheabovefiguresproduces
thefollowingrange:

$1,000perarrestX536,000arrests=$536,000,000
$1,500perarrestX536,000arrests=$804,000,000
$2,000perarrestX536,000arrests=$1,072,000,000

 Sofar,NewYorkCity’smarijuanaarrestcrusadehascostfromfivehundredmillionto
overabilliondollars.Andthesehundredsofthousandsofmanufacturedmarijuanaarrestsand
jailingshavefallenoverwhelminglyonpeopleleastabletodefendthemselvesagainstthe
onslaught–young,lowincomeblacksandLatinos.

 IsthishowthecitizensofNewYorkwanttheirtaxdollarsspent?InthemidstofNew
York'ssevereeconomiccrisis,whenschools,healthcareandotheressentialservicesarebeing
cut,isthisthebestuseof$75millionormoreayear?










 

FriskonAmsterdamAve NYCAugust2007 AtManhattanPoliceStation,2008

EdSternatFlickr.com KenSteinatFlickr.com EdSternatFlickr.com

6
_________________________________________________________________________

Appendix:HumanCostsofthe
MarijuanaPossessionArrests

 The50,300marijuanapossessionarreststheNYPDmadein2010,andthe536,000
marijuanaarrestsmadesince1996,donotreduceseriouscrimeorviolence,butthearrestsare
veryusefulforsignificantgroupswithinthepolicedepartment.12Thearrestsarerelativelysafe
andeasy,providetrainingforrookiepolice,andallowpatrolandnarcoticsofficersandtheir
supervisorstomakeovertimepay.Theyproducerecordsofpoliceactivityandhelpsupervisors
keeptrackofwhatofficersaredoing.ThearrestsarealsothemosteffectivewayfortheNYPD
tocollectfingerprints,photographsandotherinformationonyoungpeoplenotyetenteredin
thecriminaldatabases.TheusefulnessofthearrestswithintheNYPDhelpsexplainwhythe
departmentrefusestodiscussitsmarijuanapossessionarrests,sometimesdeniestheyare
goingon,andwhyittriestodivertattentionawayfromthemandtheircosts.13

 ThefinancialcostsofthearrestsarefootedbyNewYork'staxpayers.Thehumancosts
arebornealmostentirelybyblackandLatinoteenagersandyoungmen,andtheirfamilies.The
policepatrolsandmorethan500,000annualrecordedstopandfrisksareconcentratedintheir
neighborhoods.Theseyoungpeoplearetheonesstopped,searched,foundpossessing
marijuana,arrested,andjailedovernightattherateofnearlyathousandaweekin2010–even
thoughtheyusemarijuanaatlowerratesthanyoungwhites.Thepeoplearrestedendurean
unpleasant,scaryandhumiliatingordeal.Whileunderarresttheymissschool,family
responsibilitiesandworkwhichsometimescoststhemtheirjobs.Theyaresubjectedtouptoa
year'sprobationbythecriminalcourt,andtheirpersonalinformationispermanentlyentered
intothenationalnetworkofcriminaldatabases.

 Apermanentcriminalrecordisthemostenduringandleastrecognizedopportunity
harmingcostofthesearrests.Twentyyearsago,misdemeanorarrestandconvictionrecords
werepaperskeptincourtstoreroomsandwarehouses,oftenimpossibletolocate.Tenyears
agotheywerecomputerized.NowtheyareinstantlysearchableontheInternetfor$20to$40
throughcommercialcriminalrecorddatabaseservices.AsimpleGooglesearchforthephrase
'criminaldatabase'or'criminalrecords'producesnumerouslinkstofirms,someclaimingthat
theirsearchesarebetterthantheothers.Someoffer"50statesearches"foraslowas$12.95.14

 Employers,landlords,creditagencies,licensingboardsfornursesandbeauticians,
schools,andbanksnowroutinelysearchthesedatabasesforbackgroundchecksonapplicants.
Asimplearrestformarijuanapossessioncanshowuponcriminaldatabasesas"adrugarrest"
withoutspecifyingthesubstance,thecharge,orevenifthepersonwasconvicted.Employers
andlandlords,facedwithanabundanceofapplicants,ofteneliminatethosewithcriminal
arrestrecords,especiallyfordrugs.Nurses,securityguards,andotherslicensedbythestatecan
losetheirlicensesandtheirjobsfromjustonemisdemeanormarijuanaarrest.15

 Forlegalimmigrants,twoguiltypleastomisdemeanormarijuanapossessioncanleadto
deportation,andoneguiltypleacanbarsomeonefromeverreturningtotheU.S.Familycourt
canremovechildrenfromahomebecauseaparentisconvictedorjustarrestedformarijuana

7
_________________________________________________________________________
possession.Apersoncannotbeconsideredforpublichousingwithan"opencriminalcase."
includingthetypicalprobationforafirsttimearrestformarijuanapossession.

 Policepatrolsandstopandfriskstargettheneighborhoodsoflowincomepeopleof
color,butnotthepredominatelywhiteandhigherincomeneighborhoods.Asaresult,dayafter
dayandyearafteryear,theNYPDdisproportionatelyarrestsyoungblacksandLatinosfor
possessingmarijuana–eventhoughtheyusemarijuanaatlowerratesthanwhites.

 Thecollateralconsequencesofhavingacriminalrecorddisruptlivesandlimitthe
opportunitiesoftensofthousandsofyoungNewYorkerscaughtupintheNYPD’smarijuana
arrestcrusade.Thecriminalrecordsseriouslyaffecttheyoungpeoples'positionwithregardto
employment,housing,schooling,credit,occupationallicensing,familycourt,immigration
status,andothercentralareasoflife.Inthelongrunthearrestsincreaseunemployment,
interferewithschooling,breakupfamilies,createresentmenttowardthepolice,increase
inequality,andlikelyincreasethecommissionofmoreseriouscrimes.Theyalsoincreasepublic
costsandreducethechancesthatpeoplearrestedwillforgesuccessfullivesandcareersand
earnsteadyincomescontributingtothetaxbaseofNewYorkCityandState.16

 ForthepeoplearrestedandforallNewYorkers,thesemarijuanaarrestsarealoselose
proposition.

 ThelegislativeintentintroductiontoTheMarijuanaReformActof1977aspassedbytheNewYorkState
SenateandAssembly,andsignedbytheGovernorsays:

"Thelegislaturefindsthatarrests,criminalprosecutions,andcriminalpenaltiesare
 inappropriateforpeoplewhopossesssmallquantitiesofmarijuanaforpersonaluse.Every

year,thisprocessneedlesslyscarsthousandsoflivesandwastesmillionsofdollarsinlaw
enforcementresources,whiledetractingfromtheprosecutionofseriouscrimes."
 –Chapter360oftheLawsofNewYork,"CrimesandOffenses–PossessionandSaleofMarijuana"

NOTES
1
ForresearchandscholarlyreportsonNewYorkCity'smarijuanaarrestssee:
HarryG.LevineandDeborahPetersonSmall,MarijuanaArrestCrusade:RacialBiasandPolicePolicy,1997
2007,NewYorkCivilLibertiesUnion,NY,April2008.http://www.nyclu.org/files/MARIJUANAARRESTCRUSADE_Final.pdf
HarryG.Levine,"NewYorkCity'sMarijuanaArrestCrusade...Continues"NewYork:Sept2009.At:
http://dragon.soc.qc.cuny.edu/Staff/levine/NYCMARIJUANAARRESTCRUSADECONTINUESSEPT2009.pdf
AndrewGolub,BruceD.Johnson,andEloiseDunlap,“Smokingmarijuanainpublic:thespatialandpolicy
shiftinNewYorkCityarrests,1992–2003”,HarmReductionJournal3:22,2006.Availableat:
http://www.harmreductionjournal.com/content/pdf/14777517322.pdf.
AndrewGolub,BruceD.Johnson,andEloiseDunlap.“TheRace/ethnicityDisparityInMisdemeanor
MarijuanaArrestsInNewYorkCity”,CriminologyandPublicPolicy6:1pp131163,2007

8
_________________________________________________________________________

BruceD.Johnson,AndrewGolub,EloiseDunlap,StephenJ.Sifaneck,JamesE.McCabe,"PolicingandSocial
ControlofPublicMarijuanaUseandSellinginNewYorkCity,"LawEnforcementExecutiveForum,2006,6(5)

ForasampleofthejournalismandcoverageofNewYorkCity'smarijuanaarrestssee:
JimDwyer,"OnArrests,Demographics,andMarijuana"NewYorkTimes,April30,2008;NatHentoff,"The
NYPD'sSecretCrusadeAgainstMarijuanaFurthersaRacistAgenda"TheVillageVoiceMay6,2008;
SeanGardiner,"Marijuana"in"Hooked:FourDecadesOfDrugWarInNewYorkCity"CityLImitsMagazine.
July2009;MarcJacobson,"TheSplittingImageofPot."NewYorkMagazine,Sept21,2009;JasonFink,
"Marijuanahighoncity’shitlist:NYPDbustingthousandsamiddrugdebate"AMNY.Sept14,09;
JimDwyer,"WhitesSmokePot,butBlacksAreArrested"NewYorkTimes.Dec22,2009;CharlesM.Blow,
"SmokeandHorrors"NewYorkTimes.Oct22,2010.

2
In1977NewYorkStatepassedtheMarijuanaReformActcreatingtheviolationofmarijuanapossession,
NYSPenalLaw221.05,withahundreddollarfine,andcreatingthemisdemeanorof221.10whichmakesita
crimetopossessmarijuana"burningoropentopublicview."ThisisdiscussedinLevineandSmall,
MarijuanaArrestCrusade,Ch5.DropsyArrests:HowPotInAPocketBecomesMarijuana'BurningOrOpen
ToPublicView'.pp.3844.Asthegraphsanddatainthisdocumentshow,beginningin1996andcontinuing
tothisday,theNYPDhasfocuseditsenforcementonsimplepossession,especiallyamongteenagersand
youngpeople,theexactoppositeofwhatthe1977lawintended.For15years,thesearrestshaveclearly
beentheresultofNYPDpolicycomingfromthehighestlevelsofcommand.
3
Inmostcasesthepeoplearrestedreceivedakindofprobationforsixmonthstoayear,sothatthe
immediatepunishmentisusuallythearrestanddetentionitself.However,seetheAppendixforabrief
discussionofthemoresevereandlongertermconsequencesofthecriminalrecordcreatedbythearrest.
4
Allthearrestfigurespresentedhereareforthelowestlevelmisdemeanormarijuanapossessionoffense–
221.10intheNewYorkStateCriminalCode.Thedetailsofhowthesearrestsaremadearedescribedina
varietyofplaces,seeespeciallyHarryLevineandDeborahSmall,MarijuanaArrestCrusade(citedabove).It
isimportanttounderstandthatmostofthepeoplearrestedhadnotbeensmokinginpublicorrevealingthe
marijuanabeforetheywerestoppedbythepolice.Mosthadthemarijuanainapocket,backpackorpurse.
Theywerestoppedaspartofthecity'shugenumberofstopandfrisks,whichincludesover500,000officially
recordedonesandperhapsanequallylargenumberforwhichstopandfriskformsareneverfilledout,
especiallyforthemarijuanaandotherdrugpossessionarrests.From1978–2001,underMayorsKoch,
DinkinsandGiuliani,theNYPDmade230,300ofthesemarijuanapossessionarrests.From2002–2010under
MayorBloomberg,thepolicehavemade349,100oftheselowestlevelmarijuanapossessionarrests.

5
MarkA.Cohen,TheCostsofCrimeandJustice.NewYork:Routledge,2005,pp.845;andMarkA.Cohen,
“MeasuringtheCostsandBenefitsofCrimeandJustice.”pp.263316inVolume4:Measurementand
AnalysisofCrimeandJustice,NationalInstituteofJustice,July2000,NCJ182411.Availableat:
http://www.ncjrs.org/criminal_justice2000/vol_4/04f.pdf.p.297.Cohen,M.,Miller,T.,andRossman,S."Thecostsand
consequencesofviolentbehaviorintheUnitedStates."InRoth,A.(Ed.),UnderstandingAndPreventing
Violence(Vol.4,pp.67166).Washington,D.C.:NationalAcademyPress.1994.Thepoliceandcourtcosts
fromearlieryearscanbecalculatedintermsoflateryearswithabasiccostoflivingcalculatorforexample
see:http://www.aier.org/research/worksheetsandtools/costoflivingcalculator

6
PeterW.Greenwoodetal."ThreeStrikesandYou'reOut:EstimatedBenefitsandCostsofCalifornia'sNew
MandatorySentencingLaw,"RandCorporation,SantaMonica,CA.1994.p.15;also:C.PeterRydelland
SusanS.Everingham,“ControllingCocaine:SupplyVersusDemandPrograms,”RandCorporation,Santa
Monica,CA.1994.Theycalculatedthatthecourtcostspernarcoticsarrestwas$1166in1990.


9
_________________________________________________________________________

7
DouglasS.Massey,“BackfireattheBorder:WhyEnforcementwithoutLegalizationCannotStopIllegal
Immigration,”CatoInstitute,Washington,D.C,June2005,p.8.

8
"ACostAnalysisoftheBexarCounty,Texas,JailDiversionProgramReport2:AnAnalysisofCostShifting
betweentheTreatmentandCriminalJusticeSystems"PreparedbyAlexanderJ.Cowelletal.RTI
International,ResearchTrianglePark,NC(p.37page36ofthepdf.)May2008.At:http://www.naco.org/
programs/csd/documents/criminal%20justice/jail%20diversion%20forum%20materials/cost%20benefit%20study.pdf.Forarecent
reviewofstudiesofpoliceandcourtcostssee:JonathanP.Caulkins,CostofMarijuanaProhibitiononthe
CaliforniaCriminalJusticeSystem,RandCorporation,SantaMonica,August2010.At:
http://www.rand.org/pubs/working_papers/2010/RAND_WR763.pdf.Californiaissuessummonsanddoesnotroutinely
makecustodialarrestsformarijuanapossession;thissignificantlyreducesthepolicecostsper"arrest.'

9
SteveAos,PollyPhipps,RobertBarnoski,RoxanneLiebet.TheComparativeCostsandBenefitsofPrograms
toReduceCrime,(Version4),WashingtonStateInstituteforPublicPolicyOlympia,Washington,May2001.
180pages.SeeTableIVD,EstimatesofMarginalResourceOperatingCosts,PerUnit,P.85At:
http://www.wsipp.wa.gov/pub.asp?docid=01051201,andat:http://www.wsipp.wa.gov/rptfiles/costbenefit.pdf

10
Inrecentyears,aboutfourteenpercentofallarraignmentsinNewYorkCitywereformarijuana
possession,andthechiefarraignmentcourtsroutinelyhaveatleastadozenpeopledoingvariousjobsinthe
courtroom,includingclerks,legalaidattorneys,prosecutorsandstaff,fourormorepoliceofficers,some
assignedfulltimetothecourt,andotherofficestaffnotpresentinthecourtrooms.

ThebasicarrestsfiguresforNewYorkCityandforothercountiesinNewYorkStateareavailablefromthe
DivisionofCriminalJusticeServicesat:http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/crimnet/ojsa/stats.htm.Theadultarrest
figuresareat:http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/crimnet/ojsa/arrests/index.htm,andthefiguresforNewYorkCity2001
through2010areat:http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/crimnet/ojsa/arrests/NewYorkCity.pdf.Theaboveshowsthat
in2010,NewYorkCitymade:343,308totalarrests;92,139felonyarrests;251,169misdemeanorarrests.In
2010,NewYorkCitymade50,383misdemeanormarijuanapossessionarrests.Thiswas14.7%ofallarrests
and20.1%ofallmisdemeanorarrestsin2010.

11
Inrecentyears,thebudgetfortheNewYorkPoliceDepartmentalonehasbeenaboutfourbilliondollarsa
year.Although$50millionto$100millionayearisnotalargeportionofthetotalpolicebudget,evenin
NewYorkCitythatisaconsiderableamountofpublicmoney.

12
Intheir2007studyoftheeffectofthemarijuanapossessionarrestsonreducingcrimeinNewYorkCity,
HarcourtandLudwig,twoUniversityofChicagoresearchers,foundthattheNYPD'smisdemeanormarijuana
arrestsdonotreducecrimeandmayevenincreaseitbytakingofficersoffthestreet.Theywrite:
“[NewYorkCity’s]experimentwithmisdemeanorMPV[marijuanapossession]arrests—alongwithall
theassociateddetentions,convictions,andadditionalincarcerations—representsatremendously
expensivepolicingintervention....Ourstudyfurthershowsthatthereisnogoodevidencethatit
contributedtocombatingseriouscrimeinthecity.Ifanything,ithashadthereverseeffect.Asaresult,
theNYPDpolicyofmisdemeanorMPV[marijuanapossession]arrestsrepresentsanextremelypoor
tradeoffofscarcelawenforcementresources.”
See:BernardE.HarcourtandJensLudwig,"ReeferMadness:BrokenWindowsPolicingandMisdemeanor
MarijuanaArrestsinNewYorkCity,19892000",CriminologyandPublicPolicy6:1pp165182,2007.
Availableat:http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=948753.
13
Theusefulnessofthemarijuanapossessionarrestswithinthepolicedepartmentisdiscussedmostfullyby
LevineandSmall,MarijuanaArrestCrusade,NYCLU,2008,citedinnote#1.Thefactthatthemarijuana
possessionarrestsdonotreducecrime,andprobablyincreasecrimeabit,isdiscussedbyHarcourtand

10
_________________________________________________________________________

Ludwig,2007,citedinnote#9.AnexampleofthechiefNYPDspokesmancasuallydismissingthemarijuana
arrestswasinresponsetoaquerybyareporteratAMNYwhohadpersonallyobtainedthemisdemeanor
arrestdatafromNewYorkState.Inresponse,PaulJ.Brownesaidonlythatthearreststatisticswere
"bogus."JasonFink,"Marijuanahighoncity’shitlist:NYPDbustingthousandsamiddrugdebate"AMNY.
Sept14,2009,at:http://dragon.soc.qc.cuny.edu/Staff/levine/NYPotArrests/AMNYHIGHCRIMESSept142009.pdf.
14
Thisdiscussionofthedamagingeffectsofcriminalrecordsformarijuanapossessionisbasedonour
ongoingresearchinNewYork,California,andelsewhereintheU.S.Foranoverviewofthespreadand
dangersoftheonlinecriminaldatabasessee:Hon.CynthiaDianeStephens,"KeepinganArrestfrom
ResultinginaLifeSentence."MichiganBarJournal,Nov2008.http://www.michbar.org/journal/pdf/pdf4article1433.pdf

15
DuringamajorhearingoftheJudiciaryCommitteeoftheU.S.HouseofRepresentatives,Representative
SteveCohenfromMemphisrepeatedlytermedthestigmatizingeffectsofcriminalrecordsformarijuana
possessionatypeof"scarletletter."See:"UnfairnessInFederalCocaineSentencing:IsItTimeToCrackThe
100To1Disparity?"HearingBeforeTheCommitteeOnTheJudiciaryHouseOfRepresentatives.May21,
2009.Pages1920.At:http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/printers/111th/11127_49783.PDF.
Onthelifedamagingeffectsofdrugarrestsalsosee:MichelleAlexander,TheNewJimCrow:Mass
IncarcerationintheAgeofColorblindness.NewPress,2009.
16
Foranexcellent,detaileddiscussionofthemanycostsandcollateralconsequencesofpolicingfocusedon
misdemeanorarrestssee:BabeHowell,"BrokenLivesfromBrokenWindows:TheHiddenCostsofAggressive
MisdemeanorPolicing."NewYorkUniversityReviewofLawandSocialChange,Vol.33,No.3,2008.At:
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=130711


MarijuanaPossessionArrestsinNewYorkCitybyRace,19962010
TotalArrests Whites Latinos Blacks Allothers
1996 9,433 1,289 14% 2,975 32% 5,086 54% 83 1%
1997 17,992 2,548 14% 5,626 31% 9,604 53% 214 1%
1998 32,936 4,861 15% 10,636 32% 17,060 52% 379 1%
1999 33,819 4,645 14% 11,841 35% 16,900 50% 433 1%
2000 51,267 6,590 13% 17,363 34% 26,670 52% 644 1%
2001 41,521 5,557 13% 12,860 31% 22,544 54% 560 1%
2002 44,111 6,324 14% 13,929 32% 22,949 52% 909 2%
2003 39,213 5,250 13% 12,254 31% 20,690 53% 1,019 3%
2004 27,944 2,468 9% 9,597 34% 15,310 55% 569 2%
2005 29,752 2,355 8% 9,998 34% 16,605 56% 794 3%
2006 31,925 2,584 8% 10,564 33% 17,990 56% 787 3%
2007 39,156 3,387 9% 13,114 34% 21,581 55% 1,074 3%
2008 40,383 3,959 10% 13,406 33% 21,954 54% 1,064 3%
2009 46,487 4,658 10% 15,291 33% 25,329 54% 1,209 3%
2010 50,383 5,493 11% 16,123 32% 27,177 54% 1,590 3%
9610 536,322 61,968 12% 175,577 33% 287,449 54% 11,328 2%
 Source:NewYorkStateDivisionofCriminalJusticeServices,ComputerizedCriminalHistorySystem(Feb2011).Includesall
fingerprintablemisdemeanorarrestsforNYSPenalLawArticle221.10asthemostseriouschargeinanarrestevent.Ages16and
older.Thesetablesshowonlythelowestlevelmisdemeanormarijuanapossessionarrestsandcharges.  

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MarijuanaUsebyWhites,BlacksandLatinos, Ages18to25,20022007 
60%
Whites Blacks Latinos
50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0%
2002-03 2004-05 2006 2007 2002-03 2004-05 2006 2007 2002-03 2004-05 2006 2007

Ever Used Marijuana in Life Used Marijuana in Past Year Used Marijuana in Past Month
Source:USDeptHHS,SAMHSA,OfficeofAppliedStudies,NationalSurveyonDrugUseandHealth,20022007
20032005.Table1.80BMarijuanaUseinLifetime,PastYear,andPastMonthamongPersonsAged18to25,byRacial/EthnicSubgroups:
Percentages,AnnualAveragesBasedon20022003and20042005.
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k5NSDUH/tabs/Sect1peTabs67to132.htm#Tab1.80B.
20062007:Table1.26B–MarijuanaUseinLifetime,PastYear,andPastMonthamongPersonsAged18to25,2006and2007
http://www.oas.samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k7NSDUH/tabs/Sect1peTabs1to46.htm#Tab1.26B

MarijuanaArrestsofBlacks,LatinosandWhitesinNYC,19962010
27,500
Blacks Latinos Whites
25,000
22,500
20,000
17,500
15,000
12,500
10,000
7,500
5,000
2,500
0
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Source:NewYorkStateDivisionofCriminalJusticeServices,ComputerizedCriminalHistorySystem(Feb2011).Includesallfingerprintablemisdemeanor
arrestsforNYSPenalLawArticle221.10asthemostseriouschargeinanarrestevent.Ages16andolder.Thesetablesshowonlythelowestlevel
misdemeanormarijuanapossessionarrestsandcharges.

HarryG.Levine,SociologyDepartment,QueensCollegeandtheGraduateCenter,CityUniversityofNewYork.Feb2011