Mexican officials introduce bills seeking to relax marijuana laws

Source: Los Angeles Times

Mexican officials introduce bills seeking to relax marijuana laws
By Richard Fausset
February 13, 2014, 4:13 p.m.

MEXICO CITY – Lawmakers in Mexico introduced bills Thursday that would create marijuana dispensaries in the capital and increase the amount of the drug people across the country could carry for “personal use.”

The proposals to Mexico City’s Legislative Assembly and the federal legislature would amount to a partial “decriminalization” of marijuana, advocates said, not full legalization.

The Mexico City bill would instruct police and judges to deprioritize the prosecution of marijuana violations under some circumstances. It would create “dissuasion commissions” to which some violators could be sent for administrative sanctions, in lieu of the traditional criminal court process.

It would also direct the government to designate spaces in the city where marijuana could be sold without fear of prosecution under certain criteria, including offering consumers warnings about potential health risks.





Read more: http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-mexico-city-marijuana-laws-20140213,0,6759413.story#ixzz2tGHOk4rj