Marijuana 360: Differing Perspectives on Legalization

In 1996, California became the first state to legalize medical marijuana. Since then, 30 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws legalizing marijuana in some form. Nine of those states, including Alaska, Oregon, Colorado and Washington, have legalized marijuana for recreational use. Many states, including Arizona and Ohio, are considering legislation to allow for legalized cannabis use. Marijuana 360: Differing Perspectives on Legalization examines the perception of marijuana legalization from the perspective of those who are directly involved in some aspect of legal marijuana. Nancy E. Marion and Joshua B. Hill interweaves the interviews from a variety of representatives from different integral groups that have been affected by marijuana legalization, in both states that have legalized or are considering the legalization of marijuana, to get their impressions of the impact the law has made (or will make) in their area. These groups include medical professionals, educators, parents, lawmakers, drug users, and others. There is more public support for reform than ever before, but still much debate over the issues of legalizing marijuana. Marijuana 360 increases our understanding of what different professionals think about the legalization of marijuana.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 Public Support for Legalization Chapter 2 History and Current Laws Chapter 3 The People and the Politics of Marijuana Chapter 4 The Myths and Realities of Marijuana Chapter 5 A Medical Perspective Chapter 6 A Legal Perspective Chapter 7 A Professional and Political Perspective Chapter 8 The Debate on Legalization Chapter 9 Contested Knowledge Chapter 10 Contested Language Chapter 11 Contested Politics

About the Author :
Nancy E. Marion, PhD, is a professor at the University of Akron. She is the author and co-author of several books, including Homeland Security: Policy and Politics (2015), Ohio’s Criminal Justice System (2015), Introduction to Homeland Security (2014), A Primer in the Politics of Criminal Justice (2007), and A History of Federal Crime Control Initiatives (1994). She has also published numerous articles in various professional journals on how politics and criminal justice are related. Joshua B. Hill, PhD, is an assistant professor of Criminal Justice at The University of Southern Mississippi and a Fellow at the Office of Global Perspectives and Metropolitan Center at the University of Central Florida. Hill previously worked for the Institute for the Study of Violent Groups as a lead analyst. In addition to his current faculty role at the University of Southern Mississippi, he serves as the Master’s Coordinator for the School of Criminal Justice. He is the co-author of Introduction to Cybercrime: Computer Crimes, Laws, and Policing in the 21st Century (2016) and Ohio’s Criminal Justice System (2015) with Nancy Marion, as well as numerous journal articles and book chapters.