A Block-Level Analysis of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries and Crime in the City of Los Angeles

The Cannabis Effect on Crime: Time-Series Analysis of Crime in Colorado and Washington State

“…One of the core issues of concern for proponents and opponents of cannabis legalization was its likely effects on crime. Proponents believed that crime would decrease just by redefinition (possession of up to one ounce by adults would be legal), and that ancillary crimes attributed to black market drug dealing and acquisition, such as thefts and burglaries, would also decrease (Aalen, 2013;Contreras, 2017;Kepple & Freisthler, 2012). Those who opposed legalization were concerned that the prevalence of cannabis would lead to problematic consequences, including an increased crime rate as intoxicated and less inhibited adult and juvenile users engaged in index and traffic offenses and as adolescents found it easier to access cannabis for illegal use (Doherty, Tyson, & Weisel, 2015).…”

“…There is also the concern that permitting state-licensed recreational cannabis production and sale will inevitably create booming businesses, inclusive of dispensaries, growers, and production facilities, in communities that by association may become attractive targets for crimes. This is due to commercial enterprises relying heavily on cash transactions and stolen products that can be readily sold and consumed (Contreras, 2017;Kepple & Freisthler, 2012). As cannabis remains a Schedule One drug that is prohibited at the federal level, banks have been unwilling to engage in transactions associated with marijuana businesses as they fear the risk of money laundering prosecution by federal authorities (Chemerinsky, Forman, Hopper, & Kamin, 2015).…”

The Criminal Justice System and More Lenient Drug Policy: Three Case Studies on California's Changes to How Its Criminal Justice System Addresses Drug Use

“…Spatial models that measure the density of dispensaries in a given area are an effective way to test the effect of store fronts on crime, but the results from these have been quite mixed. A few correlational studies have found a positive relationship with crime either in the immediate area (Contreras, 2016) or in adjacent neighborhoods (Freisthler, Ponicki, Gaidus, & Gruenewald, 2016). A recent study exploiting an exogenous shock that led to closings of dispensaries in Los Angeles County, though, found that these closures actually led to an increase in crime in the immediate vicinity (T. Y.…”

Availability of licensed cannabis businesses in relation to area deprivation in Washington state: A spatiotemporal analysis of cannabis business presence between 2014 and 2017

“…Previous research showed that the availability of medical cannabis dispensaries increased its use, and problems with cannabis abuse [7,8], and was associated with increased likelihood of child physical abuse [9]. Availability of medical cannabis dispensaries was associated with increased crime in Los Angeles, California [10], while no associations were found between density of medical cannabis dispensaries and crime in Sacramento, California [11] or in Long Beach, California [12]. In Colorado, legalisation of recreational cannabis was associated with an increase in health-care utilisation due to burns, cyclic vomiting syndrome or ingestion complications [13].…”