allows adults 21 and older to possess up to two ounces of
marijuana, grow up to six plants, and gift up to one ounce
of pot to other adults 21 and older. The measure, which
took effect Thursday, doesn't legalize sales, so anyone who
tries to make a profit off marijuana could still get locked
up. Smoking in public remains banned.
Marijuana will still be illegal on federal property, such as
parks and monuments, since it remains prohibited at the
federal level. It also remains banned in federally subsidized
public housing. DC police likely won't enforce these bans,
but federal police agencies might.
DC is unique, because its marijuana legalization measure
doesn't allow pot stores.
Marijuana is currently legal in Colorado, Washington state,
and Alaska, and it will be legalized in Oregon later this
year. All four states already or will eventually allow sales at
retail outlets.
DC residents won't be able to legally buy pot
(Estelle Caswell / Vox)
Although possessing, gifting, and growing marijuana will be
legal in DC, buying pot will still be prohibited. While that
may be a buzzkill to DC stoners, drug policy experts are
excited to see how it plays out.
"One of the things we've been working very hard in
marijuana legalization discussions is to get people to
recognize there are at least 10 different fundamental
architectures for legalizing marijuana," Jon Caulkins, a drug
policy expert at Carnegie Mellon University, said.
In a January report on marijuana legalization for the
Vermont legislature , Caulkins and other experts outlined 12
alternatives to the current model of prohibition. Among the
options: continued prohibition with decreased penalties,
legalization with commercial sales, letting adults grow
marijuana, allow distribution only within small private
clubs, and have the state government operate the supply
chain and sell pot.
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