PA Attorney General sides with Governor about decriminalizing marijuana

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro agrees with Gov. Tom Wolf when it comes to decriminalizing marijuana, a spokesperson for Shapiro says.

"Continuing to criminalize adult personal marijuana use is a waste of limited law enforcement resources, it disproportionately impacts our minority communities and it does not make us safer.

Given those realities and after months of internal research and discussions with fellow law enforcement, I am in support of efforts to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana use for Pennsylvanians over the age of 21. As part of this, we also must expunge records of those with non-violent marijuana use convictions.

As the Legislature considers this issue, I will continue to prioritize serious threats in our communities—like the opioid crisis—and invest in educating our kids on the risks of substance abuse."

Earlier this week, Governor Tom Wolf said he was in favor of legalizing marijuana for recreational use, saying most of the state's residents support it and the state has a wealth of knowledge from the experience in other states to guide the new effort.

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