Data: ACLU Graphics & Visualizations
New Jersey's racial disparity is slightly lower than the national average, with Black people 3.5 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana than white people.
New Jersey's racial disparity is slightly lower than the national average, with Black people 3.5 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana than white people.
A growing number of states have legalized or decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana. But the drug remains illegal in other states and under federal law – and police officers in the United States still make more arrests for marijuana offenses than for any other drug, according to FBI data.
“Legalization is about racial justice,” said Amol Sinha, executive director of the ACLU in New Jersey.
Despite growing public support for the legalized use of recreational marijuana, arrests in New Jersey have increased in recent years, according to data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In 2017, the state reportedly had more arrests of Blacks users of the plant, and at higher rates, than almost every other state.
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