As New Mexico state lawmakers debated a bill that would legalize recreational marijuana, critics to the legislation pointed to Denver, Colorado, where crime has increased significantly since pot was legalized in 2012. Since that time, overall crime in the city has increased, but a small fraction of it was related to cannabis offenses, the Denver Post reported Wednesday.
"Crime is up," Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson told the Denver post, adding," but I don't know if you can relate it to marijuana."
Crime has gone up in Denver by 44 percent since 2012, according to the National Incident Based Reporting System, a counting method that has been criticized by police for exaggerating numbers. The FBI estimates that crime has gone up by closer to 3.5 percent in the same time period. Regardless of which system is used, marijuana related offenses accounted for 0.5-1 percent of all crime.
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