Response to NC NORML’s 2020 Questionnaire

1.  Do you support prohibiting access to marijuana (cannabis) by persons younger than 21 years, unless for evidence-based medical applications prescribed by a healthcare provider and with parental consent? No

2.  Research reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that states with legalized cannabis saw a reduction in opioid use and opioid overdose deaths. Would you consider legalizing medical cannabis as a strategy to reduce opioid use? YES

3.  According to the Cato Institute, North Carolina spent ~ $263.3 million in state and local dollars to enforce cannabis laws in 2016. Meanwhile, the American Journal of Drug Alcohol Abuse found that arrestees who tested positive for THC had low incidents of aggressive crime. Aggressive crimes were associated with self-reported use of alcohol. Would you consider decriminalizing possession of cannabis since its use results in less aggression than legal alcohol? YES

4.  A Mayo Clinic study has shown that cannabis has lower addiction rates than alcohol (Nicotine 32%; Heroin 23%; Cocaine 17%; Alcohol 15%; Cannabis 9%). Do you agree that adults should have the right to use cannabis? YES

5.  Contradicting the myth that cannabis is a gateway drug, the RAND Corporation reported in 2012 that the use of cocaine dropped 50% as cannabis use increased 40%. Cannabis is associated with lower use of hard drugs and is not a gateway drug. Would you consider legalizing adult use of cannabis? YES

6.  Comments: "Individuals should have the right to determine what they put in THEIR own bodies, not the government! As a native North Carolinian, I have witnessed our rural farming communities begin to cultivate hemp for our state and surrounding states. Unfortunately, many of our rural farmers have faced damaging regulations in the tobacco and hog industries in the market. I support our farmers in NC and want to see NC farmers become more successful and prosperous with the new agricultural cash crop. PEOPLE deserve an alternative from the pharmaceutical companies that treat symptoms rather than to cure the illness! I STRONGLY support recreational legalization!"