In an ardent display of just how much the criminal justice system revolves around the drug war, the city of Philadelphia has seen a drastic fall in arrests after decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana.
In the year since the law took effect, arrests have fallen nearly 75 percent and arrests and citations combined are still 42 percent below the total arrests made by the department during the same time the previous year, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Spurned by then-City-Councilman Jim Kenney, who went on to make it a top priority of his successful bid for the Democratic mayoral nomination, the law made possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana punishable by a $25 fine, and public use by a $100 fine.
It took effect on Oct. 20, 2014.
