Mexico set to legalize personal amounts of pot, cocaine, heroin

April 28, 2006 5:54 PM

Mexico Poised to Allow Drugs for Personal Use-- Mexico’s Congress has approved a bill decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and heroin for personal use. President Vicente Fox is expected to sign the bill.
posted by ericb (45 comments total)

Will this hurt the 'War on Drugs?'
posted by ericb at 5:55 PM on April 28, 2006

I'm sure George Soros and others in the drug legalization movement will be watching this development closely.
posted by ericb at 5:57 PM on April 28, 2006

Ooo baby, this ain't goona go over well with the Conservative types.
posted by Relay at 6:01 PM on April 28, 2006

Won't somebody think of the poor hard working crooked cops?
posted by 2sheets at 6:02 PM on April 28, 2006

OK, gonna ... supposed to be gonna ... although goona could be funny.
posted by Relay at 6:02 PM on April 28, 2006

Hopefully this will increase support for a stronger border.
posted by keswick at 6:12 PM on April 28, 2006

Ooo baby, this ain't goona go over well with the Conservative types.

On the contrary ! Who do you think is snorting all the cocaine ? Nope, look up the social ladder !
posted by elpapacito at 6:13 PM on April 28, 2006

The practical effect of this depends on how many possession arrests occur in Mexico. Does anyone know? Generic searches on Google mostly return US-focused results.
posted by Gyan at 6:20 PM on April 28, 2006

Spring break is going to totally change.

Seriously, there will be a booming business of drug trips to mexico.
posted by filmgeek at 6:27 PM on April 28, 2006

Turning TJ into the next Amsterdam would be huge for their economy.
posted by afx114 at 6:32 PM on April 28, 2006

Hmm...I'll bet they're gonad really crack down on the border crossings now.
posted by jimmythefish at 6:36 PM on April 28, 2006

Think they'll be cool with my "personal amount"?


posted by wakko at 6:37 PM on April 28, 2006

I don't get how the drugs get dispersed (legally). Anyone with more then a 'personal' amount of drugs is still going to be pegged and persecuted as a 'dealer.' Unless I'm mistaken, it's not like they'll be selling crack and weed at the corner store...
posted by kjell at 6:37 PM on April 28, 2006

This is not drug legalization or (maybe even) depenalization. The bill drops criminal prosecution for those with small amounts. It's unclear if the drugs will be confiscated.
posted by Gyan at 6:47 PM on April 28, 2006

I visit Mexico frequently [hell, I'm here now] and one of the horror stories of bad cops centers around planting a small amount of drugs on you and taking you to jail where the cops will "fine" you the contents of your wallet to get out of jail. This theoretically makes that less of a threat.

For the casual tourist coming back from the visits to border towns, they might be able to sneak in small amounts, but the border patrol dogs and cops will still search cars and a few walkers and bust you -- under US law -- for even a tiny amount of dope. That won't change. It really will have no impact on the War On Drugs in the US.

It appears selling and distribution of drugs will still be illegal and the penalties actually increased. In the border towns, like Nuevo Laredo, people are getting killed by the drug gangs not over the rights to sell a dime bag to locals or tourists, but over getting the drugs into the US by the ton. This new law doesn't really stop that, the only way to stop that is either stop the demand in the US [very unlikely] or decriminalize it [also unlikely].

The Mexican government does not have the to incarcerate people for having small amounts of dope on them and hopefully they will be able to redirect the funds to stop more of the big stuff.
posted by birdherder at 7:00 PM on April 28, 2006

This is about US immigration reform.
posted by Jos Bleau at 7:13 PM on April 28, 2006

Meanwhile, the land of the free is Using the Drug "War" to Expand Government Power
posted by homunculus at 7:23 PM on April 28, 2006

The law also covers LSD. Yay. Now we just have to hope that this creates an incentive for a manufacturer.
posted by alms at 7:25 PM on April 28, 2006

It's unclear if the drugs will be confiscated.

yes, there is some doubt whether the mexican police will confiscate the drugs. in other news, opinions vary on the likelihood of an east-rising sun tomorrow.
posted by quonsar at 7:27 PM on April 28, 2006

quonsar : "yes, there is some doubt whether the mexican police will confiscate the drugs."

It is not clear yet whether this depenalizes personal possession or just decriminalizes it; so yes, there's doubt over the law.
posted by Gyan at 7:35 PM on April 28, 2006

Well they are obviously terrorists. Or harboring terrorists. Hell, do we even need a reason to invade sovereign nations anymore?

Time for them to give up their WMD a regime change.

[/rancor]

It's nice to see signs of some level-headed thinking somewhere in the Americas.

Legalize, regulate, tax and treat.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:59 PM on April 28, 2006

This is about US immigration reform.

Depressingly, I agree.
posted by Skorgu at 8:10 PM on April 28, 2006

If this is in retaliation to immigration reform, way to spit into the wind. This and the Spanish translation of the national anthem (Most notably, the butchered version with pro-immigration messages) are going to push a lot of moderates into the firmly anti-immigration position.

Now all we need is a heavy turnout for protests that actually shuts down a few major cities and disrupts business, and we're going to see a serious backlash, and Bush's pro-immigration stance along with his lack of support, there's going to be a visible schism between the general Republican party and the administration.

That, and the legalization goes a bit far. There's decent support for decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana, but not many are going to support herion. Hopefully, this will have more positive effects in Mexico, because it's really going to mess with US/Mexico relations at a time when they're already iffy.
posted by Saydur at 9:23 PM on April 28, 2006

Another country following the shiny path lead by the socially innovative Netherlands. Next: abortion and euthanasia.

Was that snark?
posted by jouke at 10:39 PM on April 28, 2006

Yo, just to emphasize, what birdherder said.

Dood, you in DF? meetup?
posted by donpedro at 12:33 AM on April 29, 2006

homunculus writes "Meanwhile, the land of the free is Using the Drug 'War' to Expand Government Power"


and quoting

The new federal asset forfeiture law is civil, not criminal, and unlike the English common law, which required conviction prior to seizure, American forfeiture dispenses with the need for proving the property owner guilty of anything. All that is necessary is for the state to claim a connection between the thing seized and drugs, whereupon the government may confiscate the property. It is then up to the owner to prove (at their own expense, hiring a lawyer & etc.) that the property is "innocent." Critically, the proceeds from the seizures go into the budget of the state or federal law enforcement agencies and prosecutors offices.

Oh god almighty !

1) Cop1 puts some drug on a nice car
2) Connect car< ->drug yo bad bad nigga !
3) Auction car
4) Friend buys cars for a little
5) Friend resell cars to cop1
6) Yeah PROFIT YEAH !
posted by elpapacito at 7:18 AM on April 29, 2006

elpapacito, that's old, old news, although it doesn't diminish how frightening it is. I read a book on a guy who gets set up on drug charges, has his house and his life taken away, and has to go through all that hell to redeem himself.

It was a King or Koontz book, I think.
posted by Imperfect at 8:11 AM on April 29, 2006

I know this does not affect a significant portion of the population in the US, but parents of teenagers in border towns are quaking in fear today. As a teenager, I frequently partook of the laidback attitude towards underage drinking in TJ, and spent many a crazy day getting apple schnapps shots poured down my throat by men with screeching whistles. As a witless teenager, if I could have gone to TJ to get some cheap blow and E to boot? Hell yes! That would have been paradise for me and my friends. Now as a parent of a witless teenager, I would probably consider moving.
posted by msali at 8:42 AM on April 29, 2006

Sorry donpedro, I was in the DF on Tuesday for a few hours on my way to Cuernavaca. Now I'm in Nuevo Laredo. To drive home today. I'll come back to Central Mexico in the summer and perhaps we can meet for a drink.

And msali, in my day the guys with whistles poured tequila down the gringo's throats.

I think the dogs working for DHS will stop a little of the coca or mota coming back from Mexico. I could see kids going to Tijuana, taking e and partying all night. Some kids may try -- and many will be successful just like the millions of grandparents that bring back medication from Mexico and Canada because it more affordable-- but I think the availability of drugs in the US means this law in Mexico won't change much here. This is a law that says small amounts of drugs are OK in Mexico. It doesn't say anything about the DEA taking your car once you drive over the border or tearing it apart because a dog thought it smelled something.
posted by birdherder at 9:30 AM on April 29, 2006

Sounds good for tourism: No worries rich American kids! Come party! Yes, we still prosecute our dealers if we catch em', but no one will harass you for smoking up yourself. Just please remember to spend most of your money on beer and tequila, not pot, while your here. Wise move, very wise.
posted by jeffburdges at 9:36 AM on April 29, 2006

The world is getting more screwed-up by the say. Maybe this will turn Bush against Fox? One can hope...
posted by ParisParamus at 9:43 AM on April 29, 2006

Bush against Fox? Doesn't really matter, Fox will be gone and his party replaced after this coming election down there.
posted by Atreides at 11:47 AM on April 29, 2006

The world is getting more screwed-up by the say.

I assume, Paramus, you think that US prisons full of people on relatively insignificant drug charges is representative of things not screwed-up?!
posted by pwedza at 1:10 PM on April 29, 2006

Don't some U.S. states have a law like this, at least for marijuana?
posted by Target Practice at 3:55 PM on April 29, 2006

Don't some U.S. states have a law like this, at least for marijuana?

No. Some states have decriminalized low weight possession but no out and out legalization.

Here's a NORML state-by-state.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:45 PM on April 29, 2006

Scratch that. Forgot about Alaska. 4 oz.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:46 PM on April 29, 2006

As a witless teenager, if I could have gone to TJ to get some cheap blow and E to boot? Hell yes! That would have been paradise for me and my friends. Now as a parent of a witless teenager, I would probably consider moving.

I hate to break the news to you, msali, but there's cocaine and ecstasy on your side of the border as well.

Given the choice of having *my* teenage kids using these drugs in a place where they are running the risk of ruining their life and career by being convicted of committing a felony, and where they just run the risk of getting fucked up, I'd definitely choose the latter.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:00 PM on April 29, 2006

0.5 grams of cocaine -- the equivalent of about 4 "lines,"

What? Eight lines to a gram?

It seems as though the reporting staff at CNN like to do some *really* fat lines.

Well, either that or their dealer sucks.
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:07 PM on April 29, 2006

Maybe this will turn Bush against Fox?

Or alternatively, perhaps he'll just start visiting Mexico more frequently?
posted by PeterMcDermott at 10:14 PM on April 29, 2006

Woo hoo!
posted by Smedleyman at 11:52 AM on May 1, 2006

Hmm...I'll bet they're gonad really crack down on the border crossings now.

Talk about your throbbing penises, I mean Freudian slips.
posted by sonofsamiam at 12:02 PM on May 1, 2006

I think this might actually be part of a Bush/Fox plan to get people to stay in Mexico.
posted by found missing at 12:49 PM on May 1, 2006

They're gonna need to build a wall at the border to keep all the gringos out.
posted by telstar at 2:07 PM on May 1, 2006

The quantities list, is surprising.

-------SOURCE: Associated Press----
Opium: (raw, to be smoked): 5 grams
Heroin: 25 milligrams
Marijuana: 5 grams
Cocaine: 500 milligrams
LSD: .015 milligrams
MDA: 200 milligrams
MDMA (Ecstasy): 200 milligrams
Mescaline: 1 gram
Peyote: 1 kilogram
Psilocybin (concentrate, pure, active ingredient): 100 milligrams
Hallucinogenic mushrooms (raw, off the farm): 250 milligrams
Amphetamines: 100 milligrams
Dexamphetamines: 40 milligrams
Phencyclidine (PCP, or Angel Dust): 7 milligrams
Methamphetamines: 200 milligrams
Nalbuphine (synthetic opiate): 10 milligrams
--------------------------------------

That LSD figure seems mistaken. 0.015 milligrams is hardly a hit.
posted by Gyan at 9:29 PM on May 1, 2006

Or maybe not..

Mexican drug-use bill to be toughened.
posted by Gyan at 6:12 PM on May 3, 2006