Marijuaa Dispensary

By Frost McGahey, Investigative Journalist.

In 2021 New Mexico was 26th in number of burglaries. The next year the state was first in the nation.* What was the cause of the dramatic rise in burglaries?

On April 12, 2021, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, signed the bill to legalize adult recreational use of marijuana, the Cannabis Regulation Act. It had been passed by the state legislature rather than being put to a popular vote.

The legislation was sponsored by Democratic lawmakers. The bill passed the New Mexico House of Representatives with a vote of 38-32 and the Senate with a vote of 22-15. District 28 State Senator Siah Correa Hemphill voted for it.** Not a single Republican voted for this bill which included State Representative Luis Terrazas.

Law enforcement knows there is a link between drug use and burglaries. According to former Silver City police detective Jory Bascom, "In 2016 the Investigations Division started to increase arrests and charges for possession of narcotics which reduced the number of reported burglaries by almost half over the course of 2 years. And my opinion is that more than 90% of burglaries are committed by drug addicts."

According to the Silver City Police, many of the suspects arrested for burglaries are found by the District Attorney's office to be Incompetent*** and then released. The DA has the option to have the suspect treated until they are competent and then tried for their crime.

Why is Michael Renteria's office not doing this?

*FBI statistics, www.statista.com/statistics/232580/burglary

**Roll Call: NM HB2 | 2021 | 1st Special Session | LegiScan

*** To be competent, a defendant must understand the nature and significance of the proceedings, have a factual understanding of the charges, and is able to assist defense counsel in defendant’s defense.