HOUSTON — Local marijuana policy reform advocates, including a former police officer and the head of the Texas Young Republicans, will gather Saturday for an advocacy training event at the Trini Mendenhall Community Center in Houston. Details of the event are available at http://texasmarijuanapolicy.org/training-houston/.
The event, hosted by Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy, is the fifth in a series of events being held around the state as part of an effort to inject the marijuana policy debate into 2016 state legislative races. Regional events are also scheduled in Amarillo on January 9 and Lubbock on January 10.
The featured speaker at Saturday’s event will be David Clark, a former police officer from South Carolina and member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). Members of the media are invited to listen to his presentation at 12 p.m. CT, and he will be available for interviews immediately after.
“If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to reduce the harms to society caused by drugs, then prohibition should be illegal, not marijuana,” said Clark. “It should be illegal to waste so many law enforcement resources arresting and charging nonviolent adults for using marijuana. It should be illegal to divert the focus of our police away from violent and property crimes, which should always take priority.”
Joining David Clark will be John Baucum, political director of Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition and recently elected chairman of the Texas Young Republicans.
WHAT: Regional gathering of marijuana policy reform advocates — including a former police officer and the head of the Texas Young Republicans — who will be working to inject the marijuana policy debate into 2016 state legislative races
WHEN: Saturday, December 12; featured speaker at approximately 12 p.m. CT, media availability immediately following
WHERE: Trini Mendenhall Community Center, 1414 Wirt Road, Houston TX 77055
WHO: David Clark, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, John Baucum, Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition, Texas Young Republicans Representatives from Texans for Responsible Marijuana Policy, Local volunteer advocates
