As far as crime, I think the few states dabbling in this experiment are going to continue to see an increase. If I can manufacture widgets legally, and that widget is still illegal in 40+ other states, then guess where I'm going to set up shop and start manufacturing and distribution?
Dave
And there lies the real issue at hand, the extensive revenue from a locally legal product...which is shipped out into an illegal black market in a neighboring state. No different than the Mexican Cartels have done for years here, a cheap effective way to make a lot of money...and if enough money is involved than crime is sure to follow. The growers in these states would never stay in business, if they had to rely on the local economy as their consumers...the retail pricing in their area is very very low, because of the large availability from growers.
Example: Large growers in California and Colorado get about $800-1000 a pound, but if they ship their same product to New York or Boston they get $4000-4500 a pound. Anyone with a U-Haul truck and the a connection make significant money by shipping East. The legal states are just a haven for the production process, unimpeded from the law by claiming medical/legal usage...if the state would monitor production quantities vs sales, and stop the export the money would dry up.
Federally it's illegal to ship across state lines, but it's forced upon local neighboring states to enforce trafficking to stop the flow in their area...that's an expensive venture to attempt to stop. The legal states make enough money from the legal dispensaries to wet their beaks, and don't care where the "surplus" product is disappearing to.
