Around two dozen former law enforcement officers and veterans are signing a letter in support of legalizing medical marijuana in Mississippi through ballot initiative 65. Ronnie Pollard is a former Lieutenant with the DeSoto County Sheriff's Department. He says under initiative 65, law enforcement will know if someone qualifies for medical marijuana because a permit card will be issued. "There are a lot of policemen that are for it out there right now that are afraid to say anything because their jobs could potentially be at stake," says Pollard. "I will promise you this; when those police officers go to the polls, I know many of them that are current police officers today that will vote for 65 to pass."
Veterans are also supporting the initiative. Jonathan Brown served in the Air Force and says marijuana can help with post-traumatic stress and chronic pain. "My friend, the army colonel, retired down on the coast. He's dealing with so much back pain from so many surgeries from injuries that he suffered while he was in," says Brown. "They had him on so many opioids. He told me that the day that the doctor got him off of the opioids and he switched to medical marijuana was the day that saved his life."
Not all law enforcement officers in Mississippi support initiative 65. The measure allows for each individual to have 2.5 ounces of marijuana at one time. Jackson County Sheriff Mike Ezell says regulating the substance will be difficult for officers. "You know 900 joints for one family, it's going to be wild on the black market. We've got to stop this marijuana thing because if this happens, you know I'm just gonna say that that's the worst thing that could ever happen to us."
Voters will choose between two medical marijuana initiatives on the November ballot, Imitative 65 and alternative measure 65a.
