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- Pro-legalization group Mexico United Against Crime announced on Tuesday that a court in Mexico City had granted two injunctions ordering the government to allow plaintiffs to "possess, transport and use cocaine."
- The plaintiffs have to limit their intake to 500 milligrams a day, and cannot buy or sell the drug.
- The ruling was delivered in May, but will now be reviewed by a higher court. The ruling will only be enforced if it is upheld by the higher court.
- Mexico United Against Crime said in a press release on Tuesday that the rulings open the door for a larger debate about legalizing cocaine, and whether law enforcement should focus its resources on violent crime rather than drug use.
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A court in Mexico has granted two people the legal right to carry and use cocaine in a landmark case launched by a pro-legalization group.
Mexico United Against Crime announced on Tuesday that a court in Mexico City had granted two injunctions ordering the government to allow plaintiffs to "possess, transport and use cocaine," but not to sell or buy it, AFP reported. It is the first ruling of its kind.
The ruling was delivered in May, but will now be reviewed by a higher court. The ruling will only be enforced if it is upheld by the higher court. Unlike in the United States, Mexican Law requires higher courts to approve five similar rulings before something becomes a law.
Mexico United Against Crime said in a press release on Tuesday that the rulings open the door for a larger debate about legalizing cocaine, and whether law enforcement should focus its resources on violent crime rather than drug use.
"We have been working for a safer, more just and peaceful Mexico for years, and with this case we insist on the need to stop criminalizing users of drugs other than marijuana and design better public policies that explore all available options, including the regulation," Lisa Sánchez, director of MUAC, said in a statement translated by Newsweek.
According to Mexico Daily News , the judge who imposed the ruling said the two legal cocaine users must follow a set of rules, including limiting intake to 500 milligrams a day, and not working, driving, or operating machinery while under the influence. The pair are also not allowed to take the drug in public or in the presence of children.
Judge Víctor Octavio Luna Escobedo said in his ruling that recreational use of cocaine has benefits, including "tension relief, the intensification of perceptions and the desire [to have] new personal and spiritual experiences."
Mexico’s national health regulator — the Federal Commission for the Protection against Sanitary Risk — is planning to block the judge’s order.
Mexico has faced waves of violence since the government deployed the army to fight drug cartels in 2006. The country’s war on drugs has killed more than 250,000 people since 2006, AFP reported.
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Source: Business Insider – kmclaughlin@businessinsider.com (Kelly McLaughlin)