Does Legal Marijuana Really Mean Less Crime?

The first class of crimes that will be directly affected by marijuana legalization are crimes that have to do with the production and distribution of marijuana. It should be noted that this will also affect several other drug-related crimes. Washington State after recreational legalization in 2013, experienced a 98% decrease in low-level court filings for marijuana from the previous year. Statistics within the same period also showed that adults convicted for misdemeanor possession fell drastically while possession for those under 21 fell by 50%.