At a lively debate last week on the proposed legalization of marijuana, an attorney who supports the 2016 ballot initiative told the audience the measure is the “first step” toward full legalization of drugs in Arizona.

Local criminal defense attorney Marc Victor, arguing in favor of legalization, debated Seth Leibsohn, chairman of Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy. Victor said he wished some of the initiative’s language was different, but said “it’s better than being the world’s leader in incarceration rates.”

His comments were met with applause and whistles. “So … this is just the first step towards full legalization, not just of marijuana, but based on everything you said, also heroin, cocaine and meth,” Leibsohn said.

Victor stood up, took the mic and responded, “Yeah, it’s a first step: I wanna see freedom! I wanna see people decide for themselves what to put in their own bodies, and that includes everything that one can put in his or her own body for competent adults.”

Sheila Polk, who is part of a group opposed to legalization, said later that she was shocked by that comment. “I always heard that out there, kind of as a rumour, that marijuana was the first step,” she told Insider. But, she said, this was the first time she’d heard supporters “openly admit that this is what this initiative is about.” Talk about a talking point. Carlos Alfaro, Arizona political director of the Marijuana Policy Project, disputed that the marijuana effort is a step toward legalizing other drugs, saying it doesn’t “help our efforts to include other drugs in the conversation.”

Source:  AZCentral.com | May 2, 2015