California legislature passes bill decriminalizing ‘magic mushrooms’, awaiting Governor Newsom’s signature.
A California Bill Seeks to Legalize Naturally Occurring Hallucinogens
A California bill seeking to legalize certain naturally occurring hallucinogens is now headed to the governor’s desk after narrowly passing in both the Assembly and Senate.
Authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Senate Bill 58 would allow people 21 or older to possess, transport, or transfer some amounts of psychedelic substances including psilocybin, otherwise known as “magic mushrooms,” for individual and “facilitated or supported use.”
A link between the decriminalization of such drugs was said to not increase risks to public health or safety in Colorado, where similar legislation was passed, and such hallucinogens “have great promise in treating mental health and substance use disorders,” including veterans with PTSD, according to a Sept. 8 press release from Mr. Wiener’s office.
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“Plant-based psychedelics are non-addictive and show tremendous promise at treating some of the most intractable drivers of our nation’s mental health crisis,” Mr. Wiener said.
While personal use would become legal after Jan. 1, 2025, the use of such drugs by treatment providers will also be allowed after the state’s Health and Human Services Agency recommends a plan for such for the Legislature’s approval, according to an analysis of the bill.
Proponents include the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, a criminal defense nonprofit organization, and the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, a non-profit criminal justice reform organization, according to the most recent Senate and Assembly floor analyses of the bill.
“Generations of anecdotal evidence and current clinical research at leading universities including John Hopkins, NYU, and UCLA, point to therapeutic uses for psychedelic drugs in treating complex mental health issues such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, treatment-resistant depression, and addiction,” the Law Enforcement Action Partnership wrote in support of the bill.
Those opposed argue such studies only refer to patients under supervised attention, not the widespread usage of psychedelics for personal use.
“The key point is that psychedelics have never been proven to be safe for widespread consumption, not even in the studies used by Scott Wiener to push for this bill, and have never been approved by FDA,” the Narcotic Officers Association—a Santa Clarita based nonprofit law enforcement training organization—said in opposition to the bill.
Others opposed include associations representing police and some college campuses.
In their opposition, the narcotics association additionally cited Dr. Michael Bogenschutz, who oversees the psychedelic research program at New York University’s Langon Center for Psychedelic Medicine, as being concerned that enthusiasm for the usage of such drugs is “outpacing science,” and legalizing any drug before FDA approval is a “deviation” from the normal process.
In a March press release by the same group, alongside the Deputy District Attorneys Association of Los Angeles, Crime Survivors Inc.—a non-profit victim advocacy organization—and others, those opposed additionally urged a vote against the bill, reminding lawmakers it is identical to one Mr. Wiener proposed last year that was rejected.
Last year’s bill failed at the hands of the Assembly Appropriations Committee, which recommended providing funding for scientific research on psychedelics before legalization.
Skipping safeguards such as FDA approval, like the San Francisco Board of Supervisors did last year when it passed a resolution decriminalizing psychedelics, or medicinal legalization such as with cannabis before it was legalized for recreational use, has raised red flags for some opposed to the bill.
“I think we can all see what San Francisco is going through. There’s empty retail spaces everywhere, there’s robberies every day, people feel unsafe going on public streets especially in the evenings … If we’re legalizing different types of drugs that is a huge problem,” Frank Lee, vice president of the California Coalition Against Drugs—a statewide organization of law enforcement groups—told The Epoch Times in an interview.
The coalition includes the California District Attorneys, California Narcotic Officers, California College, and University Police Chiefs associations, as well as the Deputy District Attorneys Association of LA, community groups, anti-drug organizations, and others, Mr. Lee said.
“California already has too many big drug and crime problems now. Importantly, in Scott Wiener’s words, SB58 is the first major step in legalizing all drugs, and we adamantly want to thwart that. The current drug and crime problems in San Francisco and Oakland are good warnings to us,” Mr.
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