HPD Chief: Texas will warm to pot

Cultual Baggage radio show host Dean Becker with Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo at 90.1 KPFT's studio in Houston. Their interview airs Friday at 4:30 p.m. Cultual Baggage radio show host Dean Becker with Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo at 90.1 KPFT's studio in Houston. Their interview airs Friday at 4:30 p.m. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close HPD Chief: Texas will warm to pot 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Saying it is smarter to go after drug dealers than users, Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said he sees Texas moving toward more acceptance of marijuana.

Acevedo, who recently took office, predicted that in the next few years, Texas will see a "rigorous review" of the medical benefits of marijuana.

He shared his perspectives on radio station 90.1 KPFT's Cultural Baggage program, which is hosted by Dean Becker and is set to air at 4:30 p.m. Friday.

"I think you'll have a really spirited but well-informed discussion, and at some point I could really foresee, in the future, marijuana and some other oils being legalized for medicinal purposes; it will probably be the first step in Texas," Acevedo said.

The chief also discussed his desire to implement a law-enforcement program he used in Austin, where he served as police chief before coming to Houston, that focused on giving street-corner drug dealers a second chance.

Under that program, dealers were rounded up, confronted with iron-clad criminal cases as well as members of the clergy and their families, and faced with an offer to set the charges aside if they would enter a program to turn their lives around.

Becker, a former military policeman, said after the interview that it seemed clear to him during the interview that the chief knows the drug war is not working out.

"He is ready for change," Becker said. "He knows it has been a failure."

The show will be shared with dozens of other stations in the United States and Canada over the next week.