Yvonne Wingett Sanchez

The Republic | azcentral.com

Marijuana advocates hope to ask voters to legalize marijuana in 2016.

The resolution was approved during a meeting of the Arizona County Attorney %26 Sheriff%27s Association.

In 2010%2C voters approved marijuana for medicinal use.

A majority of Arizona's sheriffs and county attorneys approved a resolution Wednesday opposing the legalization of marijuana in Arizona.

The voice vote at the Arizona County Attorney & Sheriff's Association meeting comes as marijuana advocates have set their sights on Arizona to replicate Colorado's model of regulated pot for recreational use in 2016.

The Washington, D.C.-based Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates for marijuana legalization and regulation intends to pursue full legalization in Arizona through a voter initiative in Arizona and several other states over the next two election cycles.

The resolution includes nearly two dozen points stating why the group opposes legalization, ranging from marijuana being harmful to the adolescent brain, negatively impacting IQ, and drug use leading to risky behavior. It cites more than two pages of publications to support its statements.

Among the points in the resolution:

■ If marijuana were legalized an additional 32,000 high-school students in Arizona would be more likely to use marijuana.

■ Driving while impaired by marijuana is correlated with an increased chance of being at fault in a crash.

■ Marijuana legalization would lead to increased marijuana use.

■ Marijuana use can impact safety and productivity in the workplace.

"... Be it further resolved that we support public education on the harms of marijuana, and proven prevention interventions such as community-based drug prevention efforts, drug treatment courts, offender re-entry programs and probation reform; and further support making drug treatment available to all who need it," the resolution states.

Most sheriffs and county attorneys voted "aye," according to Jen Marson, executive director of the Arizona Association of Counties. Coconino Sheriff William Pribil abstained from the vote; law enforcement officials from Apache and Santa Cruz counties were absent.

The resolution was sponsored by MATFORCE, an organization that aims to end substance abuse.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said he supported the resolution "to ensure a full and fair discussion in the debate over marijuana and other drugs." He said advocates of marijuana legalization have "left a gross misimpression of the real physical, mental and emotional harm" caused by marijuana.

Mason Tvert, director of communications for the Marijuana Policy Project, said the resolution is bewildering.

"It's baffling that law enforcement officials would prefer adults use alcohol instead of marijuana when alcohol is far more dangerous," Tvert said.

He speculated that law enforcement officials may be worried about losing influence if voters legalize marijuana for recreational use.

"Some law-enforcement officials view this as a loss of power for their offices," he said. "If they no longer need to arrest and prosecute thousands of adults for marijuana, they might not need as many resources as they're receiving."

In 2010, voters approved marijuana for medicinal use. About 50,000 people participate in the program, which has been condemned by law-enforcement officials and hailed by marijuana advocates.