Make no mistake: Marijuana is an addictive gateway drug. It imperils Minnesota's children and threatens public safety in every community. Marijuana use contributes to assaults, homicides, suicide, child abuse, domestic abuse, motor-vehicle crashes and drowning.

The connection between marijuana and violent crime should not be underestimated. The violence related to marijuana isn't a result of the effects on the user but rather stems from the money people can make selling and growing the drug. Violence is part of the trade. By legalizing marijuana-growing operations and drug traffic, we would invite violence into our communities.

California has permitted medical marijuana for more than a decade. The president of the California Police Chief's Association, Jerry Dyer, stated last year, "... it is our observation that it has been destructive to lives and communities. Passage of any form of medical marijuana anywhere in our nation is bad public policy and will cause crime and public safety problems."

In 2006 and 2007, drug and gang task forces in Hennepin County linked marijuana to assaults and homicides. In the Hennepin County Adult Detention Center, 45 percent of males arrested for violent crime test positive for marijuana. Approximately 40 percent of those arrested for property crimes, and 86 percent of those arrested for drug distribution, test positive for marijuana.

We should never lose focus on the immediate connection between guns, gangs, kids and drugs -- and marijuana is frequently the connection. I have been in law enforcement for 25 years and have seen this firsthand. When I was captain of the Criminal Investigations Division with the Minneapolis Police Department, we investigated a case involving a man from out-of-state who tried to buy marijuana for personal use. He unwittingly approached a gang-connected dealer. The man was shot and killed so gang members could keep his money and the marijuana.