Seattle Police Chief John Diaz Told to Become a Marijuana Activist Immediately, or Resign

The self-proclaimed "cannabis antagonists" at Responsible Marijuana Project (the same folks who put up the "free marijuana" signs around Seattle) sent the following demands to Seattle Police Chief John Diaz on Tuesday:

1. Apologize for profiteering off of racist, prejudice and fraudulent laws.

2. Immediately stop enforcing racist, prejudice and fraudulent laws.

3. Demand that medical marijuana dispensaries be opened up to adult recreational users.

4. Advocate for the removal of all marijuana convictions from all arrest records.

5. Advocate for the restitution of the loss of property until the restitution has been granted.

6. Advocate for hemp and green jobs.

7. Instruct all police under your command and encourage all police chiefs in Washington State to do likewise.

The alternative?

If you do not choose to be an advocate for ending racist, prejudice and fraudulent laws we will demand you resign immediately.

For some reason, the group hasn't heard back.

"We want to send a message," Jared Smith, RMP's founder tells Seattle Weekly in explaining his group's intent behind the letter. "It's not like we're expecting Diaz to step down or advocate for marijuana."

Weird. Because that's exactly what the letter asks for.

"We don't really see very many other options," Smith continues. "With all the other bills getting diluted, we can't trust the initiative process. We want to convince the people of Seattle that they need a police chief who supports an end to marijuana prohibition."

Sgt. Sean Whitcomb at SPD tells us he isn't aware of RMP's letter, but he does take the time to lay out what Diaz would advocate for, marijuana-wise.

"Chief Diaz would advocate for more clarity in marijuana laws," Whitcomb says. "The only thing were clear on is that marijuana is lowest priority for SPD. We think the legislature can do better in making the law clear."

Whitcomb also notes that the department recently changed its manual to more specifically discourage marijuana enforcement, except if officer safety or public safety is at issue.

Of course, that manual change came before Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes noted that marijuana-possession citations in Seattle skyrocketed last year.

Smith says that whatever SPD is doing isn't working.

Then again, demanding that the chief of police step down or become a full-on pot advocate probably won't work either.

Here's RMP's full letter.

RMP Press Release 1 DIAZ

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