April 20. It is widely recognized as “420 Day” for the world who loves to smoke weed. Thus, it is the perfect day to update the mess that is marijuana in Mexico. What is the legal status? Can you smoke pot in Puerto Peñasco? Are you allowed to take a small amount into the country from the United States? You might think these should be easy questions to answer in 2024. However, they are real world legal issues which remain unresolved. Meantime, the outlook on solutions is murky at best.
Marijuana in Mexico – Total Reefer Madness
Yes, it is legal. On the other hand, no it is not. The confusing issue of whether marijuana in Mexico is legal depends on who has the power to decide. This makes some people mad. Others find it maddening that the branches of the Mexican federal government cannot come together. Let’s fire up a quick historical look.
Back in 2009, Mexican President Felipe Calderon signed a law which decriminalized the possession of small amounts of cannabis. It was a nationwide effort to ease enforcement of illegal drug activity. Any person caught with less than five grams of cannabis was not arrested or even fined. Instead, they were advised to attend a drug rehabilitation center. The plan was to free up law enforcement to focus its efforts on fighting Mexico’s drug trafficking.
Mexican Supreme Court Rulings
It was 2015 when the Mexican Supreme Court went on the record for weed. It decided Mexican law was unconstitutional to prevent citizens from growing the plant for personal consumption. The high court claimed that violated every person’s right to freely develop their personality.
Two more years passed before the legislators acted on marijuana in Mexico. In 2017, President Enrique Peña Nieto signed into law the legalization of medical cannabis products with less than one percent THC. The bill breezed through the Mexican Congress and the Senate. But that was not enough for the Supreme Court in Mexico.
In 2018, the court again ruled the law prohibiting recreational use of marijuana was unconstitutional. Amazingly, this was the fifth time.
The Supreme Court ordered the government of Mexico to officially legalize cannabis. Current Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was believed to publicly support the move 3 years later. The 2021 bill was approved in the lower house and was expected to be passed by the Senate. However, it never got done before the end of the legislative session. No one moved for an extension.
Next, the Supreme Court voted to legalize adult use marijuana. However, the penal laws of states and the federal laws remain in place.
Current Status of Marijuana in Mexico
If you are an American caught with a small amount of weed by law enforcement in Mexico, chances are you might expect to have it confiscated. You may also be forced to pay a fine (or bribe). It is unlikely you would be arrested. If you are a Mexican citizen, a small amount of weed would quite likely not be much of a problem.
Overall, the bottom line is a government standstill. You can credit the judicial branch for doing its job. Or you can blame the legislative branch for the problem. The reasoning behind the delays could be politics as usual or quite possibly corruption.
However, both choices lead to the same place. This is because the elected legislators in government control the power. Therefore, they control the nationwide roadblock to legalize marijuana in Mexico.