I don't think that's a problem in Washington. The pot is legally grown mostly on local farms and in California so there couldn't be the kind of profit the mob would expect. Biggest benefit is law enforcement can devote resources to serious crimes. One thing I don't like about it being legalized is the pot shops can't accept credit cards because of federal law so it's a cash business which makes the shops a big target for robbers. There also may be some zoning restrictions because they are located in rather shabby areas. I really don't think legalizing pot has has created either the positive or negative impact that people expected.Not sure about that. Read about Portugal after 10 years of decriminalization of all drugs. With the illegal drug business estimated at 40 billion a year and growing rapidly, we will reach a point where we will have no choice. I'm not in favor of it but we're running out of options. The war on drugs was lost decades ago. There is no way we can control the growing use of illegal drugs.
Ten Years Ago Portugal Decriminalized All Drugs. What Happened Next? | The Fix
There's possibly a minor flipside to legalizing drugs.
The cartels will see their cash cow dwindle away. It is possible, likely even, that those drug wars will move across our border and we might see Americans killed in their own country if the cartels see legalization as competition.
Of course, that's conjecture. But legitimate conjecture, I think.
I remember when they were trying to get the lottery passed in our state many years ago. One of the claims was that it would stop illegal gambling and wipe out the mob. Instead, the mob started to use the new lottery numbers for their own game. They just had a better payout than the lottery and did even better.
When they pushed the issue of legalized pot in Colorado, it was claimed that it would stop the illegal sales of pot on the street. What actually happened is that pot dealers beat the price of high taxed legal weed, and they are selling more than ever.