Professor John Kaplan, School of Law, Stanford University, has been assigned revision of the section on Drugs, California Penal Code. The California Penal Code was last revised in 1872. In discussing his work before the Department of Psychiatry, stanford Medical School, May 21, 1969, Professor Kaplan made the following points concerning marijuana.
The cost of a law must be balanced against its benefits. The use of marijuana has increased rapidly, so that 30% of california youth (by his best conservative estimate) have used marijuana; 20% consider themselves users. The Stanford undergraduate body has been carefully surveyed. Two years ago 20% had used marijuana, last year 57% had used the drug, and by this year 70% were using marijuana.