Bush: Medical Pot Use Creates Legal Loopholes

Law enforcement officials in four of the states that allow medical use of marijuana say it´s had little impact on crime fighting.

They say the laws do sometimes complicate the prosecution of drug cases. And some are concerned about conflicts with federal authorities over laws that still ban the drug. The report comes from the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress.It examines data from Oregon, Hawaii, Alaska and four counties in California. The other states that allow the use of pot as medication are Nevada, Colorado, Washington and Maine.

The Bush administration disagrees with parts of the report. It says the marijuana laws have harmed relations between federal, state and local law enforcement, and complains that they create “legal loopholes” for drug dealers.