Decriminalization
August 17, 2023
The repeal of laws or regulations that define a behaviour, product, or condition as criminal. It is sometimes also applied to a reduction in the seriousness of a crime or of the penalties the crime attracts, as when possession of marijuana is downgraded from a crime that warrants arrest and a jail term to an infraction to be punished with a warning or fine. Thus decriminalization is often distinguished from legalization, which involves the complete repeal of any definition as a crime, often coupled with a governmental effort to control or influence the market for the affected behaviour or product
