Mexican Border City Grapples With Possibility of Legalizing Marijuana

Mexico's Supreme Court ruled this fall that individuals have the right to grow marijuana for personal use, but on the border many are divided over the issue.

Some in this border city, which became a bloody battleground for rival drug cartels fighting for lucrative smuggling routes to the U.S., say they believe decriminalizing marijuana will reduce violence.

"Drug trafficking would go down and there would be fewer people involved in violence," said Raul Parra, a nursing student in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua--on the U.S.-Mexican border across from El Paso, Texas.

[continues 265 words]