The trend towards the decriminalization of marijuana in the United States occurred in the context of increasing public acceptance of the drug’s use. According to the Pew Research Center, in 1990, 16 percent of Americans said marijuana should be legal. By 2018, support for legalization grew to 62 percent. The significant shift in public opinion was caused in large part by the promotion of marijuana’s medical uses, a watershed moment for which came in 1996, when California became the first…