I'm sorry to hear of your cousin's loss.
I do believe too many people are imprisoned for possessing marijuana. It should be decriminalized as in some other countries with no problems.
You are lying. Unless someone has a vast amount of marijuana in their possession, people do not serve prison time for simple possession. They are sent to drug court which originated in Miami Florida and now is active in all 50 states.
Drug Courts | National Institute of Justice
Generally, when someone calls me a liar I place them on my 'ignore' list but this one time I will give you a response.
You cited a document about Drug Courts as if they are a norm in all 50 states and that anyone who has a small amount of marijuana will go before a judge in such a court and will not be given a custodial sentence. You are not a liar, just mistaken.
Nothing in your citation suggests that anyone who is caught in possession of a small amount of marijuana will not serve prison time.
"According to the ACLU’s original analysis, marijuana arrests now account for over half of all drug arrests in the United States. Of the 8.2 million marijuana arrests between 2001 and 2010, 88% were for simply having marijuana. Nationwide, the arrest data revealed one consistent trend: significant racial bias. Despite roughly equal usage rates, Blacks are 3.73 times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana."
Marijuana Arrests by the Numbers
This is a total waste of police time and those arrested do not go before a drug court or any court sometimes for years waiting for their day in court in a local jail. "On any given day in the United States, at least 137,000 people sit behind bars on simple drug-possession charges, according to a report released Wednesday by the American Civil Liberties Union and Human Rights Watch.
"Nearly
two-thirds of them are in local jails. The report says that most of these jailed inmates have
not been convicted of any crime: They're sitting in a cell, awaiting a day in court, an appearance that may be months or even
years off, because they can't afford to post bail." (emphasis mine)
Police arrest more people for marijuana use than for all violent crimes — combined
This article points-out that "police make more arrests for marijuana possession alone than for all violent crimes combined."