Kate Cornell

Maryland / United Kingdom

"I have no respect for people who are unwilling to face up to the reality that people have and always will want to change their mental state for pleasure. This is not a crime, and drawing an arbitrary line between the use of some substances for this purpose and ignoring others has no logic behind it. Equally, when it emerges that political figures have themselves taken drugs, yet they advocate harsh prison sentences for other users, the hypocrisy is overwhelming. How can we trust such liars?

"Cannabis CAN be used in a controlled way for recreational purposes without preventing people from being successful or achieving their potential. It is less harmful and less addictive than many legal substances.

"The prohibition of cannabis is an arbitrary policy totally unfounded in science or logic, that simply reflects the government's worrying desire to control the private lives of its citizens."

• Barrister (Criminal law attorney)
  

• Received post-graduate law degree
  

• Volunteered for a UK AIDS Foundation
  

• Interested in politics (feminism, human rights, criminal law), cinema, books, and socializing