Meet the Conservative Texas Sheriff Who Refuses to Put Potheads in Jail

There’s arguably no good place to get busted for having $1,600 worth of pot on your person or in your car. But if you had to choose, you’d want to go with the Border Patrol checkpoint at Sierra Blanca, Texas (note: this advice does not apply to non-U.S. citizens). That’s because the Border Patrol transfers most of its low-level pot arrests at Sierra Blanca to the Hudspeth County Sheriff’s Department, which is under the supervision of Sheriff Arvin West, who does not have the jail space or the desire to lock up potheads.

Filmmaker Al Reinert knows this first-hand. In the August issue of Texas Monthly, the director of For All Mankind writes about getting busted at the Border Patrol checkpoint for possessing 1.7 ounces of pot (roughly $700 worth), being turned over to one of West’s deputies, and then being magically set free just a few hours later: