Jeff Sessions to end policy that let legal pot flourish

WASHINGTON — Attorney General Jeff Sessions is going after legalized marijuana. Sessions is rescinding a policy that had let legalized marijuana flourish without federal intervention across the country.

That’s according to two people with direct knowledge of the decision. They were not allowed to publicly discuss it before an announcement expected Thursday and spoke on condition of anonymity.

A group that spearheaded legalization of recreational marijuana in Massachusetts is calling Attorney General Jeff Sessions' decision to rescind a federal policy on legal pot "distressing" and a "regressive move."

The move will leave it to U.S. attorneys where pot is legal to decide whether to aggressively enforce federal marijuana law. The move likely will add to confusion about whether it’s OK to grow, buy or use marijuana in states where it’s legal, since long-standing federal law prohibits it.

The decision comes days after California began selling recreational marijuana.

Sessions compares marijuana to heroin and blames it for spikes in violence.

Massachusetts voters approved a 2016 ballot question legalizing recreational marijuana. The state's first pot shops are expected to open later this year.

Jim Borghesani, a spokesman for the group that led the ballot initiative, called on federal prosecutors to "recognize and respect decisions by voters in legal states."

MORE: What to know about legal marijuana in Massachusetts

Associated Press