Former cop asking about marijuana legalization wins White House question contest

A retired LAPD deputy police chief asking about marijuana legalization has ranked first among the videos in the White House's "Your interview with the president" YouTube contest.

"From my 20 years of experience I have come to see our country's drug policies as a failure and a complete waste of criminal justice resources. According to the Gallup Poll, the number of Americans who support legalizing and regulating marijuana now outnumbers those who support continuing prohibition. What do you say to this growing voter constituency?" former LAPD cop Stephen Downing asks President Obama in the video below.

Last year, another former law enforcement officer asked the president about marijuana legalization. Obama answered then that legalization is "an entirely legitimate topic for debate." But the Obama administration maintains that marijuana has no proven medical benefits, and the Justice Department has signaled that medical marijuana dispensaries in states where they are legalized may face federal prosecution.

Obama will answer the top-voted questions at 5:30 p.m. ET here.