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Tag: marijuana decriminalization

  • Finland May Be Next Country To Decriminalize Marijuana

    Finland May Be Next Country To Decriminalize Marijuana

    Advocates hope the number of signees, as well as those that support the effort but did not sign, will push the government towards decriminalization.

    Finland’s Parliament is reportedly considering the decriminalization of marijuana after more than 50,000 residents signed a petition to revise the country’s current laws.

    The proposal sought to remove criminal penalties for the possession of 25 grams or less of cannabis, as well as the cultivation of up to four plants, both for personal use; the organization behind the measure, Kasuva Kannabiksesta, cited the deleterious impact of marijuana convictions on Finnish citizens, who can be barred from education or work opportunities for minor convictions, as a primary factor behind the petition.

    Advocates are hoping that the sheer number of signees, as well as those that support their efforts but did not sign the petition, will help to push the Finnish government towards ratifying decriminalization.

    The People Of Finland Support Decriminalization

    The petition’s primary sponsor, activist Janne Karvinen, said that the majority of the 50,000 signatures were gained in its final month, which he credited to a strong social media push.

    He also believed that the actual level of support for decriminalization in Finland was even greater than the number of signees. “There’s certainly more than 50,000 – or even more than 100,000 – people in Finland who support this issue,” he told, Yle, Finland’s national public broadcasting company.

    In addition to the aforementioned allowances for personal use, the petition would also call for new penalties for individuals who use marijuana in public areas where children are present.

    Even Minor Drug Charges Impact Job Opportunities In The Country

    In terms of the current policies regarding marijuana use, the petition’s authors stated that they have done more harm than good by imposing severe penalties on cannabis users; individuals convicted of even minor drug charges can be barred from more than 60 job and educational opportunities.

    It also noted the financial toll of employing police officers to make arrests on such charges and then processing individuals through the legal system.

    By calling for decriminalization and not legalization, the petition’s authors said that Finland would remain within the requirements of United Nations (UN) obligations, which do not allow member nations to regulate and sell cannabis. As the petition states, “The ban on an act may not be completely abolished or made legal, but the punishment for the act will be abolished or the act will be transformed into a mere offense, for example, a fine.”

    As Marijuana Moment noted, this language may address how Canada and Uruguay have remained within the UN regulations while still allowing for cannabis legalization.

    Karvinen told Yle that he believed the Finnish Parliament would pass the initiatives called for in the petition on the grounds that members “do not want to oppose the benefits decriminalization would bring.”

    However, the newspaper also quoted Mika Luoma-aho, a researcher on drug policy from the University of Lapland, who opined that the government is most likely not ready to accept such a measure “But it will force a debate,” said Luoma-aho. “I want to hear the discussion that quashes the initiative and then continue the dialogue on that basis.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • New York Officially Decriminalizes Marijuana

    New York Officially Decriminalizes Marijuana

    The penalty for possessing up to two ounces of marijuana is now reduced to a violation punishable by a fine.

    The state of New York has further decriminalized the use of marijuana.

    According to the Drug Policy Alliance, back in 1977, New York decriminalized having up to 25 grams of marijuana.

    On Monday (July 29) New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill that will further decriminalize possession of up to two ounces of marijuana. The new law will take effect in 30 days.

    By signing the bill, Cuomo has reduced the penalty for possessing up to two ounces of marijuana to a violation punishable by a fine.

    Another part of the law will establish a process allowing people with “certain marijuana convictions” to have their records expunged.

    Communities of Color

    “Communities of color have been disproportionately impacted by laws governing marijuana for far too long, and today we are ending this injustice once and for all,” Governor Cuomo said in a statement. “By providing individuals who have suffered the consequences of an unfair marijuana conviction with a path to have their records expunged and by reducing draconian penalties, we are taking a critical step forward in addressing a broken and discriminatory criminal justice process.”

    Currently more than half of U.S. states have passed laws to allow the use of marijuana in some capacity.

    In June, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill that legalizes cannabis in the state for those 21 and older. The legislation also provides relief for “roughly 770,000” people in Illinois with marijuana-related offenses on their criminal records through an expungement process.

    Social Equity Programs

    Illinois went a step further to ensure what many consider a righteous approach to legalization, by including a “social equity program” to help former marijuana “offenders” get a leg up in the marijuana industry.

    “Marijuana possession gives those convicted a criminal record that will follow them throughout their lives, potentially limiting their access to education, affecting their ability to obtain employment leading to a potential inability to provide for their families,” said New York state Senator Jamaal T. Bailey. “The creation of a mechanism for expungement… is a step in the right direction in finally ending the heavy-handed war on drugs that has decimated communities of color.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Kamala Harris Introduces Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Bill

    Kamala Harris Introduces Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Bill

    “It is the most sweeping marijuana reform bill ever in Congress,” says the Drug Policy Alliance.

    New legislation introduced in Congress would decriminalize marijuana on the federal level and work toward dismantling years of damage inflicted by the decades-long “War on Drugs.”

    The Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act (MORE Act) was introduced in the Senate on Tuesday (July 23) by Senator Kamala Harris, with companion legislation sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler in the House of Representatives, CNN reported.

    The bill is endorsed by major drug policy reformers including the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Drug Policy Alliance.

    Inside The MORE Act

    “It is the most sweeping marijuana reform bill ever in Congress,” the DPA stated. “It would de-schedule marijuana at the federal level to let states set their own policies without interference and begin to repair the extensive damage done by prohibition.”

    The MORE Act would remove marijuana from Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act, enacted in the 1970s. Under this designation, marijuana is defined by the federal government as a drug with no medical value and a high potential for abuse. Heroin, ecstasy and LSD also reside in the Schedule I category.

    By removing cannabis from Schedule I, each state will be given the opportunity to establish its own marijuana policy. And it would remove a major roadblock for marijuana research, which has been hindered by its Schedule I status for years.

    Three-Part Funding

    The bill would also channel tax revenue from the marijuana industry to go toward the three-part Opportunity Trust Fund, as outlined by the Daily Beast.

    The first part of the fund, the Community Reinvestment Grant, would provide job training, literacy programs, and re-entry services “for individuals most adversely impacted by the War on Drugs,” according to the bill’s text.

    The second, the Cannabis Opportunity Grant, would provide money to marijuana businesses owned by people who are economically and socially disadvantaged.

    And the third, the Equitable Licensing Grant, would reduce barriers to participating in the marijuana industry by, for example, waiving cannabis license application fees to people who live well below the Federal Poverty Level.

    “Times have changed—marijuana should not be a crime,” said Senator Harris, who is also a 2020 presidential hopeful, in a statement. “As marijuana becomes legal across the country, we must make sure everyone—especially communities of color that have been disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs—has a real opportunity to participate in this growing industry.”

    Eleven states and the District of Columbia have passed legal recreational marijuana laws. And 33 states and D.C. have passed legal medical marijuana laws.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries Unveil Marijuana Decriminalization Bill

    Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries Unveil Marijuana Decriminalization Bill

    Schumer and Jeffries announced the bill in a video where they discussed its provisions and intended impact.

    A pair of Democratic lawmakers have partnered on a new bill that seeks to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level.

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Representative Hakeem Jeffries joined forces for the Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act, which would remove marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act, while also offering support to small business owners involved in cannabis-related industries and funding toward the Department of Justice (DOJ) to support expungement programs for marijuana convictions at the state and local level.

    The bill is the second such effort in two years for Schumer, who, in describing the bill, said, “What we’re saying is very simple. Let each state do what it wants.”

    Schumer and Jeffries announced the bill in a video where the two discussed the bill’s provisions and intended impact. Decriminalization, as Schumer noted, will allow the states to create their own legislation regarding marijuana and remove concerns for sellers, distributors and users about federal prosecution.

    The bill also includes the aforementioned expungement program funds for the DOJ, which Jeffries said would “[create] opportunity and economic space [that] will be tremendous.”

    He also noted that removing criminal marijuana charges would change the course of “lives and communities that have been ruined in large measure by the overcriminalization.”

    Small cannabis business owners, especially women or people of color, will also benefit through support from the Small Business Administration, which is included in the bill. “Let’s not have some big fancy corporation, some big tobacco company make all the money,” said Schumer in the video. Additionally, the Huffington Post reported that the bill will provide millions of dollars for research into the effects of marijuana on brain function and driving impairment.

    “The Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act is a phenomenal step forward in terms of social, racial and economic justice in the context of what many people view as the failed War on Drugs that has been with us for decades,” said Jeffries.

    As High Times noted, the bill will most likely face opposition from Senate Republicans, but it’s not clear how Donald Trump will respond. The president previously voiced support for a legalization bill introduced by Senator Cory Gardner (R-Colorado) in 2018.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Is New York City Handing Out Harsher Penalties For THC Oil Possession?

    Is New York City Handing Out Harsher Penalties For THC Oil Possession?

    A new report reveals a major contradiction in the city’s ongoing efforts to reform marijuana enforcement.

    Getting caught with a cartridge of THC oil can land you in jail in New York City—despite city officials’ promise to decriminalize marijuana offenses.

    A new report by The Appeal highlights the disparity in the city’s enforcement of possession of THC oil versus marijuana in its raw form.

    “Cannabis oil possession carries a harsher charge than regular marijuana possession,” The Appeal reports.

    “Because the oil is classified as a controlled substance, the charge is a Class A misdemeanor, the same class used for low-level heroin and crack possession. Those convicted of the charge can be sentenced to up to a year in jail.”

    The fact that police officers are still treating THC oil possession as a criminal misdemeanor contradicts the city’s ongoing efforts to reform marijuana enforcement.

    On Sept. 1st, the city enacted a new policy to ticket instead of arrest people for public marijuana smoking. Mayor Bill de Blasio claimed that the new policy would reduce marijuana possession arrests by 10,000. Each year, about 17,500 people are arrested in New York City for marijuana possession.

    Neither the mayor’s office nor the NYPD agreed to comment on its policy regarding THC oil.

    “The DA’s office has prosecuted at least 22 THC or cannabis oil cases since Sept. 1, according to public defenders in Brooklyn… In 13 of those cases, people were charged with possessing cannabis oil alone, without any other misdemeanor or felony charges,” The Appeal reports.

    Oren Yaniv, a spokesperson for the Brooklyn district attorney’s office, says the DA is working to reduce marijuana convictions.

    “New York law categorizes THC oil not as marijuana, but as a controlled substance… However, recognizing that THC is the active ingredient in marijuana, we believe that the two forms of marijuana should be treated similarly,” said Yaniv.

    Meanwhile, NY Governor Andrew Cuomo is working on the bigger picture. The state is currently exploring legalizing marijuana for adult use. New York already has a medical marijuana program. However, home cultivation, smokable medical marijuana, and edible products are not allowed under the program.

    This month, during a recent appearance in Buffalo, Governor Cuomo said that marijuana legalization legislation is in the works.

    “We now have a working group that is putting together a piece of legislation that would do it, because the devil is in the details: How do you do it, where do you do it, what are the ages, etc.? What is New Jersey doing? What has Massachusetts done? So that legislation is being crafted. I expect it to be introduced next year. The when and the how, we’re not clear,” Cuomo said.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • New Jersey Marijuana Cases Temporarily Halted By Attorney General

    New Jersey Marijuana Cases Temporarily Halted By Attorney General

    The AG’s announcement, which will affect thousands, comes at a turning point for marijuana policy in New Jersey.

    On Tuesday, New Jersey’s attorney general ordered the immediate adjournment of all municipal marijuana cases until September or later.

    In a letter to prosecutors, Attorney General Gurbir Grewal wrote, “In the interim, I ask that all municipal prosecutors in New Jersey seek an adjournment until September 4, 2018, or later, of any matter involving a marijuana-related offense pending in municipal court. The adjournment will give my office sufficient time to develop appropriate guidance for prosecutors.”

    The announcement, which according to Politico will affect thousands, comes at a turning point for marijuana policy in New Jersey.

    Jersey City, the state’s second-most-populous city, was on track to decriminalize marijuana until Grewal voided the attempt last Friday.

    Mayor Steve Fulop argued that the city had the right to “amend or dismiss charges as they see fit and decriminalization is the right thing to do as we shouldn’t continue a policy of creating records and ruining a person’s future over small quantities of marijuana.”

    But Grewal disagreed, saying the city did not have “the legal authority” to decriminalize marijuana “or otherwise refuse to criminally prosecute all marijuana-related offenses in the municipal courts of Jersey City.”

    But despite Grewal’s opposition to Jersey City’s effort, his decision to suspend municipal marijuana cases is regarded as a step toward decriminalization in the long run, according to Politico.

    Governor Phil Murphy, who is known for his support of marijuana legalization, said while decriminalization is “intoxicating,” there are more benefits to full legalization. “You think it’s a step in the right direction [but] it actually leaves the business in the hands of the bad guys,” said the governor. “Your kids are exposed, it’s not regulated, it’s not taxed. So I’ll leave the specifics of that to the attorney general, but that’s a conceptual answer.”

    On Monday, Senate President Steve Sweeney said he would add on efforts to legalize marijuana for adult use to efforts to expand New Jersey’s medical marijuana program, according to Politico.

    After meeting with Jersey City officials on Monday, Grewal announced that he will establish a working group to develop guidance for prosecutors by September on how they should proceed with marijuana cases.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Marijuana Decriminalization Bill Introduced By Sen. Chuck Schumer

    Marijuana Decriminalization Bill Introduced By Sen. Chuck Schumer

    The bill tackles marijuana rescheduling, advertising regulations, expungement and research.

    New York Senator Chuck Schumer introduced a new bill to regulate marijuana at the federal level, High Times reported. The bill isn’t aimed at legalizing the drug but the proposal would decriminalize it.

    Schumer previously announced plans to introduced the bill in April. The legislation would eliminate pot from the Controlled Substances Act, where it currently sits alongside drugs like LSD and heroin. By removing marijuana’s Schedule I classification, Schumer’s bill would “dramatically change the way federal prohibition laws would be enforced.”

    The proposed measure would still allow states to establish their own marijuana laws, including Alaska, California and Colorado.

    “The time to decriminalize marijuana is now,” Sen. Schumer said in a press statement. “The new Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act is about giving states the freedom to be the laboratories that they should be and giving Americans—especially women and minority business owners as well as those convicted of simple possession of marijuana intended for personal use—the opportunity to succeed in today’s economy.”

    He added that the law “is simply the right thing to do.”

    Co-sponsored by fellow Senators Bernie Sanders, Tim Kaine and Tammy Duckworth, the bill would introduce several other changes if it’s passed into law. For one, it would route tax dollars to a Treasury trust fund for weed businesses owned by women as well as “socially and economically disadvantaged” people.

    The legislation would also allow the Treasury Department to control various aspects of advertising and marketing around marijuana. The proposed bill would also set nearly $750 million aside for highway safety programs and research into the “pitfalls of driving under the influence of THC,” not to mention developing technology to “reliably measure impairment.”

    Perhaps the most significant aspect of Schumer’s bill is that it aims to grant $100 million to “help expunge criminal records of folks who have been convicted in the past for marijuana-related crimes.”

    For many of the people helping to get the bill off the ground, High Times observed, it’s about ironing out the problems with how marijuana laws are enforced across the country—especially across racial divides.

    “Far too many Americans are currently incarcerated for marijuana-related offenses,” said Sen. Duckworth. “And they are disproportionally people of color, despite the fact that African Americans and Caucasians use marijuana at the same rates.”

    Sen. Sanders is particularly hopeful that the bill goes into effect, given that his home state (Vermont) legalized recreational weed earlier this year. Vermont is also exploring the possibility of clearing nearly 3,000 people of misdemeanor marijuana convictions. That said, much of the nation remains hugely inconsistent in its weed laws.

    View the original article at thefix.com