Pot in New York to Attract Fine, No arrests Now
The New York State Police will not arrest people for possession of marijuana but issue tickets instead .
People found in possession of 25 gms or less marijuana will not be arrested and taken to police stations but instead they will be required to answer court summons, effective Nov.19.
The change in policy is a result of an ongoing effort by Mayor Bill de Blasio's efforts to stop the excessive stop and frisk practices of the department. Earlier, thousands of arrests were made with regard to this offense.
"In the first eight months of the year, blacks and Hispanics represented 86 percent of those arrested for marijuana possession in the city, according to a study written in part by Harry G. Levine, a sociology professor at Queens College who is a director of the Marijuana Arrest Research Project," reports the New York Times.
The new policy rules still need to be clarified and discussed as to what constitutes small possession. The 25 gm or below possession is a misdemeanour under state laws and will it be the threshold and what about a cigarette and the fine amount and would it be a criminal offense are some of the questions being raised.
"In order to give the public confidence in the fairness of the criminal justice system, these cases should be subject to prosecutorial review," the new Brooklyn district attorney, Kenneth P. Thompson said, reports the New York Times. "By allowing these cases to avoid early review, by issuing a summons, there is a serious concern that many summonses will be issued without the safeguards currently in place. These cases will move forward even when due process violations might have occurred."
A Bloomberg report says that a first time offense will attract $100 fine and it will be $200 for the second time. It would not be counted as a criminal offense.
