{"id":202,"date":"2019-06-21T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-06-21T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/2019\/06\/21\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/"},"modified":"2019-06-21T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-06-21T00:00:00","slug":"new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/laws\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/","title":{"rendered":"New York Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Decriminalization Legislation, Reducing Penalties for Low-Level Possession and Attempting to Address the Pressing Need for Restorative Justice"},"content":{"rendered":"

In New York, politicians typically favor incremental action rather than sweeping legislation.\u00a0 This may explain the Legislature\u2019s failure to legalize adult recreational marijuana this term.\u00a0 However, the legislators have passed a bill, A08420, which amends New York penal law and criminal procedure law as they relate to criminal charges stemming from possession of small amounts of marijuana.\u00a0 The bill reclassifies possession of small amounts of marijuana as a violation, rather than a crime.\u00a0 By way of comparison, negligent trespass onto land and jaywalking are also violations.\u00a0 Under the bill, the fine for possession of less than one ounce of marijuana or marijuana\u2011related products is $50.\u00a0 The bill caps the fine for possession of between one and two ounces of marijuana or marijuana\u2011related products at $200.\u00a0 Critically, the bill also provides for the automatic expungement of marijuana\u2011possession convictions.\u00a0 The bill tasks the Office of Court Administration and the Division of Criminal Justice Services with the development of an affirmative information campaign to widely disseminate to the public information related to expungement for prior marijuana convictions.<\/p>\n

In comparison to the legalization of adult recreational marijuana, the bill may seem like pretty small beer.\u00a0 But it is not.\u00a0 The sheer number of people affected coupled with the dire consequences of arrests for possession of only a small amount of marijuana doubtless drove legislative action.\u00a0 The decriminalization of the possession of marijuana is one step in solving the social inequities and injustices felt by those with convictions for low-level possession.<\/p>\n

As discussed in a previously Legally Grown <\/em>blog post<\/a>, the District Attorneys for Manhattan and Albany County recently wrote an excoriating piece<\/a> urging the legalization of adult recreational marijuana:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the last two decades alone, more than 900,000 New Yorkers have been arrested for marijuana possession.\u00a0 These arrests reflect rampant discrimination, specifically against New Yorkers of color. \u00a0In New York, black people are 10 times more likely than white people to be arrested for marijuana possession, with 80% of all statewide marijuana arrests targeting black and Latino residents. \u00a0This staggering disparity in arrests exists despite similar rates of use across demographics.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Even though the District Attorney for Manhattan has adopted a policy of declining to prosecute cases of alleged possession of small amounts of marijuana, at least anecdotal evidence suggests that there are areas of New York City in which law enforcement has not received the memo.\u00a0 And an arrest, even without a charge, can result in twenty\u2011four hours in custody.\u00a0 According to the Drug Policy Alliance<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\u201cNew Yorkers who are arrested face immediate and long-term consequences that make it difficult to get and keep a job, maintain a professional license, obtain educational loans, secure housing, or even keep custody of a child or adopt.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Hopefully, expungement will provide a remedy for at least some of the concerns social justice advocates, like the Drug Policy Alliance, have raised.<\/p>\n

While there was consensus on the decriminalization of marijuana, lawmakers could not pass revisions to New York\u2019s medical marijuana laws.\u00a0 While medical cannabis is legal in New York, it is not affordable or accessible.\u00a0 For example, a representative of the only active dispensary in the New York City area advised me that physicians typically charge about $100 to $300 for medical cannabis.\u00a0 In contrast, the street price of an ounce of marijuana is reportedly about ten dollars.\u00a0 Additionally, decriminalization only addresses the social inequities brought by criminal penalties for marijuana possession.\u00a0 It fails to address economic considerations regarding the legalization of marijuana for adult recreational use.\u00a0 There are concerns<\/a> that without effective legislation, the adult recreational marijuana market will be closed to entrepreneurs, particularly those of minority status.\u00a0 Until the legislature can resolve these issues, whether through an omnibus bill or through continued piecemeal fashion, it is perhaps best that adult recreational marijuana is off the table for now.\u00a0 But the current bill\u2019s focus on restorative justice can only be a good thing.<\/p>\n

If you have any questions about this post or any other related matters, please feel free to contact our Cannabis Law Practice Group<\/a>.<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In New York, politicians typically favor incremental action rather than sweeping legislation.\u00a0 This may explain the Legislature\u2019s failure to legalize adult recreational marijuana this term.\u00a0 However, the legislators have passed a bill, A08420, which amends New York penal law and criminal procedure law as they relate to criminal charges stemming from possession of small amounts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":151,"featured_media":203,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,107],"tags":[183,24,184,115],"coauthors":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nNew York Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Decriminalization Legislation, Reducing Penalties for Low-Level Possession and Attempting to Address the Pressing Need for Restorative Justice - Legally Grown<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/laws\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New York Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Decriminalization Legislation, Reducing Penalties for Low-Level Possession and Attempting to Address the Pressing Need for Restorative Justice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In New York, politicians typically favor incremental action rather than sweeping legislation.\u00a0 This may explain the Legislature\u2019s failure to legalize adult recreational marijuana this term.\u00a0 However, the legislators have passed a bill, A08420, which amends New York penal law and criminal procedure law as they relate to criminal charges stemming from possession of small amounts […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/laws\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Legally Grown\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-06-21T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/18\/2022\/12\/marijuana-decriminalization-cannabis-legalization.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Norris McLaughlin Cannabis Law Group\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Norris McLaughlin Cannabis Law Group\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/laws\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/norrismclaughlin.com\/lg\/laws\/new-york-lawmakers-pass-marijuana-decriminalization-legislation-reducing-penalties-for-low-level-possession-and-attempting-to-address-the-pressing-need-for-restorative-justice\/\",\"name\":\"New York Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Decriminalization Legislation, Reducing Penalties for Low-Level Possession and Attempting to Address the Pressing Need for Restorative Justice - 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