Civil Citations for Misd amounts of Marijuana

[Unregistered]

A big push for less than 20grms of pot to be a civil citation and a 75dollar fine. So you are potentially a couple of stems and leaf away from going from a civil citation to a third degree felony. Juvie records are sealed and a misd amount of marijuana would not carry over to your adult status. There are drug courts and first time offender programs that defer prosecutions in lieu of counseling etc. Isnt this really about benefiting the rich, well connected, and powerful types from ruining their futures and careers by getting arrested for small amounts of possessing marijuana? I have noticed that the vast majority of the poor and uneducated, and low income people that get arrested for possessing a joint, have so many other prior arrests on their records, that getting arrested for one joint is hardly the sole reason that they are unemployable. I am just saying. Prove me wrong.

[Unregistered]

Your not wrong but what was your point?

[Unregistered]

Your not wrong but what was your point?

The point is this: If the city chooses to ignore state/federal laws, or at least picks and chooses which ones to follow, who is to say that carrying an open can of beer is more of a punishment than carrying weed? As a cop, how just is it for me to issue a traffic citation that costs at times well over $200 as compared to $75 for carrying weed? All in all......makes me think that most will stop enforcing any and all laws and simply just go to a dispatched call, milk it as much as possible, and go home in one piece. The fight is just not worth it anymore...

[Unregistered]

alcohol is a much more dangerous "drug" than marijuana is. don't be fooled, we are servants to society in the end...and society speaks very loudly when they are pushing for legalization of weed. i agree with you 100% but, let's be real about some of this - marijuana will be legal in the near future, we have got to start adapting.

[Unregistered]

The point is this: If the city chooses to ignore state/federal laws, or at least picks and chooses which ones to follow, who is to say that carrying an open can of beer is more of a punishment than carrying weed? As a cop, how just is it for me to issue a traffic citation that costs at times well over $200 as compared to $75 for carrying weed? All in all......makes me think that most will stop enforcing any and all laws and simply just go to a dispatched call, milk it as much as possible, and go home in one piece. The fight is just not worth it anymore...

It's not and you shouldn't be out there hammering the hard working people with hundreds of dollar tickets. It's your discretion to warn or cite them. Traffic enforcement is little more than a punitive money maker.

[Unregistered]

Despite a warning (using discretion) or issuing a citation, law enforcement will still have the responsibility of writing a report and seizing the marijuana for distruction, right? Do we still even have the option of discretion like we use to?

[Unregistered]

Wasn't the premise of this ordinance to keep this small amount of marijuana off of someones record so that they could have a better chance at getting a job? The narrative is that this will help the minority male from being held back due to this one indiscretion. You would be hard pressed to show that this one and only arrest was the sole reason that these minorities are not being employed. Most of these minorities that this ordinance was aimed to help have multiple arrests on their records, poor students, and quite frankly do not want to be employed when they can make so much more money slinging dope etc. A low paying or a job that matches your skill set is the furthest thing on these super predators minds!

[Unregistered]

Is a lesser penalty than FSS even legal?

[Laws? what laws?]

If the city chooses to ignore state/federal laws, or at least picks and chooses which ones to follow...

The juve justice coalition is pushing for a "special" southside intake facility. The idea is to put up a firewall between their clientele and the courts/police. Keeping their records a secret ensures unlimited chances for repeat offenders, being that no offense is trackable. Civil citations in St Pete work the way the chief wants them to.

[Unregistered]

They've used civil citations for weed for a few years in South Florida. The problem is nobody pays there fines and the cities can't do anything about it. Legalizing marijuana without changing state law.