City Council in Albuquerque Approves Marijuana Decriminalization

April 04, 2018,

After conducting a long testimonial session where citizens press on to amend the local penal code, the Albuquerque city council finally voted on Monday night to decriminalize minor possession of marijuana.

The proposal moved by two of the city council members will result in the amendment of local criminal code which will make the possession of an ounce or less of marijuana and related paraphernalia without an MMJ permit a citable offence. This means law enforcement can issue a ticket (up to 25 dollars), but the offenders will not be prosecuted and given a prison time.

The co-sponsor of the amendment Councilman, Pat Davis, compared the amended cannabis possession penalty with a traffic ticket. He says that instead of getting a criminals record in their name and dealing with its fallout for the rest of their life, people would be able to get a clean chit by paying nominal penalties. It’s worth mentioning that as per existing laws even a minor possession of pot is registered as a marijuana misdemeanor in the registry of local court. From college admissions to employment vetting to acquire loans, this ‘criminal record’ makes everyday life very difficult for the affected individuals.

City Council in Albuquerque Approves Marijuana – Image powered by Publicnewsservice.org

Apart from posing the amendment as a solution to vital public issues, the councilmen who put it forward also say that the decimalization of cannabis will also reduce the workload of the city police department that is already facing the issue of shortage of workforce in recent years. Davis says that there are more serious law and order issues to address and decriminalization will help law enforcement bodies to shift their focus to them. Albuquerque Police Union has also endorsed the amendment.

The amendment of decriminalization will need a final approval from the city’s mayor before becoming a part of law. Tim Keller, a Democrat, is the incumbent Mayor of Albuquerque and known for its progressive views on cannabis. However, his Republican predecessor was against any sort of cannabis reforms. Therefore, he vetoed a similar amendment three years ago.

If mayor approves the amendment, Albuquerque will join that one-third population of the US who is already living in the jurisdictions where minor cannabis possession is not a punishable offence, according to the State director of cannabis advocate group Drug Policy Alliance. Santa Fe, another New Mexican city has already adopted the decriminalization of cannabis.

The co-sponsor of the amendment Councilman, Pat Davis – Image powered by Abqjournal.com

As of now, the Albuquerque’s penal code allows authorities to impose a fine of $50 on first-time offenders (for the possession of an ounce or less of weed). Authorities can also give a prison time of maximum 2 weeks to first-time offenders. The amount of fine and prison time increases as the number of misdemeanors increases.

It is also important to note that the measure was approved by the council with the margin of just a single vote. Council member who voted against the amendment think there is no concrete evidence linking decriminalization of cannabis with reduced crime rate.

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