Latest Post | Last 10 Posts | Archives
Previous Post: Not much of a warning shot
Next Post: A tale of two fake Madigans
Posted in:
* Illinois made possession of up to an ounce of marijuana a misdemeanor offense many, many years ago. But far too many people are still getting arrested for possession of small amounts. Other cities have turned to ticketing people for having a bit of pot on them to free up police for far more important work. Chicago is now doing the same, with Mayor Rahm Emanuel fully on board…
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Police Superintendent Gary McCarthy both support an ordinance that would allow police officers to ticket anyone caught with a small amount of marijuana instead of going through the time-consuming arrest process that takes them off the street for hours at a time.
Police arrested more than 18,000 people last year for misdemeanor possession of 10 grams or less of marijuana, which “tied up more than 45,000 police hours,” McCarthy said in a statement. “The new ordinance nearly cuts that time in half… freeing up cops to address more serious crime.”
More significantly, the alderman who drafted the ordinance – which turns small amounts of pot into a ticketable, not jailable offense_ said it not only addresses concerns about fairness but also provides increased safety for city’s most dangerous neighborhoods.
* Again, this is not a new idea…
In those cities in Illinois where possession has been decriminalized, officials said, the change resulted in cops having more time to address more serious crime and also resulted in additional revenue ending up in city coffers. It also meant that those ticketed faced some consequences for their actions, when in the past they often saw the charges against them completely dropped. Still, those ticketed for pot possession didn’t walk away with a criminal record, officials note. […]
Springfield Police Chief Robert Williams said giving his officers in 2009 the option to write tickets for small amounts of marijuana possession did free them up to prioritize more serious crimes.
It also benefits first-time younger offenders who avoid getting a permanent mark on their record, he said.
“It gives the officers some options and some tools, for which [offenders] don’t have a criminal record. I like to believe it’s given our young people some option not to be introduced into the criminal justice system formally,” he said.
But an arrest could still be necessary in cases involving small amounts of pot, he said.
“We’re being asked to do more with less. There are occasions when it frees up time. But I want to be clear that in certain situations … I strongly support them going through the more traditional things,” he said. “There are some things that are just the cost of doing business as far as what we do.”
* And Gov. Pat Quinn seems OK with the idea…
Gov. Quinn told reporters Friday that city officials will decide what’s best for Chicago, but he believes police should be focusing on going after dangerous criminals.
“Violent street crime, I think, is where the public wants their law enforcement significantly deployed in order to fight back for the people,” he said.
Quinn said he doesn’t think the new ordinance would lead to the total legalization of marijuana in Illinois if it is passed.
Thoughts?
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:35 am
Sorry, comments are closed at this time.
Previous Post: Not much of a warning shot
Next Post: A tale of two fake Madigans
WordPress Mobile Edition available at alexking.org.
powered by WordPress.
not a fan of this for all the reasons associated with the reasons we fight the war on drugs. Just because times are tough and the budget is tight does not mean we stop enforcing laws. President Obama as has been noted on this blog before, has repeatedly declined to relent in the war on drugs and it’s too bad members of his party are not following suit.
Comment by Shore Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:41 am
This essentiall legalizes weed which I am all for. The reason being that to convict someone of even an ordinace violation for possession, a lab must test and confirm that it is Cannabis. Labs will not perform tests for ordinance violations.
Just legalize it already
Comment by Generation X Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:42 am
===not a fan of this for all the reasons associated with the reasons we fight the war on drugs===
Shore, please enlighten me: what are the reasons we are fighting the war on drugs? How’s it going so far?
Comment by 47th Ward Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:43 am
===does not mean we stop enforcing laws. ===
The laws are being enforced. This is a misdemeanor already. A ticket is allowable for home rule units.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:45 am
Excellent. Very slowly but surely America is starting toward a path of more rational drug laws. I would like all out legalization for marijuana, but this is a start. I do not understand how anyone can be for legalization of alcohol and not for marijuana, when alcohol is far more destructive to individual users and society as a whole.
Comment by Just Observing Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:51 am
I support legalizing marijuana, but I’m glad that decriminalization of small amounts is very likely to become law in Chicago. I think it’s a step in the right direction.
Comment by Grandson of Man Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 10:51 am
Awesome.
Now if they’d just do the same for people possessing handguns…
Comment by Roger! Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:02 am
I’m OK with it. Can someone state which pot o’ money those “$100-$500.” would fines go into?
Comment by Responsa Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:03 am
This is a step in the right direction. But it’s really a bit of misdirection. It’s doing something without really doing anything. As it stands today police already have discretion to ignore small amounts of marijuana. If they want to give you a hard time they will arrest you. Under the new ordinance, they can still arrest you. But now they can choose to write you a nice fat ticket instead. This is good in that it potentially frees up officers to do something more important. But it’s bad in that it probably will not do anything to lower racial bias in the arrest stats.
Comment by Jerad Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:04 am
“…for all the reasons associated with the reasons we fight the war on drugs.”
Remind me what those are again.
Comment by wishbone Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:09 am
After discussing this with some law enforcement officials they don’t seem to mind the idea but think their will be problems witht the execution. You need an ID to get a ticket if you don’t have an ID it is an arrest so they can’t wait to catch hell over who gets arrested and who gets a ticket. Or the alternative if you have an ID you get a ticket if you don’t you get nothing.
Comment by Fed up Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:10 am
Just legalize it already. Let farmers grow it for profit. Let factories employ people to watch the machine roll joints and put them in packs. Employ people to ship them to convenience stores. Tax the packs at the same rate we tax cigarettes.
Comment by Cheryl44 Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:17 am
My thinking on this has evolved. I used to believe that decriminalizing sent the wrong message since driving a vehicle with any amount in your system is against the law. But frankly, I think we need to look legalizing marijuana at the very least, then taxing and regulating it.You’ll never win the war on drugs as long as people want to use them. If we spent a fraction off the money we spend on interdiction on treatment and education, we would still have billions left over. Short of true draconian punishments for drug possession, punishment will never be a deterrent to an addict or even to many users. Name one pleasure or activity that people want to do where punishment has effectively curtailed the pleasure or activity. Alcohol? Prostitution? Focus on education and treatment and we will save money and lives in the long run. Imagine how many lives would be saved in Mexico by legalizing pot.
Comment by Tommydanger Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:24 am
Let DNR set aside a small portion of land in each state park dedicated to growing, harvesting, packaging and selling pot. We could restore years of underfunding in short order. Anything that moves toward legalization is common sense progress.
Comment by Johnnie F. Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 11:35 am
I’m very happy to see this posting, I was one of those arrested last year for possesion and currently have a case pending. I am a non-violent offender and don’t believe I should have midemeanor charges on my record for my 1 gram possession. I would of gladly paid a fine, yet I have a continuing case that is time consuming and stressful. I am not a criminal, but I feel I am being injustly treated as one. I hope this is seen and marijuana keeps progressing in a positive way for both users and the government to make their “tax”
Comment by tara Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 12:46 pm
Yes, this is a step better. Not far enough.
Cheryl44, I’d suggest we take a more intelligent approach to regulations rather than turn it into a monopoly for a few companies by modeling it after the tobacco industry. Think craft beers instead Miller/Coors/Busch mass produced.
It should not be sold in any form where it is easily smoked. No pre-rolled joints, just the plant or edibles made from it. Vaporizers and eating it does not produce smoke. Put in a production size limit (# of plants) in the state to prevent monopolies and spread the industry around to hundreds of producers instead of a few.
Farmers will be growing industrial hemp for paper, fabric, and composite plastic alternatives etc., so high THC cannabis growers will grow indoors or in greenhouses. They will risk fertilization and seeds outdoors.
Millions of American are prescribed painkillers etc. every day that they shouldn’t be driving under the influence of and that we have no breathalyzer type test for. Police will use the same methods to determine intoxication that they used before the breathalyzer and that they currently use with vicodin, percocet, oxycontin…
Obama has to take it out of Schedule 1 first. GIVLRT!
Whats the deal with that late 70s bill for medical cannabis? Could Quinn tell the State Police and Human Services to abide by some program he gives them to enact tomorrow if he wanted? That would be hilarious.
Comment by Jeff Trigg Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 12:58 pm
“I was one of those arrested last year for possesion and currently have a case pending. I am a non-violent offender and don’t believe I should have midemeanor charges on my record for my 1 gram possession.”
If you were arrested in Cook County for one gram of marijuana possession with no other legal problems, there is a great chance of your case getting thrown out.
Comment by Grandson of Man Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 1:00 pm
Preckwinkle and Fritchey deserve credit for advocating decriminalization last year. Better late than never, Rahm.
Comment by reformer Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 1:03 pm
legalize it! but even with this change, perhaps all the silly arguments against hemp farming will go away. remember, hemp and grass are not grown together because the pollen from hemp would ruin good weed! and hemp is an awesome crop.
Comment by amalia Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 1:17 pm
With reservations, I would support this proposal, provided that after the third or fourth or fifth arrest that the defendant be referred for possible criminal prosecution. I do not object to tickets and fines for casual offenders, but when you find someone being arrested repeatedly that person needs to be prosecuted (i.e. habitual offender or dealer).
Comment by Esquire Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 1:19 pm
I want marijuana legalization. Decriminalization to me is a good start, because it ends criminality for some users and it frees up police and courts to be used for more serious crimes.
I don’t like to see responsible marijuana users punished. I believe in laws to restrict marijuana use, just like tobacco and alcohol. People who don’t want to be around marijuana also have rights. I hope that America is on a path toward legalization and responsible restrictions.
Comment by Grandson of Man Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 1:48 pm
–If you were arrested in Cook County for one gram of marijuana possession with no other legal problems, there is a great chance of your case getting thrown out.–
But the coppers, clerks, state’s attorneys, et. al. book their time. You have to hire a lawyer. And after all that fortune is spent, it gets tossed.
It’s insane.
You would think after all this time, grownups of a certain age, regardless of their politics, could get real about something.
The rabid right-wing lunacy regarding marijuana is a Maginot Line that would collapse in days if put to the folks. Do you think grandma is worried that you might be smoking pot? She’s seen a little bit of life, and is made of sterner stuff than that.
Emanuel’s move, following Preckwinkles, might actually be a softening up of the ground on a national level.
Plenty of conservatives and conservative states are way ahead of Illinois on this issue.
Opponents can cry in their beers, or Jim Beam. Like that’s better. Those products’ sponsors and advertisers on sporting events geared toward kids.
Comment by wordslinger Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 2:18 pm
Why do you take down thoughtful posts? I was about to respond to one post, when it disappeared??/!!
Comment by Ace Matson Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 2:35 pm
legalize it. Big waste of time. Tax it to control industry. Set standards on those that grow and use a portion of the tax to enforce the standards.
Comment by Moderate REpub Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 2:56 pm
Sell a license for the backyard garden.
Comment by zatoichi Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 3:43 pm
current Tribune headline, Ald. Burke is not convinced about this proposal.
people need to make their voice heard to Ald. Burke.
Comment by amalia Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 3:55 pm
I support this, but one of the problems is that crime statistics end up suggesting racism in the criminal justice system. The communities that have decriminalized small amounts of dope (often more affluent, white suburbs) show nominal punishment for their offenders (the children of those same affluent, white residents) while communities that are more diverse and that perhaps have real hard drug issues, don’t decriminalize small amounts. The overall result is a criminal justice system that, by all appearances, is harsher on minority offenders. I would prefer seeing this as a statewide policy, but that seems unlikely as long as there are so many people who are concerned with weed as a health menace and a gateway drug.
Comment by Lycurgus Monday, Jun 18, 12 @ 4:14 pm