Citations Not Cuffs for Low-Level Pot Possession in NYC

Possession of small amounts of marijuana will no longer result in arrests and a trip to central booking in New York City, but offenders will still be given a citation and eventually have to appear in court.

The move is Mayor Bill de Blasio's latest effort to address the effects of the NYPD's stop-and-frisk-policy.

"Too many New Yorkers without any prior convictions have been arrested for low-level marijuana possession, black and Latino communities have been disproportionately affected," de Blasio said at Monday's announcement with police commissioner Bill Bratton. "There have been, in some cases, disastrous consequences for individuals and families. When an individual is arrested even for the smallest possession of marijuana, it hurts their chances to get a new job; it hurts their chances to get housing."

The new policy, which will go into effect on on Nov. 19, characterizes 25 grams as the threshold to constitute "low-level" marijuana possession. Persons carrying more than that amount will be subject to arrest as well as those who smoke in public and are unable to produce personal identification. 

Bratton said the new policy will curtail arrests and allow the NYPD to dedicate their resources to more serious crimes. 

"As the drug problem changes in this city — heroin is emerging as a major problem — we'll be focusing our best trained detectives on that problem," he said. "I don't want them chasing down 25-gram bags of marijuana and tying themselves up in court."

Despite the lessened penalty, Donna Lieberman, the head of New York Civil Liberties Union, said multiple marijuana charges, for even low-level possession, can have adverse effects.

"People will still have to pay fines," she said. "People will still have convictions, and immigrants can be deported and kids can lose their eligibility for students loans and people could lose housing..."

In July, Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson announced his office would stop prosecuting low-level marijuana cases. At the time, city law enforcement officials said they would continue to arrest anyone in possession of marijuana.