New Jersey Attorney General Guidance Signals a Shift in Marijuana Prosecutions

New Jersey legislators are still working on a bill to establish a legal cannabis industry in the state. But the landscape may already be changing for those facing low-level marijuana charges.

Mark Davis is a criminal defense attorney in Mercer County. Normally, he gets two to three calls a week from someone facing a marijuana possession change. That's stopped since November third — Election Day —  when voters overwhelmingly passed a measure to legalize recreational cannabis in New Jersey.

"I think if they are getting these new charges, they’re not running to get a new lawyer," he said. "They’re going to say, ‘All right, well let me wait and see what happens.'"