Relates to standardizing penalties associated with marihuana possession; makes unlawful possession of small amounts of marihuana a violation punishable by a fine.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A678
SPONSOR: Rodriguez TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to standardize penalties
associated with marihuana possession
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To standardize criminal penalties for unlawful possession of marijuana.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
This bill amends sections 221.05 and 221.10 of the penal law to stand-
ardize penalties for unlawful possession of marijuana.
JUSTIFICATION:
In 1977, the Legislature made possession of small amounts of marijuana a
violation punishable by a fine, while possession in public view was made
a misdemeanor. The intent behind the law was clear. Chanter 360 of the
Laws of 1977 reads: "The legislature finds that arrests, criminal prose-
cutions and criminal penalties are inappropriate for people who possess
small quantities of marijuana for personal use. Every year, this process
needlessly scars thousands of lives and waste millions of dollars in law
enforcement resources, while detracting from the prosecution of serious
crime."
According to data from the Division of Criminal Justice Services, in
2010, a total of 54,813 people were arrested for this offense in New
York, and fully 30,383 of these arrests took place in New York City.
One out of every seven arrests in New York City is for marijuana
possession, comprising 15 percent of all arrests in that city. From
1977-1954, few people were arrested for 221.10. But from 1997 to 2010,
the New York City Police Department arrested and jailed more than
hundreds of thousands of people for this offense. Those arrested were
charged with the lowest level criminal offense - a misdemeanor - and,
nearly every person was handcuffed, placed in the back of a police car
or van, and taken to the local police station, where they were photo-
graphed, fingerprinted, and then held, often for 24 hours or longer, it
one of our jails.
Numerous studies and anecdotal evidence demonstrate that many individ-
uals arrested for marijuana in public view are improperly charged. They
possessed small amounts of marijuana in their pocket or bag, and thus
were subject to a violation and fine. Instead, they were arrested and
charged with possessing marijuana in public view, often after following
a police officer's instruction to empty their pocket or bag. {1}
These arrests are extremely costly. According to research by Queens
College Professor Dr. Harry Levine, the cost of each arrest is between
$1,000 and $2,000. From 1997 through 2010 the NYPD made 536,000 arrests
for marijuana possession, costing taxpayers at least $500 million. In
2010, New York City spent $75 million on the arrest and incarceration of
individuals for the possession of small amounts of marijuana, this is
not an effective use of increasingly scarce resources.
Many of these arrests are the result of a stop-and-frisk encounter and
further aggravate racial disparities in the criminal justice system. In
2009, for example, the NYPD stopped 574,304 individuals. Of those, who
were the subject of a police stop that year, nearly 90 percent were
people of color; and nine of every ten persons stopped were released
without any further legal action taken against them. Of the 50,383
people arrested in New York City for marijuana possession in public view
nearly 85 percent were black and Latino, and nearly 70 percent were
between the ages of 15 and 29, even though U.S. Government surveys of
high school seniors show that whites use marijuana at higher rates than
blacks and Latinos. {2}
In a March 2011 New York City Public Safety Committee hearing, New York
City Council Member Melissa Mark Viverito asked the NYPD Commissioner
about these arrests. The Commissioner replied. "If you think the law is
not written correctly, then you should petition the state Legislature to
change it." A legislative remedy is needed to standardize penalties
associated with marijuana possession, in order to end the existing prac-
tices, which "needlessly scars thousands of lives and waste millions of
dollars' in law enforcement resources, while detracting from the prose-
cution of serious crime." This legislation will make unlawful possession
of small amounts of marijuana a violation punishable by a fine.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A3744/S2049 2015/16
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
