An enlightened legislature and a very cool governor have joined forces to decriminalize marijuana in Connecticut. The House passed the bill on Tuesday that Gov. Dannel Malloy will eagerly sign.
"Final approval of this legislation accepts the reality that the current law does more harm than good - both in the impact it has on people's lives and the burden it places on police, prosecutors and probation officers of the criminal justice system,'' Malloy said in a statement.
The bill makes possession of a half-ounce akin to a speeding ticket, with a first-time fine of $150 that escalates to $500 upon repeated offenses.
"Let me make it clear - we are not legalizing the use of marijuana," the governor went on. "In modifying this law, we are recognizing that the punishment should fit the crime, and acknowledging the effects of its application. There is no question that the state's criminal justice resources could be more effectively utilized for convicting, incarcerating and supervising violent and more serious offenders."
Malloy noted Connecticut's geographic place in marijuana history: "Modification of this law will now put Connecticut in line with the laws of two of our neighboring states, New York and Massachusetts, and a total of 13 states across the country with similar statutes. I applaud the General Assembly in their passage of this legislation and will sign it into law. I would also like to specifically thank State Sen. Martin Looney, who first introduced this legislation in 2009, for his support and advocacy of this issue."
Connecticut is the first state to decriminalize marijuana since Massachusetts in 2008. According to NORML, the other 12 states are (in order of law passing) Oregon, California, New York, Ohio, Nebraska, Minnesota, Colorado, Mississippi, Alaska, Maine, North Carolina and Nevada.
Image courtesy of The WEED Blog
Also see:
Marijuana Is Safer Than Alcohol
Medical Marijuana on the Move
Legalize Marinara! Billboard
"Final approval of this legislation accepts the reality that the current law does more harm than good - both in the impact it has on people's lives and the burden it places on police, prosecutors and probation officers of the criminal justice system,'' Malloy said in a statement.
The bill makes possession of a half-ounce akin to a speeding ticket, with a first-time fine of $150 that escalates to $500 upon repeated offenses.
"Let me make it clear - we are not legalizing the use of marijuana," the governor went on. "In modifying this law, we are recognizing that the punishment should fit the crime, and acknowledging the effects of its application. There is no question that the state's criminal justice resources could be more effectively utilized for convicting, incarcerating and supervising violent and more serious offenders."
Malloy noted Connecticut's geographic place in marijuana history: "Modification of this law will now put Connecticut in line with the laws of two of our neighboring states, New York and Massachusetts, and a total of 13 states across the country with similar statutes. I applaud the General Assembly in their passage of this legislation and will sign it into law. I would also like to specifically thank State Sen. Martin Looney, who first introduced this legislation in 2009, for his support and advocacy of this issue."
Connecticut is the first state to decriminalize marijuana since Massachusetts in 2008. According to NORML, the other 12 states are (in order of law passing) Oregon, California, New York, Ohio, Nebraska, Minnesota, Colorado, Mississippi, Alaska, Maine, North Carolina and Nevada.
Image courtesy of The WEED Blog
Also see:
Marijuana Is Safer Than Alcohol
Medical Marijuana on the Move
Legalize Marinara! Billboard
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Incredulous
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Interesting, especially for North Carolina. Now that people have finally recognized the dangers of cigarettes, all those farmers in NC will be scrambling to trade in their tobacco growing allotments for marijuana allotments....of course I remember listening to them talk about it 20 years ago, so it took a while, but for a generally uptight state, 20 years isn't a long time to wait.
- 12 months ago
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Incredulous
