BILL NUMBER:S3315

TITLE  OF  BILL:    An  act  to  amend  the  penal law, in relation to
standardize penalties associated with marihuana possession

PURPOSE:  To standardize criminal penalties for unlawful possession of
marihuana.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:  This bill amends sections 221.05  and
221.10  of  the  penal  law  to  standardize  penalties  for  unlawful
possession of marihuana.

JUSTIFICATION:   In 1977, the Legislature  made  possession  of  small
amounts   of  marihuana  a  violation  punishable  by  a  fine,  while
possession in public view was made a misdemeanor.  The  intent  behind
the  law  was  clear.  Chapter  360  of  the  Laws of 1977 reads: "The
legislature finds that arrests,  criminal  prosecutions  and  criminal
penalties are inappropriate for people who possess small quantities of
marihuana 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 50,383 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  -1994,  few  people  were  arrested for 221.10. But from 1997 to
2010, the New Yolk City Police Department  arrested  and  jailed  more
than 525,000 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 photographed,
fingerprinted, and then held, often for 24 hours or longer, in one  of
city's jails.

Numerous  studies  and  media  stories  demonstrate that many of those
arrested for marijuana in public view were 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 instruction to remove  the  marihuana  from
their pocket or bag.{1}

Many  of  these  arrests are the result a stop-and-frisk encounter and
contribute to stark 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 ninety 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 eighty six percent  were  black  and  Latino,  and
nearly  seventy  percent  were between the ages of 16 - 29 even though
U.S. Government surveys of high school seniors show  that  whites  use
marijuana at higher rates than blacks and Latinos.{2}


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 52,000 - thus New  York  City  spent  between  $50  -  $100
million on marijuana possession arrests in 2010 alone.

In  a  March  2011  New York City Public Safety Committee hearing, New
York City council Member Melissa Mark Viverito asked NYPD Commissioner
Ray Kelly about these arrests likely resulting from improper searchers
or mischarging practices. 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 practices
which "needlessly scars thousands  of  lives  and  waste  millions  of
dollars  in  law  enforcement  resources,  while  detracting  from the
prosecution of serious crime."

This legislation will make unlawful possession  of  small  amounts  of
marijuana a violation punishable by a fine.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New Bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  This act shall take effect immediately.

FOOTNOTES:

(1)  Harry.  Levine  and  Deborah  Peterson  Small,  Marijuana  Arrest
Crusade. Racial Bias and Police Policy in New York  Gay,  1997  -2007,
(New York: New York Civil Liberties union, 2008)

(2)  U.S.  Department  of  Health and Human Service, Office of Applied
Studies. Table 1.34a marijuana use in lifetime, past  year,  and  past
month  among  persons  aged  12 to 17, by demographic characteristics.
National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2002 and 2003