Washington state decriminalizing pot

buddychaps

buddychaps

Active member
here's a story i found:

A bill that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of

marijuana in Washington state was approved by the state Senate

Judiciary Committee Wednesday. The measure now heads for the Senate

Rules Committee, which must also approve it before it can head for a

floor vote.

The bill, SB 5615,

reclassifies adult possession of no more than 40 grams of marijuana

from a misdemeanor crime carrying mandatory jail time to a civil

infraction imposing a $100 penalty that can be paid by mail.
 
well being a dealer, they could charge you with intent to sell which is a whole different story

i just dont get decriminalization. so now if you have it, the penalty is not half as bad, but you still have to pay a fine and its still illegal. either its illegal or it isnt... its like why go 3/4 of the way when you just need 1/4 more to go all the way?
 
well i mean, what dont you understand? its less of a crime. like if you get a speeding ticket its against the law but its not something you would be taken to jail for. its just a civil citation now. and like someone said, baby steps
 
do you realize how much better it is to just pay a fine and get on with your life then spend 3 months worrying about it in a court case? And then getting some bullshit assessment program for alochol awareness, its just stupid for getting caught smoking weed.
 
so what happens with underage possesion?
I'm pretty sure california is trying to do similar stuff. Hopefully Oregon does the same stuff next cause thats where Im at.
I bet by the end of this recession or depression or what ever its called now weed will be legal. It would cut down tax money going to the drug war, and give the government something new to tax
 
Marijuana is illegal by federal law, this means that no matter what the states do, it is still illegal. The states can just pass on charging you with anything, but you still have to pay a fine that goes to the federal government.
 
Thats good news, Marijuana laws have been making some progress in the past 6 months. Massachusetts, Michigan and maybe this.
 
What i find weird in CO is that a posession charge is 0-100$, yet a paraphernalia charge is 0-1000$.

You'd think it would be the other way around
 
I dont really see this as a huge deal. Sure, its freat for washington state, but more often than not people think the word decriminalize and legal mean the same thing. Weed is decriminalized where I live in NY, and its still illegal. I had to pay 150 bucks for a pipe and 2.3 g's, so its not that bad. I did have to go to court though, which was a pain in the ass.
 
that doest mean its decriminalized, you still get a ticket for 100$ if you get caught with 40 grams or less and if you have more your still going to jail. Its been like that in Cincinnati for years except its 99 grams and under is a 100$ payout ticket.
 
Yeah, actually, it does mean its decriminalized. Thats kinda what it means. Its not legal, but its decriminalized. You get it?
 
Thats what decriminalized means dude. it's not the same as being legal. It just means that it is a ticketable offense.

Think of it like this...

If you are cought speeding in a 35 mph zone going 50, you will not go to jail. In most cases you will be issued a ticket that you can later mail in to the DMV for around 100$....

But, if you are cought in tthat same speed zone going 100 mph, you will be arrested and taken to jail. The difference being the excess of speed you were going OVER the legal limit,.

Now put that into terms of marijuana...

If you are cought possessing 10 grams of marijuana in a state where it is DECRIMINALIZED (not legal) to carry up to 40 grams of marijuana, you will be ticketed not arrested. you will have the marijuana taken and you will be issued a ticket that you can mail in to the state for 100$. But, same as above if you are cought possessing 70 grams of marijuana in a state where it's legal to carry 40 grams, you will be arrested and taken to jail. The difference being the excess of marijuana that you were possessing OVER the legal limit.

No one is going to completely going to Legalize marijuana... But decriminalization is a huge step towards keeping innocent citizens out of jail, and closing huge gaps in our current criminal justice system.

Btw, I do not smoke marijuana.
 
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