Andrew Cuomo is proposing that NYC decriminalize small amounts of Marijuana. Cuomo argues that too many New Yorkers are being arrested on misdemeanor charges, and those arrests are racially disproportionate. Most misdemeanor arrests are of black and Hispanic youths.
The governor also goes on to say the laws and punishments are disproportionate and confusing. “There is a blatant inconsistency. If you possess marijuana privately it is a violation, if you show it in public it’s a crime. It’s incongruous. It’s inconsistent the way it has been enforced,” Cuomo stated at a press conference in Albany, New York on Monday.
However, Cuomo is not suggesting that decriminalization of marijuana use. Selling and smoking or burning marijuana is still a crime, and Cuomo is not suggesting changing that.
So, in essence it will no longer be a misdemeanor crime to possess 25 grams or less of marijuana, but if you sell it or use you’re a libel to be arrested. That’s not confusing at all.
