possession

Mount Carmel — The Wabash County Commissioners approved an ordinance regarding cannabis offenses at Tuesday's meeting. In July, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a law that decriminalized possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana. Under the new law, those caught with under the...

Charges of simple possession of marijuana have been falling in Memphis over the last three years, according to Shelby County District Attorney General Amy Weirich who said those cases are a very small piece of her office's workload. The statements came as loosening city marijuana charges got...

The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee on Thursday became the latest to throw its support behind a proposal that would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana in Nashville. Hedy Weinberg, executive director of the ACLU of Tennessee, in a letter Thursday to Metro...

Galesburg - A new state law decriminalizing possession of cannabis has had little impact on city law enforcement. Galesburg Police Captain Rodney Riggs said eight people have received citation tickets for that offense since July 1. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner signed legislation making...

As Nashville considers whether to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, we wondered whether a similar effort could take hold in Louisville. The short answer is, despite some interest in doing so, a decisive no. Kentucky state law blocks local lawmakers from passing...

At the end of July eleven individuals received jail sentences in Havana of between 15 to 30 years for attempting to traffic narcotics into Cuba from Jamaica. The convictions followed a number of co-ordinated operations to stop go-fast boats arriving with large quantities of marijuana. The...

Metro Councilman Dave Rosenberg wants Nashville to take it easy on dope smokers. (So do council members Freddie O'Connell and Russ Pulley.) The councilmen have filed an ordinance that would decriminalize the possession of up to a half-ounce of marijuana in Nashville. Marijuana possession in...

The NYPD (New York Police Department) had to abandon its "stop and frisk" practice after it was found unconstitutional. The policy was meant to set people up for charges like possession of illegal substances, rather than tackle crimes that were actually happening. More specifically, it was used...

Last year, Governor Rauner was presented with the notion of decriminalizing marijuana for the state of Illinois. He opposed since the original presented amount of fifteen grams, which is the decriminalized amount in Chicago, was too high of an amount with too low of a fine. Currently, it has...

Newark - Newark voters will have a chance this fall to eliminate fines and jail time for possession of small amounts of marijuana, according to the Licking County Board of Elections. The East Central Ohio Decriminalization Initiative collected 1,107 valid signatures - 44 more than needed - to...

Blacks are dramatically more likely than whites to be arrested or ticketed for possession of small amounts of marijuana in Evanston. Figures from the Evanston Police Department to be presented at tonight's Human Services Committee meeting indicate that of the 77 people who were arrested or...

Is it worth Gwinnett County's time to arrest someone for possessing less than an ounce of marijuana? A group of students from the University of North Georgia say "No," and they are asking county commissioners to have local police stop doing it. Members of the group, which calls itself...

Texans who are arrested for possessing small amounts of marijuana shouldn't be locked out of jobs and haunted by minor lapses in judgment for the rest of their lives, business and legislative leaders say. As acceptance of marijuana - medical and otherwise - grows nationally and in Texas...

A new study found that African-Americans in New Orleans were arrested on pot charges in far greater numbers than other offenders over the past six years. Although the city has eased its marijuana possession laws in recent years, those arrested still face long-term consequences. New Orleans'...

Harrisburg's City Council took a bold step on Tuesday night by voting to reduce the penalties for marijuana possession. Now it's time it's time for the rest of Pennsylvania to follow suit. Council's unanimous vote, which came after five months of public meetings, puts Pennsylvania's...

A chance to take a more realistic approach on marijuana laws quietly passed last week. An effort failed 6,000 signatures short last week of gathering enough names to put a measure on the November ballot that, if approved, would have had police issue citations for possession of small amounts of...

Last night, leaders for the city of Clarkston passed a local ordinance that will weaken penalties for simple possession of an ounce or less of marijuana. The ordinance will redefine the charges for an once or less of marijuana to a maximum $75 fine and encourages Clarkston police officers to...

Last year, members of Athens C.A.R.E. Project, a marijuana decriminalization advocacy organization affiliated with Georgia C.A.R.E., rallied outside of the Athens-Clarke County city hall and demanded that marijuana possession be treated as a civil offense rather than a criminal one. Those in...

Dover, Delaware - The passage of a bill that could spare some misdemeanor drug offenders from convictions has prompted a conservative Republican senator and gubernatorial candidate to call for the formal legalization of marijuana in Delaware. The legislation, which would expand probation...

Support for marijuana legalization in the United States has risen steadily over the years. Today, a majority of Americans are in favor of legalizing the drug, although the number of people actually smoking weed is far lower. Slightly more than 13% of Americans 12 years old and over report using...