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St. Thomas - The Senate voted to override four of Gov. John deJongh Jr.'s vetoes Friday, including a measure to decriminalize marijuana.
Sen. Terrence Nelson sponsored the measure, which is now law, to decriminalize the possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana and make it a civil offense punishable by a fine of between $100 and $200, with the possible forfeiture of the contraband.
In the case that an offender is younger than 18, the offender could receive a $100 fine, the parents or guardians would have to be notified and the offender will be required to complete an approved drug awareness program within one year of the possession.
Twenty states already have passed similar marijuana decriminalization laws.
Senators also voted to override a vetoed measure that creates a new category of casinos and allows casinos in Christiansted and Frederiksted.
In his veto message, deJongh said the casino measure did not go through the Senate committee process and therefore did not have proper scrutiny. He added that charrettes in both communities revealed that residents do not want casino gaming.
Sen. Nereida Rivera-O'Reilly authored the legislation and offered the override Friday.
Sen. Diane Capehart moved to override a veto of a measure naming a sports complex to be built on St. Croix after Horace Clark. The governor had struck the measure down because the bill did not specify which sports facility it would be.
The override was passed and it is now law; however, the sports facility still has not been specified.
The final override passed by senators Friday has created a new law that prohibits any Board of Elections member from running for any other public office.
DeJongh vetoed the measure only because it originally was passed too close to the Nov. 4 General Election. The V.I. code prohibits substantive changes to the election laws six months prior to an election.
Now that the election cycle is completed, the law could be put into place, according to sponsor Sen. Tregenza Roach.
News Moderator: 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Senate overrides 4 vetoes, including measure decriminalizing marijuana - News - Virgin Islands Daily News
Author: ALDETH LEWIN
Contact: alewin@dailynews.vi
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: Virgin Islands Daily News | virginislandsdailynews.com | A Pulitzer Prize Winning Newspaper, Virgin Islands Guide, Virgin Islands InfoVirgin Islands Daily News
Sen. Terrence Nelson sponsored the measure, which is now law, to decriminalize the possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana and make it a civil offense punishable by a fine of between $100 and $200, with the possible forfeiture of the contraband.
In the case that an offender is younger than 18, the offender could receive a $100 fine, the parents or guardians would have to be notified and the offender will be required to complete an approved drug awareness program within one year of the possession.
Twenty states already have passed similar marijuana decriminalization laws.
Senators also voted to override a vetoed measure that creates a new category of casinos and allows casinos in Christiansted and Frederiksted.
In his veto message, deJongh said the casino measure did not go through the Senate committee process and therefore did not have proper scrutiny. He added that charrettes in both communities revealed that residents do not want casino gaming.
Sen. Nereida Rivera-O'Reilly authored the legislation and offered the override Friday.
Sen. Diane Capehart moved to override a veto of a measure naming a sports complex to be built on St. Croix after Horace Clark. The governor had struck the measure down because the bill did not specify which sports facility it would be.
The override was passed and it is now law; however, the sports facility still has not been specified.
The final override passed by senators Friday has created a new law that prohibits any Board of Elections member from running for any other public office.
DeJongh vetoed the measure only because it originally was passed too close to the Nov. 4 General Election. The V.I. code prohibits substantive changes to the election laws six months prior to an election.
Now that the election cycle is completed, the law could be put into place, according to sponsor Sen. Tregenza Roach.
News Moderator: 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Senate overrides 4 vetoes, including measure decriminalizing marijuana - News - Virgin Islands Daily News
Author: ALDETH LEWIN
Contact: alewin@dailynews.vi
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: Virgin Islands Daily News | virginislandsdailynews.com | A Pulitzer Prize Winning Newspaper, Virgin Islands Guide, Virgin Islands InfoVirgin Islands Daily News
