Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Lakeland - The City Commission chose not to buck the advice of municipal, county and state law enforcement officials by pursuing an ordinance to reduce the penalties for Lakeland Police Department's enforcement of minor marijuana possession.
For more than five hours, city commissioners heard testimony and questioned two expert panels as they explored whether to change how misdemeanor possession of marijuana is enforced by police.
The hearing was held a day after Florida voters approved a state constitutional amendment approving the use of medical marijuana.
Commissioner Justin Troller proposed the issue be taken to a municipal ballot, but aside from Commissioner Bill Read, lacked support from the rest of his colleagues.
"This issue is not going to go away," Troller said. "I would hope the people in the community who have been advocates for it will do their part."
The discussion, organized at the request of the City Commission, brought together old adversaries in the state's ongoing debate about how drug law is enforced on the street.
"One of the most dangerous things about cannabis is being caught with it," said Christopher Cano, the director of Central Florida NORML, a marijuana policy advocacy group.
A specific ordinance has not been created, but other states and counties in Florida could have provided templates if Lakeland decides to go ahead with removing the criminal penalty and replacing it with a civil fine from possessing 20 grams or less of marijuana.
"Is the current policing structure and policing policy just?" Cano asked. "And is it the right thing to do?"
"We are simply asking for our officers in the city of Lakeland to have the option to give a ticket to someone rather than arrest or force them to self-arrest when they show up for court," he said.
Cano said the disparity in misdemeanor possession arrests between black and white residents was evidence of the "institutional racism" that persists throughout the country.
In 2015 in Lakeland, blacks were approximately five times more likely to be arrested for misdemeanor possession than whites, a statistic caused by socioeconomic issues and the greater number of police officers in those neighborhoods, Lakeland police said.
Commissioner Phillip Walker, the only black member of the seven-member commission and a former Lakeland police officer, strongly condemned Cano's assertion.
Walker said there is a cultural component in places like his neighborhood where young black males are more likely to flaunt their use of marijuana than youth and young adults in other neighborhoods.
"I can tell you even in my community where I live, which is predominantly black," young men will use the drug "knowing it's illegal and walking streets with it, smoking on a corner," Walker said.
The opponents at the hearing included Lakeland Police Chief Larry Giddens, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, incoming State Attorney Brian Haas and Jessica Spencer, the policy director for the Drug Free Florida Committee.
Opponents said the discussion to decriminalize misdemeanor possession is an incremental step on the way toward full legalization in the state, and that overlapping jurisdictions among city, county, state and federal law enforcement officers would create uncertainty for residents.
If the ordinance is approved, it would not change how campus police at Florida Polytechnic - a state agency - or sheriff's deputies are required to pursue and charge for minor possession.
Further, the debate will make Lakeland an incremental step in advocates' ultimate goal of complete legalization, Judd said, a role that does not fit the culture of Lakeland or Polk County.
"Are you prepared to ... vote for the legalization of marijuana?" Judd said. "You are being used as a tool for the full legalization of marijuana with this issue coming before you."
Commissioner Don Selvage said he resented Judd's assertion.
Selvage said that, though he thinks the drug should be legalized, he didn't believe Lakeland should join the leading edge on that movement - that it should be settled in Tallahassee.
The issue first came before the commission at the request of Troller, an educator, after saying he worried about the impact of misdemeanor marijuana possession charges on young people's futures.
"We have a forgiving criminal justice system," Judd said. He and Haas pointed to the State Attorney's Office diversion programs, which can eventually enable offenders to get the charge expunged.
Haas said those programs are being tweaked to make them more accessible and less expensive, but he believed they were effective at curbing drug use while preventing people from losing economic and social opportunities through criminal penalties.
"At this point in time, it's against the law. Just follow the law. Just follow the law," Judd said. "I didn't write it, I didn't make it. If you don't like it change it. Until then, follow the law."
LPD Police Chief Giddens said if the commission passes the ordinance, "it's going to put us on a roadmap I don't think we want to be on."
Commissioner Jim Malless, who said he smoked marijuana in his youth, said he supported legalization but didn't believe it was Lakeland's place to make that distinction.
"Where should we put our time and our energy?" he said. "I think it's managing the basic functions of the Lakeland government."
"I think there are more, pressing issues for the city of Lakeland to deal with."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Lakeland Commissioners Hear Both Sides On Decriminalizing Pot
Author: Christopher Guinn
Contact: (863) 401-6900
Photo Credit: Ernst Peters
Website: News Chief
For more than five hours, city commissioners heard testimony and questioned two expert panels as they explored whether to change how misdemeanor possession of marijuana is enforced by police.
The hearing was held a day after Florida voters approved a state constitutional amendment approving the use of medical marijuana.
Commissioner Justin Troller proposed the issue be taken to a municipal ballot, but aside from Commissioner Bill Read, lacked support from the rest of his colleagues.
"This issue is not going to go away," Troller said. "I would hope the people in the community who have been advocates for it will do their part."
The discussion, organized at the request of the City Commission, brought together old adversaries in the state's ongoing debate about how drug law is enforced on the street.
"One of the most dangerous things about cannabis is being caught with it," said Christopher Cano, the director of Central Florida NORML, a marijuana policy advocacy group.
A specific ordinance has not been created, but other states and counties in Florida could have provided templates if Lakeland decides to go ahead with removing the criminal penalty and replacing it with a civil fine from possessing 20 grams or less of marijuana.
"Is the current policing structure and policing policy just?" Cano asked. "And is it the right thing to do?"
"We are simply asking for our officers in the city of Lakeland to have the option to give a ticket to someone rather than arrest or force them to self-arrest when they show up for court," he said.
Cano said the disparity in misdemeanor possession arrests between black and white residents was evidence of the "institutional racism" that persists throughout the country.
In 2015 in Lakeland, blacks were approximately five times more likely to be arrested for misdemeanor possession than whites, a statistic caused by socioeconomic issues and the greater number of police officers in those neighborhoods, Lakeland police said.
Commissioner Phillip Walker, the only black member of the seven-member commission and a former Lakeland police officer, strongly condemned Cano's assertion.
Walker said there is a cultural component in places like his neighborhood where young black males are more likely to flaunt their use of marijuana than youth and young adults in other neighborhoods.
"I can tell you even in my community where I live, which is predominantly black," young men will use the drug "knowing it's illegal and walking streets with it, smoking on a corner," Walker said.
The opponents at the hearing included Lakeland Police Chief Larry Giddens, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, incoming State Attorney Brian Haas and Jessica Spencer, the policy director for the Drug Free Florida Committee.
Opponents said the discussion to decriminalize misdemeanor possession is an incremental step on the way toward full legalization in the state, and that overlapping jurisdictions among city, county, state and federal law enforcement officers would create uncertainty for residents.
If the ordinance is approved, it would not change how campus police at Florida Polytechnic - a state agency - or sheriff's deputies are required to pursue and charge for minor possession.
Further, the debate will make Lakeland an incremental step in advocates' ultimate goal of complete legalization, Judd said, a role that does not fit the culture of Lakeland or Polk County.
"Are you prepared to ... vote for the legalization of marijuana?" Judd said. "You are being used as a tool for the full legalization of marijuana with this issue coming before you."
Commissioner Don Selvage said he resented Judd's assertion.
Selvage said that, though he thinks the drug should be legalized, he didn't believe Lakeland should join the leading edge on that movement - that it should be settled in Tallahassee.
The issue first came before the commission at the request of Troller, an educator, after saying he worried about the impact of misdemeanor marijuana possession charges on young people's futures.
"We have a forgiving criminal justice system," Judd said. He and Haas pointed to the State Attorney's Office diversion programs, which can eventually enable offenders to get the charge expunged.
Haas said those programs are being tweaked to make them more accessible and less expensive, but he believed they were effective at curbing drug use while preventing people from losing economic and social opportunities through criminal penalties.
"At this point in time, it's against the law. Just follow the law. Just follow the law," Judd said. "I didn't write it, I didn't make it. If you don't like it change it. Until then, follow the law."
LPD Police Chief Giddens said if the commission passes the ordinance, "it's going to put us on a roadmap I don't think we want to be on."
Commissioner Jim Malless, who said he smoked marijuana in his youth, said he supported legalization but didn't believe it was Lakeland's place to make that distinction.
"Where should we put our time and our energy?" he said. "I think it's managing the basic functions of the Lakeland government."
"I think there are more, pressing issues for the city of Lakeland to deal with."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Lakeland Commissioners Hear Both Sides On Decriminalizing Pot
Author: Christopher Guinn
Contact: (863) 401-6900
Photo Credit: Ernst Peters
Website: News Chief
