Marijuana, as well as other crimes, has a new policy in Louisiana that is meant to be beneficial to the court system.
The New Orleans City Council has decided that simple marijuana possession is now only a municipal offense, not a case for the district attorney. This was based upon a unanimous vote. This means officers will have the option to issue a summons rather than making an arrest, according to NOLAcitycouncil.com.
Before this change, offenders were arrested and taken to central lockup for booking.
This change in policy is intended to unclog the courts of small crimes, thus leaving time and resources to tackle large crimes.
The four crimes that are now under this new policy are: the possession of marijuana or a synthetic cannabinoid, prostitution, fleeing from an officer and interfering with an investigation.
“These ordinances will contribute significantly to the city’s efforts to promote greater efficiency and equity in our criminal justice system, particularly for our police officers, the district attorney’s office and in the criminal courts,” said councilwoman Susan Guidry, co-chair of the council’s criminal justice committee
This new policy, implemented Jan. 30, does not decriminalize or redefine what “possession” is. It merely gives officers the option to either issue a summons or take the offender under arrest.
“People say it’s decriminalization. It’s not. Offenders are subject to the same penalties. The only difference is they’re not arrested,” said Christopher Bowman, assistant district attorney, according to Gambit magazine.
“As a San Franciscan and a marijuana legalization enthusiast, I believe that any step closer to medical legalization and public decriminalization will benefit Americans everywhere, psychologically and economically,” said Milan Ray, political science freshman.
At Loyola, The Code of Conduct and The Indispensable Residential Reader states that all students and their guests are prohibited from the use, possession and the distribution of any illegal substance.
Marijuana, or any illegal substance, is not allowed on campus, said Delia Davidow, music industry studies junior.
“If we smell something, then we call the Area Director and the Loyola Police. The Area Director will then search the room for paraphanalia or substances. If anything is found, then the student and the substance will be taken to LUPD. The substance will be tested, and if it comes out positive they are sent to central lockup. LUPD is the same thing as NOPD, so we would probably still send them to central lockup because we are so close to an elementry school –it’s a much bigger deal,” Davidow said.
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