A bill introduced to the St. Louis Board of Aldermen this month by Alderman Shane Cohn proposes to change how marijuana possession is treated in the city’s legal system. According to a Jan. 10 article by St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter Nicholas Pistor, the bill would allow St. Louis police to write municipal citations for possession of small amounts of marijuana—resulting in less harsh punishment than Missouri state laws dictate.
After a hearing with the Health and Human Services committee, voting on the bill was delayed pending some adjustments, as reported by St. Louis Public Radio’s Rachel Lippmann on Jan. 17.
Meanwhile, we want to know what you think about the bill.
- Do you support the less stringent penalties for marijuana possession? Why or why not?
- Do you think this bill goes too far, or not far enough?
- What changes would you like to see happen in the enforcement of marijuana possession—on the local, state or federal levels?
- One of the proposed changes to the bill was that half of the funds from such citations support substance abuse programs. How does this play into your stance on the issue?
- Another request was to remove a clause that would exempt people holding medical marijuana prescriptions from other states. In your opinion, is this a fair point?
We’ll be selecting some of your answers to be featured in an upcoming issue, so keep it classy, folks. Respond by posting a comment to this blog or by sending an email to letters@alivemag.com.
I believe the proposed bill would be smart and progressive direction for St. Louis. For far too long our goverment has treated marijuana as if it was just as dangerous as heroine and meth. I would like to see our police and our judicial system focus their time and money on more serious violent crimes. Lets work to remove gangs from the streets our children play on and to make St. Louis a safer city, before we waste time and resources prosecuting individuals who believe the choice to smoke marijuana is their own personal right. Ultimately I am proud that our city might have the opportunity to discuss the issue with the welfare and prosperity of our city being at the heart of the debate.