New Jersey parents must be notified if their minor child is caught buying or possessing marijuana under a bill Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law Friday.
Murphy, a Democrat, signed the legislation a day after the Democrat-led Legislature passed what lawmakers called a “cleanup” bill to correct last month’s law setting up the new recreational marijuana marketplace. It inexplicably and explicitly barred police from telling parents whether their children were unlawfully found in possession of marijuana.
Parents will get word from the police if their kids are caught with alcohol or marijuana if a new bill passed by the Legislature is signed into law.
The Senate and Assembly on Thursday passed a bill that would require police officers to notify the parents of anyone under 18 years old when they are found in possession of or using marijuana or alcohol, even on the first offense, patching up what many legislators, police representatives and parents found to be a hole in the legal weed laws enacted last month.
Both chambers passed the bill unanimously.
Barker works as a policy staffer for U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, where he has focused on areas of criminal justice reform and marijuana legalization, as well as the economy and technology. He also who works with the National Action Network civil rights group founded by the Rev. Al Sharpton.
Gov. Phil Murphy will replace one member of the panel to regulate the new cannabis industry with a staffer in U.S. Sen. Cory Booker’s office after the makeup of the commission came under fire from the NAACP, NJ Advance Media has learned.
Charles Barker, who works for Booker in the senator’s Newark office, will replace another Murphy appointee, William Wallace of the United Food and Commercial Workers, according to an administration source.
The governor of New Jersey said on Monday that he’s “open” to the idea of decriminalizing possession of all currently illicit drugs—though his focus remains set for now on implementing marijuana legalization in the state.
During a press briefing, Gov. Phil Murphy (D) was asked where he stands on ending criminalization for simple possession, as Oregon has done following voter approval of a reform initiative in November.
Three sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly, told NJ Advance Media a switch on the five-member panel is imminent, but it’s not clear when the announcement will be made.
The NAACP blasted the makeup of the commission when Murphy announced its formation last month. It includes only one Black person, but no Black men. Police have disproportionately arrested Black men for marijuana use for decades.
Sources say the reason for the hold-up is because the governor’s office is grappling with a lawsuit threat from the NAACP, which claims Murphy violated the law that created the commission by failing to appoint one commissioner who is a member of a national social justice or civil rights group. Murphy faces additional criticism that no one on the commission is a Black man, given that the governor has framed legalization as a racial justice issue and Black men have historically been disproportionately arrested and charged for marijuana-related offenses.
Republican Minority Leader Jon Bramnick congratulated Democrats for recognizing they “made a mistake” with the original bill.
“In my history in politics this was the dumbest law I’ve ever seen by far,” he said in an interview after the hearing. “Under what circumstance would you want an underage person — let’s say 14 — drinking beer and smoking marijuana, why should the parents not be informed?”
Parents must be notified if their minor child unlawfully possesses or buys marijuana under a bill lawmakers advanced Wednesday, not even a month since Gov. Phil Murphy signed cannabis legislation that explicitly prohibited parental notification.
The measure appears to be on a fast track, coming after concerns that the law left parents in the dark. Spokespeople for Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senate President Steve Sweeney said they support the measure, and Murphy, a fellow Democrat, said earlier this month that he supported the idea of parental notification.
On March 10, 2021, less than three weeks after New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation legalizing recreational marijuana and establishing employee protections for off duty marijuana use, a State lawmaker has introduced a bill (NJ S 3525) to amend the employment related provisions of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act (“NJCREAMMA”) to address concerns that employers will not be able to control marijuana use, or the effects of marijuana use, in the workplace for safety sensitive positions.