Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop’s unilateral decision to instruct the city’s prosecutor to decriminalize marijuana in his city was met with a swift rebuke from state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal.
Jersey City is the first in our state to seek to decriminalize marijuana, by letting people have a small amount and treating it like a traffic ticket, instead of arresting them.
But now it's in a legal tussle with the state Attorney General, who says the city doesn't have the authority to do this on its own. However that gets resolved, we're rooting for Jersey City.
Jersey City doesn't have the power to decriminalize weed, despite city officials' attempts to roll up a new policy earlier this week, according to a memo from the New Jersey Attorney General's Office.
Friday's memo from Attorney General Gurbir Grewal to the city's new prosecutor, Jake Hudnut, contained some crushing news for local cannabis activists and users. According to Grewal's letter, Jersey City does not have the legal authority to decriminalize marijuana or refuse to criminally prosecute all marijuana-related offenses.
Starting today, Jersey City will be the first municipality in the state to decriminalize marijuana.
Chief Prosecutor Jacob Hudnut, in a July 19 memo to the city’s assistant prosecutors, instructed them to downgrade some marijuana offenses to non-criminal offenses, encourage prosecutors to dismiss low-level cannabis offenses and recommend community court for individuals with a criminal history or signs of addiction.
“New Jerseyans of color are three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana,” Hudnut wrote.
Jersey City is implementing a marijuana decriminalization policy that its mayor and new chief municipal prosecutor believe will increase racial justice while protecting public safety.
The policy, which is expected to begin officially tomorrow, will downgrade some marijuana charges to non-criminal offenses; encourage prosecutors to seek dismissal of low-level marijuana charges; and recommend diverting defendants with a criminal past and signs of addiction to the city's community court.