To understand how rapidly New York overhauled its marijuana laws, look no further than its impact on the criminal justice system.
Fewer and fewer people are being arrested on marijuana offenses in New York, underscoring the major effect of the drug’s decriminalization in 2019 and, ultimately, its legalization this past March.
From April through October of this year, just 116 people statewide were arrested on a top-level misdemeanor or felony charge related to marijuana possession or sale in New York, data compiled by the state Division of Criminal Justice Services shows.
And as of early October, 11 people remained incarcerated in state prisons with a top crime of either criminal sale or possession of marijuana in the first-, second- or third-degree, according to the state Department of Correction and Community Supervision.
A top charge is the most severe offense someone is arrested for.
The drop-off in marijuana arrests has been stark as state lawmakers and then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo reshaped the state’s laws related to the drug.
In 2020, after New York lawmakers took steps to decrease marijuana penalties but before they legalized certain amounts of the substance, there were 2,720 misdemeanor or felony marijuana arrests.
Compare that to 2017, when there were 28,239 misdemeanor marijuana arrests alone, according to a study by the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
New marijuana law allows for adult possession
Advocates say the numbers indicate the success of centering social justice in the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, the law approved by Cuomo and lawmakers this past March, allowing for adult use of recreational marijuana in the state.
The law immediately authorized the possession of up to three ounces of marijuana and will eventually allow New York residents to grow marijuana plants at their residence for recreational use. Selling cannabis without a proper license, however, remains illegal.
But advocates also warn that the state’s arrest numbers might not show the full extent of marijuana criminalization, as people could face other charges based on the presence of marijuana.
Mary Kruger, executive director of the Rochester chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana, said the reduced arrest numbers are a gauge that the law is having the intended impact.
“But in our legislation,” she added, “it was always in the forefront and it was a non-negotiable to have this be something that was included.”
How the NY marijuana law changed
When the measure passed in March, the law allowed adults over the age of 21 to carry, display and consume three ounces of marijuana.
More than 100,000 people are expected be able to get their prior records expunged under the new law. The Office of Court Administration has up to two years to complete the task, though records are being suppressed in the interim.
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