Police Chief Kevin Belk on proposal to decriminalize marijuana in Grand Rapids: It will increase drug abuse. (Mlive.com File)
A Kent County, Michigan judge on Monday ruled that the voter-approved decriminalization of marijuana in Grand Rapids is valid.
Judge Paul Sullivan dismissed Kent County Prosecutor William Forsyth’s attempt to nullify the charter amendment, approved by voters last November, reports John Tunison at Mlive.com.
Judge Sullivan ruled that possession of less than 2.5 ounces of cannabis in Grand Rapids can, indeed, be handled as a civil infraction, just as voters had already decided.
Prosecutor Forsyth unsuccessfully argued that the amendment conflicts with Michigan laws classifying marijuana possession as a misdemeanor. He also claimed that decriminalizing weed would “interfere with his responsibilities” as Kent County Prosecutor. (Man, does this cat enjoy busting potheads, or what?)
Even before Judge Sullivan’s Monday ruling, Grand Rapids Police had begun following the amendment on May 1, and started writing civil infractions for marijuana possession.
“The voters of Grand Rapids had the power to amend the city charter and plaintiff has failed to show that any section of the charter amendment necessarily conflicts with state law,” Judge Sullivan wrote in his ruling.
“It is still a crime for one to possess, control, use or give away marijuana in Grand Rapids,” the judge wrote. “The charter amendment merely creates a civil infraction in the city and directs the city’s police resources away from some of these laws.”
Judge Sullivan noted that law enforcement agencies other than the Grand Rapids Police Department — that is, state or federal officers — may still have jurisdiction in the city, and are “free to investigate and prosecute any marijuana-related offenses occurring in Grand Rapids.”
Grand Rapids Marijuana Decriminalization Stands
Article by Steve Elliott for Hemp News
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