Bill proposed to decriminalize less than 20 grams of marijuana in Jacksonville

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — City councilman Garrett Dennis is proposing a bill to decriminalize less than 20 grams of marijuana, or paraphernalia, in Jacksonville.

If passed, officers would have the discretion to give someone a civil citation, as opposed to arresting them, or giving them a written notice to appear in court.

Action News Jax Reporter, Ryan Nelson, spoke to Dennis in an interview on Wednesday.

“The state law says that anyone that is in possession of 20 grams or less, is a misdemeanor,” Dennis said. “It gives municipalities the ability to offer a civil penalty instead of a criminal penalty. This bill gives the police officers, the [Jacksonville] Sheriff’s Office, an alternative to arresting someone with 20 grams or less of marijuana.”

Dennis says this bill would save also the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO) time on man-hours by decreasing the amount of time they spend taking misdemeanor marijuana users to jail.

“When a police officer makes an arrest, it takes them off the street four to five hours to process that one individual,” Dennis said.

Action News Jax spoke to nearly a dozen people about their reaction to the measure. Those who spoke to us were receptive to the idea.

“Personally, I feel it would be a good idea to decriminalize marijuana,” said Jacksonville resident, David Forth.

“I don’t think we should be locking people up for small amounts of marijuana in Jacksonville, the jail is already overcrowded,” said Jacksonville resident Daniel Hernandez.

One person we spoke to was not in support of the measure but declined to speak on the record.

The bill reads in part, “… any law enforcement officer within the City of Jacksonville shall have the discretion to issue a civil citation for a violation …”

Nelson sent the bill to Action News Jax Law and Safety expert, Dale Carson.

Carson explained how officer discretion, and the role of the State Attorney’s Office, would come into play.

“The police officer, she will decide whether to charge this or to charge a state crime,” Carson said. “But it will ultimately be the state attorney’s office that makes the decision as (to) how to prosecute the crime.”

The bill is now in committee, according to the city’s legislation database.

Dennis proposed a similar bill last year. The measure failed, with 16 councilmembers voting against it, and three voting in favor.

Cox Media Group