St. Louis Alderwoman Proposes Bill to Stop Enforcement of Pot Laws
ST. LOUIS – A St. Louis Alderwoman submitted a bill yesterday that would effectively stop the police from arresting people for pot. The bill would also protect the city from federal laws prohibiting marijuana use.
Alderwoman Megan Green said that with the bill, people would be allowed to grow and use marijuana as long as it’s within city limits without fear from law enforcement, saying “It’s really a common sense proposal to ensure that our police resources are being used toward the most violent crime in our community and not toward enforcing laws against something that is becoming legal in cities and states across this country.”
She will also reveal a proposal to legalize marijuana in St. Louis today. She believes that law enforcement resources could be put to better use for violent crimes and to raise revenue for the city. The bill would also protect employees from being terminated or not hired because they legally use marijuana.
A group called New Approach Missouri that advocates for legalizing medical marijuana is currently canvasing and gathering signatures for their petition to legalize. They have close to 100,000 signatures so far, and they are hoping that there will be some marijuana legalization measures on next year’s ballot.
Lieutenant Governor Mike Parsons said that he questions the notion that legalization will happen anytime soon, saying “I don’t know when that’s going to happen. They’ll be a debate on it and discussion on it as there has been an ongoing debate and I think we’re far from deciding whether that’s going to happen or not in the near future.”
The bill would permit adults over 21 years of age to possess two ounces of marijuana and grow 10 plants on their property.
Niko Mann is a freelance writer living in Los Angeles
