NEW YORK CITY POLICE COMMISSIONER RAY KELLY delivered an internal order earlier this week directing officers to stop making arrests for small amounts of marijuana possession.

Possession of more than 25 grams still a criminal offense.

Possession of less than 25 grams of concealed marijuana has been a non-criminal offense since 1977, and subject to a ticket of no more than $100. Since Mayor Mike Bloomberg has taken office, though, the department has made over 350,000 arrests for low-level weed offenses. While young whites are statistically more likely to smoke marijuana, more than 85% of the city’s recent low-level marijuana arrests have been of young blacks and Latinos.

As Kyung Ji Rhee, Director of the Institute for Juvenile Justice Reforms and Alternatives, points out in the IBT article,”These 50,000 arrests [per year] for small amounts of marijuana can have devastating consequences for New Yorkers and their families, including: permanent criminal records, loss of financial aid, possible loss of child custody, loss of public housing and a host of other collateral damage.”

The order signals that New York City residents may be able to return to headier times.

As for the rest of the state, Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries and State Senator Mark Grisanti have introduced legislation to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana possession statewide.

Tags: NYPD, Ray Kelly, Weed