… include the Bureau of Administrative Adjudication/Philadelphia Parking Authority ticket-fixing scandal, which is available online, and the city’s tax-amnesty program, which isn’t.
But, if weed’s your kind of thing, grab the paper itself to read both the District Attorney and the Philadelphia NORML’s reaction to Day One of Philadelphia “marijuana leniency.” Or, if the honor box is empty, you can read it here …
Let the record reflect that on day one of Philadelphia’s “marijuana leniency” era, the apocalypse didn’t arrive. In April, District Attorney Seth Williams announced those arrested with less than an ounce of marijuana would be subject to initial jailhouse visit, but charges could be treated as a summary offense. Police and Williams predecessor Lynne Abraham scoffed, saying that criminals would be “positively overjoyed.”
“I believe it’s the right thing to do. We’re not talking about Public Enemy No. 1 here,” Williams said at City Hall Tuesday, noting it’s a more-effective way of dispensing justice. Collecting a $200-300 fines quickly, “just makes more sense.”
Though marijuana activists took note of the occasion, Philly NORML spokesman Chris Goldstein “can’t say it’s a cause for celebration per se” since it doesn’t address racial disparity in marijuana arrests. Their research, which they brought to discussions with the city, found a 9-to-1 black-to-white arrest lag.
“While we welcome the shift in policy, it’s all about saving money,” he said.
Williams said he wouldn’t be able to gauge effects of the policy shift for some time.