Solicitor General Brian Whiteside has pledged to not prosecute any misdemeanor marijuana cases — and he said uncertainty created by Georgia’s new hemp farming law is to blame.
Whiteside said a memo to the county’s judges, as well as District Attorney Danny Porter, Sheriff Butch Conway and Gwinnett commissioners this week to inform them of his decision not to prosecute the cases.
The reason? Now that the new Georgia Hemp Farming Act is in place, it’s hard to determine whether the chemical composition of a suspicious item makes it legal or illegal.
“We met with the (county and municipal police) chiefs (Friday) and, basically, I told them I’m not prosecuting people for marijuana because it can’t be proven,” Whiteside said. “It’s up to each individual police department as to what they do, but we just can’t prove what is marijuana and what is hemp.”
Solicitor General Brian Whiteside has pledged to not prosecute any misdemeanor marijuana cases — and he said uncertainty created by Georgia’s new hemp farming law is to blame.
Whiteside said a memo to the county’s judges, as well as District Attorney Danny Porter, Sheriff Butch Conway and Gwinnett commissioners this week to inform them of his decision not to prosecute the cases.
The reason? Now that the new Georgia Hemp Farming Act is in place, it’s hard to determine whether the chemical composition of a suspicious item makes it legal or illegal.
“We met with the (county and municipal police) chiefs (Friday) and, basically, I told them I’m not prosecuting people for marijuana because it can’t be proven,” Whiteside said. “It’s up to each individual police department as to what they do, but we just can’t prove what is marijuana and what is hemp.”
On Friday, CBSMiami reported that the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office will also stop prosecuting minor marijuana cases for the time being. Like Georgia, Florida also has a new hemp law on the books and just as Georgia’s law has raised issues in Gwinnett, Florida’s law is creating some challenges for prosecutors in the Miami area.
Like Gwinnett, officials in the Miami-Dade area are having trouble testing THC levels.
Whiteside said he believes the solution in Georgia is to do away with misdemeanor marijuana violations and allow small scale cannabis sales — albeit with a tax to generate funds to support schools or law enforcement in the state.
“I don’t think we should prosecute misdemeanor marijuana,” Whiteside said. “I think we should tax it and use the revenue for pre-K, two-year colleges, four-year colleges and law enforcement pensions.”
Aug 11, 2019