Weed Tickets
- While Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy admits he's "not a fan" of a plan to fully decriminalize the possession of marijuana, he does believe there is a happy medium between that and taking a possessor into custody: ticketing.
"I'm not a fan of decriminalization," McCarthy told reporters Tuesday. "However, we don't have to process that arrest with an in-custody arrest. If you receive a ticket for it, the officer is still on the street and at the same time that person has to answer for their actions."
McCarthy's problem with all-out decriminalization stems from his years with the New York Police Department. In New York, decriminalization led to an increase in marijuana-related violence.
"marijuana-related violence"? Maybe from the dealers, but we don't really see stoners as being aggressively combative - it kind of runs against the entire marijuana-related experience.
But back on topic, we see the "more with less" philosophy leading to exactly this type of experiment being rolled out within the next year or two, tactical teams being the hardest hit for head counts and court time.
Labels: crime
posted by SCC at 12:03 AM
68 Comments:
OFF TOPIC:
NATO Comp Time Grievance Update
The Lodge filed a class action grievance when the Department denied our members from exercising their right to select compensatory time as reimbursement for overtime hours worked during the NATO Summit.
The Department has decided to settle this grievance by allowing our members to be credited with compensatory time for overtime hours worked during the NATO Summit. Any monies paid to any Officer for these overtime hours may be converted to compensatory time and the monies will be deducted from the Officer's August 16, 2012 payroll check if an Officer agrees to opt into this settlement.
FSLA hours (those hours worked in excess of 171 hours for the police period) are not subject to conversion.
All boxes require an answer to qualify for this settlement. Your request must be submitted by 1600 hours on Friday, June 29, 2012. Please use the link to file your request. Members must submit a separate request for each date they would like to have converted to comp time. See FOP website for conversion chart.
----------------------------------
The City is more than fine with this and I will tell you why...
All the City cared about was making sure that Fed. Tax Dollars Paid the Bill! The Only way to ensure that happened was forcing us to take cash, that's the easy part... Now once the Bill has been Paid by the Feds if a PO wants to turn back around and trade money for time the City Actually Wins Again! Why? Because when those PO's have the monies deducted from their Aug 16th. in exchange for "Time on the Books" that becomes extra spending money for the City... They couldn't care less if you take the day off somewhere down the line and burn that time up, as a matter of fact they Hope that you Do! The only way the City would loose money in this instance would be if a PO kept the Time until retirement then Sold it at a higher rate based on salary increases. I think the City knew from the "Get Go" that they were going loose this argument, so before they spent "One Dime" on an arbitrator who might possibly award PO's additional remedies for the City not following the contract they just said "Sure, will switch Money for Time on Aug.16th once the dust ($) has had a chance to settle...
The officer is "still on the street?" Won't he or she have to go to the station to inventory the weed?
America is becoming a rap video. Just because its accepted in some vocal cultures doesn't make it ok. Look how well communities that accept it are doing.
Combine Weed tickets with the new $1/pack Illinois cigarette tax increase and we just may see weed sales booming me thinks.
i'll take two.
Stupid idea. Even dummer would be if the state became involved in the manufacturing and selling of cannabis. Why would any weed head pay 10 bucks or more for a state approved and liscensed joint, when shithead will sell an ever more potent nickel bag for 5 bucks. Shithead will always undercut the state who's ever increasing greed and thirst for tax revenue will price their cannabis right out of the marketplace. Legalize drugs? Dumbass idea.
Marijuana does promote violence. Obviously you never had to fight for the last chocolate chip cookie.
Trust me, it ain't pretty.
I was just going to make a witty yet hilarious comment about how, pretty soon, we could probably expect to see citations written to the politicians for bribe taking and all sorts of other corruption instead of actually arresting them.
But then I realized. No one is really allowed to investigate them so why would anything change?
Corruption in Chicago, Cook County, State of Illinois isn't REALLY illegal, is it?
Head counts and court time are a poor excuse to use in an argument against ticketing. What should be focused on is whether or not the Cannabis Control Act would be repealed. If not, every time you ticket someone for weed you're gonna still have to generate a case report and inventory which requires taking the officer off the street. The only government agency that would benefit from this is the county. Either make the shit legal or illegal. This half ass shit is gonna cause more problems than it solves.
What will Sgt. B.J. ( that's his name, not what he does )of 024 tact fame do when this rolls out? That will threaten his head count.
So lets see - there goes probable the cause for the gun in the waistband and the duct taped 13 year old girl in the trunk...
Also, did the drug dog smell the scent from the 5 kilos of coke in the car on the 15 thousand in cash, or the odor from the less than 1 ounce of mj in his pocket?
I guess if the officer gives the person a ticket for the weed, according to mcflurry he can stay in the street right, he doesn't have to go to station to inventory the weed. Officers you can carry it with you the entire tour, yea right. He is just plain stupid.
I'd be willing to write alot of anov's for weed.
Yeah. Give them tickets they'll never pay. And if they do pay the ballerino will give the money away anyway.
Why not do something to them that'll hit 'em where it really hurts? Get their asses out of bed before noon and make them do some work.
County wants to use the money made from Lallapallooza for a 'jobs' program.
I smoke weed instead of smoking cigs and drinking booze, I wake up everyday feeling great, and I know that everytime I want to relax or releive some pain after a hard days work i won't be poisoning my body with chemicals......too bad the government has too much to lose by legalization
CPD supporter and pot smoker
Not taken off the street with issuing a ticket? How does the evidence get inventoried?
Sgt. Bruce Rapa (RET)
Petty weed busts are just that, petty. They are the only arrest most tact and gang guys usually do. In court the judge just throws them out. Thus actually wasting tax dollars on nonsense.
TICKETS = $$$$$
For gosh sakes just legalize it already. These kind of half-measures just keep the cartels and dealers in business.
I guess you don't write or stop DUI drivers nor handle domestics anymore.
---------------------------------
"marijuana-related violence"? Maybe from the dealers, but we don't really see stoners as being aggressively combative - it kind of runs against the entire marijuana-related experience.
Just leagalize it already. Weed doesn't hurt anyone. You don't see weed smokers killing and stealing to get a bag of weed.
Does the superintendent realize that officers can only write anovs for bad guys with valid identification? And if there is no id, everyone goes into the station for a cb arrest?
But I want to know, do you call an ET to the scene to secure and seal the doobie? Or do you carry the doobie into the station for inventory and get your rd for the case report you still have to write?
And then wait for the unneccessary cr numbers to flow in being accused of writing an expensive anov and taking the doobie and driving away. Tsk tsk tsk.
how is this gonna save time/keep officers on the street??? weed will still have to be inventoried, and a case report will still have to be generated
I find it funny when people sit there and say stoners aren't violent...90% of the violent offenders brought into Cook County Jail have marijuana in their system.....hmmm? sounds to me like maybe not all stoners are violent offenders but most violent offenders are stoners! Pot tickets...great idea,,, now the dealers can sell without even having to worry about running! Great idea! Ass Hats.....
Questions:
What happens to the weed after Offender gets a ticket?
Does Offender get to keep the weed to smoke it?
Doesn't seem to be a provision for inventory of Canabis on the streets, in a big effort to keep Police Officers on the streets!
Da Pelon
I smoke weed instead of smoking cigs and drinking booze on most occasions. more important than smoking weed responsibly is buying it responsibly and I for one practice both. All the weed I smoke is harvested in positive non gang/cartel environments and the money goes directly to the farmer for the hard work he does. I wake up everyday feeling great, and I know that everytime I want to relax or releive some pain after a hard days work i won't be poisoning my body with synthetic chemicals produced in a private lab......too bad the government has too much to lose by legalization of marijuana
The only reason weed is a problem in our country is because of police and politicians, it goes no further than that.....legalization would lead to gangs not being able to turn profits on sales and with reputable business to buy said pot from they would lose most business and we all know if you ain't making money it ain't worth doin. I look at it the same way as prohibition and the general consensus these days is that prohibition was a misake and failure just as criminalization of weed is, it's only a matter of time before its legal, maybe not in our time but sometime
CPD supporter and pot smoker
Weed tix = revunue for city. Weed arrests = c/u time or $$ for cops for court. Which way do you think this will go under Rahmdingo 9.5?? Just remember its all for the kids!
Legalize it, tax it and pay pension obligations. Wait a minute..what was i thinking?? He could wash the bean downtown,keep the flower planter boxes spiffy, give contract for camera tix to a buddy/campaign supporter and improve the redline c.t.a. at $425 million for welfare jagoffs that don't, work or pay taxes. Its for the kids!
R/O deposited said green leafy substance into big, round, brown sewer hole
"Why not do something to them that'll hit 'em where it really hurts? Get their asses out of bed before noon and make them do some work."
What a great idea! Two years ago I received a ticket for an open beer on the beach. When I went to court two of my options were paying a fine of around $200 or doing community service on some park way on the south side at some crazy hour like 7:00 a.m. I would have to meet some bus before that to be dropped at the park. I paid the fine because I didn't want to miss yet another day of work to clean the park.
Evanston rolled out this plan starting January 1, 2012. 0 to 10 grams is now a ticket.
Yes, you do have to go back to the station for inventory. Yes, sh@theads on the street think its a joke. Yes, it's a city ordinance and they don't have to pay it....no collections. Yes, it ties your hands on the street. We need sgt. approval for mis. charges. No, this hasn't helped sh!theads get jobs.....just empower them more to be useless.
Eventually homicide will be on an ANOV.
But I am okay with weed being a ticket.
Keeping the officers on the street with a marijuana arrest - what to do with the "evidence?" Same problem that presented back in 2004 - keep it in the squad car trunk? In the glove box? In your pocket?
Please remember the guys who sells your kid marijuana from his right hand will be selling him cocaine and heroin from his left hand. Count on it.
Hell if they start giving tickets for poss of cannabis what and the heck are the one bag wonder tac teams going to do oh yea thats right the still have there reckless conduct arrest.
"Marijuana-related violence"? Maybe from the dealers, but we don't really see stoners as being aggressively combative - it kind of runs against the entire marijuana-related experience." --SCC
The "marijuana-RELATED experience," as practiced in cities, is really a whole behavioral package you see every day -- pot, 40-dogs, any pills that come by, marginal/no employment, hanging in public places -- here comes trouble. Gang activity, vandalism, theft, loud noise disturbances, etc.
The last idiot girl pictured in the news, drove away with the baby on top of the car, "daily smoker." Another one who ran over a little kid, 19 years old, visibly dumb as mud, "daily smoker."
How can you put it -- theoretically, not every marijuana user is a street jackass, but practically, every street jackass is a marijuana user.
Typical, the Oak Street Beach invaders, as described here -- smoking blunts, drinking "liko" from "plastic cups," and carefully keeping their Nikes away from any nasty sand or water as they trip runners, lunge at bicyclists, grab iphones, etc.
What the hell is it with "plastic cups," anyway? Twenty years ago and more, bartenders calling police, aggressive man came in from street demanding free "plastic cup" and won't leave. Wants free ice in it too, just bought a miniature "liko" on the corner and wants to make his own cocktail which he will spill and then get in a fight over who bumped him. People actually getting arrested over "plastic cups." August day, gum sticking to your shoe, BFRs thudding, heat waves coming up off those cars stuck in traffic, have to deal with this s__t.
Stop crime, put free "plastic cup" dispensers on lamp posts...also gives out fifty cent, cigarette, match, etc.
A plane could crash in some neighborhoods and it's "How could you tell?"
If any weed over 2.5 grams is considered a Class "A" Misdemeanor crime...does that mean that the City will revamp the whole system and start issuing ANOV's for other "non-violent" crimes like retail theft, CTTL, CDTP, heck, even a first offense DUI is a Class "A". Here you go sir, congratulations, you blew a .31. Here is your nonsense ANOV. Go and sin no more. This ranks with some of the dumbest ideas yet. As the other poster said, if I have to waste time with AIRA, and inventory the weed, how much extra time is it to just knock out an arrest report. How about ask the judges to impose a mandatory $50 fine for weed in the city. I don't think I've ever heard of the State lab fee being imposed as the lab report states. What a joke!
If I have to go to the station to inventory this shit, then Joe is coming with me and Im gonna get a court date out of it.
So lets see - there goes probable the cause for the gun in the waistband and the duct taped 13 year old girl in the trunk...
Also, did the drug dog smell the scent from the 5 kilos of coke in the car on the 15 thousand in cash, or the odor from the less than 1 ounce of mj in his pocket?
6/06/2012 04:21:00 AM
Obviously you do not track well.
Like I've said many times before when this subject comes up, this is the next closest thing to legalizing weed and putting a huge tax on it. Except you don't have a political battle on your hands w/ conservatives because you are not "legalizing" it, offenders are paying a fine.
In Crook County it's never about doing the right thing....it's about the money.
Excellent now let's start elliminating entitlements so we stop the breeding. That will also control illegal imigration. Remember kids if you STOP feeding them they'll STOP BREEDING. Pass it on let's get this message going!!!
So we right a ticket, a case report and still inventory, how does that save time
"Marijuana does promote violence. Obviously you never had to fight for the last chocolate chip cookie."
--6/06/2012 01:37:00 AM
It's the Eternal Oak Park Doper again.
Beyond terminally cute.
>snore<
Weed is illegal? Since when?
Sooooo stooooooopid....whos inventorying the weed?
This is a bad idea. I am a very aggressive officer and catching people with 1811's is my bread and butter. Just think of the activity I get from one weed arrest: several compliance tickets, several moving tickets, an impound (I am very good at telling the offender to appeal it to impound court) with impound court, a CB#. Oh and most important of all I get to go to court and impound court. Make weed illegal.
Give them a ticket. Less problems than locking someone up for a "crime" that goes on every day everywhere. Give the Evil One some more money to piss away. I personally never arrested anyone with a recreational amount of weed. Dope dealers are another story.
Champaign PD has been writing weed tickets for about 20+ years. It makes life alot easier for the officer. City charge only.
Anonymous said...
Marijuana does promote violence. Obviously you never had to fight for the last chocolate chip cookie.
Trust me, it ain't pretty.
********************************
Easy fix.. make pot chocolate chip cookies.. use tollhouse recipe..LOL..
Have to ask who's going to motivate the POT HEAD to get off the couch and pay the ticket.. Potheads are known for excess or even normal energy..LOL..
Anyone defending the current marijuana enforcement system is a fucking moron. It accomplishes nothing but the waste of a bunch of tax money. It sure as shit doesn't make society any safer.
Make it an ordinance violation instead of a criminal offense, therefore no inventorying of evidence will be needed. It will be like writing a parking ticket - just write some random shithead whether he has weed or not - no proof needed.
Those that don't pay the fines can have it taken out of their LINK cards.
9:19am pot smoker.....
If you don't think you are doing any damage to your body because your weed doesn't contain chemicals, you are kidding yourself. Smoking 3-4 joints a day does as much lung damage as a pack of cigarettes.
If you think you are buying it from an "ethical" source I got a bridge to sell you.
If you think the shitheads that sell it, or in your case the ethical and highly trained cannabis technicians are going to go out and get legitimate employment and refrain from their criminal ways if its legalized, then it must be true that smoking pot causes brain damage.
You are probably a nice person, but try an exercise bike or yoga to relax and reintroduce your brain to reality.
Anonymous said...
This is a bad idea. I am a very aggressive officer and catching people with 1811's is my bread and butter. Just think of the activity I get from one weed arrest: several compliance tickets, several moving tickets, an impound (I am very good at telling the offender to appeal it to impound court) with impound court, a CB#. Oh and most important of all I get to go to court and impound court. Make weed illegal.
6/06/2012 09:03:00 PM
Good for you. You can have all my weed arrests too, and impounds and the rest if it makes you happy. I have not arrested one person for weed in my entire career, now approaching 30 years. I just scatter the bag of crushed green plant to the wind and get on with my tour.
Dave?
Dave's not here!
Evanston is such a shithole known only for that piece of crap university that graduates those terrible actors we see on television commercials. Evanston is the toilet of the north shore just ask residents of lake forest. It's no wonder they semi-legalized pot, the residents of that town have to smoke it to help obfuscate the fact that living there is tantamount to existential suicide.
Basically, the courts have decided weed in Cook county should not be illegal. I don't remember electing judges and prosecutors to legislate.
"Please remember the guys who sells your kid marijuana from his right hand will be selling him cocaine and heroin from his left hand. Count on it.
6/06/2012 10:55:00 AM"
Nancy Reagan is posting I see. A joint is a misdemeanor, a rock is a felony. Alcohol is a bigger gateway drug
Weed ticket; dont you have to still do a case report? dont you still have to do an inventory? Up to what weight is a ticket? So we have to carry a scale on our person now? What a fucking joke. Just enforce the law when the idiot goes to court and hit him with a fine. The laws need to get stricter, not the other way around. Definately sending the wrong message AGAIN to the criminals.
Nancy Reagan is posting I see. A joint is a misdemeanor, a rock is a felony. Alcohol is a bigger gateway drug
6/07/2012 03:01:00 AM
Cigarettes are a gateway drug too.
My gateway drug of choice is caffeine.
As for the poster who said he scatters the green plant into the wind and hasn't made a pot arrest in 30 years I would applaud you, but I need some caffeine.
I'm feeling a bit tired.
I came on back when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth and CPD patrolled the expressways and I haven't made a pot arrest since Da Bears won the Super Bowl. Maybe a a bit later.
I worked with an older black cop when I came on and he used to let the miscreants keep their "salad herbs", but he told them they "owed me" and handed out his card. More than a few serious crimes were solved by tips he received from the pot smoking hooligans. I'm talking homicides being solved and more than a few rapes.
It's amazing how grateful pot smokers can be when they take their herb home to put on their salads.
Of course he did let the scourge of weed continue throughout greater Englewood. Just imagine the physical damage all those pot smokers did. He should have arrested them and made them turn to something legal and less dangerous like malt liquor.
Now if you will excuse me I'm going to have some more caffeine.
"Evanston is the toilet of the north shore just ask residents of lake forest."
--6/07/2012 12:45:00 AM
Yeah, we will make a note to bring this up at the next meeting of the Onwentsia Club.
*
What the f__k planet do these people come from...
"I just scatter the bag of crushed green plant to the wind."
--6/06/2012 10:10:00 PM
Funny how we get this same line every time someone says "pot" here. It's been years now.
>snore<
"A joint is a misdemeanor, a rock is a felony. Alcohol is a bigger gateway drug."
--6/07/2012 03:01:00 AM
The great ocean liner Olympic was four feet, five and one-half inches long, and constructed entirely of Stilton cheese.
Change it to a civil infraction for what is now a misdemeanor amount for possession (not possession with intent when you stop an obvious dealer with multiple bags and a pocket full of 20's). You don't need proof beyond a reasonable doubt then and won't need to inventory shit. And why do you guys care about inventory when the pot doesn't get sent to the crime lab in Joliet anyway? You can have the stickiest ickiest bag of snoop dog shit inventoried but without the crime lab analysis it will get SOL'd at the first court date anyway.
I haven't seen less than 10 grams prosecuted in any branch court in 6 years because the State never has the lab report confirmation of THC because it never gets sent to the lab!
Make it a civil infraction with a pay or appear date. If they pay the fine before their court date, its done. If they don't pay and they don't show up to court, issue a failure to appear warrant and tack on a bond. At least then the shitheads who don't pay will at least sit in county til on one of their homies bails em out. Win/win for all.
Can I anov myself?
"Here you go sir, congratulations, you blew a .31."
--6/06/2012 11:40:00 AM
Ho boy, I have seen it. .2 it's getting hard to navigate even for a veteran drinker, and I think .4 is medically comatose. I don't know what the world survival record is, or whether it's even worth living at that point.
.31 you have to have a car. Too drunk to walk anywhere.
Can you guess who just passed a law to write tickets for small amts of weed, ....NY, funny how that works.
We are not reinventing the wheel here
"Just imagine the physical damage all those pot smokers did. He should have arrested them and made them turn to something legal and less dangerous like malt liquor."
--6/07/2012 11:35:00 AM
Like it was going to be either one or the other -- in Englewood?
Yeah, right.
Someone open a window in here.
"I worked with an older black cop when I came on and he used to let the miscreants keep their "salad herbs", but he told them they "owed me" and handed out his card. More than a few serious crimes were solved by tips he received from the pot smoking hooligans. I'm talking homicides being solved and more than a few rapes."
Funny how that concept is lost on Tact teams citywide they're too preoccupied with scooping up the minnows they let the big fish slip away. There's zero repore& no building of contacts. Meanwhile they along w/ the command staff stand there slackjawed wondering why they can't get a handle on anything.
Post a Comment
<< Home