Austin Police Will No Longer Cite Or Arrest For Low-Level Pot Possession

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Police officers in Austin, Texas will no longer arrest or issue citations to those suspected of possessing small amounts of marijuana, according to an Austin Police Department memorandum released on Thursday. Police Originally Balked At City Council Resolution Then in January of this year, the Austin City Council passed a resolution calling on the city’s police department to stop ticketing or arresting people for possession of small amounts of marijuana. That led many local prosecutors throughout the state to announce that they would no longer file charges for minor pot possession cases, explaining that proving seized cannabis was marijuana and not hemp required expensive, and in many cases unavailable, lab testing. In the change of policy released on Thursday, however, Manley said that Austin police would comply with the council resolution and follow the lead of other law enforcement agencies. The resolution also required that city funds and personnel be utilized for THC testing only in cases involving felony charges.

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Police officers in Austin, Texas will no longer arrest or issue citations to those suspected of possessing small amounts of marijuana, according to an Austin Police Department memorandum released on Thursday. The policy change comes five months after the Austin City Council voted to end enforcement of low-level cannabis possession laws and more than a year after Texas legalized hemp agriculture in the state.

“APD will no longer cite or arrest individuals with sufficient identification for Class A or Class B misdemeanor ‘possession...

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