Telling the cops to stop doing something without changing the law isn't legal. Don't want pot to be illegal then change the law.

@1 I'm sure the mayor of NYC and the District Attorney know better than you what is and isn't legal. Actually Seattle did something similar shortly before I-502 passed, except here the cops were directed not to enforce Marijuana laws at all. That's what people mean when they talk about decriminalization of weed.

@1:

Bullshit. In 2003 Seattle voters passed Initiative 75, which essentially decriminalized smoking cannabis by mandating that SPD place arresting people for cannabis use as its lowest enforcement priority. It was enormously successful, with arrests and prosecutions plummeting in just a couple of years, and had a major impact on the subsequent passage of I-502 in 2012.

The laws weren't thrown out (they still exist at the federal level), but even SPD understood they had much better things to do with their limited resources than to chase down every pot smoking hippie (although, as in NYC enforcement was heavily weighted against POC) who wanted a puff of the enmadening reefer every now and then.

So proud of our state—along with Colorado—for leading the way in ending the absurd & socially-destructive cannabis prohibition ...and nice to see New York finally start to come along to the party. The clock is ticking on legalization ...New York, …, …, …, Georgia, Utah.