Virginia: Senators vote to decriminalize cannabis

Virginia senators voted last Thursday in favor of a bill to decriminalize cannabis in the state.

The bill will make simple possession of cannabis punishable only by a maximum fine of 50 $, whereas under current law a first offence is punishable by a maximum fine of 500$ and up to 30 days in prison.

The project would also increase the possession limit considered «intent to distribute» from half an ounce to one ounce, and remove the separate definition of hashish of state law, as well as the extractions, which will be treated in the same way as cannabis flower.

However, some pro-legalization associations are not happy about this decriminalization.

Without fully repealing marijuana prohibition, police will continue to have a convenient tool to stop & search our cars; and Black and brown people will continue to bear the brunt of the War on Drugs.

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SB 2 & HB 972 are not the answer. @JCarrollFoy's HB 1507 is. @thcjusticenow https://t.co/oFTEzS4U6O

- ACLU of Virginia (@ACLUVA) January 26, 2020

«Today's vote is a historic step in the right direction,» a declared Jenn Michelle Pedini, executive director of Virginia NORML. «Decriminalization, however, is not a solution to cannabis prohibition. It doesn't change the disparate application of cannabis laws. The Commonwealth must act quickly to legalize and regulate responsible adult-use cannabis and begin to repair the damage of prohibition.»

The state's governor, Ralph Northam, had campaigned on decriminalization. He had announced his intention to move forward on this one at the beginning of the month, The state needs to «take an honest look at our criminal justice system and make sure we're treating people fairly and using taxpayer dollars wisely.»

In December, a Virginia congressman introduced a legalization bill, in part to provide the governor with the resources he needed to pass comprehensive cannabis legalization reform.