Marijuana de-penalization (TACO) in Athens….
This letter to the editor by Caleb Brown originally appeared in The Athens News October 26, 2017.
Voters in the city of Athens will find Issue 6 on the back of the ballot on Nov. 7 asking the question whether to remove fines for marijuana in town. Your “yes” vote means you think cannabis should be the lowest law-enforcement priority in Athens.
The Athens Cannabis Ordinance, or TACO for short, has solid legal foundation based on the Toledo Sensible Marihuana Ordinance of 2015 and similar legislation enacted in four other Ohio cities in 2016. The Ohio Attorney General and Ohio Supreme Court have upheld the constitutionally granted home rule power of cities to modify fines for misdemeanors, including things like speeding tickets and marijuana possession. MORE…