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Home My WebLink About21998 1 ORDINANCE NO. 21,998 2 3 AN ORDINANCE TO DECLARE IT THE POLICY OF THE CITY OF 4 LITTLE ROCK,ARKANSAS, THAT THE INVESTIGATION, CITATION, 5 ARREST, SEIZURE, OR PROSECUTION OF MISDEMEANOR 6 MARIJUANA OFFENSES BY ADULTS BE ITS LOWEST LAW 7 ENFORCEMENT AND PROSECUTORIAL PRIORITY; AND FOR 8 OTHER PURPOSES. 9 10 WHEREAS,decades of arresting millions of marijuana users across the country has failed to control 11 the use of marijuana or to reduce its availability; and, 12 WHEREAS,the voters of Arkansas approved the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment of 2016 13 on November 9, 2016,as Amendment 98 to the Constitution of the State of Arkansas,which,among other 14 things, legalizes the cultivation, distribution, and use of marijuana for certain purposes within the State of 15 Arkansas;and, 16 WHEREAS,otherwise law-abiding adults are being arrested and subjected to fines and imprisonment 17 for nonviolent marijuana offenses, which has contributed to over-congested court dockets and a decrease 18 in available jail space needed to hold those charged with or convicted of serious and violent crimes; and, 19 WHEREAS,such arrests,even before conviction,can result in the loss of employment for an otherwise 20 productive Arkansan that works hard and pays taxes; and, 21 WHEREAS,pursuant to the Higher Education Act of 1998,students convicted of marijuana possession 22 can become disqualified from receiving Federal Student Aid for a period of one(1)-year or more after such 23 a conviction, disproportionately affecting the ability of low-income Arkansans to improve their lives and 24 the lives of their family members; and, 25 WHEREAS, in addition to having a conviction on their criminal record, individuals convicted of 26 possession of marijuana face official hurdles to employment such as the ineligibility for licensure or 27 registration as an intern,pharmacist,or pharmacy technician pursuant to Ark.Code Ann. § 17-92-317;and, 28 WHEREAS, in the previous five (5) years, 3,790 arrests were made by the Little Rock Police 29 Department for marijuana-related infractions;and, 30 WHEREAS, it has been estimated that each year more than$30 Million taxpayer dollars are spent to 31 enforce marijuana laws within the State of Arkansas;and, 32 WHEREAS,the use of law enforcement resources would be better spent on programs that deal with 33 serious and violent crimes,victim advocacy and protection;and crime prevention;and, 'Page 1 of 41 1 WHEREAS,making adult marijuana use and possession offenses the lowest law enforcement priority 2 in the City of Little Rock would reduce expenditures on law enforcement,prosecution, and punishment of 3 these offenses,allowing greater spending on other priorities affecting the health and safety of the residents 4 of the City of Little Rock, Arkansas. 5 NOW,THEREFORE,BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE CITY 6 OF LITTLE ROCK,ARKANSAS: 7 Section 1. Title. This article shall be known as the Lowest Law Enforcement and Prosecutorial Priority 8 Policy Ordinance of the City of Little Rock,Arkansas,("the City"). 9 Section 2. Purpose. The purpose of this article is to: 10 (a) Make investigations, citations, arrests, property seizures, etc. for adult misdemeanor 11 marijuana offenses, where the possession, or use of marijuana was intended only for 12 adult, personal use, the lowest law enforcement and prosecutorial priority within the 13 City; and, 14 (b) Transmit notification of the enactment of this ordinance to all State and Federal Elected 15 Officials who are directly elected from all or a portion of the corporate limits of the 16 City. 17 Section 3. Definitions. For the purpose of this article, the following words and phrases shall be 18 defined as follows: 19 Adult means a person who is eighteen (18)years of age or older. 20 Little Rock Law Enforcement Officer means a Certified Law Enforcement Officer of the Little Rock 21 Police Department, or any other entity, office,or department of the City that engages in law enforcement 22 activity within the corporate limits of the City. 23 Lowest Law Enforcement Priority means a designation given to a particular type of crime that makes 24 it the least important priority under all other duties and responsibilities of Little Rock Law Enforcement 25 Officers and that requires all law enforcement resources and activities, e.g., investigation, arrests, 26 prevention, searches, seizures, prosecution etc., related thereto be used, as needed, for the enforcement 27 of all other crimes and duties not assigned this designation; 28 Marijuana means all parts of the cannabis plant including the stalks, seeds, roots, dried leaves, 29 flowers,etc.,and any preparations or derivatives, including,but not limited to,oils,vapors,waxes,resins, 30 tinctures,and edibles,not including the weight of any ingredients other than marijuana that are combined 31 with marijuana and prepared for consumption as food or drink; 32• Section 4. Lowest Law Enforcement Priority Policy. 33 (a) Little Rock Law Enforcement Officers shall make all law enforcement duties or 34 activity relating to marijuana offenses, where the marijuana is intended for adult 35 personal use, their lowest law enforcement priority. Law enforcement duties and [Page 2 of 41 1 activities relating to marijuana offenses include, but are not limited to, investigation, 2 citation, arrest, and the seizure of property. 3 (b) This Lowest Law Enforcement Priority Policy shall not apply to Statutes that deal 4 with driving under the influence,the operation of machinery while impaired, violent 5 or gun-related crimes, or those designed to prevent physical injury to others. 6 Section 5. Notification of Federal and State Officials. 7 (a) Beginning three (3) months after the enactment of this article, the Clerk of the City 8 shall execute the mandatory and ministerial duty of sending letters on an annual basis 9 to the members of the United States House of Representatives whose District 10 includes the corporate limits of the City, both Arkansas United States Senators, any 11 Representative or Senator in the Arkansas General Assembly whose district includes 12 all or a portion of the corporate limits of the City, the Governor of the State of 13 Arkansas, and the President of the United States. 14 (b) This letter shall state, "The City of Little Rock, Arkansas, has passed an ordinance 15 to de-prioritize adult marijuana offenses, where the marijuana is intended for 16 personal use, and requests that the governments of the United States of America and 17 the State of Arkansas take immediate steps to enact similar laws." 18 (c) The duty to prepare and send such letters shall be carried out until State and Federal 19 Laws are changed accordingly. 20 Section 6. Mandatory Enforcement. All sections of this article are mandatory. If any provision of 21 this article is not carried out properly, any person who is registered to vote in the City may seek a writ of 22 mandamus to ensure the law is fully implemented. 23 Section 7. Severability. In the event that any title, section, paragraph, item, sentence, clause, phrase, 24 or word of this resolution is declared or adjudged to be invalid or unconstitutional, such declaration or 25 adjudication shall not affect the remaining portions of the resolution, which shall remain in full force and 26 effect as if the portion so declared or adjudged were not originally part of the resolution. 27 Section 8. Repealer. All laws, ordinances, resolutions, or parts of the same, over which the City has 28 authority, that are inconsistent with the provisions of this resolution, are hereby repealed to the extent of 29 such inconsistency. 30 PASSED: May 18,2021 31 ATTES . APPROVED: 32 33 Imo',• _ a t�1 34 :usan 111.1, e Clerk Frank Scott,Jr.,M. 35 / [Page 3 of 41 I APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM: 2 6:7NA 4 Thomas M. Carpenter,City Att ney 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 // 10 // 11 // 12 // 13 // 14 // 15 // 16 // 17 // 18 // 19 // 20 // 21 // 22 // 23 // 24 // 25 // 26 // 27 // 28 // 29 // 30 // 31 // 32 // 33 // 34 // 35 // [Page 4 of 41