Nashville Council Passes Bill To Decrease Pot Possession Penalties

The bill in question, which passed with a vote of 35-3, decreases the penalty for possessing up to a half-ounce of weed or less to a civil penalty of a $50 fine or 10 hours of community service.

With one rather less-than-stellar caveat, that is. As it turns out, the Metro Nashville Police Department wasn’t thrilled with the bill’s original draft because it would have made a civil penalty automatic, as opposed to allowing them to continue cranking out cash via the state’s current law.

According to Tennessee law, anyone popped for possessing the same amounts of pot listed above would be subjected to a Class A misdemeanor charge which is punishable by a $2,500 fine and one year behind bars.

So, Nashvillians that puff the sticky stuff don’t have to worry about facing those charges anymore, right?

Ehh! Wrong!

The draft of the bill that received the Metro Nashville Police Department’s stamp of approval allows the police to charge you with either set of penalties at their sole discretion.

Are they really leaving it up to the cops to decide? We can’t imagine that convenient stipulation working out very well for those in certain minority groups.

Nashville’s mayor, Megan Barry, was initially reserved and noncommittal about the bill but claims she is “generally supportive” of efforts to decriminalize weed.

Mayor Barry was quick to reassure Nashvillians that once she inks the bill, “police officers will still have the ability to make arrests or issue state criminal citations for marijuana possession as circumstances warrant, which is a Class A misdemeanor under state law.”

Yes, Mayor Barry, we’re fully aware this bill pretty much stinks on ice.

But hey, it’s still a positive sign for a city that’s mostly run by conservative politicians to pass any type of legislation regarding weed.

So keep up the good fight, Nashville! It looks like times may be a changin’ in Music City.