NEW YORK — Inside a Brooklyn smoke shop, past rows of bongs and other paraphernalia, a display case is piled high with legal hemp and CBD — but a store employee has some advice.
“Everybody seems to be selling cannabis, and until there’s enforcement, there’s really no concern of a penalty.”“Everybody seems to be selling cannabis, and until there’s enforcement, there’s really no concern of a penalty,” said Owen Martinetti of the Cannabis Association of New York, who is personally calling for stronger civil enforcement.
“A police officer can’t just walk in and conduct an apprehension, or an arrest, or confiscate the item — there’s a process,” New York Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer, said. | Brittainy Newman/AP Photo Earlier this year, a bill stalled in Albany that would have strengthened penalties for illicit cannabis sales and clarified the OCM’s role in enforcement. Some lawmakers were concerned that the measure established new criminal penalties.
In a statement, OCM spokesperson Aaron Ghitelman said the agency has maintained “an open line of communications with law enforcement and other government entities across the state” since it was created, adding it was committed to investigating and shutting down unlicensed shops. “Speaking as just one sponsor of the original bill, I am totally open to reevaluating how we tax, what formulas we use and how we calculate it” if current rates prove overly burdensome to legal operators, Krueger said.
Industry wants to recriminalise cannabis to protect their margins, forgeting that is was the legacy pioneers who fought to free the weed in the first place. Its as if prohibitions downward effect on society never existed and pretexual stops by cops suspecting marijuana is less.
Unbelievable, weed destroys youth brain and therefore their potential .. and everyone is ok with it. Their own Gov is profiting from it instead of protecting the new generations.
This has proven wrong in every legalized state. Most all buyers do not know any dealers. Even the people who do will stop using them out of convenience and selection. The black market will be tax evasion within the legal industry. Unregulated sales will be only a tiny part.
How long did black market alcohol thrive after the repeal of the 18th amendment? In my entire life, I've never met a single bootlegger. I doubt, given the opportunity to buy legal weed, folks will opt to support criminal organizations instead.
NEWS_MAKER Oh they’ll figure it out. Next big tax base.
Weed shops are thriving, making big bucks. Big taxes too. If I buy a gram from my neighbor the industry won't collapse. When I grow my own the industry won't collapse. It's a plant ffs. They have the vape biz. No collapse. All is good.
NEWS_MAKER So funny. What a shit show
This whole narrative makes no sense. Cannabis is a plant that is simple to grow, like tomatoes. Anyone can grow and sell their own tomatoes, or cannabis. Connoisseurs know the best brands and they’re mostly all operating thru legal channels. Shitty weed won’t sell even on BM