Delco Decriminalizes Small Amounts of Marijuana

DELAWARE COUNTY, PA — Amid presidential election turmoil in the Philadelphia region and Pennsylvania, Delaware County moved to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana.

At its meeting Wednesday, Delaware County Council unanimously voted make the possession of 30 grams of marijuana or less a civil offense.

The ordinance not only makes possession a civil offense, but also buying or attempting to buy marijuana and smoking it in public is now a civil offense.

According to ordinance 2020-8, anyone found in violation is subject to a $50 fine for a health code violation. Judges can choose to suspend the fine if the violator agrees to an adjudication alternative or rehabilitative disposition program.

Minors who are caught with small amounts of marijuana will be temporarily detained and their parents or guardians will be notified before a notice of violation is issued to the minor.

However, if the possession or consumption of marijuana occurs on school grounds or at a public library, police must treat the matter criminally, not civilly, under the Pennsylvania criminal code.

The full ordinance is available online here.

Councilwoman Elaine Paul Schaefer said she supports the ordinance for several reasons, including properly allocating strained resources, that other political bodies have decriminalized or legalizes marijuana, and that the county's law enforcement supported the move.

"We're not really going off the rails here," she said. "It's pretty normalized."

Councilman Brian Madden said the ordinance doesn't advocate for marijuana use.

Rather, he said, it shows that the war on drugs does not work in its current state.

Madden said the criminal nature of marijuana possession slows down law enforcement and can ruin lives.

"It wrecks their lives," he said. "It doubles down on the negative impacts of the substance itself by harming the prospects of employment and their education."

Councilwoman Dr. Monica Taylor spoke about the disproportionate impact of marijuana criminalization on communities of color.

"This is a significant first step in addressing that issue and limiting the potential long term effects of a criminal offense on someone's record" she said.