New Court Ruling Could Have Big Implications for EL Marijuana Vote

Image:  East Lansing attorney Jeffrey Hank and ELPD Chief Juli Liebler

As ELi reported this week, East Lansing voters will go to the polls on May 5 to decide whether to change the City Charter to locally decriminalize the possession and “transfer” of less than one ounce of marijuana. East Lansing Police and City officials have been saying that even if the charter amendment passes, ELPD officers will still be obligated to arrest and prosecute under state and federal law. But yesterday the State Court of Appeals ruled on a similar Grand Rapids charter amendment, saying “a local police officer has discretion, and is not required by law, to make arrests in connection with violations of state law.”

According to local attorney Jeffrey Hank, who has led the move to put the East Lansing charter amendment on the ballot, this is “great timing for this issue” because “ it’s a very pro-charter amendment” ruling.

Prior to this ruling, I asked ELPD’s Chief Juli Liebler if the charter amdendment passes how ELPD plans to handle possession and transfer of less than one ounce of marijuana in the City of East Lansing. Liebler replied that there was no plan to change practice because it would still be illegal under state law. Today I emailed Liebler to ask whether the State Court of Appeals ruling will change how ELPD interprets its duties. She has not yet responded. [SEE UPDATE AT END OF ARTICLE]

Hank tells me he’s been troubled by the City’s attitude toward the proposed charter amendment. He says they have been “essentially [saying] that they will not respect the will of the voters and will choose to use city resources to enforce unconstitutional laws that the majority of citizens believe are illegitimate.” (The Court decision yesterday did not rule on the consitutionality of the relevant laws.)

Even before the State Court ruling about Grand Rapids, Hank noted that “In both Lansing and Jackson, which passed similar charter amendments two years ago, the police have tried to respect the will of the community.”

Hank draws a historical parallel to what happened prior to the Civil War: “There is a long history in America, particularly in the North, of not enforcing fugitive slave laws or other laws considered morally odious. We hope ELPD leadership changes its tune if voters approve the measure, and we hope our civilian officers, like the mayor and the city manager, exercise some leadership and direct the police chief to respect the will of the People.”

As ELi has reported, discussion of this amendment at East Lansing City Council has largely focused on how state law would allegedly render it pointless. At the October 21 meeting of City Council, for example, Mayor Nathan Triplett said that he would be in favor of decriminalization of marijuana “but the state legislature has made it impossible for us to do that.”

Today I sent Triplett an email asking whether, given yesterday’s ruling, he now supports the East Lansing charter amendment. I have not yet heard back.

In her earlier conversation with me, Chief Liebler made the argument that part of what is at stake is the way that dealing in marijuana can lead to violent crime. She said that “while marijuana possession and use may seem harmless, there are a lot of very serious crimes that are committed over even very small amounts of marijuana. You may recall that in 2014, two different MSU students were killed by individuals attempting to steal drugs or money related to drug sales.”

UPDATE: January 12, 2014, 11:40 am: ELPD Chief Juli Liebler has now responded my question, "If the ballot measure passes, do you expect ELPD officers to prosecute marijuana possession and transfer of less than 1 ounce under state law?" Her answer is: "Yes, we will continue to enforce state marijuana laws."

As part of its mission of providing nonpartisan information about election issues to local voters, ELi will be doing a series of reports on this story. If you have suggestions for this series in terms of what kinds of information you need to make an educated vote, please contact us.

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