The decriminalization and legalization of marijuana in Kentucky will improve the state’s criminal justice system, Kentucky Rep. Nima Kulkarni said. The lawmaker gathered with other proponents of the initiative Monday to push for action on the issue during this year’s legislative session, WLKY reported. Kulkarni, who noted that Kentucky is currently among the 14 states that have neither decriminalized nor approved the adult use of marijuana, introduced House Bills 224 and 225 on Jan. 5. The former would decriminalize marijuana and expunge certain previous convictions related to the substance, while the latter would allow anyone aged 21 or older to possess, use, buy or sell up to an ounce of cannabis without criminal penalties. “You can’t have one without the other, and I have been very clear that I am not going to sign onto legalization legislation if we don’t include decriminalization,” Kulkarni explained. The lawmaker believes that legalizing marijuana would “drastically” improve her state’s “overwhelmed” criminal justice system, according to the WLKY report. “We are wasting our time enforcing a law that should have never existed in the first place,” Sheri Ray, a former corrections officer turned advocate for criminal justice and drug policy reforms was quoted as saying.
420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 01/18/2022 19:00:00