Politics|The latest in cannabis legalization including laws and policies legislators views election coverage and more. Politics Nashville May Decriminalize Tonight. But Should It? Lisa Rough The Nashville Metropolitan Council is expected to vote later tonight on a cannabis decriminalization measure thats been making headlines nationwide. The measure would essentially make it a misdemeanor to possess or exchange less than half an ounce of cannabis. The offense would be accompanied by a $50 citation which could be waived in lieu of ten hours of community service at the discretion of a judge. Sounds great right? Well yes and no. Doak Patton a longtime criminal defense attorney and president of the Tennessee chapter of NORML is unequivocally in support of the measure. I have seen enough cases as a criminal defense attorney to see what kind of injustices are going on he told Leafly. Its a waste of the courts time it hurts the people I just dont see anything beneficial at all to keeping this criminal. RELATED STORY A Tale of Two Initiatives: Big Trouble In Little Rock Patton believes so strongly in decriminalization in Tennessee that he along with Tennessee NORML sponsored a similar initiative last year. The initiative fell shy of the 7000 signatures needed but one of the registered voters to sign the petition was an up-and-coming politician Megan Barry the current mayor of Nashville. Although Barry has remained officially neutral on the current measure Patton believes shes been quietly supportive of the effort. I havent actually spoken to the mayor about this but it is our belief that she is a supporter Barry said. I dont think it would have gone as far as it has to the city council if it was just us supporting this. Even law enforcement officials have come out in support of the measure. Nashville Metro Councilman Russ Pulley a former police officer and FBI agent says the goal is not to take it easy on offenders who are arrested for more serious crimes or who have a violent criminal past. In no way shape or form would this inhibit the police to conduct those types of investigations and take guns off the street said Pulley who is co-sponsoring the Nashville ordinance. The largest obstacle to passing this ordinance comes from an unlikely source State Representative William Lamberth (R-Cottontown). Representative William Lamberth (R-Cottonwood) Lamberthwas instrumental in passing a measure last year that removed felony penalties for third and subsequent offenses for the possession of small amounts of drugs. It wasnt exactly ground-breaking but it was certainly a positive step in a conservative state. So why the change of heart now? The ordinance according to Rep. Lamberth is a legal fallacy. What Nashville and potentially Memphis are doing Rep. Lamberth told Leafly in a phone interview from Cottontown is they have a bill that will add a $50 citation to their local ordinances that could be either in place of the criminal penalties of the state or in addition to the criminal penalties of the state and it will be completely up to each officer. A cursory glance at the wording within the ordinance appears to confirm his interpretation: Law enforcement should be afforded the discretion to determine whether criminal penalties and criminal records are disproportionate to the severity of the offense. Lamberth argued: I think it violates the equal protection clause of the United States Constitution. So I have a problem with that. RELATED STORY Arkansas Puts Medical Cannabis on the November Ballot He offered a simple scenario in which the discretion afforded Nashville officers could go awry. Say [a police officer] stops two people riding in the same vehicle. Both of them have a small amount of marijuana in their pocket. That officer could give one of them a cite and give the other one an arrest and they might face up to eleven months and 29 days in jail just because thats what the officer felt like doing. Lamberth feels so strongly about this ordinance not passing in fact that he has threatened to withhold federal funding for highways in Nashville and Memphis if it does pass. It is literally political pandering at its worst Lamberth said. It does not change the criminal penalties one iota. And I feel strongly enough about equal protection in our country that yes I would sponsor a piece of legislation that would restrict highway funding. What would it accomplish to restrict federal highway funding? I hope it would accomplish that they wouldnt pass this ordinance Lamberth said and if they do theyll take it back off the books. I hope that that is a large enough penalty and a large enough incentive not to do something like this. RELATED STORY Tennessee Governor Signs Cannabis Oil Bill Into Law The practice of pre-empting laws aimed at a specific town or county is not unheard of although it is unusual to say the least. The American Legislative Exchange Council has built a decades-long reputation for creating just such laws most of which are steered towards corporate and conservative agendas. Rep. Lamberth has practiced law for over a decade and Doak Patton is a criminal defense attorney and former Assistant District Attorney General. The two are colleagues and friends who find themselves on opposite sides of the fence on this particular issue. The vote is scheduled to be held tonight at the Nashville Metropolitan Councils regular bimonthly meeting. decriminalizationlawslegalnashvilletennesseeusa Lisa Rough Lisa is an associate editor at Leafly specializing in politics and advocacy. Related Articles Is Europe Finally Ready to Embrace Hemp Again? 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