As New York's leaders push to legalize marijuana in the state, Westchester will no longer prosecute some marijuana offenses and will reduce charges for some others in a bid to lessen the legal blow for many people.

Westchester County District Attorney Anthony Scarpino Jr. today announced changes to how his office will prosecute low-level marijuana offenses, including possession of 2 ounces or less of pot.

Starting on Monday, in some instances:

Violations for marijuana possession will no longer be prosecuted.

Misdemeanor possession of marijuana will be prosecuted as violations.

"After a careful review of marijuana cases in Westchester, as well as discussions with police, community leaders and advocates, we have made the decision to change how we prosecute such offenses," Scarpino said in a statement. "This decision not to prosecute specific cases will allow many people to move forward with their lives without the stigma attached to criminal records of any kind, records that cause discrimination in housing, job and school applications.

"Much of this has burdened our minority communities and we believe it is time to rectify that. This change in how low-level marijuana cases are handled is also aimed at a better use of public resources. What has been spent on arrests and prosecutions can now be used to focus on more serious crimes."

The changes will affect people who have been charged only with unlawful possession of marijuana, a violation, or fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor. A violation is not considered a crime, but a misdemeanor conviction shows up on someone's criminal record.

Previously, possessing any amount of marijuana could have landed someone with a violation for unlawful possession of marijuana. Possessing between 25 grams and 2 ounces of marijuana could have brought a misdemeanor charge of fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana.

Many people who have cases pending in Westchester for unlawful possession of marijuana or fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana will likely have those charges against them dropped, said Helen Jonsen, a spokeswoman for the DA's Office. Factors such as criminal record and whether someone is facing additional criminal charges will play a role in if pending marijuana charges against someone will be dropped, she said.

Effect on prior convictions

For people who have already been convicted of unlawful possession of marijuana or fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana, Scarpino's office has not made a decision about whether to move to expunge those convictions, Jonsen said.

While crafting this new policy, Jonsen said, the DA's Office based some of its research on work by the Drug Policy Alliance, a group that promotes drug policy reforms. The group cites statistics from Start SMART NY, a campaign dedicated to ending marijuana prohibition in New York.

According to a report from Start SMART NY, there were 4,012 arrests in Westchester from 2013 to 2017 for fifth-degree criminal possession of marijuana.

Like Westchester, the district attorneys in Manhattan and Brooklyn have also stopped prosecuting low-level marijuana offenses. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez took the movement a step further in the fall, though, when he announced a plan to wipe records clean for people who had been convicted of those low-level charges.

Gonzalez said in September that he expected up to 20,000 cases since 1990 to be expunged.

Move follows bail policy change

Scarpino said he is urging Gov. Andrew Cuomo and state legislators to create a standard for all counties to follow in how they prosecute marijuana offenses. Cuomo has vowed to push lawmakers to legalize recreational marijuana in New York this year.

Scarpino said the change to marijuana prosecution builds on Westchester's reform of its bail policy, which it changed last year by eliminating cash bail for most misdemeanor charges.

"These reforms in the bail process and marijuana prosecution are illustrations of our commitment to a fairer system of justice that works for every member of our community, no matter where they live, the color of their skin or the amount in their wallets," he said.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Twitter: @MattSpillane