The New Orleans city council has approved rules allowing police to issue a summons instead of arresting and jailing people for marijuana possession.

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Advertisement New Orleans relaxes marijuana penalties; offenders to get fines in lieu of jail time Fines can be up to $100 Share Shares Copy Link Copy

The New Orleans City Council took up a measure Thursday dealing with the city’s marijuana ordinance.The ordinance allows for a summons to be issued for simple marijuana possession in lieu of jail time.The council voted to approve the ordinance unanimously.SEE ALSO: State-by-state look at marijuana lawsA similar law has been in place since 2010, but it only applied for the first offense. The new ordinance creates a ticket structure for repeat offenses.Councilwoman Susan Guidry sponsored the ordinance.She said it gives officers the discretion to issue tickets instead of making an arrest.SEE ALSO: Cannabis: Israel's next big medical export?Guidry believes it will free up police resources. She's also calling it a social justice issue because of the disproportionate number of black citizens who are arrested on simple possession charges."We are finding that the felony arrests for possession as well as distribution fall much more greatly on the African-American community," she said. "Our hope with this is that fewer people will be brought to jail and fewer people will have their lives disrupted with this charge"The fine for simple possession can be up to $100.SEE ALSO: 10 diseases medical marijuana could help treatGet more stories like this by downloading the WDSU News app!Sign up for our email newsletters to get breaking news right in your inbox. Click here to sign up!