Alexander Alusheff

Lansing State Journal

EAST LANSING – Before East Lansing decriminalized the use and possession of small amounts of marijuana last week, the city’s stance on the drug had been in limbo for more than a year.

Residents passed a charter amendment in May 2015 that allowed possession of up to one ounce of the drug by people 21 and older on private property, but the city never updated its ordinance to reflect that change.

So while it was legal under the city charter, it was still illegal under city ordinance. It would take three new council members to rectify that.

When the council finally amended the ordinance last week, it went a step further than the charter amendment, making it just a civil infraction to be caught with less than an ounce of the drug for people under 21. It’s still a misdemeanor by state law, which supersedes city ordinances.

“We had to wait for a council that was willing to fly in the face of state law,” said Mayor Pro Tem Ruth Beier, who was on the previous council. “When Nathan Triplett was mayor, he was telling us how to do it. The mindset was ‘How do we not get sued?’ It’s better late than never.”

Attorney Jeffrey Hank, an East Lansing resident who led the effort to change the city’s charter, characterized the delay as a “refusal to respect the charter amendment.”

“It was poor leadership,” Hank said. “City council was afraid to take the lead on things. They were afraid they were going to be attacked.”

Triplett, who lost his reelection bid last November, said the previous council supported decriminalization, but there were “disagreements over a strategy on how to get there.”

Passing an ordinance that went against state law “was not a strategy I could pursue,” he said.

The fact that other cities such as Lansing, Grand Rapids, Ann Arbor and Ferndale had passed similar ordinances without getting sued by the state didn't ease his concern.

"The argument that the state Attorney General won't bring action against a city is not a justifiably good argument,” he said.

Councilwoman Shanna Draheim brought up the same concern when council voted. She cast the only vote against it. The ordinance amendment passed 4-1.

RELATED:East Lansing OKs pot smoking, possession of small quantities

“I’m conflicted about how we find ourselves in a legal quagmire,” she said at the meeting. “I worry we’re setting up residents for potential legal issues.”

Triplett said that, if he were in the city council's current position, he would have favored repealing the city's marijuana ordinance entirely and defaulting to state law.

East Lansing police still have the right to charge people under state law even if possessing small amounts of marijuana is decriminalized in the city, said Lt. Scott Wriggelsworth, but, in most cases, police will opt for the civil infraction or leave the person in question alone unless they are a known drug dealer.

Hank said the ordinance is a step in the right direction toward the eventual legalization of the drug in the state.

“East Lansing has a better law than Lansing does,” he said. “They are arguably a leading city. It’s very similar to Ann Arbor now.”

Lansing passed a similar charter amendment in 2013, but did not pass a corresponding ordinance. Lansing police use the same discretion as East Lansing police when determining whether to make an arrest, said Robert Merritt, public information officer for the Lansing Police Department.

“I believe we should send a message as a liberal city that marijuana is not a danger," said councilwoman Susan Woods. "What we should do is try and have control on it ... so you won't have your life ruined by holding a joint."

Which is among the reasons Hank pushed for the change in the first place.

"I told the city they should be ahead of the game on this and not give people criminal records," Hank said. "This is how government is supposed to work."

Alexander Alusheff is a reporter at the Lansing State Journal. Contact him at (517) 388-5973 or aalusheff@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexalusheff.