The Lakeland City Commission will move to decide the criminality of misdemeanor possession of marijuana within city limits following a specially called public forum Nov. 9. The meeting is to take place at 5:30 p.m. in the Hollingsworth Ballroom at The Lakeland Center, 701 W. Lime St.

LAKELAND — The City Commission will move to decide the criminality of misdemeanor possession of marijuana within city limits following a specially called public forum Nov. 9.

The meeting is to take place at 5:30 p.m. in the Hollingsworth Ballroom at The Lakeland Center, 701 W. Lime St.

Commissioner Justin Troller pushed for this debate earlier this year, saying he was concerned the penalties for possessing small amounts of marijuana derail young people's futures not only through the justice system, but by higher education and employer policies that continue to punish offenders through life.

One way to address that, he said, may be to decriminalize the possession of marijuana under 20 grams, a misdemeanor, and make it a civil offense like a parking ticket.

If the commission were to pass such an ordinance, Lakeland would not be the first city in Florida to do so, though most of the cities that have done so did it by formalizing police discretion on whether to issue civil fines or arrest offenders.

"I think the forum is an important part of the debate," Troller said. "It's a community issue and we'll be better for it one way or another."

After the forum, the agenda calls for the commission to issue direction to the city's staff that could lead to a binding vote at a later date.

The city booked nine individuals from two camps to present their cases and answer questions from commissioners. Afterward, members of the public will be able to make comments to the commission.

Representing the side advocating decriminalization will be:

n Christopher Cano of Central Florida NORML

n Michael C. Minardi, a Jupiter attorney and chairman of Regulate Florida

n Dr. Genester Wilson-King, an Orlando-area physician

n Michael Thompson, described as a local business owner

n A representative from Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

These speakers will oppose decriminalization:

n Jessica Spencer of InnerAct Alliance

n Lakeland Police Chief Larry Giddens

n Administrative State Attorney Brian Haas of the 10th Judicial Circuit, who is state attorney-elect

n Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd

In earlier discussions, a majority of commissioners said they sympathized with the purpose of decriminalization and believed current drug policies may cause more harm than good. Some of those also said they wondered if Lakeland blazing a trail on the issue would cause confusion — possession would continue to carry criminal penalties under state and federal law — or overstep the authority of the city.

As such, decriminalization advocates would have to find a way to ease those concerns in order for a majority for the seven-member commission to pass a resolution in their favor, based on earlier discussions.

Among those sympathetic but opposed is Mayor Howard Wiggs, who said he is skeptical that marijuana is a "gateway drug" and other claims that have surrounded the drug. But he has said, "I'm not sure it makes any sense for Lakeland to do this independent of everyone around us. At this point it makes sense it should be done at the state level."

When the forum meets, a day after election day, Floridians should know whether they passed Amendment 2, a ballot initiative that would legalize the growing, selling and using of marijuana under a doctor's supervision.

Commissioner Phillip Walker said his opinion is solid — he opposes decriminalization — but wants to hear what the public has to say.

If the city did proceed with the proposal, "I think we would become an island unto ourself. I don't think it would be a good thing for our county. ... My concern is that we're so gerrymandered in so many different ways in our city, you could be on one side of the street and be in the city and the other side of the street be in the county."

He said he also heard the testimony this week of a young man who smoked marijuana with his father as a child. As he grew up, his drugs of choice grew harder.

"When I heard him say that, it stuck a pin in my mind; he went from smoking marijuana with his father who him allowed to use it as a young lad to using more hardcore drugs. I thought 'wow.' The stories about it being a gateway drug are common, but I heard it one-on-one from someone who gave a testimonial. That hit home with me."

Commissioner Jim Malless said decriminalization is the best policy, but also wondered if this is the type of legislation the City Commission should be focusing on.

"Do we want to lead in Polk County on this particular topic?" he asked. "We lead on a lot of topics but is this one?"

Despite the outcome of the vote, he said, he would like better answers from the Lakeland Police Department on why the demographics of people arrested for minor marijuana possession are so far removed from the demographics of the city.

In a report compiled by LPD, it determined that of the 401 adults arrested for possession of marijuana under 20 grams, 232 were black.

Commissioners Bill Read and Edie Yates could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon.

Commissioner Don Selvage said he will enter the forum with an open mind, though he said he tends to think the penalties for marijuana possession are too harsh.

And further, he said, "the establishment side has never been able to give me a good reason why marijuana is different than alcohol."

But "I think reasonable people in other cities and across the state have decided to decriminalize and others have not. I want to know both sides of it," he said.

Selvage said he doesn't expect any surprises from the positions of either side in the forum, but that's OK — it's good for a community to scrutinize itself and its actions. Mostly he wants to hear from the public on this one.

"I think Justin (Troller) did the right thing by moving the issue forward," he said. "Let's talk about it."

— Christopher Guinn can be reached at Christopher.Guinn@theledger.com or 863-802-7592. Follow him on Twitter @CGuinnNews.