Cuomo Wants Less Severe Penalties for Small Amounts of Pot

6/4/2012 (Updated 8:01:03 PM)

Governor Cuomo is looking to lessen the penalty for some who are busted for marijuana...
 
Cuomo is proposing the penalty for private and public possession of a small amount of marijuana be the same--a * finable* violation.
Currently,  public possession of 25 grams or less  of pot is a misdemeanor -- while private possession of the same amount is only a violation.
Cuomo says this discrepancy results in unnecessary misdemeanor charges for a group that is disproportionately young, hispanic, and black.

"The effect of a criminal conviction on a young person can alter the trajectory of your entire life. there's no going back," Cuomo said. 

According to Cuomo's office, arrests in the state for small amounts of marijuana have jumped from 2,000 in 1990 to over 50,000 today. 94% of those arrests happen in New York City.