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DEMINGS NOT OPPOSED TO MARIJUANA PROPOSAL

Orange County should consider Orlando's proposal to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, the sheriff and Mayor Teresa Jacobs said Thursday.

Sheriff Jerry Demings stopped short of giving his full support to Orlando's measure, which would allow police to issue a civil citation rather than arrest someone who is caught with 20 grams or less of pot.  But he said he "would not be opposed" to the county adopting a similar policy.

Jacobs said she wants the county's public safety council to dive into the issue.

"My concerns are the many details that need to be worked out collaboratively - with all of our county jurisdictions and public-safety partners at the table," Jacobs wrote in an email to the Orlando Sentinel.

The discussion among the county leaders arose as the Orlando City Council prepares to vote on its measure Monday.

Under the proposed ordinance, a first offender would face a $50 fine while a second offense would cost $100.  The offense currently carries a possible one-year jail sentence and a maximum fine of $1,000.

The sheriff, facing a reelection challenge this summer, revealed his stand after reviewing details of Orlando's proposal, although he insisted he wanted his deputies to retain discretion to make arrests rather than write a ticket.

Jacobs said she will recommend a closer examination by the Orange County Public Safety Coordinating Council, which includes representatives from law enforcement, corrections, the judiciary and prosecutors.

The mayor and the sheriff both expressed concern about confusion if Orlando makes a change and the county does not.  Both envisioned a scenario where a resident of Orlando could be issued a ticket while a nearby neighbor who lived in the county could get arrested for possessing the same small amount of marijuana.

Orange Commissioner Pete Clarke said he was willing to discuss the idea but he wanted a study, too.

"It's kind of a sign of the times.  Attitudes are changing," he said.  "The question I have in my mind is: Is the risk worth it?"

Orange Commissioner Victoria Siplin said she was concerned that citizens may be confused.

"It's still going to be illegal to possess marijuana in the state of Florida and people will still be arrested for it," she said.

Of the 43,000 Orange County Jail bookings last year, about 6,700 were related to drug possession and, of those, only a few hundred were for misdemeanor marijuana possession, Demings said.  "In the big scheme of things, it's going to be statistically insignificant," he said.

Earlier this week, Orlando Police Chief John Mina, who supports the change, shared the proposed ordinance by email with Demings, UCF Police Chief Richard Beary and other Orange police chiefs.

University of Central Florida police would not be bound by any changes in Orlando or Orange County code as they follow state statutes, Beary said.

But campus police typically do not make arrests in cases that involve small amounts of marijuana unless there are other underlying crimes or special circumstances, he said.  They usually issue a referral to the Office of Student Conduct, where an offender could face a range of punishments.

Most often, the student is required to complete a drug and alcohol awareness class that outlines health risks.

Campus police also may issue an offender a summons to appear in county court.

Meanwhile, Apopka police want to wait and see, police spokesman Andrew Parkinson said.

And Steve McCosker, interim deputy chief for Ocoee police, said, "We're watching what happens with the bigger departments."

Several South Florida governments, notably Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, enacted similar policies.  Volusia County and the city of Tampa adopted nearly identical ordinances last month.

But not everyone agrees with the trend to decriminalize marijuana.

David Siegel, the Orlando timeshare mogul who recently accompanied Jacobs to a congressional hearing about heroin and opioid abuse, said relaxing marijuana laws would cost lives and cause more health problems in the long run.

"I'm going to tell you something: marijuana is the starter drug," Siegel said during an interview in which he discussed the overdose death of his 18-year-old daughter, Victoria.  "Marijuana is the gateway to all the problems.  I hear people arguing otherwise all the time.  I'll stand up and debate them."