You may have heard that Mississippi decriminalized marijuana, and you may be wondering what that means for the use of marijuana products moving forward. After all, many states have now turned to legalization. Voters have authorized the use of both recreational and medical marijuana. Marijuana is simply controlled like alcohol in these states, meaning that people can typically buy it from approved retailers if they are at least 21 years old.
As these laws sweep across the United States, it’s getting more and more complex for people to keep track of where marijuana is legal and where it has not yet been legalized. So where does Mississippi stand?
Medical marijuana is legal
Residents of Mississippi voted for medical marijuana back in 2020. This was a significant change to the law, in authorizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes with a proper license. That said, many other states have already had medical marijuana laws for decades, so this is not the same as what’s been going on in places like Illinois or Colorado.
When it comes to recreational marijuana, Mississippi has decriminalized the first offense for having 30g or less. If someone has this in their possession, they will not have a criminal record and they will not be incarcerated; they do have to pay a fine of $250. However, for a second offense or a case where someone has more than 30g of marijuana, then there will be a set period of incarceration to go along with a fine.
So, while this is “decriminalization” in some senses, it is not the same as the widespread legalization of recreational products. Those who are facing drug charges need to know how the laws have been changing and what defense options they have.
