St. Louis Could Decriminalize Marijuana; Small Amounts of Drug Wouldn't Be Prosecuted

Sometimes Mayor Slay (and/or his press team) rocks. Take, for instance, the "mini-poll" on marijuana posted yesterday afternoon on his personal website entitled "A Civil Conversation."

First, consider the graphic he/his people chose to illustrate the whole thing:

But it gets better. Slay, in his blog, also drops the bomb that the Board of Alderman may soon consider a measure to "make the possession of a small amount of marijuana a summary offense (a relatively minor criminal charge) or even decriminalize it," he follows it up with a few sly stoner jokes, a jab at Philadelphia sports fans and several polls to gauge the public's opinions on progressive pot laws.

So when will weed be decriminalized in St. Louis and how's it going to happen?

Slay writes that "a member of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen" is considering a proposal (not yet a Board Bill) aimed at "freeing up the court dockets of the most minor of drug cases in the City of St. Louis, emptying out jail cells now holding some drug offenders awaiting jury trials, and refocusing the attention of law enforcers on more serious drug offenses."

He doesn't say who the alderman is or even reveal if it's a he or a she. [Update: We've got a few guesses] He also points out that any sort of changes to local drug laws need to be approved by the circuit attorney and the city counselor and enforced by the police.

Judging from the responses to the poll, an overhaul of the city's pot policies would be enormously popular.

So far, 85 percent of respondents support "the complete legalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use by adults," 91 percent are in favor of medical marijuana, and a whopping 94 percent say reefer, "should be treated as a civil summary offense in St. Louis, like public intoxication."

Click here to participate in the Mayor's pot poll.