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Introduced by Council Member Dennis:

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ORDINANCE 2020-620

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AN ORDINANCE CREATING A NEW PART 1 (POSSESSION

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OF

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PARAPHERNALIA), CHAPTER 606 (DRUGS), ORDINANCE

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CODE, TO CREATE A CIVIL CITATION WITHIN THE CITY

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OF JACKSONVILLE ORDINANCE CODE FOR POSSESSION OF

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20 GRAMS OR LESS OF CANNABIS OR PARAPHERNALIA;

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AMENDING SECTION 609.109 (APPLICABLE CHAPTERS

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AND

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CITATIONS), ORDINANCE CODE, TO ESTABLISH NEW

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CLASS FINES IN SCHEDULE “A” FOR VIOLATIONS OF

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PART 1 (POSSESSION OF TWENTY GRAMS OR LESS OF

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CANNABIS OR PARAPHERNALIA), CHAPTER 606 (DRUGS),

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ORDINANCE

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PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

TWENTY

GRAMS

PARTS),

OR

CHAPTER

CODE;

LESS

609

PROVIDING

OF

(CODE

FOR

CANNABIS

OR

ENFORCEMENT

SEVERABILITY;

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BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the City of Jacksonville:

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Section 1.

Creating a New Part 1 (Possession of Twenty

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Grams or Less of Cannabis or Paraphernalia), Chapter 606 (Drugs),

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Ordinance Code. A new Part 1 (Possession of Twenty Grams or Less of

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Cannabis or Paraphernalia), Chapter 606 (Drugs), Ordinance Code, is

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hereby created to read as follows:

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CHAPTER 606. DRUGS
PART 1.

POSSESSION OF TWENTY GRAMS OR LESS OF CANNABIS OR
PARAPHERNALIA

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Sec. 606.101. - Applicability. This part shall be applicable

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within the City of Jacksonville. Nothing herein provided is intended

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to create a civil citation for the legal possession of cannabis

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(marijuana) for the medical use as defined and permitted by Section

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29 of the Florida Constitution or as otherwise permitted by Florida

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law.

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Sec. 606.102. - Definitions.

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As

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intended:

used

in

this

part, unless some other

meaning

is plainly

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Cannabis means all parts of any plant of the genus Cannabis,

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whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from

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any

part

of

the

plant;

and

every

compound,

manufacture,

salt,

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derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant or its seeds or

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resin.

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in Section 381.986, Florida Statutes, if manufactured, possessed,

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sold, purchased, delivered, distributed, or dispensed, in conformance

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with Section 381.986, Florida Statutes; “hemp” as defined in Section

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581.217, Florida Statutes, or “industrial hemp” as defined in Section

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1004.4473, Florida Statutes.

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Law

This term does not include: "low-THC cannabis," as defined

Enforcement

Officer

means

a

member

of

the

Jacksonville

Sheriff’s Office (JSO).

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Paraphernalia means any object used, intended for use, or designed

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for use, in ingesting, inhaling, smoking, or otherwise introducing

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cannabis into the human body.

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Sec.606.103. – Violations.
(a)

Any person, 18 years old or older, who possesses 20 grams or

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less

of

cannabis

as

defined

herein

except

as

otherwise

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authorized by law commits a violation of this Part.

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(b) Any person, 18 years old or older, who possesses paraphernalia

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as defined herein except as otherwise authorized by law

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commits a violation of this Part.

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(c) For purposes of this section, a person charged with possession

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of cannabis under subsection (a) may not be charged with

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possession of paraphernalia under subsection (b) arising out
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of the same incident.
Sec. 606.104. – Enforcement and Penalties.
(a)

This Part is authorized by Chapter 162, Florida Statutes,

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and,

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requirements of Chapter 609, Ordinance Code.

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(b)

other

than

as

stated

herein,

is

subject

to

the

Any law enforcement officer within the City of Jacksonville

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shall have the discretion to issue a civil citation for a

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violation of this Part, in lieu of arrest for misdemeanor

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marijuana possession, if the law enforcement officer has

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reasonable cause to believe that the person violated this

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Part.

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(c)

Civil

citations

shall

be

issued

utilizing

the

process

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established in Chapter 609, Ordinance Code. A person who is

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issued a

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assessed a civil penalty as follows:

civil citation pursuant to

this Part shall be

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(i) First violation- Class A Offense

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(ii) Second violation- Class B Offense

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(iii) Third violation- Class C Offense

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(d)

Alternatively, in lieu of the civil penalty for the First

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violation, a person may opt to complete community service of

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not less than ten (10) hours. Compliance with this subsection

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must be established by the filing of an affidavit by the

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person issued the civil citation and must be completed within

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thirty (30) days of issuance of the

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received by the law enforcement agency issuing the civil

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citation.

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administratively established by the law enforcement agency

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and

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violator when a civil citation is issued.

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(e)

The

included

process

within

the

for

such

materials

civil citation

procedure

given

to

the

will

and

be

alleged

Violation of this Part is deemed to be an irreparable or
irreversible violation.
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(f)

No citation shall be issued for a violation of this Part if

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the recipient, in connection with a previous citation issued

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under this Part, has failed to pay the required penalty,

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complete the community service component in (d) above, or

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challenged the previously issued citation in county court

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pursuant to Chapter 609, Ordinance Code.

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(g)

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No person may receive more than three civil citations pursuant
to this Part.

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Sec. 606.105. – Fine Revenue.

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Upon receipt of revenue from the payment of the civil fines

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herein imposed, the proceeds from the civil fines shall be deposited

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into the Duval County Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Trust Fund as

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described in Section 111.230, Ordinance Code, to be used to support

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and enhance substance abuse services for Duval County residents.

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Sec. 606.106- Annual reporting by JSO.

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The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office shall submit an annual written

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report on or before July 1 of each year to the City Council which

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shall include, but is not limited to the following: i) the number of

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all arrests, criminal citations or civil citations, property seizures

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and prosecutions for marijuana offenses in the City of Jacksonville;

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ii)

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citations

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infraction, misdemeanor or felony; iii) the JSO Zone in which the

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arrest or criminal or civil citation was made; and iv) the estimated

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time and money spent by JSO on law enforcement and punishment for

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marijuana offices for that period of time. JSO should work in concert

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with the State Attorney’s Office to include information that the

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State Attorney’s Office may have regarding these matters and should

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include costs that the State Attorney’s Office incurs related to

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adjudication of such claims within the written report.

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the

breakdown
by

Section 2.

of

race,

all

marijuana

arrests,

criminal

or

civil

age,

specific

charge,

classification

of

Amending Section 609.109 (Applicable Chapters
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and Parts), Ordinance Code. Section 609.109 (Applicable Chapters and

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Parts), Chapter 609 (Code Enforcement Citations), Chapter 609 (Code

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Enforcement Citations), Ordinance Code, is hereby amended to read as

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follows:

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CHAPTER 609. CODE ENFORCEMENT CITATIONS.

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*

*

*

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Sec. 609.109.

Applicable Chapters and Parts.

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The following provisions of the Ordinance Code are subject to

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enforcement by citation. Where a Chapter or a Part of a Chapter of

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the Code is referenced, then all Sections within that Chapter or Part

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are subject to enforcement by citation.

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SCHEDULE “A”

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CODE

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PROVISION*

DESCRIPTION

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*

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Chapter 606

*

CLASS**

*

Drugs

A, B & C

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*

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Section 3.

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*

Severability. The provisions of this Ordinance,

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including sections and subsections within the Ordinance, are intended

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to

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unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, such provision

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shall be severed and the remainder shall continue in full force and

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effect the Ordinance being deemed amended to the least degree legally

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permissible.

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be

severable

Section 4.

and

if

any

provision

Effective Date.

is

declared

invalid

or

This ordinance shall become

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effective upon signature by the Mayor or upon becoming effective

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without the Mayor’s signature.

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Form Approved:

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/s/ Paige H. Johnston

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Office of General Counsel

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Legislation Prepared by: Paige H. Johnston

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GC-#1388124-v1-Dennis_-_Cannabis_Civil_Violation_.docx

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