The NJ Police Chief Magazine Volume 26, Number 2 | Page 4

The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | October 2019
FROM THE DESK OF THE PRESIDENT
CHIEF CHRISTOPHER M. LEUSNER
MIDDLE TOWNSHIP PD
We are off to a great start after our summer break. The attendance at our September
and October Chiefs Briefings were outstanding. The Board of Officers has been working
hard on a number of issues such as the legalization of marijuana, changing Fact
Sheet #86 to remove the ban on "prearranged employment" and break in service for post
-retirement employment, as well as serving on various committees convened by the
Attorney General’s Office.
NJSACOP 2 nd Vice President Chief John Zebrowski, myself, and Executive Director Mitch
Sklar traveled to Toronto in September to see for ourselves the impact of legalization of
marijuana in Canada. We learned from our colleagues at the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police that, while
the "sky has not fallen," there is still a strong black market, that there is still not a scientifically accepted method to
test for THC in impaired driving cases, that consumption amongst youth has increased, and that there is a strong
demand for high THC level products. The edibles and concentrates have not hit the market yet in Canada; the next
phase of legalization will include these products (which are scheduled to hit shelves the by the end of the year). We
also visited a safe injection site, one of four located in Toronto. I will save my thoughts on that topic for a future
article.
My biggest concern with the legalization of marijuana in our state is the amount of THC in these products, which is
significantly higher than the “weed” floating around in high school and college as we knew it. We do not know what
the short term impacts will be in our communities and we certainly do not know the long term impacts of the
consumption of high amounts of THC products will be over the next ten or twenty years. State Senator Rice has a
decriminalization bill that warrants some serious consideration. I see a lot of value in issuing a summons on-site as
opposed to a custodial arrest for simple possession of marijuana. I know opponents to decriminalization will say it
leaves the black market, but it is clearly alive and well in Canada and other states that have legalized marijuana. I
echo the comments of our 2 nd Vice President, John Zebrowski - let’s wait and see the impacts from Canada
and several US states before rushing to legalizing it here in New Jersey.
Be Safe,
Christopher M. Leusner
President, NJSACOP
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