Kansas City Strips Marijuana Possession From Its City Code

Kansas City will no longer punish people for marijuana possession, effectively decriminalizing it throughout much of the city.

The Kansas City Star reports that city council members voted Thursday to strip the crime from the city code. Users can still be charged for possession by county prosecutors who still pursue those cases.

In Jackson County, prosecutor Jean Peters Baker had already pledged to stop charging most people for possession after local voters decided overwhelmingly in 2017 to eliminate jail time for possession.

But in parts of Kansas City that lie in Clay, Platte and Cass counties, people could still face state possession charges.