State's Public Colleges Weigh Pot Policies

With a change in Connecticut's marijuana laws, school reconsider policies.

Someone caught smoking pot on the UConn campus may soon not require a call to the cops.

Three weeks after Governor Dannel Malloy signed into law a measure decriminalizing marijuana use, state universities, including UConn, are examining their own policies.

As of July 1, anyone in Connecticut caught with less than a half-ounce of marijuana will receive a $150 fine, equivalent to a parking ticket.

UConn, and other state schools have set up panels to discuss changing policies in how they deal with pot offenses on campus. They are weighing whether it now makes more sense to handle such cases in-house with campus security officers instead of calling police.

"On the one hand, some change in campus policy may be appropriate in light of the changes in state law," UConn spokesperson Michael Kirk said. On the other hand, marijuana is still illegal."

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