NYC mayor says he won’t crack down on illegal weed sales and urges Big Apple to light up and enjoy

Through Maureen Meihan

New York, New York, so beautiful they’ve named it twice, received a message from its mayor telling Big Apple residents to feel free to buy, sell, and consume weed wherever they go want.

Mayor Eric Adams vowed not to crack down “hardline” on those who illegally sell marijuana in the city. Now that recreational cannabis is legal, though sales won’t begin until later in the year, the mayor said he sees no need to clamp down on sales in the meantime.

“There has to be a system that isn’t clumsy, but goes into the store and tells them, ‘Look, you can’t do this,’ and warn them,” Adams told reporters at a cannabis industry show at the Javits Center in Manhattan .

Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

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Rather than fine or arrest weed sellers, Adams wants the city to encourage illegal (aka “legacy” sellers) to join the legal market.

If someone refuses to participate in the program after a warning, “some form” of enforcement may be warranted, the mayor said.

“If they refuse to play by the rules, you need to come back and take some form of enforcement action, like B. A subpoena, like, you know, to talk about their ability to sell alcohol,” said Adams, a former police officer who has said he would reintroduce NYC’s controversial stop-and-frisk policy , despite being declared unconstitutional.

In 1999, Blacks and Latinos made up 50 percent of New York’s population but made up 84 percent of the city’s stops, many allegedly on suspicion of cannabis possession.

Was the mayor serious?

Adams joked at last week’s NYC Cannabis World Congress and Business event that he was “a little disappointed” that there wasn’t a “nice smell of weed” in the room and encouraged attendees to get high.

RELATED: New York’s illicit cannabis market is booming, but do you know why?

Serious? All forms of smoking indoors and most outdoors have been banned in NYC since 2002, preceded by the Smoke-Free Air Act of 1988.

“Have fun, light up, but most importantly, spend some money. We want your money,” he said. He was undoubtedly serious about the latter.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and has been republished with permission.