Grant County, WI Chapter 173 Marijuana

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of Grant County 8-19-2003 by Ord. No. 46. Amendments noted where applicable.]

§ 173-1 Prohibitions against possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

[Amended 12-16-2014]

A. No person shall possess 25 grams or less of marijuana. The term "marijuana" means all parts of the plants of the genus Cannabis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin, including tetrahydrocannabinols. The term "marijuana" does include the mature stalks if mixed with other parts of the plant but does not include fiber produced from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted therefrom), fiber, oil or cake or the sterilized seed of the plant which is incapable of germination. This chapter does not apply to the possession of marijuana by a person who obtains the marijuana directly from or pursuant to a valid prescription or order of a licensed medical practitioner (as defined in Ch. 961, Wis. Stats.) who is acting in the course of his or her professional practice or unless the person is otherwise authorized by Ch. 961, Wis. Stats., to possess the marijuana. Furthermore, no person shall possess any THC analog substance.

B. If a person is found to be in possession of more than 25 grams of marijuana, said person is subject to criminal prosecution for such possession and shall not be prosecuted under this chapter. If a person is found to be in possession of any amount of marijuana following a conviction for possession of marijuana in this state, said person is subject to criminal prosecution for such possession and shall not be prosecuted under this chapter.

C. No person may use, or possess with intent to use, drug paraphernalia to plant, propagate, cultivate, grow, harvest, manufacture, compound, convert, produce, process, prepare, test, analyze, pack, repack, store, contain, conceal, inject, ingest, inhale, or otherwise introduce into the human body a controlled substance or controlled substance analog in violation of this section. The term "drug paraphernalia" means all equipment, products, and materials of any kind which are used, intended for use, or designed for use, in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, selling, distributing, delivering, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packing, repacking, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise.

§ 173-2 Applicability.

[Amended 12-16-2014]

This chapter shall apply to the possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia in Grant County. This chapter shall not apply in any municipality that has enacted an ordinance prohibiting the possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

§ 173-3 Citations.

Any person found violating any of the provisions of § 173-1 of this chapter may be issued a citation by any law enforcement officer of Grant County, Wisconsin. Any citation shall provide for the following:

A. The name and address of the alleged violator.

B. The factual allegations describing the alleged violation.

C. The time and place of the offense.

D. The section of the ordinance violated.

E. A designation of the offense in such manner that can be readily understood by a person making a reasonable effort to do so.

F. The time at which the alleged violator may appear in court.

G. A statement which in essence informs the alleged violator that:

(1) The alleged violator may make a cash deposit of a specified amount to be mailed to a specified official within a specified time;

(2) If the alleged violator makes such a deposit, he or she need not appear in court unless subsequently summoned.

(3) If the alleged violator makes a cash deposit and does not appear in court, he or she either will be deemed to have tendered a plea of no contest and submitted to a forfeiture, a penalty assessment imposed by § 757.05, Wis. Stats., a jail assessment imposed by § 302.46(1), Wis. Stats., a justice information fee, a court support services fee, court costs, and a crime laboratories and drug law enforcement assessment imposed by § 165.755, Wis. Stats., not to exceed the amount of the deposit or will be summoned into court to answer the complaint if the court does not accept the plea of no contest.

(4) If the alleged violator does not make a cash deposit and does not appear in court at the time specified, the court may issue a summons or a warrant for the defendant's arrest or consider the nonappearance to be a plea of no contest and enter judgment, or Grant County may commence an action against the alleged violator to collect the forfeiture, the penalty assessment, the jail assessment, the court support service fee, court costs, the justice information fee, and the crime laboratories and drug law enforcement assessment.

(5) If the court finds that the violation involves an ordinance that prohibits conduct that is the same as or similar to conduct prohibited by state statute punishable by fine or imprisonment or both, and that the violation resulted in damage to the property of or physical injury to a person other than the alleged violator, the court may summon the alleged violator into court to determine if restitution shall be ordered under § 800.093, Wis. Stats.

H. A direction that if the alleged violator elects to make a cash deposit, the alleged violator shall sign an appropriate statement which accompanies the citation to indicate that he or she read the statement required under Subsection G and shall send the signed statement with the cash deposit.

I. Such other information as may be deemed necessary.

§ 173-4 Enforcement.

The District Attorney's Office is authorized to handle the prosecution of any citation action filed for violation of this chapter.

§ 173-5 Violations and penalties.

[Amended 12-17-2013 by Ord. No. 66]

Any person found to be in violation of this chapter shall forfeit the sum of not greater than $1,000 plus statutory costs. If the violator is between the ages of 14 and 17, the forfeiture shall not exceed $50 plus statutory costs. If the violator is less than 14 years of age, the forfeiture shall not exceed $50.

§ 173-6 Cash deposit.

[Amended 12-18-2012 by Ord. No. 64]

A. The cash deposit which can be posted for a violation of § 173-1 of this chapter shall not exceed $1,000 for a forfeiture plus statutory costs, including but not limited to the jail assessment, the penalty assessment, the crime laboratories and drug assessment, court costs, the court support service fees and the justice information fee.

[Amended 12-17-2013 by Ord. No. 66]

B. The cash deposit which can be posted for a violation of § 173-1 of this chapter for a violator who is under 14 years of age is $50.

C. The cash deposit which can be posted for a violation of § 173-1 of this chapter for a violator who is over 14 years of age but under 17 years of age is $50 for a forfeiture plus statutory costs, including but not limited to the jail assessment, the penalty assessment, the crime laboratories and drug assessment, court costs, the court support services fee, and the justice information fee.

D. Cash deposits, costs, and assessments shall be paid to the Grant County Clerk of Circuit Court in Lancaster, Wisconsin. The Clerk of Circuit Court for Grant County shall issue receipts for cash deposits, costs, and assessments paid under this chapter.