Cincinnati City Council rejects David Mann's attempt to add age limit to marijuana ordinance

CINCINNATI — Since Cincinnati City Council last week voted to decriminalize the possession of marijuana, there’s been some pushback because there’s no age limit preventing kids from having it.

Councilmember David Mann tried to address that again Wednesday with a second version of the ordinance, but it didn’t pass.

“The ordinance we passed last week is a signal to youngsters that, ’Hey, marijuana is OK,' ” Mann said.

Mann's version would have set an age limit of 18 and lowered the amount of pot someone could possess freely from 100 grams (3.53 ounces) to 28 grams (1 ounce).

“I think we’re making a mistake, but maybe it’ll be OK,” Mann said. “I hope so.”

Councilmember Greg Landsman said councilmembers are still working to address the age limit.

“We appreciate the fact that young people shouldn’t have it,” said Landsman, who voted for the ordinance that passed last week.

“Whether that’s 21 or 18, what is the right approach because we want to make sure young people don’t have access to it, but we also want to make sure we aren’t criminalizing,” Landsman said.

Landsman said he hopes Council has some potential solutions before the summer break. But Mann is doubtful. The law takes effect in three weeks.

“I’m skeptical, but I’m prepared to be surprised,” Mann said.

Councilmembers are also working to expunge the records of people who may have been cited prior to the new ordinance.