New Jersey is allowing police to use marijuana off duty. Is that a mistake?

New Jersey’s decision to allow recreational cannabis has opened a floodgate of questions about what the new law means in the Garden State.

For instance, should people working in positions of public safety — such as police officers — be allowed to use marijuana in their free time? Current law permits this, but some state lawmakers and city mayors are objecting.

We asked two members of the New Jersey police force to weigh in: Should New Jersey police be allowed to smoke marijuana off duty?

By Michael Bollentin

The day has finally arrived: Responsible, recreational use of marijuana by adults is legal in New Jersey. Unlike many other states who have legalized marijuana, we allow our police officers to responsibly use marijuana while off duty.

As a retired police officer myself, I applaud this decision by lawmakers to uphold officers’ freedoms in a way that does not harm public safety. Allowing off-duty officers to use cannabis is the right thing to do.

Yet there is a call for New Jersey legislators to amend legalization to exclude certain individuals in “safety-sensitive” professions from their right to responsibly use cannabis. To call for an amendment to preclude police and others, based on their occupation, from responsible use on their own time is absurd and sanctimonious — especially if the same restrictions do not apply to the use of alcohol. A double standard should not exist.

Like alcohol, the effects of marijuana are temporary — not to mention marijuana lacks a hangover — and officers are not prohibited from drinking while off duty. Personal time is personal time, and no department should take that away from their officers.

» READ MORE: Are marijuana edibles legal in New Jersey? State recreational weed law says no. Here’s why.

Furthermore, there are mental health benefits to using marijuana, and these should be as open to our police officers as they are to the public.

Policing is one of the most stressful jobs in the country, and repeated exposure to stress can leave them more prone to injury. Further, the stress and anxiety of their jobs put officers at a greater risk of high blood pressure, insomnia, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and suicide. Some officers suffer from anxiety or PTSD, which can have a catastrophic effect on officers and their families, and influence how they treat community members.

Research suggests that cannabis can help with symptoms of stress and anxiety. Why would we deprive officers of that?

Instead of an outright ban, departments should set guidelines for use, just as they do with alcohol. For instance, officers can’t drink alcohol within four hours of reporting for duty, and can’t drink while in uniform, even if they are off duty. These are reasonable enforcement standards that allow officers to enjoy alcohol in their downtime without compromising their job performance.

“Instead of an outright ban, departments should set guidelines for use, just as they do with alcohol.”

These exact rules may not work for marijuana, which has different effects on the body than alcohol. But we can take the same commonsense approach to develop guidelines for use of marijuana by off-duty cops, which will ensure that officers can enjoy it, if they want, without impairing their job performance.

With New Jersey already facing a police hiring crisis, we should be doing everything we can to hire good, qualified people. Barring officers from using marijuana while off duty may eliminate potential good candidates.

Being a police officer is an unforgiving job, but the men and women of law enforcement have chosen to dedicate their lives in service of their communities, no matter the hardships. Supporting them and their right to make their own safe, responsible choices is vital for their health and for the jobs they do.

Michael Bollentin was a patrol officer in West Windsor Township for 12 years and an EMS for 30 years. He is a speaker with the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, a nonprofit group of police, prosecutors, judges, and other criminal justice officials who want to improve the criminal justice system.

By John Zebrowski

According to the new law that has made recreational marijuana legal in New Jersey, police officers are permitted to use it while off duty.

That is a mistake.

Every state has professions considered to be “safety-sensitive.” They are the workers who help keep everybody safe. They hold such jobs as train operators, air traffic controllers, and those working on utility pipelines. That group also includes police officers.

Many states that approved the use of recreational cannabis have exclusions for those employed in safety-sensitive professions, which prohibit people occupying these essential positions in society from using marijuana, even in their free time. This makes total sense: these individuals have crucial jobs that society depends upon, and they should be held to a higher standard.

So I’m worried about the state of the law in New Jersey. As it stands, police officers and other “safety-sensitive” employees here can use recreational cannabis during their off-duty hours and then report to work.

I believe the state legislature should immediately adopt an amendment to prohibit people occupying safety-sensitive occupations ― including off-duty police officers — from using recreational cannabis at any point.

There is strong support for this position. Eight members of the state legislature sent a letter Tuesday to the acting attorney general, questioning how New Jersey police officers could use cannabis and carry a firearm when such an action is illegal on the federal level. We have seen letters from attorneys representing police officers, urging individuals to not use cannabis off duty.

» READ MORE: See images from New Jersey's first day of recreational marijuana sales

And recently, Gov. Phil Murphy said he was open to the idea of changing the law to ban police officers from using marijuana off duty.

Police executives need to assure the public that their officers are not working while cannabis is metabolizing in their system.

Keep in mind, cannabis can exist in the body for weeks. If an officer using cannabis during off-hours were to be drug tested on the job following a particular incident, the substance would appear in his or her system. This opens up the department to enormous liability, as it would then be the responsibility of the police to “prove” the officer was not impaired.

“If an officer using cannabis during off-hours were to be drug tested on the job following a particular incident, the substance would appear in his or her system.”

The concern is so significant that local elected officials are taking the law into their own hands. Although it’s presently legal for cops to use marijuana when off duty, the mayor of Jersey City tweeted that rule doesn’t apply to his city’s roughly 1,000 officers. And he’s not the only one.

In anticipation of the legalized sale of marijuana in New Jersey, the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police has been meeting with state legislators to discuss this pressing issue. We have repeatedly called for an exception for law enforcement and other safety-sensitive professions. It’s reassuring to see that many lawmakers agree with our position.

Our association’s square focus is the need to maintain the public trust.

In an emergency, people need to trust the police officers who show up. Those officers must be clear-headed and not under any influence. Amendments that exempt police officers and other employees charged with public safety will help keep that trust and avoid potential liability.

John Zebrowski is the chief of police in Sayreville and president of the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police.