Jersey City could be fined tens of thousands of dollars in coming weeks if it does not rehire two police officers who were fired for using cannabis while off duty.
The city was ordered by the state Civil Service Commission in July to rehire the officers within a month, a deadline that expires at the end of this week. If the city does not rehire the officers by then, it faces fines of $100 a day for each officer, up to a maximum of $20,000.
State Attorney General Matt Platkin has previously said that police officers in New Jersey are allowed to use legal cannabis while they are off duty. But Jersey City officials have argued that such use would still violate federal law, which bans people who use cannabis from owning guns.
