In a ruling on July 14, the Constitutional Court of Georgia recognized as unconstitutional the norms of the Criminal Code of Georgia that envisage punishment for the usage and cultivation of marijuana of amounts up to 63.73 grams, 150.72 grams and 265.49 grams for the purposes of growing.
The plaintiffs who brought the case to the Constitutional Court, Jambul Gvianidze, Davit Khomeriki, and Lasha Gagishvili, say that the regulations did not distinguish levels of harm to society, thereby not providing specific punishment per offense.
Punishment for drug possession entails imprisonment both for personal use of substances and for dealing, for example. During the case ruling, Parliament of Georgia explained its position that growing marijuana creates the danger of selling, and therefore there is strong punishment in order to isolate dealers and protect the health of citizens.
In the latest ruling, the Constitutional Court found that possession of 265.49 grams of marijuana entails a risk of dealing, and that imprisonment is an appropriate punishment in order to protect the health of others.
However, based on a comparison of punishments for other grave crimes envisaged by the Criminal Law of Georgia, the Court concluded that imprisonment from six to twelve years for possession of 265.49 grams of marijuana to be a clearly disproportionate punishment.
The court also found that possession and growing “small amounts of marijuana,” up to 63.73 grams and 150.72 grams, did not “pose a risk of dealing,” and that “the use of imprisonment as punishment… is disproportionate,” the Constitutional Court said in a statement.
"Based on the above arguments, the disputed norms have been recognized as unconstitutional by the court (Article 17, paragraph 2 of the Constitution of Georgia),” the statement reads.