Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has directed the state’s high school athletic association to inform member schools about a new marijuana enforcement law. Landry sent this directive to the executive director of the Louisiana High School Athletic Association.
The governor asked the organization to make its member schools aware of the change immediately. He instructed them to carry this information to student-athletes, coaches, event staff, and fans. The timing coincides with the start of fall sports seasons across the state.
Landry emphasized that the new rules apply to any person, not just students. He noted that the enhanced penalty zone extends two thousand feet past the property line. This area covers streets, sidewalks, bus stops, parks, and nearby homes.
The law threatens individuals with up to one year in jail for smoking marijuana within the designated zone. This zone includes any property used for school purposes by any school. It also applies to activity occurring on a school bus.
The governor stated that a parent, alumnus, or spectator who smokes or vapes marijuana in a stadium parking lot faces the same penalty as a student. He added that the same analysis applies to contests played away from a member school’s own campus whenever the host site is a school or sits within two thousand feet of one.
Landry warned that the consequences of a marijuana arrest at a school sports game do not stop at the courthouse. A student arrested for a felony-grade offense carries a criminal record. Questions about eligibility and college recruitment follow, all for conduct that was a citable offense last spring.
Landry provided a flyer that he wants schools to display about the new penalties. He asked them to post it where students and spectators gather at athletic facilities. This includes gymnasiums, field houses, locker rooms, concession areas, and stadium and gate entrances.
The governor stated that the people who will handle these incidents should be briefed. He said, “Athletic directors, coaches, game administrators, event security, gate and ticket staff, bus operators, contest officials, and school resource officers assigned to events should understand the new penalty before they encounter it, because an arrest for conduct that was a citable offense last spring now exposes a student or a spectator to a felony sentence.”
Rep. Gabe Firment, who sponsored the bill, said that it strengthens enforcement of Louisiana drug-free school zone laws. He noted that the bill establishes a clear and consistent penalty of up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine.
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