BUFFALO, N.Y. — During the annual State of the City Address on Friday, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown announced that he has directed Buffalo Police to "cease enforcement of low-level marijuana offenses."

In doing so, Buffalo becomes the latest in a growing number of American cities where police have been told to look the other way when they encounter adults possessing, or using a small amount of marijuana.

The announcement garnered applause from the nearly 2,000 who had gathered at the Buffalo Convention Center to listen to the mayor's speech.

"With the recreational use of marijuana being made legal potentially in the near future in the state of New York we need to adjust how we police," Brown told 2 on Your Side's Dave McKinley following the speech.

When asked why he did not wait until that actually happened before he told police to stop enforcing an existing law, Brown replied, "we're concerned about criminalizing people potentially ahead of a process that will decriminalize marijuana."