Introduction
On October 7, 2022, President Joe Biden grew to become the primary POTUS to challenge mass pardons to these with low-level, federal marijuana possession convictions. In a ready assertion, the President said: “Sending folks to jail for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated folks for conduct that many states now not prohibit. Prison information for marijuana possession have additionally imposed useless limitations to employment, housing, and academic alternatives.”
To “proper these wrongs,” POTUS declared that every one US residents with a legal document for the “federal offense of possession of marijuana” would obtain a Presidential pardon. Based on an analysis by the U.S. Sentencing Fee of federal arrest information relationship again to 1992, the President’s directive gives forgiveness to an estimated 6,557 residents.
Whereas the President’s historic motion garnered worldwide consideration, he isn’t the one elected official to challenge mass pardons to these with previous marijuana convictions. Governors and different elected officers in a number of states have taken comparable actions lately.
State-level Pardons
In June 2018, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak, in coordination with the state Board of Pardons, initiated efforts to challenge blanket pardons to an estimated 15,000 people beforehand convicted of offenses involving the possession of as much as one ounce of hashish.
In January 2019, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee moved to grant pardons to an estimated 3,500 people with previous legal misdemeanor marijuana-related convictions.
In December 2019, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued 11,017 pardons to these with low-level marijuana convictions.
In January 2020, Kansas Metropolis Mayor Quinton Lucas introduced his intention to pardon some 8,000 city residents with minor marijuana convictions.
In January 2022, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis granted greater than 1,300 pardons to these beforehand convicted for actions involving the possession of as much as two ounces of marijuana.
In April 2022, the mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, introduced that he had pardoned over 15,000 metropolis residents with low-level marijuana convictions. Mayor Randall Woodfin additional introduced that he would proceed issuing pardons to anybody within the metropolis convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession prices in municipal court docket. “I did it as a result of it’s the precise factor to do,” he mentioned. Later within the 12 months, whereas testifying earlier than Congress in November, the Mayor indicated that he had granted pardon aid to some 23,000 residents with hashish convictions on their information.
In October 2022, Pennsylvania’s Governor announced that the Board of Pardons would start accepting functions for these looking for to have their marijuana possession convictions expunged. Over 200 Pennsylvania finally acquired pardons below this system. The Governor individually issued one other 400 estimated pardons to these with marijuana-related convictions.
In November 2022, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown introduced her intent to pardon over 45,000 Oregonians with low-level hashish convictions.
Different state Governors, together with North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, have additionally issued marijuana-specific pardons throughout their tenures.
State-Stage Expungements
Whereas pardons present a stage of forgiveness for previous crimes, these will not be the identical as expungements – which seal previous convictions from public view. To facilitate the latter, lawmakers in lots of states lately have enacted legal guidelines offering specific pathways to expunge the information of these with low-level marijuana convictions. In some circumstances, these eligible for expungement aid will not be required to take any motion. As an alternative, state officers routinely evaluate previous information and notify those that meet the state’s standards for expungement. In different circumstances, state regulation requires these looking for to have their information expunged to petition the courts to be able to have their information reviewed and vacated.
Predictably, states which have automated the evaluate and expungement course of have seen an enormous uptick within the processing of marijuana-related expungements.
For example, California officers have cleared an estimated 200,000 marijuana-related convictions. Governor Gavin Newsom signed further laws in 2022 increasing the pool of previous offenders who can be offered expungement aid. The brand new regulation is predicted to supply aid to an extra 34,000 Californians.
In Illinois, state officers in 2020 introduced that that they had reviewed and expunged the information of an estimated 500,000 residents with low-level cannabis-related legal information. As well as, lawmakers in 2022 approved legislation amending state regulation in order that the courts can now not deny petitioners’ requests to have their legal information expunged solely due to a marijuana drug check failure.
In New Jersey, representatives with the state Judiciary introduced in 2021 that that they had both dismissed or vacated an estimated 362,000 marijuana circumstances and/or convictions. Officers estimated that one other 150,000 would even be eligible for future expungement aid.
Additionally, in 2021, officers with the New York State Workplace of Hashish Administration introduced that that they had sealed nearly 200,000 marijuana-related legal convictions and have been within the strategy of expunging a number of hundred thousand extra. For many years, New York State — and New York Metropolis particularly — led the nation within the legal prosecution of low-level marijuana offenders.
In Louisiana, metropolis officers in New Orleans enacted laws clearing the legal information of anybody convicted since 2010 of a low-level marijuana possession offense. About 10,000 residents have been anticipated to obtain authorized aid below the coverage. Metropolis officers in Cleveland, Ohio additionally announced steps to proactively help residents in submitting to have their legal information expunged.
Officers in Virginia additionally introduced in 2021 that that they had sealed some 330,000 low-level marijuana possession convictions and one other 64,000 misdemeanor distribution convictions.
Extra lately, in Arizona, several thousand marijuana-related convictions have been expunged. Directions for a way eligible events can petition to have their information sealed can be found from the AZCourts.gov website.
In January 2023, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont introduced that state officers had expunged the document of an estimated 43,000 residents with prior cannabis-related convictions. Additionally that month, Missouri lawmakers introduced that over 3,500 residents had additionally had their marijuana-related convictions vacated.
In complete, two-dozen states have enacted laws expediting and facilitating the expungement of marijuana-related legal convictions.
Public assist for these efforts is excessive. Based on nationwide polling compiled in November 2022 by the group Knowledge for Progress, 74 percent of doubtless voters assist expunging marijuana-related convictions from the legal information of non-violent offenders. This contains majority assist from Democrats, Independents, and Republicans. Different nationwide surveys have additionally reported majority assist for this coverage.