US pardons people convicted for marijuana possession under federal law

US president Joe Biden introduced a pardon for hundreds of individuals convicted for possession of marijuana below federal legislation

By Tiffany O’Callaghan

On 6 October, US president Joe Biden introduced plans to reform US marijuana coverage, together with issuing a pardon of all prior federal offenses of easy marijuana possession – and calling on state governors to do the identical.

“Simply as nobody ought to be in a federal jail solely as a result of possession of marijuana, nobody ought to be in an area jail or state jail for that purpose, both,” mentioned Biden in a press release launched by the White Home. His pardon applies to hundreds of individuals charged with marijuana possession below federal legislation.

He additionally referred to as upon the US lawyer common Merrick Garland and US secretary of well being and human companies Xavier Becerra to judge how marijuana is assessed below US federal legislation. Below present legal guidelines it’s within the class reserved for probably the most harmful substances.

The usage of medical marijuana is at the moment authorized in 37 US states and Washington, DC, and 19 states permit adults to buy hashish for leisure use. But regardless of this, many individuals stay incarcerated for easy possession of hashish.

Even after launch, felony information for marijuana possession impose “useless limitations to employment, housing, and academic alternatives,” mentioned Biden within the assertion. He additionally famous that regardless of related marijuana consumption amongst completely different races and ethnic teams, “Black and brown folks have been arrested, prosecuted and convicted at disproportionate charges”.

Certainly, a number of research assist this commentary. Knowledge from 2018, for example, reveals that greater than 53 per cent of white folks over age 18 within the US report utilizing hashish in some unspecified time in the future of their lives in comparison with 45 per cent of Black folks. But Black individuals are 3.6 instances extra prone to be arrested for possession.

In June, the American Medical Affiliation (AMA) issued a press release calling on states to expunge felony marijuana costs from folks’s information when the associated offenses have been later legalised.

“It merely isn’t truthful to break a life primarily based on actions that end in convictions however are subsequently legalised or decriminalized,” mentioned AMA spokesperson Scott Ferguson on the time.