Last Thursday, President Biden announced a plan to pardon federal offenders for simple possession of marijuana. Although this plan can help over 6,500 people create a better life for themselves through increased job opportunities, most people convicted for marijuana related crimes will not be affected. Knowing this, Biden has urged governors to change their own laws to also relieve those with cannabis possessions.
“Just as no one should be in a federal prison solely due to the possession of marijuana, no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either,” Biden said.
Morgan Fox, political director for the nonprofit National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, believes Biden has an understanding of the mass incarceration issues related to cannabis.
Biden’s plan is intended to be a “measure of hope.”
Recent History Behind Cannabis Convictions
According to a United States Sentencing Commission report from NORML, Since 2012, federal marijuana convictions have decreased by about 85% from over 4,000 arrests in 2021, to about 1,000 in the past year. That being said, federal convictions dwarf state cannabis related arrests.
In 2019, the FBI reported over 500,000 marijuana-related offenses, most of which were a result of state arrests. That same year, federal cannabis convictions made up for a third of all federal possession arrests. In 2009, marijuana possessions made up for half.
Over 31 states have decriminalized cannabis, while 19 including Washington D.C. have fully legalized the substance. That being said, the marijuana industry still faces racial disparities as a white dominated business, in which a majority of cannabis convictions are still people of color.
According to Gallup, about 70% of Americans support the legalization of marijuana. 80% of Democrats support legalization, where as Republicans are split down the middle.
Biden’s pardon plan faces criticism
Some states have a complicated system to pardon offenders. In Texas, there are several steps to receive a state pardon. In response to Biden’s plan, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott argued that “the governor of Texas can only pardon individuals who have been through the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles system with a recommendation for pardon.”
More should be done for marijuana offenders
Natalie Papillion, director of strategic initiatives for the Last Prisoner Project, gives praise to BIden’s plan for focusing on repairing the damages made from the war on drugs instead of exclusively focusing on the legalization of cannabis. Despite the praise, Papillion also states that there is still much work to be done.
“Before we talk about how much money we can really make, services and so forth and so on, we need to talk about how we can unwind the harms of those who have most been impacted, people who have been arrested and put into jail.”
Papillion suggested to the president that all non-violent cannabis offenders should be included in the pardon, and not just simple possessors.
As a part of Biden’s campaign for presidential office, he had shown support for marijuana legalization and decriminalization, and believed all cannabis related offenses should be expunged.
Many are trying to hold the president to that promise, some of which believe former offenders should be offered even more relief. Maritza Perez, director of the Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of Federal Affairs, suggests the administration should also conduct resentencing, and removal of immigration consequences in addition to the expungement of cannabis convictions.
“It’s a step in the right direction, but definitely does not do enough to really help repair the harms of the drug war,” she said.
Perez anticipates congress to draft several bills to create marijuana reformation once and for all.
Many measures have been considered, including fiscal policies aimed at reducing the cost for states to expunge cannabis offenses in a plan called the Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement Act, also known as HOPE.
Further legislation has been drafted such as the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, as well as the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement Act, both of which focus on developing expungement processes while decriminalizing marijuana.
