President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that all people with prior federal convictions for simple possession of marijuana will be pardoned. This action was made to lessen the burden on the nation’s jail system and to reduce the number of marijuana-related arrests in jurisdictions where it is legal.
“My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions”: Biden
“There are thousands of people who have prior federal convictions for marijuana possession, who may be denied employment, housing, or educational opportunities as a result.” “My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions,” Biden said in a statement.
“Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibited. Criminal records for marijuana possession have also imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. And while white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people have been arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates,” he added.
The president requested some forbearance from the authorities
“It’s time that we right these wrongs,” Biden said on Thursday according to Reuters. Additionally, Biden has asked governors of states that have legalized marijuana to follow suit and ensure that no one is imprisoned for a single infraction. The president requested some forbearance from the authorities despite the fact that it is still illegal in several areas.
Federal law now places marijuana under schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act, but Biden requested that the secretary of Health and Human Services reevaluate that designation.