Expungement

Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser said last week the city is ready to legalize adult-use cannabis sales as soon as the Congressional rider blocking the reforms is gone.

Cannabis use and possession are officially legal in New York after Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed the state’s legalization bill into law on Wednesday.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) called lawmakers back to the capital for a special legislative session specifically to reach a cannabis legalization deal.

A California Superior Court judge in San Diego County reduced some 26,000 felony cannabis charges to misdemeanors and fully dismissed another 1,000 misdemeanor charges.

A group of Oregon activists, business owners, and lawmakers have put forward the Oregon Cannabis Social Equity Act, which aims to use cannabis tax dollars to help repair damage done by the racist drug war.

The Illinois State Police and Gov. J.B. Pritzker together cleared over 500,000 cannabis-related criminal records on New Year’s Eve.

Will County in Illinois this week approved the expungement of 1,653 cannabis possession misdemeanors. There are likely about 7,000 similar cases remaining in the state.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has commuted the sentence of Michael Thompson, who was sentenced to 60 years in prison after selling cannabis to an undercover police officer in 1996.

Florida State Sen. Randolph Bracey announced this week he will introduce a bill next year aimed at expunging low-level cannabis convictions in the state.

In yet another sign of growing public approval for cannabis reforms, a recent survey shows that a 70% supermajority of Americans supports the expungement of cannabis convictions.

The New Leaf Illinois initiative has launched. The effort aims to help people who were arrested for cannabis crimes get their records expunged.

A North Carolina task force has recommended the state decriminalize small amounts of cannabis and expunge cannabis arrest records.

With legalization the big winner in Tuesday night’s election, what other cannabis justice measures prevailed?

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed a piece of legislation creating an automatic process for the expungement of criminal activity that would now be legal under the state’s 2018 legalization initiative.

The Michigan Senate has approved legislation that would automatically expunge thousands of criminal records for low-level crimes and even some felonies.

Lawmakers in Virginia’s House and Senate have approved separate cannabis expungement bills; advocates are hoping it’s a sign that an expungement proposal will soon reach the governor’s desk.

Cannabis activists in Oklahoma are collecting signatures to put an expungement and decriminalization question on voters’ ballots this November.

Lawmakers in the Vermont Legislature are set to pass a measure that would automatically expunge cannabis possession convictions in the state.

Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced the clearing of 2,735 low-level cannabis convictions last week.

Nevada’s State Board of Pardons is moving to pardon thousands of people who were convicted of low-level cannabis offenses prior to legalization.

Colorado lawmakers have approved legislation for social equity cannabis licensing and which gives the governor power to expunge low-level cannabis convictions from before the state legalized in 2012.

Michael Thompson was arrested for selling cannabis in 1994; he was given a de-facto life sentence in prison and now COVID-19 is poised to upgrade that to a death sentence unless Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer does the right thing.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) vetoed a bill last week that would have blocked some cannabis convictions from public view.

Ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s joined in the 4/20 festivities this year — not as a marketing ploy, but to advocate for responsible and progressive cannabis reforms.