EPA
News from the NOS•yesterday, 22:39
President Biden forgives anyone who has ever received a federal conviction for possession of marijuana. According to the US government, thousands of Americans are involved. In doing so, Biden keeps an electoral promise and also takes a first step towards decriminalizing marijuana.
“Sending people to jail for marijuana possession has disrupted too many lives and people have been locked up for behavior that is no longer illegal in many states,” he said in a statement. Those people had criminal records which made it more difficult for them to find work, housing or education.
Also, according to Biden, brown and black people were much more likely to be convicted of marijuana possession than whites. Currently, according to the White House, no one is in federal prison for marijuana possession.
Biden orders the Department of Health and Attorney General Garland to issue a quick judgment on the classification of marijuana in federal law. A new classification is a first step towards a possible relaxation or abolition of the penalties for possession of the drug. Marijuana is currently equated with heroin and LSD.
The Ministry of Justice is also working on a certificate that people who have been pardoned can show, for example, to potential employers.
