On Thursday afternoon, President Joe Biden pardoned thousands of people convicted of federal marijuana possession crimes, and he encouraged state governors to do the same.
According to the Daily Wire, Several states no longer prohibit marijuana use, and Biden said the punishment of people who choose to violate marijuana laws has upended too many lives.
According to CNBC, a White House official said the pardons affected more than 6,500 individuals with prior convictions for simple marijuana possession, and thousands more through pardons under DC law.
Here’s ABC News with more:
“Criminal records for marijuana possession have also imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities,” Biden said in a statement. “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.”
“I am announcing a pardon of all prior Federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana,” Biden continued.
These pardons are applicable to federal offenders convicted of “simple marijuana possession” as well as DC residents charged with the offense
As part of his statement, Biden also called upon all governors to do the same, urging them not to place people “in local or state jails for that reason.” A review of marijuana’s federal schedule under federal law has also been ordered by Biden and his Health and Human Services secretary and attorney general.
A few minutes after posting his announcement, Biden revoked the sentences of the thousands of convicts.
