President Biden announced Thursday he’s taking executive action to pardon all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession and will call governors to do the same at the state level.
“No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana,” Biden said in a video announcing his executive actions. “It’s legal in many states, and criminal records for marijuana possession have led to needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. And that’s before you address the racial disparities around who suffers the consequences. While white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people are arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates.”
“Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana. It’s time that we right these wrongs,” Biden said.
This is the President’s first major step towards decriminalizing marijuana. Senior administration officials say the move will benefit 6,500 people with prior federal convictions and thousands of others charged under the District of Columbia’s criminal code.
“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,” he said. “My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions.”
Biden has also asked the secretary of Health and Human Services and the U.S. attorney general to review how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.
