After Spending 7 Years Behind Bars For Two Joints Worth of Marijuana, Bernard Noble Is Free

On Thursday morning, Bernard Noble was released from prison after spending seven years behind bars over minor weed charges.

The 51-year-old father of seven became a national symbol of harsh drug laws after news surfaced of his 2010 arrest and subsequent 13-year sentence for two joints or less than three grams of marijuana. At the time, prosecutors referenced Noble’s seven prior convictions between 1989 and 2003, all of which were for possession of small amounts of drugs, mainly marijuana. Although all the convictions were nonviolent, he did have two felony convictions for cocaine possession, from ’91 and ’03, which were used to label him as an “habitual offender” under Louisiana Law. In turn, officials were able to pass down the maximum sentence of 13 years and three months, without parole, after the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office appealed the initial ruling of five years for possession.

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In fact, two separate district court judges even attempted to reduce his sentence, citing the fact that his record was nonviolent, and he had been supporting his seven children, but D.A. Leon Cannizzaro opposed and won the appeal in state Supreme court.

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However, Noble’s lawyer refused to give up his client’s fight for freedom, despite the DA’s aggressive sentencing. But, in 2016, after years of back and forth between the two, a district attorney agreed to reduce Noble’s sentence to just eight years with eligibility for parole.

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Now, after a longstanding fight and years behind bars, Noble has been freed on parole.

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“I really felt special, seeing my family and everyone waiting for me,” Noble said after his release. “I cried a lot of times in prison silently because you can’t do it out loud in a treacherous place like that. But I always said, ‘one day it’s gonna get better.”

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According to Nola.com, Noble was granted parole back in February on the condition he would move back to Missouri, where he was living at the time. However, his lawyers opposed his family, shelter, and job were all in New Orleans, where he was arrested while visiting family. Two months later, the parole board agreed and allowed Noble to stay in Louisiana.

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“I am ready to get to work,” he said. “I didn’t go through all of this just to come home, eat a hot plate of food, and work at McDonald’s.”