CALIFORNIA/CRIME/LEGAL: “Thousands of people convicted of marijuana offenses in this city going back to 1975 will have their convictions dismissed or reduced, San Francisco’s district attorney announced Wednesday [1-31-18].
It marks one of the most aggressive moves to wipe away old convictions in the face of new laws legalizing marijuana in California and other states.
San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón said that his office would dismiss and seal 3,038 misdemeanor marijuana convictions, and review and possibly resentence 4,940 felonies—all of which were adjudicated before California voters legalized marijuana in 2016.
Under the state legalization measure, Californians can petition the courts to get old marijuana possession and other convictions dismissed. Mr. Gascón said his office is taking the extra step of doing it for people in order to lift the burden of past convictions that can make it difficult for people to get jobs… Nine states and Washington, D.C., have legalized recreational marijuana use, and a debate has arisen over what to do with past pot convictions in these states…
More states are including provisions in legalization measures for expunging past convictions, said Chris Lindsey, senior legislative counsel at the Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates for ending pot prohibitions.”
-Zusha Elinson, “San Francisco to Wipe Away Decades of Marijuana Convictions,” The Wall Street Journal online, Jan. 31, 2018 08:40pm