The eleven groups want Biden to make good on his remarks, calling for the president to immediately issue a general pardon for all former nonviolent federal marijuana offenders, and free anyone federally incarcerated for nonviolent, marijuana-only offenses in states where their former pot crimes are now legal.
According to the letter, there is a precedent for such a move, with President Gerald Ford and President Jimmy Carter both issuing general pardons in the 1970s to violators of the United States Selective Service Act for evading the Vietnam War draft.
Among the least approving of marijuana in the last Democratic presidential field, Biden tepidly endorsed decriminalization over legalization while labeling marijuana a gateway drug. However, he s since backtracked on his gateway drug comments and supported various methods of criminal justice reform. Last year, his campaign announced an intent to decriminalize marijuana use and reschedule it through executive action on the fed
Coalition calls for justice telling Biden to pardon non-violent federal marijuana offenses
The coalition is urging President Biden to demonstrate his commitment to criminal justice reform by immediately issuing a general pardon to all former federal, non-violent cannabis offenders in the U.S.
marijuana close up
A coalition of business groups and criminal justice reform advocates are holding President Biden accountable in following through with his campaign promise for criminal justice reform. Specifically, the coalition is asking Biden to act upon his call to “zero out” the criminal records of non-violent marijuana offenders, which he spoke about on the campaign trail.
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It’s actually happening. Bridget Anne Kelly, the former Chris Christie aide who wrote the “Time for some traffic problems in Fort Lee” email that kicked off the Bridgegate scandal, is
There is evidence that Kelly was used as a scapegoat. And the Mastro report’s theory that she ordered the lane closure because she was dumped by Bill Stepien was indeed baseless and misogynistic. She suffered longer-lasting consequences than many other people involved. But that doesn’t negate Kelly’s actions in the late summer of 2013, and she continues to argue that she was not aware that creating a huge tra
Why is Gov. Murphy still allowing thousands of marijuana arrests to continue? | Opinion
Updated Jan 25, 2021;
Posted Jan 25, 2021
Each day Gov. Phil Murphy fails to act on legislation to legalize marijuana, another 115 New Jerseyans are being arrested. Erik Altieri, executive director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, says not only are these arrests morally reprehensible and overwhelmingly targeted at communities of color, they also come with an economic cost to taxpayers while consuming limited law enforcement and judicial resources.
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By Erik Altieri
Nearly 3 million New Jersey voters approved a constitutional amendment on Election Day to end the egregious practice of arresting its citizens for marijuana possession violations, yet arrests in the Garden State have nonetheless continued unabated and political leadership is to blame.
This article by Louis O Neill was originally published on The Green Fund, and appears here with permission.
New Jersey made history when legalizing cannabis in November last year, so does that mean NJ citizens can spark up?
The pro-pot move for New Jersey represented a legislative leap forward when one considers the punitive impacts of cannabis criminalization, with Erik Altieri from NORML stating that law enforcement in New Jersey arrests more citizens each year for minor marijuana violations than almost any other state in the nation.
The constitutional amendment was set to kick in on January 1st, however, legislators have reached a stalemate when it comes to giving the green light to marijuana legalization in the state.