Washington s Supreme Court Decriminalizes Drug Possession theepochtimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theepochtimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Washington state justices strike down drug possession law
GENE JOHNSON, Associated Press
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SEATTLE (AP) In a decision with implications for tens of thousands of cases dating back decades, the Washington Supreme Court on Thursday struck down the state’s felony drug possession law because unlike the laws of every other state it did not require prosecutors to prove someone knowingly or intentionally possessed drugs.
The ruling came in the case of a Spokane woman who had received a pair of jeans from a friend that had a small bag of methamphetamine in a pocket. The full import of the decision is yet to be seen, but attorneys said tens or even hundreds of thousands of convictions may be vacated, and many prisoners doing time for other crimes will need to be resentenced if prior drug possession convictions boosted their offender scores and thus their sentences.
Washington justices strike down felony drug possession law washingtontimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from washingtontimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.