Many now-voided drug convictions came with financial penalties that have plunged people into legal debt.
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Washington State’s Supreme Court Building, also known as the Temple of Justice, photographed on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2020, in Olympia, Wash. (Jovelle Tamayo for Crosscut)
In a landmark decision last month, the Washington Supreme Court voided all drug possession cases in the state.
According to the court’s ruling in State v. Blake, the entire statute that criminalizes simple drug possession is unconstitutional. The sweeping decision pertains to all drugs — regardless of type and amount — across the history of the state’s criminal legal system.