Close Menu
  • Home
  • News
  • Lifestyle
  • Law
  • Business
  • Education

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

What's Hot

Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

May 30, 2025

U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

May 29, 2025

Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

May 28, 2025
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Sunday, June 1
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram LinkedIn VKontakte
Smoke Professional
  • Home
  • News

    More Than 1,000 Arrested in Sweep of U.K. Weed Grows

    July 8, 2023

    Scotland Calls On UK To End ‘Failed’ Drug War With Decriminalization And Harm Reduction Approach

    July 8, 2023

    Germany’s draft law for first phase of cannabis reform

    July 8, 2023

    High Times Cannabis Cup Illinois: People’s Choice Edition 2023 Kicks Off

    July 8, 2023

    Pennsylvania Committee Advances Expansion to State Medical Cannabis Program

    July 7, 2023
  • Lifestyle

    How Watching the News Can Trigger Anxiety and Panic Attacks

    October 28, 2024

    Record High Cannabis and Hallucinogen Use Among Adults

    October 27, 2024

    Weekend Sleep Catch-Up May Lower Heart Disease Risk by 20%

    October 27, 2024

    Energy Drinks Linked to Poor Sleep Quality and Insomnia

    October 26, 2024

    First Psychedelic Church for Magic Mushrooms

    October 26, 2024
  • Law

    Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

    May 30, 2025

    Federal Lawmakers Call for Medicaid Fraud Investigation Into Florida Anti-Cannabis Political Group

    May 26, 2025

    Minnesota Ends Criminal Penalties for Bong Water

    May 23, 2025

    Minnesota Bill to Set Up Adult-Use Cannabis Industry Moves to Governor

    May 22, 2025

    Pennsylvania House Passes Cannabis Legalization Bill

    May 8, 2025
  • Business

    U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

    May 29, 2025

    Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

    May 28, 2025

    Minnesota Tribe Signs Agreements to Open Adult-Use Dispensaries Off Tribal Land

    May 28, 2025

    Washington to Issue New Social Equity Cannabis Licenses This Summer

    May 27, 2025

    DEA Raid Confiscates Over 29,000 Cannabis Plants in New York

    May 26, 2025
  • Education

    CBD and the Aging Population—What Science Says Today

    March 12, 2025

    Wholesale Nootropic Skincare: Boost Your Product Line

    March 10, 2025

    Ideal for Your Business Needs

    March 8, 2025

    A Must-have For Every Smoke Shop

    March 3, 2025

    The Perfect Addition to Your Product Line

    March 1, 2025
Smoke Professional
You are at:Home»Law»President Biden’s Cannabis Pardons – Canna Law Blog™
Law

President Biden’s Cannabis Pardons – Canna Law Blog™

adminBy adminFebruary 14, 2024No Comments5 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

Similarly to many career politicians who now support criminal justice reform after decades of supporting the most unjust policing and sentencing laws, President Joe Biden has been notably lacking in keeping the pro-cannabis and criminal justice reform promises he ran on in the contentious and chaotic election that was 2020. Along with still referencing the widely disproven “gateway drug” theories, even on the campaign trail, Biden promised that federal cannabis reform would become a reality under his presidency.

Certain notable legislators from both sides of the aisle of Congress and the Senate such as Ohio Rep. David Joyce and Oregon Rep. Jeff Merkley continue to file and sponsor cannabis reform legislation on the federal level, yet all attempts never approach anything that resembles fruition. Cannabis reform polls extremely well, yet Congress and the Senate remain tribally divided on most issues, unfortunately including cannabis. And despite any action to implement cannabis reforms on the federal level, Biden seems to be attempting to judicially atone for the millions of wrongs and injustices committed by the 1994 Crime Bill.

Biden’s first round of pardons: October of 2022

In October of 2022, Biden announced his presidential pardon of thousands of Americans convicted of “simple possession” under federal law and in the District of Columbia. With this pardon, these thousands of Americans were finally free from the many socioeconomic disadvantages that come with a criminal conviction, especially one on the federal level.

“There are thousands of people who have prior Federal convictions for marijuana possession, who may be denied employment, housing, or educational opportunities as a result, my action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions.”

While this mass pardon is undoubtedly beneficial, it does depressingly little for the thousands of inmates who are serving several-decade sentences or life imprisonment due to victimless cannabis charges on the state level. For many of the unjustly incarcerated individuals that organizations such as The Buried Alive Project and Last Prisoner Project advocate for the release of, the October 2022 announcement didn’t provide much alleviation. Because unless a cannabis conviction of any kind is on the federal level, the President of the United States can’t provide much of a pardon beyond a vocal recommendation.

Biden’s second round of pardons: December of 2023

In December, the 46th President announced another expansive wave of cannabis pardons that build upon the initial October 2022 pardons. In a detailed announcement by the Office of the Pardon Attorney, the Department of Justice discussed exactly how these pardons are an extension of the previous pardons from 18 months ago.

“On December 22, 2023, President Biden issued another proclamation that expanded the relief provided by the original proclamation.” the bulletin read. “The December 2023 proclamation adds to the list of pardoned offenses the following: offenses under federal law for attempted possession of marijuana; additional offenses under the D.C. Code for simple marijuana possession; and violations of certain sections of the Code of Federal Regulations involving simple marijuana possession and use.”

Once again, this bill does virtually nothing beneficial for anyone convicted and/or incarcerated for similar offenses on any state level. However in the official White House statement released on the same day, Biden directly addressed those thousands of individuals serving unnecessary years in prison for victimless drug charges and spoke to the governors of those states.

“Just as no one should be in a federal prison solely due to the use or possession of marijuana,” Biden explained, “no one should be in a local jail or state prison for that reason, either. That’s why I continue to urge Governors to do the same with regard to state offenses and applaud those who have since taken action.”

Still though, this new update to the previous mass pardon once again only applies to simple possession or use cases. If an offender is still incarcerated or lives with a conviction for any type of cannabis distribution-related charges, which are commonly added to many possession cases, then they’d still be ineligible for any type of pardon.

There were also 11 people that received clemency from Biden for non-violent drug-related offenses who received steep and unfair sentences due to either Reagan-era or 1994 Crime Bill-related sentencing guidelines. Some of these convictions were related to crack cocaine possession, a substance that received significantly longer sentences for the possession and distribution of when compared to sentencing for powder cocaine possession.

“These individuals, like so many others, were convicted of drug offenses and sentenced to decades in prison, including in some cases mandatory life sentences,” a White House official said. “Some individuals received sentences that are twice as long as they likely would have been today and could not benefit from subsequent changes in the law.”

Long road ahead

Reformative changes, especially those related to drug sentencing and the millions of lives affected by those policies, come in waves and won’t rapidly be enacted overnight. For an unjust decades-long and trillion-dollar failure that the War on Drugs truly is, it’ll take the work of several different Presidents and Congressional sessions to attempt to undo all the colossal wrongs. However, this recent December policy is a further step in the right direction for a President who ran so heavily on criminal justice reform and who’s facing reelection in November.

For more on President Biden and cannabis, check out the following posts:

Source link

Bidens Blog Canna cannabis Law Pardons President
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Previous ArticleCannabis Edibles Market 2023 – And What’s Upcoming
Next Article The Snowball Effect of Unpaid Bills
admin
  • Website

Related Posts

Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

May 30, 2025

U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

May 29, 2025

Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

May 28, 2025

Comments are closed.

Our Picks

Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

May 30, 2025

U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

May 29, 2025

Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

May 28, 2025

Minnesota Tribe Signs Agreements to Open Adult-Use Dispensaries Off Tribal Land

May 28, 2025
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • Vimeo
Don't Miss
Law

Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

By adminMay 30, 20250

Republican lawmakers in Ohio are seeking to make changes to the 2023 cannabis legalization law approved…

U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

May 29, 2025

Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

May 28, 2025

Minnesota Tribe Signs Agreements to Open Adult-Use Dispensaries Off Tribal Land

May 28, 2025

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative news from Smoke Unlimited about Weed & CBD vaping.

From Our Partners
About Us
About Us

Get all the current news stories, latest trends and legislation regarding cannabidiol, products, usages and its benefits. So don’t miss out any buzz and stay tuned! We offer a minute to minute updates regarding Marijuana industry.

Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest
Our Picks

Ohio GOP Seeking to Change Voter-Approved Adult-Use Cannabis Law

May 30, 2025

U.S. Court of Appeals Rejects Legal Challenge Claiming Cannabis Prohibition is Unconstitutional

May 29, 2025

Montana Gov. Signs Bill Reserving $12M of Cannabis Tax Revenues for ‘Habitat Legacy Account’

May 28, 2025
Sponsors
Copyright © 2025. SmokeProfessional
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.