Biden's State of the Union Highlights Cannabis Justice Progress, But Pardons Leave Many Still Needing Relief
Last night, during his State of the Union address, President Biden made history by being the first president to promote cannabis reform in his speech. While he made the case that the state of the union is strong, thousands of people in federal prisons for victimless cannabis sentences feel the state of cannabis justice is not.
President Biden said he would “keep building trust like I have been doing by taking executive action… directing my Cabinet to review the federal classification of marijuana, expunging thousands of convictions for the mere possession, because no one should be jailed for simply using or having it on their record.”
The President was referring to his October 2022 proclamation where he pardoned all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession, a move that was expanded on to bring relief to an estimated 13,000 Americans. In addition, President Biden encouraged the country’s governors to use their clemency power to issue similar grants and initiated the review process that could result in cannabis being re- or de-scheduled.
Cannabis Scheduling Classification Review
In August 2023, the HHS recommended rescheduling cannabis from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III drug and referred it to the DEA for final approval. The DEA has not yet made a decision. Rescheduling signals the reevaluation of cannabis but not the release of prisoners or relief for those with a criminal record. Only full descheduling and removing cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act could help in ending cannabis-related criminal sanctions.
This is why we at Last Prisoner Project are pushing for more effective strategies for retroactive relief. Regardless of your stance on the Biden administration’s move, this is a moment of progress for the drug policy movement. The question is, how much progress can we achieve if we push for the right reforms? In our latest memo, we explained how President Biden and Congress can leverage the rescheduling of cannabis to create broader criminal legal reform.
Federal Pardons ≠ Expungement
Language is important. President Biden has repeatedly conflated the impact of his pardons, saying that they have expunged or cleared records. Unfortunately, these pardons were limited both in scope and impact. First, very few individuals have federal possession convictions for cannabis, as the vast majority of these charges are prosecuted at the state level. Second, the president excluded a potentially substantial category of offenses by failing to extend this relief to anyone not deemed a “lawful permanent resident” or to military personnel.
Along with being limited in scope, presidential pardons do not clear or expunge criminal records. Therefore, while they provide some relief, they do not remove all collateral consequences like limited access to employment, housing, and loans. Additionally, a federal expungement mechanism doesn’t even exist. The President should urge Congress to pass a federal expungement statute that addresses federal cannabis offenses.
“Because no one should be jailed…”
While the importance of President Biden’s statement and actions should be lauded, they are still just the first step in the long road toward justice. These pardons have offered hope to thousands of individuals but left others behind. The pardons did not result in the release of any of the estimated 3,000 people still incarcerated in federal prison due to other non-violent cannabis-related convictions.
Furthermore, they do nothing for the tens of thousands of Americans incarcerated on state-level charges, where the vast majority of cannabis-related convictions happen. President Biden’s directive merely opened the door for potential federal decriminalization (if we want federally legal weed, Congress will have to get involved).
So where do we go from here?
First off, the President must wield his pardon power more broadly. He should immediately commute the sentences of those serving federal sentences for conduct involving amounts of cannabis that are far less than what state-regulated dispensaries routinely handle on a daily basis. Then, the President must do more than just call on Governors to pardon people with state-level marijuana convictions—he has to make it easy for them. That would include, but not be limited to, allowing states to access federal dollars to spin up “cannabis pardoning projects”, not dissimilar to what state officials have done in Pennsylvania.
Biden alone cannot fully legalize and regulate marijuana, but his broad clemency power does afford him the ability to free thousands of Americans languishing behind bars for the same activity many now profit from with the stroke of a pen. If he truly wants to right history and repair the harms of our nation’s failed drug war, this initial progress must be followed up with bolder action—action that would actually lead to freedom for cannabis prisoners.
Thus, today, Last Prisoner Project is sending a letter to President Biden reminding him of his clemency power and providing a list of more than 150 individuals we are working to free—people like Edwin Rubis, Ricardo Ashemeade, and Ismael Lira who have collectively served over 60 years in prison for cannabis.
Join us in urging further action on April 18 in Washington D.C. for our 420 Unity Day of Action where we will bring together the largest bi-partisan coalition of cannabis advocacy, industry, and grassroots organizers to uplift the voices of all cannabis prisoners and put pressure on President Biden and Congress to free them all and fully legalize cannabis.
