President Joe Biden on Thursday said he will pardon all prior federal offenses for simple possession of marijuana charges.
The President also urged Secretary of Health and Human Servies and the U.S. Attorney General to “review expeditiously how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.”
STATEMENT FROM PRESIDENT BIDEN:
As I often said during my campaign for President, no one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana. Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit. Criminal records for marijuana possession have also imposed needless barriers to employment, housing, and educational opportunities. And while white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people have been arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates.
Today, I am announcing three steps that I am taking to end this failed approach.
