California: a new law to automatically expunge old cannabis-related convictions

It's done. California has become the first U.S. state to pass a law automatically expunging past cannabis-related convictions. The’Assembly Bill 1793 was signed by Jerry Brown, the state governor, last Sunday and will take effect on January 1, 2019.

California is not the first state to grant partial or full amnesty to people previously convicted of acts that are now legal: Oregon, Colorado, Maryland, and Massachusetts, as well as the cities of San Francisco, Seattle, and San Diego, have passed similar laws. This is, however, the first time the process will be automated.

As we have already explained, the amnesty process was part of Proposition 64, which legalized cannabis in California, but until now it had been very complicated and difficult to access for the 218,000 people who were eligible. Under the new law, the state will clear residents’ criminal records, even if they were unaware they were eligible. Certain offenses will be expunged outright (such as simple use), while possession with intent to sell will be reclassified from a felony to a misdemeanor.

«The failure of the war on drugs has, in many ways, caused devastation, harm, suffering, and anguish for so many Californians,», said Rep. Ron Bonta, who introduced the measure. «That’s where the government can step in and improve the situation.»

Convictions related to cannabis have, in fact, disproportionately affected people of color. While the rate of cannabis use is the same regardless of the user’s ethnic background, Black and Latino people were four times more «likely» to be arrested than white people, according to a study by the ACLU from 2016.

Effective January 1, 2019, the California Department of Justice will have 7 months to review all of the cannabis-related offenses and forward the files to local prosecutors. The prosecutors will have one year to decide whether or not to grant amnesty. Priority will be given to individuals currently in prison for these offenses.

«Proposition 64 offered redemption, rehabilitation, and a chance to rebuild these lives—these amnesties and sentence reductions are a big part of that,» Bonta said. «I wanted to make sure that the promise of Prop. 64 was kept.»