Joe Biden announces federal amnesty for simple cannabis possession offenses

U.S. President Joe Biden has announced that he will pardon people convicted of simple possession of cannabis at the federal level. He also announced that he would ask U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to begin the process of reviewing the classification of cannabis at the federal level.

The official White House statement was released on October 6, noting that under current federal law, cannabis falls under Schedule I alongside deadly drugs like fentanyl. The White House will «expeditiously review» the plant's current classification, with potential consequences for the classification of cannabis in international treaties and among friendly countries.

«As I've said before, no one should be jailed for using or possessing cannabis,» Biden tweeted. «Today, I'm taking steps to end our failed approach. Allow me to outline them».

Too many lives have been upended because of our failed approach to marijuana. Hear from @POTUS on the three steps he is taking to right these wrongs. pic.twitter.com/IqOxHxjgue

- The White House (@WhiteHouse) October 6, 2022

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Joe Biden outlined three key points: pardon all prior federal misdemeanors of simple cannabis possession; ask governors to pardon state misdemeanors of simple cannabis possession; and finally, ask Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Attorney General Merrick B. Garland to begin the process of reviewing how cannabis should be classified in federal law.

The amnesty decision will affect around 6,500 people who were convicted of simple possession of cannabis between 1992 and 2021, and thousands more convicted in the District of Columbia. The majority of those convicted of simple possession, however, were convicted at state level, hence Joe Biden's request to governors to erase convictions for the same offense at their level.

Various observers of American cannabis policy believe that Joe Biden has done everything in his power to secure non-violent convictions for cannabis possession, as the federal government does not have the capacity to intervene on this subject at state level. He also fulfills one of its campaign promises, on the eve of the mid-term elections.

Joe Biden is credited with writing the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, commonly known as the 1994 Crime Bill, an essential component of the U.S. war on drugs that led to the incarceration of countless citizens for drug possession.

A quarter of a century later, Joe Biden has publicly denounced his own record: «It was a mistake,» he said of his Crime Bill during one of the presidential debates. «All 100 senators voted for it. It was a mistake. I've tried to change it since, especially the cocaine part,» he said. added. «I argued that, in fact, we shouldn't be sending anyone to prison for a purely drug-related offense, they should be in treatment. [...] It was a mistake to pass these drug laws.»

The official communiqué from the White House ends with these words: «Too many lives have been turned upside down because of our failed approach to cannabis. It's time to fix those mistakes. «