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Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
The state of California legalised recreational cannabis use in November 2016, and it will become legal state-wide on Monday. That means anyone 21 and older will be able to buy cannabis from a licensed store, known as a dispensary.
The resentencing provisions of Proposition 64, California's cannabis legalisation initiative, have been in effect since last year, said Eunisses Hernandez, a policy coordinator at the Drug Policy Alliance, a group working to end drug prohibition. But few people know about the resentencing provision, which applies to people who are currently imprisoned or out on parole, Hernandez told Al Jazeera.
Individuals who apply for resentencing may be released from prison or have the charge on their criminal record reduced. Felonies may be lowered to misdemeanours, misdemeanours to infractions, or infractions to an outright dismissal of charges.
Resentencing will likely affect thousands of lives, since at least 500,000 marijuana-related arrests have been recorded in California over the last decade, Hernandez said.
[...] Several groups in the US have urged authorities to include changes to drug-related criminal offences in their efforts to legalise recreational cannabis.
Proponents of cannabis legalisation feared that allowing people with past drug convictions to get out of jail or reduce their sentences would lower the chance that the laws would pass at all. "There was, in many cases, a reluctance to bring this up," he told Al Jazeera.
Today, opponents of resentencing provisions often argue that retrying these cases puts "a very, very large potential burden on the courts", Sterling said.
Law enforcement officers may also contend that a guilty plea to cannabis possession may follow the dropping of more serious charges, such as possession with the intent to distribute - "and so to make a blanket change without looking at all of the underlying facts of the arrest would mean that more serious offenders would have their records expunged", Sterling said.
Ultimately, Sterling said it is most important to make sure people who may be affected by a resentencing law are aware that the law exists in the first place.
"The key thing, I think, is the ability for people to re-enter the economy and society free of those encumbrances," he said. "We would also say they are eligible to vote, they are eligible for jury duty, that all of their civil rights are restored."
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 03 2018, @03:15PM (11 children)
Do some introspection. Contemplate why it is that you thought your comment would be a worthwhile contribution to this discussion.
(Score: 1) by Sulla on Wednesday January 03 2018, @04:10PM (9 children)
Potheads feel the need to constantly validate their choice of intoxicant.
That said your point is a good one. With the end of prohibition we already have a path we can follow.
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 2) by LoRdTAW on Wednesday January 03 2018, @06:36PM (8 children)
We're vocal because marijuana has been demonized for years due to racism and greed. It's not 100% harmless but vs every other intoxicant AND legitimate medicine, it is close to being harmless in moderation (e.g. not smoking an ounce a week, seriously, you got a fuckin problem). We don't like being lumped in with the heroin addicts, coke/crack heads, crank smokers and alcoholics who are out causing chaos while we're over here trying to relax after a long hard work day. Not that every pot head is an angel in need of some mental relaxation, of course there are fuck up potheads just like there are fuck up _________ (fill in the blank.) But seriously, it's the least of Americas problems and for some reason it's treated like a monster. Grow up.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Sulla on Wednesday January 03 2018, @08:44PM (7 children)
Don't know what kind of paradise city you live in, but for the city in which I live DUII arrests have gone up by 12% since legalization.
What pot smokers lack in belligerence compared to alchies, they make up for in stupidity. I already voted to give you your legalization so you can shut up, get high, and stop making up fake statistics about health benefits. I found it great how as soon as the legislation went through the talk about how healthy and cancer curing it was immediately died to make way for "dude weed lmao".
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 03 2018, @09:56PM (2 children)
I'm pretty sure I keep seeing additional results for medicinal uses of cannabis. Did you just stop looking after it was legalized or something?
Of course DUII arrests will go up. Do you have a number for convictions? Afaik there is no reliable insta-test like with alcohol, so cops will arrest everybody they can. The bloodwork will clarify who's high and who isn't. Even then, I would expect convictions to go up slightly.
If you can't figure out why that is, you're probably having an knee-jerk reaction based on prior brainwashing. Knee-jerk-itis hasn't been well-studied, but I would propose that this is a condition that cannabis can also help with. Smoke two joints and call me in the morning.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 04 2018, @02:37AM (1 child)
Supposedly Sulla is an older gent, so your "prior brainwashing" point is 100% accurate. Hell, I am in my 30s and have a friend who just couldn't come to grips with weed even though he'd smoked it himself and one day he said "It must just be the fact that it is illegal!"
A smart person who couldn't figure out why he was so against weed. Because it is illegal? Lol, dude admitted to driving drunk a few times. The brainwashing really fucking worked, so we'll have to deal with malcontents like Sulla for a while. Though he said he voted for legalization, so massive props for common sense overriding the cultural washing machine.
(Score: 1) by Sulla on Friday January 05 2018, @12:20AM
Only 27 but was one of only a handful of kids who never smoked it in k-12. My issues with it stem from watching everyone around me get progressively dumber and make progressively worse life decisions and then play it off by blaming the pot or the weed rather than their decision to use the substance. I don't doubt there are not some medical uses for pot, but it isn't some wonder drug that cures every cancer ever like it was painted before legalization. My vote for legalization was because people are free to do to themselves what they want and if people are free to choose to do long term damage to their liver and kidneys then why aren't they free to make themselves dumber as well.
Although I would not have voted any differently knowing what I do now, I am really tired of smelling pot everywhere I go. I was not expecting public smoking to be as prevalent as it is. When I am out smoking a cigar I don't puff as I walk past people, I expect the same courtesy when someone walking pot walks past me.
As a note pot smoking in public is not legal, but the police don't enforce it.
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 03 2018, @11:03PM (1 child)
The problem is that cops even pull over people who aren't driving dangerously for different reasons, and then notice they're high and decide to get them for that too, even though it should be based on whether their driving was endangering others. How much of that (and DUI charges in general) is because of that?
I don't use marijuana and never have a single time in my life, just in case someone accuses me of being a pothead for seemingly defending the substance.
(Score: 1) by Sulla on Friday January 05 2018, @12:30AM
Kind of hard for me to respond to as I feel that DUII shouldn't exist and instead reckless driving should hold the same consequences that driving impaired currently does.
In this scenario the question is whether cops are increasing the amount of people they choose to pull over for diving dangerously compared to how it was before legalization. The local police have decided to not bother arresting/citing people for smoking pot in public, but I don't know if their lack of concern over public smoking extends to increased concern over drivers. I think it is very likely that police have stepped up enforcement following legalization in an attempt to get more revenue, but I think it is also very likely that there are more impaired drivers on the road. I have heard a lot of people complain that they should be able to drive while smoking pot because they claims it makes them better drivers, but I also don't trust the cops to not do all they can to skim some more money.
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday January 03 2018, @11:45PM
lmfao! so greedy pigs preying on potheads is the potheads' fault? stfu! those people aren't going to crash into shit. these stupid goddamn pigs just can't earn an honest living.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday January 04 2018, @04:25PM
Man you sound angry. Did your mom sleep with a black man after smoking pot?
(Score: 4, Touché) by frojack on Wednesday January 03 2018, @06:07PM
One AC chiding another about worthless contributions. Seriously?
It would be good if you took your own advice.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.