Democratic North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and his Attorney General are calling on the Republican-led state legislature to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.
“A simple possession conviction can hurt people’s lifetime records and possibly even prevent them from getting a job,” Cooper told the Task Force on Racial Equality and Criminal Justice meeting on Friday. “The General Assembly did not pass your recommendation in this last session, but I believe it should. North Carolina should take steps to end this stigma.”
The governor established the task force in June 2020 amid riots across the country in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
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A 24-member panel of law enforcement officers, attorneys, civil rights advocates and state officials found in a 2020 report that a North Carolina legislator could face a misdemeanor charge for possession of up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana for a traffic violation. We recommended replacing it with a similar civil offense. The Republican-dominated North Carolina legislature did not follow the task force’s recommendations.
Under current North Carolina law, possession of more than half an ounce is punishable by up to 45 days in prison and up to a $1,000 fine, with no exemption for medical use. Possession of more than 1.5 ounces is classified as a felony.
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein agreed with the governor’s position.
“People shouldn’t have a federal criminal record for something that is being legalized in more and more states,” Stein said last Thursday. That means decriminalizing adult use, expunging past convictions for mere possession, strong protections for children, banning advertising, state-owned sales, and prioritizing NC farmers. I mean.”
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Cooper, who cannot seek re-election in 2024 due to term limits, will also determine whether North Carolina can and should take further action to pardon such marijuana-based convictions. The North Carolina Constitution gives the governor almost absolute pardon powers.
After biden pardoned thousands of Americans facing federal marijuana possession charges last week, he called on governors to grant similar pardons to those convicted of state marijuana offenses. I was. He acknowledged that drug claims disproportionately affect people of color.
“As I used to say during my presidential campaign, marijuana use and possession alone shouldn’t put you in jail,” Biden said. We are taking too many lives and imprisoning people for unintentional acts.”
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No one is currently in federal prison for “simple possession” of drugs, according to the White House, but the president said his pardon could be a potential obstacle to renting a home or getting a job. His amnesty did not include those convicted of possessing marijuana for the purpose of distributing it.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.