Saying that “no one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana,” President Joe Biden has pardoned people who were American citizens at the time of their arrest and were subsequently convicted of simple possession under federal marijuana law.
This pardon affects only people convicted of marijuana possession, not those convicted of intending to distribute.
It also applies only to federal convictions, not to convictions under state law.
For his reaction to President Biden’s big move, city of Hartford Inspector General Liam Brennan joined "All Things Considered." He wrote an op-ed in the Connecticut Mirror titled “Divest from the war on drugs.”
In a statement, the president encouraged governors to take similar action in their own states with regard to marijuana possession offenses.
Brennan says Connecticut is ahead of the curve with measures like the recently passed clean slate law and the legalization of adult-use cannabis.
