Governor opens pardon process for low-level pot offenders
SEATAC — Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday announced a fast-track pardon process to allow thousands of people with low-level marijuana convictions to clear their records.
Anyone with a misdemeanor for simple pot possession in Washington can apply online to have the State Patrol wipe it from their record. Inslee’s office estimates about 3,500 people would be eligible. The move is intended to make life easier for people with a lingering stigma for a crime that Washington voters erased in 2012 by passing the marijuana-legalization measure known as Initiative 502.
“Thousands of people have on their records a criminal conviction for something that is legal today,” Inslee told an audience gathered for the Washington State Cannabis Summit at the Crowne Plaza hotel near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. “This is impairing their ability to reach their dreams and live their lives and raise their children. Those convictions sometimes can impair their ability to finance a house, it can impair their ability to get a shot at a good job, it can stop them even sometimes from taking their kids for a field trip. In itself, having a criminal conviction on your record is just not a healthy thing for people.”
Inslee made the announcement amid serious signs that he’s preparing for a 2020 presidential run. The Democrat formed a Political Action Committee this fall to start raising money and stumped for high-profile progressive candidates this fall.
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