Feds Drop Charges Against Native American Teen Who Faced a Year in Prison for Cannabis

A teen in Oregon almost faced a year in prison for possessing a gram of cannabis. Thankfully, after getting some press, the charges were dropped and the teen’s punishment is now significantly reduced.

According to Willamette Week, the publication that initially broke the news about the teen’s arrest, charges will be dropped if the teen charged keeps a job and stays out of trouble for 60 days.

Nineteen-year-old Devontre Thomas was originally charged with a year in jail for the amount of cannabis that could fit in one joint, a shocking verdict considering Thomas, although underage, lives in a state where cannabis is recreationally legal. After Willamette Week ran a story exposing the verdict, national cannabis and media outlets picked up the story and spread the word. The initial story told the tale of a teen who was picked up for such a small amount of cannabis and felt confused and frightened by the judge’s decision.

The result was a huge public outcry against this unfair sentence, and eventually, an official letter from Oregon congressional delegates demanding a reason from the judge for this harsh sentence. This resulted in the charges being dropped, as long as Thomas keeps up his good behavior. The U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed that they are officially dropping the charges against Thomas.

“I think it’s a fair resolution of the case,” stated Ruben Iniguez, Thomas’ public defender, when speaking to Willamette Week. “I would sincerely hope that no one else, adult or minor, has to be faced with the same sort of dilemma—the heavy hand of the government.”

This is yet another example of the cannabis community working together to shed light on a story that could have gone tragically for this teen if no one had intervened. Thanks to the attention his story got, Thomas will not be serving jail time and can continue living a normal life.