It’s been nearly a month since Massachusetts Gov. Maura T. Healey proposed a blanket pardon for those with misdemeanor cannabis possession convictions in the state, and earlier this week she made good on that promise as the Governor’s Council unanimously voted to approve the plan Wednesday.
The move makes Massachusetts the first state to pardon the crimes of people charged with simple cannabis possession crimes. According to the request for consent Healey sent to the council, the pardon would apply to “all adult persons who, on or before the date of this letter, have been convicted of a misdemeanor of possession of marijuana.”
Per Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, the vote will ensure that anyone charged with a misdemeanor crime of cannabis possession before March 13 of this year will be cleared of that crime. Calling the process “exciting,” Driscoll noted that no one is required to take additional action and the pardons are automatically effective.
While the pardons take immediate effect, the state will need to work to update records in the court systems to show that past cannabis possession charges are marked as “pardoned.” While they are not required, the state has also set up a website allowing individuals to request certificates confirming cannabis pardons.
“Massachusetts made history today,” Healey said in a statement. “Thousands of Massachusetts residents will now see their records cleared of this charge, which will help lower the barriers they face when seeking housing, education or a job.”
The move follows President Joe Biden’s recent efforts to similarly pardon those with federal cannabis possession convictions, in which he called on governors to follow suit. Though, for those cases Biden pardoned and for those in Massachusetts, a pardon essentially acts as a formal gesture of forgiveness, but it does not automatically expunge or seal criminal records.
It’s expected that updating the records for the 70,000 to 100,000 residents who have been charged with an applicable cannabis crime will be a months-long process, according to written testimony from the state’s trial court to the Governor’s Council.
Some on the Council were concerned with the fact that pardons would still retain charges on individual records, with some suggesting that expungement may be the better route.
“The only thing this pardon does is put a note on their record that they have been pardoned, it does not take it off their criminal record,” Councilor Terrence Kennedy said. “If somebody gets a copy of their records—an employer or something—it’s still going to say that they were convicted of possession of marijuana and then pardoned.”
Kennedy asked Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden if expungement may be a better path, to which Hayden said, “I don’t necessarily disagree with you on that point,” while suggesting that the inquiry was “another question for another day.”
Kennedy also suggested that Massachusetts could go to greater efforts to ensure that people were notified that their crimes were pardoned, saying that “most people who have a marijuana conviction do not know what is going on in this room today.”
Despite some criticisms of the plan, it stands as a historic move and a testament to the continued progressive reform efforts embraced by many states and leaders around the country. The ACLU of Massachusetts praised the move, calling the vote “life-changing” for affected parties.
“We applaud the Governor’s Council for swiftly approving this pardon. People in every community across the state – especially Black and Brown people, who were disproportionately charged with marijuana-related crimes over the years – will no longer be punished for something that is now legal in our state,” said Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. “Let’s be clear: Tens of thousands of people in Massachusetts will now get a second chance, and will face fewer barriers to housing, jobs, education, student loans, and stability.”
Massachusetts voters legalized adult-use cannabis in the state in 2016, currently standing among 24 states that have legalized recreational weed and 39, along with the District of Columbia, that have introduced medical cannabis regulations.
