Los Angeles County District Attorney to Dismiss Nearly 60,000 Marijuana Offenses

Almost 60,000 cannabis convictions will be dismissed in Los Angeles County, by way of District Attorney George Gascón, Forbes reports.

The DA announced on Friday that 58,000 people will have their charges expunged, convictions that happened before California legalized recreational marijuana, under Proposition 64.

“Dismissing these convictions means the possibility of a better future to thousands of disenfranchised people who are receiving this long-needed relief,” Gascón said in a statement. “It clears the path for them to find jobs, housing and other services that previously were denied to them because of unjust cannabis laws.”

The California nonprofit, Social Impact Center, assisted the DA’s office in pinpointing who qualified for dismissal. Now, over 120,000 marijuana cases have been dropped in L.A. County.

“I have made it my life mission to help and support people who have been impacted by the ‘war on drugs,’” Felicia Carbajal, the executive director and community leader of The Social Impact Center said. “Giving people with cannabis convictions a new lease on life by expunging the records is something I have worked on for years and I am grateful that we can now make it happen.”

Last year, the previous DA, Jackie Lacey, dropped 66,000 marijuana convictions that also took place before Prop 64. That review only encompassed cases from the state Department of Justice data, whereas the latest round of dismissals involved L.A. County court records dating back more than three decades.

California voters passed Prop 64 in 2016, which legalized marijuana for anyone 21 and over. In addition to regulation, licensing, and taxing the cultivation, manufacturing, and sales of weed, it also made room for dismissals of old cannabis infractions.