Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Angelenos charged with or convicted of marijuana offenses who want to clean up their criminal records can seek free legal help Saturday at an "expungement fair" near downtown Los Angeles.
The event is focused on helping convicted felons get charges reduced, dismissed or expunged from their record and comes as California prepares for last year's marijuana legalization initiative to take full effect.
Starting Jan. 1, sales of recreational marijuana will be legal under Proposition 64, which was passed by voters last November.
Not only does the initiative legalize the commercial sale and recreational use of pot, but for more than a year now it has also provided an avenue for people charged or convicted of marijuana-related offenses to ask that their charges be dropped, their sentences reduced or their records expunged as long as the charges are no longer considered a crime.
Those people will be the focus of Saturday's event, says Eunisses Hernandez, a coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, a national drug law reform group that co-sponsored the California initiative and organized Saturday's fair.
"We know based on arrests that there are tens of thousands of people who have been arrested and impacted by marijuana prohibition and these are the people that need help," Hernandez said. So far, the Drug Policy Alliance estimates, about 4,500 people statewide have applied to have their records reclassified under Proposition 64.
Most of the attention on California's new pot law has been on regulations for growing and selling pot set to take effect next year, Hernandez said. "We've been having to fight hard to let people know that it's actually one of the largest sentencing reforms in the country," she said.
Hernandez says her group has already hosted around two dozen expungement clinics this year, assisting about 1,200 people with legal advice and services.
Legal help was being provided Saturday by attorneys and paralegals from the L.A. County Public Defender's Office and the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.
Saturday's event, the last of the year, is taking place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 3750 S. Grand Ave in Historic South-Central Los Angeles. Another will be held at the same location Jan. 6. Registration and information are available online
"The expungement clinics provide folks a second chance," Hernandez said. "They offer people an opportunity to take those scarlet letters off their criminal records that they carry with them."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Free legal clinic offers help to people who want to reduce or expunge marijuana convictions - LA Times
Author: Christine Mai-Duc
Contact: Contact Us
Photo Credit: Jim Brueckner
Website: Los Angeles Times - News from the nation, world and California - Los Angeles Times
The event is focused on helping convicted felons get charges reduced, dismissed or expunged from their record and comes as California prepares for last year's marijuana legalization initiative to take full effect.
Starting Jan. 1, sales of recreational marijuana will be legal under Proposition 64, which was passed by voters last November.
Not only does the initiative legalize the commercial sale and recreational use of pot, but for more than a year now it has also provided an avenue for people charged or convicted of marijuana-related offenses to ask that their charges be dropped, their sentences reduced or their records expunged as long as the charges are no longer considered a crime.
Those people will be the focus of Saturday's event, says Eunisses Hernandez, a coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, a national drug law reform group that co-sponsored the California initiative and organized Saturday's fair.
"We know based on arrests that there are tens of thousands of people who have been arrested and impacted by marijuana prohibition and these are the people that need help," Hernandez said. So far, the Drug Policy Alliance estimates, about 4,500 people statewide have applied to have their records reclassified under Proposition 64.
Most of the attention on California's new pot law has been on regulations for growing and selling pot set to take effect next year, Hernandez said. "We've been having to fight hard to let people know that it's actually one of the largest sentencing reforms in the country," she said.
Hernandez says her group has already hosted around two dozen expungement clinics this year, assisting about 1,200 people with legal advice and services.
Legal help was being provided Saturday by attorneys and paralegals from the L.A. County Public Defender's Office and the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles.
Saturday's event, the last of the year, is taking place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 3750 S. Grand Ave in Historic South-Central Los Angeles. Another will be held at the same location Jan. 6. Registration and information are available online
"The expungement clinics provide folks a second chance," Hernandez said. "They offer people an opportunity to take those scarlet letters off their criminal records that they carry with them."
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Free legal clinic offers help to people who want to reduce or expunge marijuana convictions - LA Times
Author: Christine Mai-Duc
Contact: Contact Us
Photo Credit: Jim Brueckner
Website: Los Angeles Times - News from the nation, world and California - Los Angeles Times
