Nearly 10 months after Arizona voters passed Proposition 207, thousands of people convicted of minor marijuana-related offenses are having their records wiped clean and hundreds more are applyingto do so each week.
Over 3,600 petitions for expungement of marijuana convictions have been granted since they became available in Maricopa County on July 12, with an average of 506 petitions filed each week, according to Maricopa County Superior Court.
Proposition 207 legalized the use and possession of marijuana for adults over the age of 21 in Arizona. The ballot measure also allowed for the cultivation of marijuana and for dispensaries to sell it.
And now, anyone in Arizona accused or convicted of the activities made legal by the proposition is eligible for expungement, meaning charges or convictions are erased from their record.
The expungement process is free and courts can grant a petition in as little as 30 days.
Yet, hundreds of thousands of those eligible to remove marijuana-related infractions still have not filed a petition for expungement.
Julie Gunnigle, director of politics and civic engagement with Arizona NORML, a marijuana advocacy group, said despite the surge of applications the number of petitions is quite low when compared to how many people are eligible.
There are 250,000 to 500,000 cases that may be eligible for expungement, and over two-thirds of those are for marijuana possession alone, according to Gunnigle and crime reports from the Arizona…
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Nearly 10 months after Arizona voters passed Proposition 207, thousands of people convicted of minor marijuana-related offenses are having their records wiped clean and hundreds more are applyingto do so each week.
Over 3,600 petitions for expungement of marijuana convictions have been granted since they became available in Maricopa County on July 12, with an average of 506 petitions filed each week, according to Maricopa County Superior Court.
Proposition 207 legalized the use and possession of marijuana for adults over the age of 21 in Arizona. The ballot measure also allowed for the cultivation of marijuana and for dispensaries to sell it.
And now, anyone in Arizona accused or convicted of the activities made legal by the proposition is eligible for expungement, meaning charges or convictions are erased from their record.
The expungement process is free and courts can grant a petition in as little as 30 days.
Yet, hundreds of thousands of those eligible to remove marijuana-related infractions still have not filed a petition for expungement.
Julie Gunnigle, director of politics and civic engagement with Arizona NORML, a marijuana advocacy group, said despite the surge of applications the number of petitions is quite low when compared to how many people are eligible.
There are 250,000 to 500,000 cases that may be eligible for expungement, and over two-thirds of those are for marijuana possession alone, according to Gunnigle and crime reports from the Arizona…