Missouri man released from prison after 11 years in prison for possession of a pound of weed

A Missouri man who spent more than a decade in prison for a nonviolent cannabis crime has finally been released.

In February 2007, Robert Franklin was arrested by the Missouri Highway Patrol after throwing a 1-pound stone of marijuana out of his SUV window to avoid arrest. However, the police still managed to grab him and his weed and arrest him for possession. Franklin was sentenced to 22 years in prison with no parole or parole under the state’s extreme “three strikes” minimum law.

After spending a decade behind bars, Franklin contacted Christina Frommer of the Canna Convict Project, a local advocacy advocate for justice for non-violent cannabis inmates who are serving excessive prison terms. That spring, Frommer helped orchestrate a synopsis of Franklin’s story for the Riverfront Times, a progressive weekly newspaper based in St. Louis.

“I’ve jailed all of my 30s,” Franklin told the Riverfront Times in April. “And it’s stressful to know that people get out who were in jail by the same law, but they got caught with more than me.”

Just a week after the story was published, Missouri Governor Mike Parson reversed Franklin’s judgment. Franklin becomes the ninth Missourian to be commuted by Parson and the first to be commuted for a cannabis offense. However, since the governor has not issued a full pardon, Franklin’s arrest remains on his criminal record, which could make it difficult for him to find work or accommodation.

Parson’s conversion reduced Franklin’s sentence to 11 years, half the court’s draconian sentence. He was paroled last week and was finally able to return to his family.

“I breathe free air,” he told the local news broadcaster KOMU 8. “It’s great. I’m excited. I’m excited. I have to hug my daughter.” Now that he’s free, Franklin said he enjoys spending time with his family and “just doing things normal people do, waking up when I want to go to sleep, when I want to eat what i want to just live life. ”

“It was wonderful,” said Frommer to KOMU. “He didn’t deserve to serve 12 years on a pound of cannabis. He was just a black man in a rural community and he got the book thrown at him and that wasn’t fair. Robert was the most extreme we had because of the small number of possessions and the length of his sentence. “

Franklin is now free to roam, but over 40,000 Americans are still serving inflated sentences for petty cannabis crimes. Across the country, advocacy groups such as the Canna Convict Project and the Last Prisoner Project have sprung up to help current inmates find freedom. Last year the Last Prisoner Project helped convince Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer to pardon Michael Thompson, a black man who was serving 24 years of a 60-year prison sentence for selling weed.

Franklin told KOMU that he hopes to help other cannabis prisoners find justice and encourages anyone who takes time for these petty crimes to stand strong and fight for their release. “Don’t give up the fight,” he advised. “Keep fighting no matter what they throw at you. Go ahead and be an advocate for yourself. “