The American Medical Association (AMA) calls for the overturning of marijuana-related arrests

Marijuana legalization is already widespread in the United States.

It’s a far cry from being criminalized a few decades ago. Today, one can easily purchase cannabis products from dispensaries, which can be found in dozens of states where it’s legal for medical use, recreational use, or both. However, far too many Americans still suffer the consequences that come with criminal records from previous marijuana-related convictions and arrests.

Now, the American Medical Association, the largest professional association of physicians, recommends automatically overturning marijuana-related arrests, since these cases are no longer illegal under state cannabis laws. They released a statement that they have just given the go-ahead for a resolution on this reform, stating that their goals are to “introduce justice and fairness into the rapidly changing effort to legalize cannabis.” Additionally, the AMA points out that there are at least 18 states that have already legalized recreational cannabis use, while over 3 dozen have legalized medicinal use. Despite this, there are numerous cases of people convicted or arrested for weed-related offenses prior to legalization, and they are still paying the price.

“This is affecting young people who are pursuing careers in medicine, as well as many others who are being denied housing, education, credit and job opportunities,” says Scott Ferguson, MD, an AMA trustee. “It’s just not fair to ruin a life based on acts that lead to convictions but are subsequently legalized or decriminalized,” he says.

Additionally, the new policy recommends eliminating court-ordered surveillance, such as probation or probation, for marijuana-related arrests that were later legalized or decriminalized. They acknowledge that such prohibition laws are not applied equally, as marginalized communities are often hardest hit, adding that black people are 3.6 times more likely to be incarcerated for marijuana crimes, even as statistics show that both black and white people use marijuana almost equally.

The irony is that the AMA has made it clear that while it supports eradicating marijuana-related crimes, it still opposes marijuana legalization. While they may think that legalizing cannabis for recreational purposes or marketing it as a cure-all is just wrong, at the end of the day there is no denying that the plant is effective in treating many diseases.

More states are moving to erase previous marijuana convictions

Recently, governors in Illinois and Colorado signed legislation that would expedite the wiping out of those with cannabis-related offenses and have their records erased.

Democratic Gov. Jared Polis signed Senate Bill 99 in Colorado that expands automatic sealing of records for individuals with certain cannabis violations and related crimes. Meanwhile, in Illinois, Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker signed HB4392 that would change current state law so that petitioners who have asked for their criminal records to be wiped will no longer be turned down by courts simply for failing a marijuana drug test.

These steps are necessary given the massive failure of the war on drugs. Changing or repealing state laws is not enough to erase cannabis convictions; There are millions of marijuana-related crimes across the country that have caused these people to deal with stigma and diminished life chances. It is even worse for marginalized communities, who have been disproportionately affected.

There are countless talented people who should have no problem working as medical professionals in any capacity. Of course, we can understand the reasoning behind AMA’s stance; Despite a person’s skills and abilities to transform and save lives by working as a medical professional, drug offenses for marijuana crimes will still show up on their record and on background checks, preventing hospitals from hiring otherwise perfectly capable professionals. Since working in the medical field means you are responsible for the lives of others, it is normal for hospitals and medical offices to expect moral integrity from you.

But just because you’ve been charged with a minor felony in the past for possession of marijuana doesn’t make you a less moral person or someone less capable of saving lives.

However, only a few states have done the deletion automatically; The rest of the states are lagging behind, relying on manual, time-consuming processes to get records deleted. Then there are law enforcement and government officials who argue that sealing the records is too complicated because the records are not always easily accessible. Erasing is more effective than sealing in terms of overturning a criminal conviction as it would erase those records entirely, while sealing a record merely prevents the public (e.g. your employer or potential tenant) from viewing it, although there are still ways that it can still be accessed.

Conclusion

Criminal records related to cannabis should be automatically erased as of yesterday.

It is ridiculous to prevent outstanding doctors and other medical professionals from joining the force simply because they have committed a previous crime. It does help, however, that more states are following the trend of raising awareness about non-discrimination against those required to use medicinal cannabis. After all, jobs shouldn’t just be about persuasion—as long as people can show they’re the right professionals for the job, they can still do what’s necessary to climb the corporate ladder and succeed in the medical field.

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