In an important decision that could have wide-ranging impacts on those arrested for minor drug crimes, a court in Colorado tossed a woman’s 2011 marijuana-related drug charges given that the same crimes would now be deemed legal.
The case began when Brandi Russell was arrested three years ago for possessing less than an ounce of marijuana and marijuana concentrate. Russell was charged and convicted, but less than a year later, voters in Colorado approved Amendment 64, which made possession of anything less than an ounce of marijuana legal for those over 21.
Russell decided to appeal her conviction in light of the new law and was pleased to win over the Colorado Court of Appeals. The majority of a three-judge panel wrote that Amendment 64 amounts to a significant change in the law and, as such, can allow for the elimination or mitigation of penalties for those who were previously convicted of such crimes.
Though some have said the impact could be quite broad, the Court’s majority attempted to narrow the possible importance of the ruling. The opinion stated that the decision would only impact those who were already in the process of appealing their convictions when Amendment 64 went into effect.
Russell’s attorney, as well as other defense lawyers, applauded the decision by the appeals court saying that defendants across the state who have minor marijuana convictions staining their criminal records will now have hope that their offenses could be removed. Russell herself said that the criminal conviction had impacted her life and her ability to find work and was thrilled that she would be able to move forward with a clean slate.
Unsurprisingly, not everyone was pleased with the ruling. The state’s Attorney General issued an announcement saying that he thought the Court of Appeals was wrong to apply the new law retroactively and said he intended to take the matter all the way to the state’s supreme court.
Some have said that the ruling could now be used as precedent by others who appeal similar low-level marijuana convictions. Beyond those who were cited for possession of marijuana and marijuana concentrate, the new ruling could also be interpreted to offer hope for those convicted of other minor marijuana crimes that are now legal under Amendment 64, such as growing marijuana.
Though the ruling is undoubtedly good news for those in Colorado with criminal infractions to contend with, it is unlikely that the ruling will lead to anyone getting released from jail. That’s because the kind of crimes that are now legal under Amendment 64 would not have resulted in jail time in the first place.
Source: “Colorado court: Some marijuana cases can be overturned,” by John Ingold, published at DenverPost.com.
