Missouri Governor Hopefully Sets Trend By Commuting Sentence of Cannabis Convict
Missouri Governor, Jay Nixon, commuted the sentence of Jeff Mizanskey, a 61 year old man who was serving a mandatory life sentence for violating a "three-strikes" rule.
Topic
sentencing
90 articles
Law & PoliticsLink
Do Marijuana Prisoners Deserve Amnesty?
What to do with the prisoners of a failed war? Since 2012, when voters in Colorado and Washington approved the tax and sale of recreational marijuana, the cognitive dissonance of America's drug penalties has become even more absurd.
Law & PoliticsLink
Obama Commutes 22 Drug Sentences, Instantly Doubling the Number of Commutations He's Issued
President Barack Obama commuted the sentences of 22 individuals on Tuesday, more than doubling the number of commutations he has issued in the six-plus years he's been in office. The men and women granted the reprieves had been imprisoned under an "outdated sentencing regime," the administration concluded. Eight of the 22 inmates ...
55 Years for Selling Weed? Ret. Judge Blasts Mandatory Minimum Laws
Former Utah circuit judge Paul Cassell is speaking out against mandatory minimums and the unjust nature of the court system that required him to impose massively overblown sentences.
Koch Backed Group Seeks to Help Drug War Victims
Thanks to mandatory sentencing laws, Weldon Angelos, a father of two, has been sentenced to 55 years in jail for selling cannabis. But a Koch-brother backed group, Generation Opportunity, seeks to aid Anglos and other millennials who face similar sentencing.
To Toke or Not to Toke in Colorado?
Colorado's Supreme Court is considering whether its is lawful to fire someone who uses medical marijuana off the job when medicinal pot use is legal in the state, but still illegal federally.
Maryland: Reduced Marijuana Possession Penalties Take Effect
A new Maryland law depenalizing marijuana possession offenses takes effect this Wednesday. The new law does not reclassify penalties involving the possession of marijuana paraphernalia, which remains a criminal offense.
California Defelonization Initiative Appears Poised for Victory
While the nation focuses on marijuana legalization initiatives in Alaska, the District of Columbia, and Oregon, a California initiative of defelonization that would turn drug possession felonies into misdemeanors is quietly heading for a likely victory at the polls in November.
Law & PoliticsLink
Chicago Mayor Pushes to Reduce Penalties for Minor Drug Possession Statewide
Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel called on the General Assembly to decriminalize marijuana possession statewide and to reduce the penalty to a misdemeanor for those caught with 1 gram or less of any controlled substance.
CNN Report on Kettle Falls 5 Airs Tonight
Tune in tonight at 7pm Eastern/Pacific for a LIVE CNN report devoted to the pending federal trial of five Washington State patients. On "Erin Burnett OutFront," CNN's David Mattingly investigates the Kettle Falls 5 case...
Italy Poised to Release 10,000 Cannabis Inmates
Italy is poised to release about ten thousand inmates due to a shift in sentencing laws that eases punishment for cannabis use, growth and possession. The change comes as a result of the striking down of a law that previously tripled cannabis related sentences.
Law & PoliticsLink
Marijuana Supplier Named Pot Playboy Gets 27 Years
A Canadian drug kingpin who was one of New York's biggest marijuana suppliers and was dubbed the Pot Playboy was sentenced Wednesday to 27 years in prison for leading a $1 billion international drug trafficking enterprise...
Sentencing Commission Cuts Up to 46,000 Drug War Prisoners' Sentences
In a much anticipated move, the US Sentencing Commission last Friday voted unanimously to retroactively apply previously approved reductions in federal sentencing guidelines to federal drug war prisoners already serving their sentences.
US Sentencing Commission Votes Unanimously to Make Drug Sentencing Reductions Retroactive
The US Sentencing Commission Friday voted unanimously to make previously agreed upon federal drug sentencing reductions retroactive. That means tens of...
Law & PoliticsLink
Student Gets Death for Trafficking 26.5kg of Cannabis
A Nigerian college student gets death for trafficking 26.5kg of cannabis in Malaysia four years ago.
In Ohio, Stances on Marijuana Are Changing
Ohio has recently seen increased support for allowing adults to choose to consume marijuana. In Ohio, possession of 99 grams or less is a non-criminal citation, and residents ...
Groups in New Mexico Seek to Lessen Marijuana Possession Penalties
Groups hoping to lessen the penalties for the possession of small amounts of marijuana have filed petitions in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, The New Mexico Telegram reports.
Federal Medical Marijuana Defendant Returns to Washington, D.C. to Lobby Senate Ahead of Imminent Vote
Medical marijuana patient Larry Harvey, 70, has returned to Washington, D.C. this week to persuade the U.S. Senate to vote for an end to the type of Justice Department (DOJ)