PUBLISHED: June 30, 2024 at 6:00 a.m.
This month, Gov. Wes Moore pardoned more than 175,000 prior marijuana convictions, impacting more than 100,000 individuals. This comes 18 months after the Old Line State voted to legalize recreational marijuana, which went on sale exactly one year ago on July 1. While the pordons were a good move, the move was a too-little-too-late acknowledgement that marijuana legalization isn’t about social justice, and pot profiteers aren’t necessary to end the criminalization of small possession of marijuana.
Moore’s decision to pardon these prior marijuana convictions should be commended. The charges related to low-level possession and paraphernalia. He followed in the steps of President Joe Biden, who in 2022 pardoned federal convictions for the low-level possession of marijuana.
Moore called it “the most sweeping state level pardon in any state in American history.” Yet nobody will be released from prison, just as nobody was released from federal prison because of Biden’s pardons. The pardons in Maryland will also not expunge the criminal records of those with prior convictions.
These recent steps highlight the false dichotomy between the criminalization of marijuana and the legalization of today’s highly potent THC drugs. While nobody should be in jail for the use of marijuana, the alternative policy need not legalize dangerous psychoactive drugs and usher in a for-profit marijuana industry, as was done in Maryland. Removing criminal penalties could address concerns related to the criminal justice system, while not giving the marijuana industry free rein to do as it pleases.
Indeed, when polls ask voters about the specific policy they prefer for marijuana, they do not come out in support of a full-scale commercial industry. A national poll in 2022 from Emerson College found that only 38% of Americans prefer full legalization, with the remaining 62% majority favoring decriminalization of marijuana, or continued prohibition — among other options. Americans remain wary of legalization.
This trend is also playing out in Maryland, with some voters having second thoughts about legalization. According to a Washington Post/University of Maryland poll, only 31% of voters have a positive view of legalization. Notably, Black Marylanders were more likely to say it’s been bad than good, at 32% vs 28%, respectively. Opposition comes across party lines, with 63% of Democrats and 76% of Republicans saying legalization has not been good for the state.
The same poll also asked people whether they support allowing a dispensary to open in their community. Statewide, half of Marylanders opposed this proposition. In Prince George’s County specifically 59% of poll respondents opposed it. Voters recognize the difference between the harms of criminalization and the harms of the addiction-for-profit industry. Marylanders don’t want people in prison for marijuana, but they also don’t want pot shops in their neighborhood.
Moore’s pardons come amid calls for a shift in national marijuana policy. The Biden Administration is actively working to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III substance, a move that would be a boon for the industry. Politicians should know better by now. They should know to distrust the industry and prioritize public health and public safety — they’ve gone through the same routine with the tobacco industry.
Despite promises that commercial pot sales would improve racial equity, we have seen that Black Americans continue to be disproportionately harmed, now by a predatory industry and its mind-altering products. Black Americans were 4x more like to have marijuana-related emergency department visits than white Americans. Additionally, in 2022, Black minors between the ages of 12 and 17 were 25% more likely to have used marijuana in the past month, compared to white minors and they were 31% more likely to have a cannabis use disorder. Pot shops are disproportionately concentrated in low-income communities and communities of color, helping to explain the concentration of these harms.
The marijuana industry uses arguments about racial equity as a guise to advance its financial interests. It’s a myth not supported by an honest assessment of the industry and its practices.
Moore’s actions are proof positive it is possible to advance racial equity without legalizing marijuana, a drug associated with numerous mental health harms, including anxiety, depression and schizophrenia. A good first step to protect Marylanders would be curbing public use, educating young people about the risks, requiring product labels with science-based warnings, and enacting strong regulations on the industry. The governor should turn his pulpit to these real concerns before more Marylanders get hurt.
Dr. Kevin Sabet (info@learnaboutsam.org) is the president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM), the nation’s leading nonpartisan voice for health and safety-based marijuana policy, and a three-time White House drug policy advisor.