simple question about the Biden weed pardon

If you ended all simple possession charges against blacks it would hardly make a dent in incarceration numbers. If you released all blacks in prison on simple possession in would hardly make a dent.

Biden’s Marijuana Pardon Won’t Release a Single Inmate
Incarceration rates are driven by violent crime, not drug crime. Democrats don’t like that story.

....“As a percentage of our nation’s incarcerated population, those possessing small amounts of marijuana barely register,” writes Yale law professor and former District of Columbia public defender James Forman in his book, “Locking Up Our Own.” “For every ten thousand people behind bars in America, only six are there because of marijuana possession.”

The reality is that what drives incarceration rates is violent crimes, not drug crimes. According to the Justice Department, as of 2019 some 58% of people imprisoned by states had been sentenced for violent offenses, 15% for property offenses, 14% for drug offenses and only 4% for drug possession. Put another way, drug offenders are less than a quarter of the violent offenders, and more than 85% of the prison population is there for something other than a drug offense. The U.S. regularly tops the list of advanced countries with the largest prison population, but if we sent home every incarcerated drug offender tomorrow, we’d still top the list.

Nor would releasing drug offenders do much of anything to address the racial imbalance among inmates, which results primarily from the fact that blacks are about 13% of the U.S. population yet are responsible for almost two-thirds of the nation’s violent crime. So long as this racial gap in violent offenses persists, so will the racial gap in incarceration rates. “The racial disparities in prison populations would barely budge if all the people serving time for drug crimes were immediately released,” writes John Pfaff, a professor of criminal law at Fordham University, in his book, “Locked In.” And “it seems likely that scaling back the drug war would not on its own necessarily alter offending or enforcement patterns enough to bring about real change.”...
https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-...egalization-11665520780?mod=opinion_lead_pos8

 

I think the point is that if Biden's pardon issued today. Tomorrow someone could be convicted for possession tomorrow and out in prison. It doesn't change the law. Not saying it will happen because the fact is we don't jail people for simple possession. Why didn't he submit a bill to Congress to repeal the law and THEN after that passes issue a pardon for any previous convictions.

 

I sometimes wonder if the want the police to keep a running total and if they have too many blacks being arrested they hold off any further arrest until more whites commit crimes to keep it even.

 

I would think that the WH is going to have write up 6500 pardons a Biden have to sign each one. I've never seen a President just wave his hand and a person is pardoned.

 

There are some places where it is legal.

 

What he is doing is telling federal law enforcement to not enforce a law as he will blanket pardon anyone they do enforce it against. That is effectively invalidating the law and technically in violation of his oath of office.

 

As I noted in the current events thread on this citing the DA of one of our counties in Alabama even here they don't put people in jail for possession and even sale has to be a huge amount going into felony trafficking. The states have been doing this for years now Biden is once again leading from behind trying to gin up votes.

 

I am a user, but I like the laws with the states and I would never vote for Biden

most pot users I know are conservatives they will not voteb for Biden

Can a President Pardon Anyone? - Laws101.com No they can't

 

It does not affect state and local law at all but state and local don't put people in prison for simple possession and haven't for years.

 

Like with murder, it is because they are more likely to jaywalk. More likely to possess and sell marijuana.

 

The 6500 is NOT the numbers in prison at this time it is the number of federal convictions SINCE the 1990's to which this would apply. There are 220 people in federal prison for possession charges and those were most likely plea downs.

 

A pardon is not an expungement your record those are two different things so I don't know how this will help those who did their time and were released. They would still have to disclose it as the arrest and conviction remains on their record.

 

Jay walking laws are to protect the public from a risk they are likely to take, protect us from ourselves in other words. Do we just not care if minorities get killed?

How do you determine that the arrest rate of minorities is disproportionate?

 

Did he announce he no longer believed bank fraud should be a crime and issue a blanket pardon for all people ever convict of bank fraud on the federal level effectively telling the DOJ not to enforce such law?

 

None of that matters because the presidents opinion on the law and whether it should exist doesn't negate it's existence and certainly doesn't make it legal at the federal level. Decriminalization or full legalization is the direction the country in general is heading, and it was doing so long before Biden issued these pardons. But even this does not change the fact that his pardons haven't changed the legality of anything.

 

Federal law enforcement works for them and he EFFECTIVELY told them not to enforce laws against simple possession of pot because he will simply pardon the persons. NOT that we arrest people and send them to prison on the federal level anyway for simple possession.

YES as I noted he is once again leading from behind when he "urged" the states to do as he was doing. The states have not sent people to prison for simple possession for years. The fact is if he wanted to make a difference on the matter on the law he should have presented legislation to the Congress to legalize it and ask that they pass it.

 

As far as the federal government is concerned, it's still illegal everywhere.

If Biden really wanted to help the estimated 48 million Americans who smoke weed he would move to have marijuana decriminalized at the federal level and leave this matter to the states...

 

No argument there. It is the Republicans standing in the way of it in Congress right now. While I don't hold the same opinion at all about harder drugs, pot being illegal serves no real purpose. Lets free up law enforcement to have more resources to go after those selling, trafficking, and manufacturing the harder addictive drugs.

 

Actually the vast majority of Reps have taken no public position on the matter, in fact the same with Dems, and not enough voice outright opposition to stop any measures in Congress.

Tables here

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixg...sional-candidates-silence-on-cannabis-reform/

This is being driven, and properly so at the state level, Biden is just trying to capitalize on it.

 

Only where they have jurisdiction.

 

Jefferson did it, as did Lincoln, Jimmy Carter.

Your faux outrage is faux.


https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/president-carter-pardons-draft-dodgers
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/07/biden-marijuana-pardon/

 

Lincoln didn't but yes had forgotten about the Carter blanket pardon for draft dodgers. So guess they just have to create a case list and sign one big pardon document.

 

They are saying on FOX news that there are very little to NO people in federal prison for SMOKING WEED. They say that most of the plead down to that from higher charges. Is this true or are they blowing smoke up my arse? If true, then they are not letting out "weed smokers". I'm not saying it is true as I haven't researched it yet, just sharing what I HEARD

 

True on both the federal and state level.

 

What the hell man..I thought he was actually doing something useful for a change but I guess I shouldn't be surprised at anything "sneaky" at this point.
I wanted him to do ONE good thing but now I know this is only for votes.