You certainly know it by now: new law under Proposition 64 permits adults, 21 years of age and order, to legally possess, transport, purchase, consume or share up to one ounce (less than or equal to 28.5g) of marijuana, and up to 8 grams of marijuana concentrates. Recreational sales could start as early as 2018.
Have you suffered a past conviction for a marijuana offense that falls within Proposition 64? There is a provision that might interest you as well.
As of November 8, 2016, California law has changed with respect to marijuana. California voters adopted the “Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act”, commonly known as the “Adult Use of Marijuana Act”. The act has more four major components:
• It permits adults, 21 years of age and order, to legally possess, transport, purchase, consume or share up to one ounce (less than or equal to 28.5g) of marijuana, and up to 8 grams of marijuana concentrates. It also permits adults 21 and older to grow up to 6 marijuana plants per household out of public view. It also reduces for many marijuana offenses – what previously was a felony in many cases has been changed to a misdemeanor or is a wobbler (capable of being either a felony or misdemeanor). Several misdemeanors are now infractions. Statutes have been created to regulate the public consumption of marijuana
• New Health and Safety Code Section 11361.8 permits persons previously convicted of certain marijuana offenses to obtain a reduced conviction or sentence if they would have received the lesser consequences of the laws now in place when the crime was committed. If the crime was for conduct now legal, there is a provision requiring the court to “dismiss and seal” the record of conviction.
• The new laws establish a comprehensive system to control the cultivation, distribution and sale of nonmedical marijuana and marijuana products.
• The new laws create a marijuana tax that will be imposed upon purchasers.
Petitions to reduce or resentence are expected to take 90 to 120 days because of court backlog and anticipated response. If you wish to have your conviction reduced, file early but be patient. Unlike petitions under Proposition 47, there is no deadline to have your conviction reduced. However, why delay?
