Marijuana laws in the United States have undergone some significant changes over the past two decades.Depending on your state, you can grow and use marijuana recreationally and medically without consequencesㅡAs long as you follow state guidelinesㅡOr, you could find yourself behind bars for holding a joint.
State laws pertaining to marijuana abound, but federal law is very specific. At the federal level, marijuana is a Schedule I drug (just like heroin), meaning it has no medicinal value and is highly addictive. It was the result of the 1970 Controlled Substances Act, which President Nixon signed into law, but cannabis prohibition dates back to the 1930s.
If you don’t know who Harry Anslinger is, google his name because he is the father of the War on Drugs and his policies are rooted in racismHowever, we still follow many of his ideas and practices to this day.
If you don’t know who John Ehrlichman was, President Nixon’s head of domestic policy, he publicly admitted (decades later) that they Making marijuana a Schedule I drug Because they couldn’t make it illegal to be black or to be anti-war. So ridiculous marijuana laws were enacted to target minorities because Nixon’s belief led him to conclude that minorities (and those who opposed the Vietnam War) must use marijuana more than everyone else.
I have to be honest.I am extremely Passionate about this topic as I’ve been sentenced A total of 30 years in prisonㅡ15 years owned, 15 years manufacturedㅡFirst, non-violent, marijuana crime. I have never had a legal problem in my life. Prosecutors chose to pursue me because of my pleas, among other reasons. It didn’t turn out well.
Although we seem to be starting to make some big strides in marijuana laws across the countryㅡEven at the federal level there is some talk of removing marijuana from Schedule IㅡPeople are still locked up every day for marijuana. So, today, I’m going to answer this question: Can you get life in prison for smoking marijuana?
In this blog post, I will cover the following topics:
- Federal Marijuana Laws and Mandatory Sentencing
- State Cannabis Laws and Judgments
- Prisoner serving life sentence for marijuana
Federal Marijuana Laws and Mandatory Sentencing
Below is a list of federal charges, sentences and fines you may face for possessing, selling or growing marijuana.
TOLL category sentence beautiful
have
any amount (first offense) misdemeanor 1 year $1,000
Any amount (second violation) misdemeanor 15 days*- 2 years $2,500
any amount (subsequent offences) misdemeanor or felony 90 days*- 3 years $5,000
*Mandatory minimum requirements
Sale
less than 50 kg felony 5 years $250,000
50-99 kg felony 20 years $1,000,000
100-999 kg felony 5-40 years old $500,000
More than 1000kg felony 10 years to Life $1,000,000
Items sold to minors or within 1,000 feet of a school are double penalized.
cultivation
less than 50 plants felony 5 years $250,000
50-99 strains felony 20 years $1,000,000
100-999 strains felony 5-40 years old $500,000
1,000 plants or more felony 10 years to Life $1,000,000
Personal belongings
sell paraphernalia felony 3 years not applicable
In 2018, President Trump signed the farm bill allowing farmers to grow hemp.It is essentially a cannabis plant low in THCㅡThe psychoactive part of the cannabis plant.
State Cannabis Laws and Judgments
As of August 2019, eleven states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington), the District of Columbia, North The Mariana Islands and Guam have legalized recreational marijuana, and all states except Vermont and the District of Columbia allow its commercial sale.
In 1996, when voters passed Proposition 215, California became the first state to legalize the medical use of marijuana. Currently, 33 states, 4 U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana. Fourteen other states have stricter laws limiting THC levels in order to allow access to products rich in cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive component of marijuana.
If you are in good health, you can obtain a medical card through a doctor’s recommendation, and you are then allowed to possess and/or grow a certain amount of marijuana. If you live in a recreational state and are over 21, you can legally possess a certain amount of marijuana. Amounts do vary based on specific state laws.
If you are in a legal situation, you must ensure compliance with current laws. In many cases, pharmacy owners or patients have been arrested for failing to follow state guidelines.
If you live in a dry state, marijuana is still considered a controlled substance like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine, and you can be arrested and face criminal charges if you are caught possessing or selling any amount of marijuana.
I’m happy to say that since my arrest and incarceration, Missouri voters have passed a constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana. Now, I’m legally allowed to do what I was arrested and jailed for four years.
Prisoner serving life sentence for marijuana
Yes, you can definitely get life in prison for marijuana.
Between 1996 and 2014, federal judges sentenced 54 people to life without parole for marijuana offenses, according to a clemency report from a predecessor project usa today Reporter Dennis Cochon.The American Civil Liberties Union has set up There are about a dozen more cases at the state level, and various advocacy groups allege at least a dozen more.
Do you think marijuana should be legal at the federal level, or is this a state issue? Let us know in the comments below.
Sources: Top Adviser to Richard Nixon Admitted that 'War on Drugs' was Policy Tool to Go After Anti-War Protesters and 'Black People' Marijuana prohibition is racist and criminal, harms kids, and ruins lives | Johann Hari Sentenced to 15 years in prison for Pot: My Story The Controlled Substances Act: An Overview Federal Laws & Penalties