Independent news has never been so important.

Did you know that you can get Democracy Now! delivered to your inbox every day? Sign up for our Daily News Digest today! Don't worry, we'll never share or sell your information.

Illinois Legalizes Marijuana, Paving Way for Expungement of Nearly 800,000 Cases

HeadlineJun 26, 2019

Back in the U.S., Illinois has become the 11th state to legalize recreational marijuana, after Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill Tuesday allowing for the possession and purchase of small amounts of the drug. The legislation will pardon anyone with a nonviolent marijuana conviction under 30 grams. Individuals can petition the court to vacate convictions that exceed 30 grams. Nearly 800,000 marijuana-related cases could be expunged thanks to the new law. The bill also sets up a program to invest in communities most affected by the war on drugs. Illinois is the first state to both legalize marijuana and set up a marketplace through the state Legislature. The law will go into effect on the first day of 2020.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top