Three changes you might see once marijuana declassification takes effect

Civil Rights and Criminal Law Attorney Melba Pearson discusses three potential shifts following marijuana declassification:

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a historic shift to generations of American drug policy that could have wide ripple effects across the country.

Civil Rights and Criminal Law Attorney Melba Pearson tells NBC6 three changes you could see once pot declassification takes effect.

Pearson works in the Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy at Florida International University (FIU). She serves as the Director of Prosecution Projects, overseeing technical assistance, training, and community engagement efforts around the field of prosecution. Prior to her role at FIU, Pearson was deputy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.

“This is a very huge moment,” Pearson said of this week’s announcement of the proposal, which would not legalize marijuana outright for recreational use.

Changing trends

"We already have almost half the states in this country that have some form of recreational sale of cannabis," Pearson told NBC6.

“So as other states start to examine whether or not they want to legalize and in what fashion, the fact that cannabis is now going to be rescheduled gives more ammunition, so to speak, or more incentive to start to push more of these laws along on the state level,” she added.

Marijuana research

“It’s now going to allow new research opportunities,” said Pearson.

She noted that in the past, researchers had a hard time getting research funding because of marijuana’s classification.

Restorative justice

Pearson also said that as other states start to look at these laws, she is hopeful they’ll start to consider criminal sentences related to the use of the drug.

“I think, first of all, that this does pave the way for more activity, not only on the federal level, but on the state level in looking back at cannabis convictions and potentially removing or expunging people's records so that they can move forward with their lives,” Pearson said.

“The same way you look at the disparity between cocaine and crack cocaine and the sentencing disparities that surrounded that now you’ll see more states looking at these cannabis convictions and saying 'you know what, it’s kind of unjust for someone to be serving time for something that is not legal,'” Pearson added.

Cannabis use in Florida

In Florida, possession of cannabis can still be a misdemeanor depending on the amount.

In 2016, Florida voters approved Amendment 2 which allows medical marijuana.

In November, Florida voters will have the chance to vote in favor of recreational marijuana. In order to pass, the amendment must get support from at least 60 percent of voters.