Nine Cannabis Offenders Receive Pardons and Commutations from President Biden

Members of the advocacy group D.C. Marijuana Justice hold a 51-foot blow-up joint on the National Mall on April 28, 2021. (Photo by Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

The White House granted clemency for 78 individuals on April 26. All but one have been imprisoned on drug offenses. These are President Biden's first pardons and commutations since he took office in 2021.

Three received pardons, the rest had their sentences commuted. 

The pardons were given to:

• Abraham Bolden - the former Secret Service agent attempted to sell a Secret Service file in 1964; he was the first Black agent

• Betty Jo Bogans - convicted in 1998 for distributing crack cocaine

• Dexter Jackson - convicted in 2002 for "using his business to facilitate the distribution of mariijuana"

RELATED: 40,000+ Cannabis Prisoners in the U.S, Last Prisoner Project Confirms

Most of the 75 commuted were convicted on cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin charges. The marijuana offenders are:

• Ramola Brown - convicted in 2005 of distributing marijuana and cocaine

• Jose Colunga - convicted in 2010 of distributing marijuana

• Stacie Demers - convicted in 2016 of distributing marijuana

• Christopher Gunter - convicted in 2008 of distributing marijuana, cocaine and cocaine paste

• Carry Lee - convicted in 2016 of distributing marijuana

• Paul Lupercio - convicted in 2008 of distributing marijuana and cocaine

• Quang Nguyen - convicted in 2017 of distributing marijuana

• Fermin Serna - convicted in 2007 of distributing marijuana

All commuted sentences expire on April 26, 2023. Check out the list here

 

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Steve Bloom

Steve Bloom

Publisher of CelebStoner.com, former editor of High Times and Freedom Leaf and co-author of Pot Culture and Reefer Movie Madness.