Courts in Arizona are now taking requests to erase certain marijuana offenses from people’s records, such as possession of up to two-and-a-half ounces or as many as a half-dozen plants.
It’s the latest step to implement last year’s voter-approved initiative that repealed cannabis-prohibition laws.
Having a marijuana conviction expunged from a person’s record may give them back the right to vote and own a gun. But it does not mean fines they paid in connection with the case will be refunded.
A traffic stop as he drove a Mazda Miata led to a possession of marijuana charge for Carlos Diaz in 2011. The drug case has been bad for his career in finance.
“I had gotten a couple of jobs but because of the background check had this misdemeanor marijuana charge on it I didn’t get the job because of that,” Diaz said on Monday outside Maricopa County Superior Court, right before filing paperwork to have his case deleted.
He expects an answer within 30 days.
