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Posted on December 17, 2020 in Criminal Defense,drugs,News
Recently Arizona just approved Proposition 207. But what does this mean for Marijuana convictions in Arizona? It not only legalized the possession and use of marijuana for adults (age 21 years or older), but Arizona now has its first expungement law. The push to legalize the adult use of marijuana is not new to Arizona. While attempts at decriminalization have failed in the past, this year, the effort passed through a ballot initiative of the people—namely, Proposition 207.
Before Prop. 207, the possession of marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia was a felony. However, beginning July 12, 2021, an individual arrested, charged, convicted, or otherwise adjudicated of certain enumerated marijuana-related crimes in the new law will be eligible to have their records expunged. The term expunge under the new law means at least five things:
(1) Vacates the judgment of adjudication or conviction.
(2) Expunges all records of the arrest, charge, conviction, adjudication, and sentence.
(3) Restores all civil rights that were revoked as a result of the conviction.
(4) Notifies all involved prosecuting and law enforcement agencies of the expungement and requires them to seal all records.
(5) Requires that the clerk of the court seal all records relating to the expunged arrest, charge, adjudication, conviction, or sentence and prohibit access to those records by anyone other than the accused or convicted individual.
Remember, you do not necessarily have had to been convicted of anything to have your record expunged. The new expungement law applies to records such as police reports, even in the instance that you were arrested but never charged with a crime. The law also permits eligible individuals to petition the court before the July 12 eligibility date, and we have already been preparing to get those submitted.
If you want to apply to have your records sealed and expunged, you do not have to wait until July of 2021 to get the process started. Contact our office online or by calling (480) 248-7666 to speak with an experienced criminal defense attorney and learn more about how the new expungement law applies to your specific situation. Don’t Wait – Learn more on to start your expungement process today by speaking with a qualified criminal defense attorney.