WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday pardoned all individuals convicted on federal charges of simple marijuana possession, a move that the White House estimated would affect more than 6,500 people nationwide and thousands more in the District of Columbia.
Biden urged all governors to follow his example and called for a formal review of marijuana’s classification in federal law as a Schedule I drug. Currently, marijuana has the same classification as heroin and LSD, and a higher classification than fentanyl.
A change to the legal classification of marijuana, although not certain, would be an extremely significant reform, clearing the way for major changes to the federal government’s approach to the drug.
