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Marijuana Is Now Decriminalized In Virginia

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Maddison Pace
June 30, 2020

Maddison Pace

Date: none, 2020

Link: https://www.localdvm.com/news/virginia/virginia-community-colleges-launch-online-distance-learning/

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Virginia’s getting a new look in 2020. With well over a thousand new bills signed by the governor addressing everything from voting access and rights for women and LGBT+ to driving while holding a phone, perhaps the most anticipated change is the decriminalization of marijuana.

The provisions of the two bills HB 972 and SB 2:

Marijuana

$25 max civil fine for simple possession up to one ounce
Past misdemeanor simple possession convictions are sealed and can be expunged
Virginia employers can not ask about past marijuana convictions
Virginians can acquire a medical marijuana card for any condition
30 medical dispensaries will open throughout the state
The state will undertake a study to determine how best to legalize

Date: none, 2020

Link: https://www.localdvm.com/news/virginia/virginia-community-colleges-launch-online-distance-learning/

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That last item might be the most important, as some critics of the bills say they don’t go far enough to stop the damage done by marijuana prohibition. To partially address the issue, some state senators have included as part of a plan for criminal justice reform the desire to “Prohibit Searches of Person or Vehicle Based on Odor of Marijuana Without Probable Cause for Other Offenses.”

As refreshing as their plan is, that part of the effort might not be needed, as signs point to a strong desire to legalize in the legislature in the next few years.