Washington State will spend almost $100 million in 2021 to annul an estimated 350,000 previous drug convictions, and to reimburse legal fees for people who were prosecuted based on laws that The State Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional.
The Administrative Office of the Courts of the state announced on Monday it will launch the Blake Refund Bureau in the next month. This relief is being coordinated with “local court clerks, county clerks and public defenders as well as impacted individuals, advocacy organizations, and other stakeholders.”
The new reimbursement fund was created in response to a landmark ruling by the State Supreme Court of 2021 that the state’s criminal codes for drug possession crimes were unconstitutionally flawed, because they did not require proof that the person “knowingly” had committed the crime. This led to a situation wherein people could be criminalized even for accidental possession.
The state’s drug criminalization law was effectively thrown out by the ruling. However, the governor enacted legislation passed by the legislature to reinstate prohibition. This bill includes statutory language changes to pass constitutional muster, and lower penalties for possessing drugs compared to the old law.
There is relief on the way for the hundreds of thousand people who have been caught in the system of the previous statute.
Sharon Swanson, AOC Blake Implementation manager said in a release that the goal was to create a simple process for people to follow and receive their refunds quickly. The public can search for their case by name or number.
Washington officials estimate more than 200,000 felony charges of drug possession and 150,000 misdemeanor charges of marijuana dating back to 1970s could be eligible for acquittal.
According to recently passed legislation, the state is providing $47 million for a comprehensive review of hundreds of thousand records of misdemeanor and felony marijuana possession. A further $50 million will go to reimburse eligible people for fines, costs and legal financial obligations.
AOC will offer online resources to people who want to check on the status of their vacations or refunds. The body will also launch a public awareness campaign to let people know about the relief initiative.
Washington State Court Administrator Dawn Marie Rubio stated that the Administrative Office of the Courts was dedicated to working with justice partners to inform the vast and varied Blake-impacted populations across Washington State of the potentially life-changing opportunities available now.
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In addition, a number other reforms to drug policy have also been made in this state’s session.
Gov. Last month, Jay Inslee signed into law a bill that will protect workers against facing employment discrimination due to their lawful marijuana use during the hiring process.
Inslee approved last month a measure that authorizes interstate cannabis commerce pending a change in federal policy.
On Tuesday, he also acted on a bill that promotes research into psilocybin as well as creating a pilot program for therapeutic access to psychedelics in mental health treatments. He signed the bill, but he vetoed some sections that “nolonger align with the intent of the bill.”
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