As lawmakers in Virginia wait to see how Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) will greet a retail marijuana sales bill sent to him last week, the legislature has passed separate legislation to provide relief for people convicted of past cannabis crimes, mandating that individuals with certain offenses automatically receive resentencing hearings and have their punishments adjusted.
The House of Delegates gave final approval to the bill, SB 696, on a 52–43 vote on Monday. The Senate passed the measure 20–19 last month.
Should the legislation become law, many criminal cases would need to be resentenced by the end of the year. People whose sentences for other crimes were enhanced because of a prior marijuana conviction, meanwhile, would receive hearings by April 1, 2025.
While most cases would be automatic, some people with convictions would need to petition a court for relief.
“It directs courts to consider that marijuana has been legalized—or to some degree legalized—and shall reduce, vacate or otherwise modify the person’s sentence,” sponsor Sen. Angelia Williams Graves (D) told a Senate panel earlier this session, “including removing such person from community supervision unless the commonwealth demonstrates it would not be compatible with the public interest to do so.”
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