A Virginia lawmaker who sponsored a bill to provide resentencing relief for people with past marijuana convictions that the governor is proposing to significantly scale back says he will accept those changes, even if he is not happy about them.
As approved by lawmakers, HB 26 from Rozia Henson, Jr. (D), along with companion bill SB 62 from Senate President Pro Tem Louise Lucas (D), would create a process by which people who are incarcerated or on community supervision for certain felony offenses involving the possession, manufacture, selling or distribution of marijuana could receive an automatic hearing to consider modification of their sentences.
Under the amendments proposed to the cannabis legislation by Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) on Monday, however, affected persons would have to proactively file petitions to get the relief instead of having the courts proceed automatically.
Henson said on Tuesday that his legislation was “built for the people still paying the price for something Virginia has since made legal.”
“If the commonwealth changed the law, it has an obligation to revisit the consequences still being borne by people convicted under the old one,” he said.
The relief would apply to people whose convictions or adjudications are for conduct that
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