The governor of Louisiana has signed a bill into law that will streamline expungements for people with first-time marijuana possession convictions.
About two weeks after the measure from Rep. Delisha Boyd (D) advanced through the legislature, Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) gave final approval on Monday.
The legislation makes it so people who are convicted of possessing up to 14 grams of cannabis as a first offense can petition the courts to wipe their record after 90 days from the time of the conviction.
That would significantly speed up the timeline for relief, as current law maintains that people must wait at least five years before petitioning for expungement of certain records.
The bill was previously amended in a House committee to specify that eligible misdemeanor marijuana possession cases cannot involve more than 14 grams. An original provision was also removed that would have waived court processing fees for first-time cannabis expungements.
Now the measure, the effective date for which is August 1, sets a $300 cap on fees for the record clearing.
“The clerk shall immediately direct the collected processing fees provided…to the sheriff and the district attorney, and the processing fee amount shall be remitted immediately upon receipt in equal
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