Bill Text: IL HR0154 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges every State's Attorney in the State to throw out all pending low-level marijuana charges and review low-level marijuana charges that resulted in conviction and incarceration to help offer residents a path to employment and in the process be able to utilize our resources for the benefit of the citizens of the State.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-07-02 - Rule 19(b) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HR0154 Detail]
Download: Illinois-2019-HR0154-Introduced.html
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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, In 2016, the law changed and possession of up to | ||||||
| 3 | 10 grams of marijuana in Illinois became a civil matter rather | ||||||
| 4 | than a criminal one; and
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| 5 | WHEREAS, This change did not address those who had already | ||||||
| 6 | been convicted of possession of small amounts of marijuana; and
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| 7 | WHEREAS, To create stronger pathways to employment for all | ||||||
| 8 | citizens of the State, legislators need to examine the damage | ||||||
| 9 | over-criminalization has caused, specifically the | ||||||
| 10 | disproportionate effect on people of color; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, According to a 2013 report from the American Civil | ||||||
| 12 | Liberties Union, African-Americans in Illinois are more than 7 | ||||||
| 13 | times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession; and
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| 14 | WHEREAS, To help nonviolent offenders rehabilitate and | ||||||
| 15 | have a better chance of getting a job, expunging low-level | ||||||
| 16 | convictions of marijuana possession allows people to tell | ||||||
| 17 | prospective employers that they have a clean criminal record; | ||||||
| 18 | and
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| 19 | WHEREAS, In addition to the financial benefit of more | ||||||
| 20 | citizens able to achieve full employment, eliminating the | ||||||
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| 1 | prosecution of pending low level marijuana charges allows for | ||||||
| 2 | the reallocation of resources and with a focus on serious | ||||||
| 3 | cases, the safety and security of all residents is improved; | ||||||
| 4 | therefore, be it
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| 5 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 6 | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 7 | we urge every State's Attorney in this State to throw out all | ||||||
| 8 | pending low-level marijuana charges and review low-level | ||||||
| 9 | marijuana charges that resulted in conviction and | ||||||
| 10 | incarceration to help offer residents a path to employment and | ||||||
| 11 | in the process be able to utilize our resources for the benefit | ||||||
| 12 | of the citizens of the State.
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