Obama issues pardons on mostly cannabis cases

[usregimechange]

WASHINGTON, DC – Today President Barack Obama granted pardons to five individuals and commutation of sentence to one individual:

PARDONS:

• Lesley Claywood Berry Jr. - Loretto, Ky.

Offense: Conspiracy to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841 and 846.
Sentence: April 29, 1988; District of Minnesota; three years in prison.

• Dennis George Bulin - Wesley Chapel, Fla.

Offense: Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute in excess of 1,000 pounds of marijuana, 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and 846 and 18 U.S.C. § 2.
Sentence: March 10, 1987; Middle District of Alabama; five years of probation and $20,000 fine.

• Ricky Dale Collett - Annville, Ky.

Offense: Aiding and abetting in the manufacture of 61 marijuana plants, 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and 18 U.S.C. § 2.
Sentence: March 7, 2002; Eastern District of Kentucky; one year of probation conditioned on 60 days of home detention.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/11/21/president-obama-grants-pardons-and-commutation

[w4rma]

1. That is a good start. (nt)

[DFab420]

2. Well this only goes to prove how evil President Obama is and how he doesn't ever do anything.

:sarcasm:

[DisgustipatedinCA]

6. It's nice that he helped 5 people at the egress of the justice system

It would be much more useful and humane if he did something about the ingress, the pipeline, the ridiculous arrest of tens of thousands of people per year for nothing more than wanting to smoke pot. It would help if he'd call off the goons he's sent to several western states in recent months.

[TheWraith]

10. Yes, because he has the power to rewrite federal law by personal fiat.

Since, after all, we elected a king.

By the way, "those goons" are United States Attorneys, who operate independently of the White House. It's a federal crime to interfere with them for political reasons.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

12. yes, the goons are US attorneys

That's why I called them goons--it's kind of self-referential. And they work for Eric Holder and for Barack Obama. Eric Holder and Barack Obama lied, and did what they said they wouldn't do. And yes, they can stop US Attorneys from raiding MMJ outlets without breaking any laws at all. By the way, we didn't elect a king, which of course has nothing to do with the topic at hand, but I thought you'd want to know.

[Jumping John]

3. Gee what a guy! I mean really - what a guy. eom

[Nuclear Unicorn]

4. Because not arresting in the first place is harder, I suppose.

I mean, it's only people having their entire lives destroyed in the courts, so what's the big deal?

[Mnemosyne]

5. I so hoped to see Bernie's pardon there. :( n/t

[Fly by night]

8. Thanks. They told me (on April Fool's Day) that my application was premature, ...

... since they decided to define my probation sentence as prison because I spent some of the time in a halfway house. (Probation and prison sentences are on two different time tables for a pardon application.)

That decision was a surprise to me AND to my federal judge's clerk, who said that the sentencing guidelines used in my case allowed the judge to sentence me to probation " ... in lieu of imprisonment...."

Her response to their decision: "Just what have those DOJ attorneys been smoking?"

I still have the pardon application and the 175 notarized character references in a folder. It will be resubmitted on May 11, 2012 when the DOJ pardon office said they would accept it. I do not plan to change a word nor include another charcter reference although a large number of people have volunteered to add to my stack of support letters. Since only three letters are required, I am satisfied with 175.

Glad to see that Obama has now pardoned marijuana convicts in the last two rounds of pardons. As far as I'm concerned, it would be easier if he would pardon everyone who has ever been convicted of a medical marijuana-related "crime" en masse.

A medical marijuana conviction still functions like a scarlet letter. One day, I hope it will be viewed as a Green Badge of Courage.

[Mnemosyne]

9. I remember the mix up with dates, just hoped somehow...wishful thinking.

Don't these pardons make your's more likely? It sets a precedent anyway, jmho.

You are one of my personal heroes, Bernie. I look forward to seeing your pardon in the near future.

:patriot::yourock::hug:

[Fly by night]

11. Thanks kindly.

Five pardons down, 19,999,995 to go.

Given how open I have been with my pardon application process, I am unsure how they will treat me when they finally agree to look at it. Maybe my being so public about my own application (and the fact that, before I applied, NO marijuana-related federal conviction had ever been pardoned) helped those folks in some small way.

One can only hope (for more change).

Have a happy Thanksgiving.

[Mnemosyne]

13. Have a great Thanksgiving day, Bernie!

:hug:

[Sub Atomic]

7. Oooh! Five people got a pony! Now we can put the whole thing to rest!!

Yay for Obama and his not-quite-doing-anything-to-fulfill-campaign-promises!!

Yay!