Pa. AG Josh Shapiro Supports Efforts To Legalize Recreational Marijuana
HARRISBURG (KDKA) - Attorney General Josh Shapiro says he supports the efforts to legalize recreational marijuana in Pennsylvania.
In a full statement, Attorney General Shapiro said:
"Continuing to criminalize adult personal marijuana use is a waste of limited law enforcement resources, it disproportionately impacts our minority communities and it does not make us safer.
Given those realities and after months of internal research and discussions with fellow law enforcement, I am in support of efforts to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana use for Pennsylvanians over the age of 21. As part of this, we also must expunge records of those with non-violent marijuana use convictions.
As the Legislature considers this issue, I will continue to prioritize serious threats in our communities—like the opioid crisis—and invest in educating our kids on the risks of substance abuse."
Governor Tom Wolf and Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman say they have the will of the people behind them in their quest to legalize recreational marijuana, which began on Wednesday.
As the Legislature considers this issue, I will continue to prioritize serious threats in our communities — like the opioid crisis — and invest in educating our kids on the risks of substance abuse.
— AG Josh Shapiro (@PAAttorneyGen) September 27, 2019
Governor Wolf climbed a ladder in Devore's Hardware on his tour celebrating Monongahela's revitalization on Thursday.
Twenty-four hours earlier, he was with the Lt. Governor in Harrisburg announcing his support to legalizing recreational marijuana in Pennsylvania.
The governor is already hearing the backlash from legislative Republicans.
Lt. Gov. John Fetterman is encouraging Pennsylvanians convicted on non-violent marijuana-related charges to apply for pardons.
The state's Board of Pardons, led by Fetterman, is expediting the application process to be pardoned for marijuana-related charges, the Office of the Lieutenant Governor announced Thursday.
"Full legalization could take some time, but one thing we can do right now is alleviate the burden of small-amount, nonviolent convictions that scar the lives of otherwise productive citizens," Fetterman said in a press release issued by his office on Thursday.
