Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin announced Tuesday he would issue a pardon to anyone in the city convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession charges in municipal court.
“As you know this time last year, with my executive powers, I pardoned over 15,000 people who have prior convictions for simple possession of marijuana,’’ Woodfin said via Twitter. “I did it because it’s the right thing to do.”
Those 15,000 pardoned in 2021 had misdemeanor marijuana convictions between 1990 and 2020.
The mayor said he will do the same thing this year. The number of pardons to be granted wasn’t immediately available.
Eighteen states have legalized marijuana, he said, and 39 others have made some form of medical marijuana legal.
“It’s past time for the state of Alabama to catch up,’’ Woodfin said. “This has an impact on not only young people but anybody who needs and deserves a second chance.”
“I want to encourage other mayors across the state to do the same thing I’ve done. Use your pardon power to exercise giving people a second change,’’ he said. “I want to encourage those in the state as well as the federal government, do the right thing and legalize marijuana.”
Woodfin’s announcement came on April 20, 4/20, the universal and unofficial holiday that celebrates marijuana.