TULSA, Okla. — Oklahomans head to the polls Tuesday to vote on whether to legalize recreational marijuana.
State Question 820 would allow adults 21 and older to legally purchase marijuana for recreational use. It would also allow some people with felony drug convictions to have those convictions reversed.
Sabah Khalaf is a criminal defense attorney who also served on the board for State Question 788. That’s the measure that voters passed in 2018 to legalize medical marijuana.
Khalaf says the element of the measure that would also reverse some marijuana convictions is limited in what it covers.
“The word expungement is only used one time in the entire bill,” he said.
Khalaf says an expungement would seal the records. This measure would allow convicted felons to ask a judge to reclassify or reverse the conviction, but it’s not a total expungement.
“The records are still there, they would no longer have a felony conviction,” he said.
However, it would help lay the groundwork for a potential expungement.
MORE >>> Oklahoma school districts weigh in on impact of State Question 820
Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler spoke Monday at the capitol against SQ820, saying it fuels more addicts for profit.
“I often ask this question when I’m in a meeting,” he said. “Tell me something good about tobacco. No one can. It’s an industry that preyed upon children. Marijuana is no different."
Khalaf believes legalizing marijuana would help keep it regulated and keep more people from buying off the black market, and that reversing felony convictions is the right thing to do.
“What are you actually telling society? This person is a convicted felon just like the guy who robbed a QuikTrip is a convicted felon. It’s not like society distinguishes a difference between the two,” he said. “The guy in possession of some weed can’t vote, they don’t get to pursue a better career and lives in the same cycle as the guy who consciously chose to rob a store.”
Polls are open Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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