Kim Foxx Calls For Marijuana Legalization, Expunging Convictions

CHICAGO — The chief prosecutor in the nation's largest county without legal cannabis called for the legalization of recreational marijuana and for records of all misdemeanor marijuana convictions to be expunged. Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx announced her support for legal marijuana for the first time Thursday at her annual address to the City Club of Chicago.

Foxx said her office had already moved away from prosecution of most cannabis possession cases, but convictions for small amounts of marijuana continued to hinder many people from jobs and housing.

Illinois decriminalized the possession of under 10 grams of marijuana with the 2016 Cannabis Control Act, making the offense a civil law violation. Home Rule municipalities may also issue citations for possession of marijuana under local ordinances. Under current state law, all law enforcement records of people found to have violated "shall" be expunged by both the issuing agency and the clerk of the circuit court.

However, records obtained by Patch from more than 100 suburban Cook County municipalities and the 10 most populous cities in the state show that police departments across Illinois are violating the Criminal Identification Act's expungement requirements. According to responses to public record requests under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, only a tiny minority of towns were found to be properly expunging records of cannabis arrests – all of which happened to be represented by the same large law firm.

Speaking to a crowd of local elected officials and law enforcement professionals in River North, Foxx called for a "thoughtful" approach to pot legalization.

"In furtherance of our goals to prioritize violent crime and to develop reforms that avoid needlessly bringing people into the criminal justice system, there is no greater opportunity for us to do that than with the prosecution of marijuana," Foxx said. "I am in support of the legalization of marijuana. I also believe that as we do this, we must do it acknowledging the public health and public safety ramifications thereof." She said it was important not to "rush to get legalization done for expediency’s sake, and certainly not for revenue’s sake."

Foxx said her office had already "begun to move away from prosecuting most cases of marijuana possession. But that does very little to help those who can't get a job or who've been denied housing because of a previous marijuana conviction. Failing to take action that provides relief to those that already have a marijuana conviction is not justice." She said the next step is to "pursue the expungement of all misdemeanor marijuana offenses here in Cook County."

Gov. JB Pritzker campaigned on a plan to legalize, tax and regulate recreational marijuana to reduce racial disparities in the criminal justice system and to provide a needed revenue source to the heavily indebted state government. He has identified marijuana legalization as a policy priority for his first legislative session presiding over Democratic Party supermajorities in both houses of the Illinois General Assembly.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, Foxx's former boss and a candidate for Chicago mayor, testified a year ago she supported legalizing the recreational use of marijuana. She cited major differences in enforcement among different racial groups and neighborhoods and said millions of dollars were wasted annually to pursue convictions on low-level drug charges.

Former Gov. Bruce Rauner initially vetoed the decriminalization of small amounts of cannabis, as well as the addition of more qualifying health conditions to the state's medical marijuana program. (The state was eventually ordered by a judge to include patients suffering PTSD.) The Winnetka Republican also reportedly disbanded Illinois Medical Cannabis Advisory Board in 2017 in exchange for extending the pilot program three more years and two more conditions, including terminal illness, to the list of those that warrant a medical marijuana card. In August 2018, the former governor and legalization opponent signed a bill allowing patients who have been prescribed opiods the chance to be issued a card.

Several law enforcement advocacy groups are lobbying state lawmakers against legalization of recreational cannabis use, according to the Associated Press. The Chicago Crime Commission, Drug Free America Foundation and the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police argue there is a lack of tests to determined when motorists are too impaired and legalization will lead to more impaired drivers on the road. Other groups of current and former law enforcement professionals, such as the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, support an end to marijuana prohibition.

Representatives of multiple suburban Cook County police departments confirmed that representatives of the state's attorney's office had contacted them concerning changes to way the office would prosecute misdemeanor cannabis possession offenses. A spokesperson for Foxx's office has not provided any notification of policy changes provided to police.

According to a copy of a memo obtained by the website CWBChicago, prosecutors will no longer pursue charges against anyone found with under 30 grams of cannabis or first-time offenders in possession of between 30 to 100 grams of cannabis. The memo said the smell of weed would remain probable cause for police officers to conduct searches and seizures. According to the Chicago Tribune, Foxx told reporters following her City Club address that police would continue to be able to make marijuana arrests and emphasized the need to make sure minors and motorists do not consume cannabis.

Related:

• Recreational Cannabis Bill Introduced In Springfield
• Rauner Approves Medical Marijuana As 'Weapon' In Opioid Epidemic
• Recreational Marijuana Gets A Big Yes In Cook County
• Marijuana Legalization Hearings, Support Coalition Announced