Gonzalez Dismisses Nearly All Marijuana Cases In Brooklyn

BROOKLYN, NY — Nearly all marijuana cases in Brooklyn have now been dismissed after Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez on Tuesday asked the court to dismiss the over 3,5oo cases that remained.

The 3,578 cases dated back to the 1970s and remained on the docket mostly because of open warrants, a news release from the District Attorney's Office said. Gonzalez requested that Brooklyn Criminal Court Judge Keisha Espinal vacate any arrest warrants, judgments of conviction and guilty pleas related to the cases.

The only eight cases which include marijuana charges that remain in Brooklyn Criminal Court involve allegations of driving while impaired, the news release said.

"For too long, criminalization of marijuana has disproportionately impacted young people and communities of color whose members made up about 90% of those arrested," Gonzalez said in a statement. "These arrests ruined the lives of thousands of people over the years, saddling many with criminal convictions that prevented them from pursuing opportunities in life."

The District Attorney's Office had previously dismissed about 240 active cases where marijuana was charged since the State Legislature legalized use of the drug, the news release said. Marijuana charges included in felony cases are also being dismissed in the course of court proceedings.

Brooklyn stopped prosecuting possession cases in 2014 under the direction of the late Ken Thompson, Gonzalez's predecessor. In 2017, as acting District Attorney, Gonzalez declined to prosecute nearly all marijuana smoking cases as well, his office said in the news release.

"I am gratified that the New York Legislature legalized marijuana earlier this year in a bill that included an automatic expungement provision. Since its passage, my Office has moved to dismiss open cases and stated we will no longer bring pending marijuana charges before grand or petit juries," Gonzalez said. "I hope that these actions will help strengthen community trust in the justice system and allow us to continue moving forward with more fairness and equity."