AG: 45 people had marijuana charges expunged since December 2019

Attorney General Reginald Armour, SC, has confirmed that 45 individuals have had their marijuana possession charges expunged since the Government proclaimed the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Act, 2019, which allows people to legally possess small quantities of cannabis.

The act, proclaimed by Legal Notice No 29 of 2019, came into effect on December 23, 2019. It decriminalised possession of certain amounts of cannabis and cannabis resin and introduced a tiered penalty system based on the quantity of the substance in possession. Under Section 5D(3) of the act, individuals charged with possessing no more than 100 grammes of cannabis or 14 grammes of cannabis resin before the law’s commencement are eligible to apply to the Commissioner of Police for the expungement of their records.

Before the act’s proclamation, former attorney general Faris Al-Rawi had stated that the law could benefit over 85,000 people who had been charged with marijuana possession over the past decade, as well as 101 incarcerated individuals, including 14 children in rehabilitation centres.

In response to a question from Independent Senator Paul Richards about how many people had benefited from this provision, Armour said, “As it relates to non-prisoners, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service has informed us that, to date, 46 applications for expungement have been received. Of these, 45 have met the criteria, were processed, and have had their records expunged. One remaining application is pending clarification regarding the quantity of drugs involved in the charge. Efforts to resolve this issue are ongoing.”

Regarding prison inmates, Armour stated that the TTPS had informed the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs that, since the act’s proclamation, no inmates had applied for the expungement of their records. The Criminal Records Office was unable to confirm whether any inmates had been released or had their records expunged as a result of this legislation.

Armour also said that the Prison Service reported that its Warrants Department had not received any instructions indicating that any inmate arrested and charged with marijuana possession, and subsequently incarcerated under a court order, had been pardoned, had their charges dismissed, or had been released due to the application of the act.

He noted that the Judiciary informed the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs that it does not maintain this type of information in its database, while the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions also reported that it did not have such information.

Richards asked if there was any information provided to inmates indicating that they may qualify for record expungement, even while incarcerated. Armour responded that he had not received any such information from the authorities but would be willing to investigate further if Richards made a formal request. (KF)