New pot law gives state's attorneys shortcut for expungements

By Timothy Eggert teggert@lawbulletinmedia.com

Posted January 17, 2020 11:28 AM

One path to a clean record for Illinoisans convicted of a low-level marijuana offense involves approval from two state agencies, a gubernatorial pardon and a chief judge to sign off on a petition filed by the state’s top lawyer.But there’s a shortcut, and only state’s attorneys can use it.A provision in the state’s new cannabis law allows each county’s state’s attorney to bypass the pardon process by filing “a motion to vacate and expunge” records of individuals with …

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