Three years has passed since marijuana was legalized in Illinois. Part of the law was to forgive minor cannabis crimes. With the support of state funding, the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation (IEJF) created New Leaf Illinois, a network of legal aid organizations providing free or low-cost legal support around the state. “The main reason we set up New Leaf the way we did when we launched in November of 2020 was the hardest part for folks is knowing where to start in the process,” said Beth Johnson, IEJF project manager with New Leaf. New Leaf provides a form for interested persons with past marijuana convictions. If a person qualifies, their record will go to the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, who then can recommend that the governor grant a pardon authorizing expungement. If the governor agrees, the Illinois attorney general then files a petition in the county of conviction to have the record expunged.

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