Jamaica’s Justice Minister Signs Automatic Cannabis Expungement Bill
Just three months after Jamaica decriminalized the possession and personal cultivation of recreational cannabis, Justice Minister Mark Golding has signed into law an order that allows for the automatic expungement of certain cannabis convictions.
The Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) (Automatic Expungement of Convictions) Order 2015 automatically expunges past cannabis convictions where the fine did not exceed J$1,000, and for charges involving the possession of cannabis paraphernalia, once a person applies for a certificate of their police record.
The application can be submitted at any of the following locations:
• The Criminal Records Office (34 Duke Street, Kingston)
• The Summit Police Station (St. James)
• May Pen Police Station (Clarendon)
• Area 2 Police Headquarters
• Pompano Bay Police Station (St. Mary)
A person can also have their record expunged by having their fingerprints taken at any parish divisional headquarters of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.
The new law is now in effect.
– TheJointBlog