Is My Minnesota Marijuana or Cannabis Conviction Automatically Expunged? The Surprising Truth from an Expungement Lawyer
Prior to 2023, misdemeanor, gross misdemeanor, and felony convictions were not automatically expunged in Minnesota. It did not matter how long ago the offense was, it would stay on your record. In 2023, automatic expungements were created allowing wide swaths of misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor offenses to be automatically expunged. A Cannabis Expungement Board was also created to sort through whether prior felony cannabis and marijuana conviction should be expunged or resentenced.
Challenges in Receiving a Cannabis or Marijuana Expungement
Upon hearing this news, you may think that your old marijuana record has been expunged. However, upon looking up your name, you may be in for a rude surprise. There are a number of challenges that could be causing you record to remain open. I will outline three of the bigger challenges:
1. Dangerous Weapon
If there was a firearm anywhere near the marijuana or cannabis, and you were charged with having that firearm, the Cannabis Expungement Board will not expunge your record. Minn. Stat. 609A.06 subd. 3(a)(2). One might think this would only apply to gun toting drug dealers. But I’ve seen a person charged with a gun sentencing enhancer for controlled substance possession where he had a hunting rifle in a closet that was feet away from the controlled substances. If you were in that unfortunate position of having a firearm in the same room as the marijuana, you will not be eligible for automatic expungement.
2. Timing
How long will it take for the Cannabis Expungement Board or the BCA to expunge your record? It’s difficult to say. There are over a million criminal records to be reviewed in the BCA database and the Cannabis Expungement Board has a lot of work cut out for them too. It’s possible your record could be automatically expunged within the month if your record qualifies. But it could also take years. The question you should ask yourself is, can I wait years? If so, you may want to wait to see if the record goes away on its own. If you are being denied job opportunities, you may not want to wait, and hire an expungement lawyer to petition the court immediately.
3. The Cannabis Expungement Board Rules Against You
The process is new. The statute provides some clues as to how the Cannabis Board will make rulings. But until we’ve seen the process play out more, it’s not clear what percentage of cannabis cases the Cannabis Expungement Board will grant expungements for. In close call cases, they may error on the side of expungement, or they may error on the side of keeping your record open. It’s an unknown at the moment. If you are fine waiting to see how things play out, more power to you. But hiring an expungement lawyer to petition the district court for an expungement could bring more clarity to this process that is still in mirky territory.
Conclusion
If you want to expunge your marijuana or cannabis case, you want an attorney who is knowledgeable, experienced, and well versed in the law on expungements. There are many attorneys in the state of Minnesota who offer to do expungement, but don’t practice in the area enough to know the intricacies of the law and how to utilize that to their client’s advantage. Contact Jack Rice Defense today for a free consultation. 651-447-7650
Peter Lindstrom
Peter is the head of the appellate and expungement departments at Jack Rice Defense. The Minnesota Court of Appeals reversed a felony conviction because of the brief Peter drafted. He has successfully expunged cases involving challenging issues with DWI, felony, and violence against family member cases. At the district court level, he has tried two felony jury trials to verdict, and successfully dismissed a felony gun case on 4th amendment grounds. Peter is particularly known for his intelligence, creativity, and legal acumen.
