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Pennsylvania lawmakers continue push for cannabis legalization with clean slate provision

By Ross Guidotti

/ CBS Pittsburgh

Some lawmakers in Harrisburg continue to press for legal cannabis, while a bipartisan measure to legalize cannabis for adults is stalled in the Pennsylvania State Senate.

State Representative Morgan Cephas is asking the key question regarding House Bill 20 with what's being called the clean slate provision when it comes to non-violent marijuana offenses.

"I don't want to see legalization unless there is some impact on those who've been arrested, whose lives have been changed," Rep. Cephas (D) said.

"There needs to be automatic assistance, and automatic relief is the No. 1 thing," said Stephanie Shepard with the Last Prisoner Project.

Shepard says she spent nine years in federal prison for a non-violent marijuana conviction. She says potential recreational legalization of cannabis should render past state convictions null and void.

"Think how you would feel if you were serving a life sentence for what you just watched on TV," Shephard argued.

When it comes to the legalization of recreational marijuana in Pennsylvania, a recent poll by Susquehanna Polling and Research showed 72% of Democrats, 67% of Republicans, and 64% of independents supported it.

"We did our part in the House, but the Senate is still falling on the job," Rep. Darisha Parker (D) said.

Dead on arrival is what state Republicans are saying about attempts to approve recreational cannabis legalization, let alone exemption from criminal or civil penalties for cannabis convictions and expungements.

The big sticking point remains who will run any dispensaries: the state or individuals.

KDKA-TV reached out to Senate Republican leadership for comment on Monday's hearing and is awaiting a response. 

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