KC mayor makes good on marijuana pardons. Will an end to parking ticket arrests be next?

A small amount of pot cost Dwayne Wright job opportunities in the culinary field. His arrest for misdemeanor marijuana possession derailed his chance to lead the kitchen staff at a local hotel restaurant.

Two years ago, Wright, an African American man from Overland Park, ended his shift at a local business and drove to Kansas City to visit a relative. The pair planned to smoke a blunt, a marijuana-filled cigar.

But Wright was pulled over for allegedly following a police vehicle too closely and was issued a citation for misdemeanor marijuana possession. Wright’s stash was barely enough to fill the cigar, he said.

“It wasn’t even a blunt’s worth,” he told The Star Editorial Board. “There are more serious crimes that warrant more attention. Kansas City needs to be concerned with violent crime and focus on the task at hand: solving shootings and homicides.”

Wright was the first person whose record was cleared under a marijuana pardon program introduced by Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas.

Many more pardons should follow. Wright’s experience highlights the urgent need for criminal justice reform to ensure that low-level nonviolent offenses do not create a lifetime’s worth of roadblocks and missed opportunities.

After he was pardoned, Wright enrolled at Johnson County Community College, and he started the nonprofit G.I.F.T. program to repair used computers for families struggling to make ends meet. The married father of 11 also operates a hospitality business with his family.

“I just want to use my story to help others,” Wright said this week.

After Wright’s pardon became public, Lucas’ office was flooded with dozens more requests.

“We’re going to pardon everyone who fits the criteria,” Lucas told The Star Editorial Board.

First marijuana pardons, could parking tickets be next?

Lucas ran for mayor promising criminal justice reform for municipal offenses.

Minor violations should not preclude anyone from making a living. But Black Americans, who are nearly four times more likely than white people to be arrested for marijuana possession despite roughly equal usage rates, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, have suffered disproportionately under outdated laws that trap nonviolent offenders in the criminal justice system.

In July, the City Council decriminalized most offenses for marijuana possession.

In 2017, Kansas City voters eased penalties for minor possession of marijuana. One year later, Missouri voters approved the use of marijuana for medical purposes. And Jackson County prosecutors have stopped charging low-level drug offenses.

“We’re doing important work,” Lucas said. “This is a novel approach for Missouri, Kansas and the rest of the country.”

More reforms should follow.

City Councilwoman Andrea Bough joined with Lucas to cosponsor an ordinance that would establish an administrative board for parking tickets and other nonviolent municipal violations.

Citizens who miss a court date or fail to pay a fine associated with parking and non-moving traffic violations would not face arrest warrants under the proposal. The measure has been referred to a special committee for legal review.

“As a lawyer, I am fully aware of inequities in the judicial process for those not able to have legal representation to avoid incarceration and a criminal record for minor offenses and violations,” Bough said in a statement.

Kansas City should set the standard for criminal justice reform. But work remains throughout the region.

By decriminalizing pot possession, offering pardons for past convictions, and attempting to stop incarceration for minor, low-level offenses, Lucas and the Kansas City Council — as Wright can attest — are making long overdue changes that that other cities in the region should replicate.

This story was originally published August 17, 2020 at 5:00 AM.