The Legal Aid Society commended the decision by Judge George Grasso to grant a motion from Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark’s office to dismiss more than 6,000 misdemeanor marijuana possession or sale cases, as reported by PIX 11 News. The move follows the enactment of a bill earlier this year that legalized reactional marijuana use in New York State.

Peter Jones, Attorney-in-Charge of Legal Aid’s Bronx Trial Office, said the dismissal will allow people to move on with their lives without being under the cloud of a criminal matter. Marijuana arrests disproportionately impact communities of color. People of color comprised more than 94 percent of marijuana arrests in 2020, NYPD data shows.

“For decades, our clients shouldered the brunt of marijuana prohibition, losing years of their lives ensnared in the criminal legal system and denied meaningful employment, housing, and other opportunities,” Jones said.