Think about how many rapists are never are held accountable in this day and age, it is absurd that we continue to hold individuals for antiquated charges such as weed possession. Yet there are hundreds of incarcerated individuals currently waiting for the slow trudge of the judiciary system. Allen Russell is one of those individuals.
Allen Russell was arrested in 2017 for possession of cannabis. He now faces a life sentence that was upheld by the state appeals court because they deemed him a “habitual offender”—an idea that undoubtedly affects BIPOC at disproportionate rates. This status is due to unrelated charges associated with offenses that he served 10 years in prison for already. A number of judges on the court of appeals dissented because they disagreed with the cruel and unusual punishment.
There is no amount of cannabis that should land someone a life sentence. Allen Russel was found guilty of possession in 2019 over just an ounce of weed, meanwhile laws around recreational use are softening all across the US.
Sign this petition to dissent to this wildly disproportionate and cruel punishment and demand that Mississippi governor Tate Reeves commute his sentence: Commute Allen Russell’s Life Sentence for Cannabis Possession.
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