(WSIL)---When Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation to legalize marijuana for recreational use in 2019, the bill allowed those with cannabis related convictions to expunge their records.
"Expungement is a way to remove those records from public view so they're either no longer considered or minimized the impact for your future in any one of those scenarios, around education, housing, employment, and other life pursuits that someone might have," said Beth Johnson, the Project Manager at New Leaf Illinois.
New Leaf Illinois is a network of nonprofits throughout the state, that offers advice and legal assistance to those looking to expunge their cannabis records.
Based on Illinois legislation, those who are eligible for expungement are those with misdemeanors or class 4 felony convictions surrounding possession or selling marijuana at 30 grams or less.
"That's why New Leaf is out there, to get the word out about the benefits of this, and the state of Illinois help fund these services for individuals, to get assistance no matter what county they live in or where their conviction happened," said Johnson.
For the thousands of people in Illinois with cannabis charges on their record, Johnson recommends checking to see if you are eligible to have your record expunged, even if you believe you don't qualify.
"Despite the fact that it's legal now moving forward, doesn't negate the fact that it was a crime before and can still impact you in those different areas when a background check is run," said Johnson.
For more information about New Leaf Illinois and how to get cannabis records expunged, visit
