Massachusetts
Week in Review: Massachusetts Governor to Pardon Thousands of Cannabis Convictions
In this week’s cannabis news round-up, Massachusetts governor grants pardons for misdemeanor cannabis convictions; Minnesota takes aim at illegal cannabis sales ahead of adult-use market launch; and a new study reveals cannabis offers hope for migraine patients.
Massachusetts Governor to Pardon Misdemeanor Cannabis Convictions
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey has announced her intention to issue pardons for tens of thousands of individuals convicted of misdemeanor cannabis possession charges spanning back decades. This initiative marks another significant step by a state toward rectifying the injustices faced by low-level drug offenders.
“Massachusetts decriminalized possession for personal use back in 2008, legalized it in 2016, yet thousands of people are still living with a conviction on their records—a conviction that may be a barrier to jobs, getting housing, even getting an education,” the governor said on her reasoning to grant the cannabis pardons.
According to data from the Cannabis Control Commission, Massachusetts issued nearly 69,000 civil or criminal violations for cannabis possession from 2000 through 2013. The administration estimates that the pardons could potentially benefit hundreds of thousands of individuals, offering a chance to overcome the barriers imposed by past convictions.
If ratified, the pardons will extend to all adult Massachusetts state court misdemeanor convictions for possession of cannabis or a “Class D substance” predating March 13, 2024. Gov. Healey, a Democrat and former state attorney general, emphasized that most individuals affected would not need to take any action to have their criminal records updated.
The pardons hinge on the approval of the Governor’s Council. If approved, they will take immediate effect, albeit requiring time to update criminal records. Gov. Healey highlighted the historic nature of these pardons, likening them to President Joe Biden’s pardoning of federal cannabis possession convictions and urging other governors to follow suit. She underscored the importance of rectifying past injustices, particularly in light of Massachusetts’ decriminalization and subsequent legalization of cannabis.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, echoing Healey’s sentiments, emphasized the lifelong consequences of convictions for simple cannabis possession, especially for marginalized communities— a stark reminder of the systemic inequalities ingrained in the criminal justice system.
“These consequences are only compounded when you consider that a disproportionate number of those who have been arrested and convicted for cannabis possession are Black and brown people,” Campbell said.
However, pardons don’t extend to other cannabis-related convictions, such as possession with intent to distribute or distribution. Additionally, convictions from jurisdictions outside Massachusetts, including federal court, are not covered by the pardons.
Minnesota Takes Aim at Illegal Cannabis Sales Ahead of Adult-Use Market Launch
Minnesota regulators have taken a firm stance against retailers engaging in the sale of illegal cannabis flower, signaling a crackdown ahead of the anticipated launch of the state’s adult-use cannabis market.
Amidst complaints about the sale of illegal cannabis flower falsely labeled as hemp, the Office of Cannabis Management has initiated robust measures to combat this practice. State health inspectors, previously tasked with monitoring hemp-derived edible products, will now extend their scrutiny to raw flower to ensure compliance with THC potency limits distinguishing hemp from cannabis.
While Minnesota residents aged 21 and above are now legally permitted to use and cultivate cannabis for personal use, commercial sales without a cannabis business license remain strictly prohibited. With the Office of Cannabis Management still in the process of establishing a licensing framework, the sale of cannabis flower without proper authorization is deemed unlawful.
Immediate state inspections of raw cannabis flower are slated to commence, with retailers mandated to furnish lab testing certificates validating THC levels below the legal threshold of 0.3% for hemp products. To improve regulatory oversight, Minnesota is expanding its testing infrastructure for cannabis products, including deploying a mobile field unit.
Interim Director Charlene Briner reaffirmed the office’s unwavering commitment to upholding legal standards within the industry. She emphasized the importance of clear guidance to encourage operator compliance and reiterated that products lacking proper certification would be deemed illegal for sale.
“While this is a temporary issue that will no longer exist once businesses are licensed to sell cannabis flower, OCM’s commitment to ensuring an industry that abides by all legal requirements is steadfast and ongoing,” said Briner. “We’re confident that by providing clear expectations and guidance to businesses, the majority of operators will choose to follow the law.”
Retailers found violating the law face severe penalties, including the seizure of products and fines of up to $1 million. Such infractions could jeopardize an entrepreneur’s prospects of obtaining a cannabis business license, underscoring the significance of adherence to regulatory requirements.
Study: Cannabis Offers Hope for Migraine Sufferers
Recent research published in the journal Neurology Clinical Practice sheds light on the growing trend of migraine patients turning to cannabis for relief.
Conducted by investigators from Yale University’s School of Medicine, the study, titled “Characterizing cannabis use and perceived benefit in a tertiary headache center patient sample,” surveyed responses from 1,373 patients from a tertiary headache center, revealing intriguing insights into the potential benefits of cannabis for migraine management.
According to the study’s findings, just under one-third of respondents admitted to being current cannabis consumers. Among this group, a significant majority reported that cannabis either improved their migraine symptoms or reduced their frequency. More strikingly, 63% of cannabis users noted that their use of the plant allowed them to decrease or even eliminate their reliance on other prescription medications.
“This is the largest study to date to document cannabis product usage patterns and perceived benefits for migraine management in a clinical headache patient sample,” the study’s lead author said. They concluded that a majority of patients surveyed reported positive outcomes from using cannabis products, citing improvements in migraine characteristics, clinical features and associated risk factors.
These findings echo previous research highlighting the potential efficacy of cannabis in treating migraines. A comprehensive literature review in 2002, encompassing nine studies and over 5,600 subjects, revealed that medical cannabis exhibited a significant clinical response by reducing the length and frequency of migraines. The review suggested that medical cannabis therapy could be a valuable option for migraine sufferers due to its effectiveness and convenience.
A man has died following an apparent drowning at a pond in Randolph, Massachusetts, on Sunday.
The Randolph police and fire departments received a 911 call at around 4 p.m. for a swimmer in distress in the water on Pond Street, according to the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office..
Firefighters located the man a short time later, officials added, and he was taken by ambulance to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The Kingston Fire Department had said just before 4 p.m. that their dive team was activated for a missing swimmer in Randolph, but that the activation was canceled after the swimmer was located.
Further information is not being released at this time, including the man’s name.
Massachusetts State Police detectives and the Randolph Police Department are investigating.
Firefighters in Lawrence, Massachusetts are working to contain a fire that damaged at least three buildings on Sunday afternoon.
Lawrence Fire Chief Patrick Delaney said they received multiple 911 calls about the buildings on fire at the intersection of Haverhill and Margin Street at about 12:45 p.m.
When firefighters arrived, there were three occupied multi-family buildings with heavy fire.
“Crews did an excellent job once they arrived on scene to make sure we did a primary search of all three buildings, make sure everybody was out,” Chief Delaney said.
No injuries have been reported. It is unclear how many people have been displaced from the three buildings that were on fire.
Chief Delaney said the firefighters were impacted by the hot weather.
“The crews are working extremely hard, they’re taking a lot of heat in all three fire buildings and we’re trying to get crews in here to make sure that they’re safe and give them some relief,” Chief Delaney said.
Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire. Firefighters from other nearby communities responded for mutual aid.
“We’re at a fourth alarm which brings a lot of resources to our city, but they’re well needed in a fire like this,” Chief Delaney said.
Police are asking residents to avoid the area of Haverhill Street at Margin Street because of the fire.
Lawrence, Massachusetts is a city about 30 miles north of Boston.
When a government whistleblower risks a career to expose corruption to a journalist, the first question is always the same: Will my name be kept out of it?
The same is true when a hospital employee reveals a cover-up, when a church insider exposes abuse, or when a corporate source provides evidence that a company has concealed the dangers of its products.
In 41 states and the District of Columbia, a journalist can answer that question with the weight of law behind the promise. In Massachusetts, a journalist cannot.
That is unacceptable for a commonwealth that calls itself the cradle of American liberty and a birthplace of the free press.
And it is also dangerous, especially now, at a moment when journalists face escalating hostility, when federal officials openly threaten and demean the press, and when the legal protections that make independent journalism possible are under assault from multiple directions.
Two bills pending on Beacon Hill would remedy that. House Bill 4638 and Senate Bill 1253, both titled “An Act Relative to the Free Flow of Information,” would establish a statutory reporter’s privilege in Massachusetts, protecting journalists from being compelled to disclose confidential sources or unpublished information except in narrowly defined circumstances involving national security, imminent violence or a defendant’s constitutional right to a fair trial.
Last fall, both the House and Senate members of the Joint Committee on the Judiciary gave these bills a favorable report — marking the first time a shield law bill has ever cleared committee in Massachusetts. Since then, however, the bills have languished. Now, their fate is down to the wire.
The clock is ticking. The formal legislative session ends July 31. If both chambers do not bring these bills to a floor vote by then, the legislation dies, and the entire effort has to start over in the next session.
We urge House Speaker Ronald Mariano, Senate President Karen Spilka, and the leadership of both chambers to ensure that a shield law goes to a vote before time runs out.
The need is more urgent than ever. Just last week, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene in the case of Catherine Herridge, a veteran investigative reporter facing daily fines of $800 for refusing to reveal a confidential source. Herridge’s case arose in federal court, where no shield law applies.
But Massachusetts journalists face a similar vulnerability in state court, where judges apply a discretionary balancing test that has produced inconsistent and unjust outcomes. In the Ayash v. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute case, a reporter and his newspaper were held in contempt for refusing to identify a confidential source — even though the underlying claims were ultimately dismissed.
In Commonwealth v. Karen Read, the trial court reversed its own ruling on a reporter’s claim of privilege, underscoring the current standard’s unpredictability.
This legal uncertainty has real-world consequences.
Sources with information the public should know — about government misconduct, about institutional abuse, about threats to public health and safety — are reluctant to come forward.
Reporters at small and local newspapers, the very outlets that cover city halls and school committees and police departments, face the prospect of costly court battles they cannot afford every time a subpoena lands on an editor’s desk.
A statutory shield law would replace that uncertainty with clearly defined protections, replacing individual judges’ unguided discretion with an unambiguous legal standard on which everyone could rely. The commonwealth’s outlier status grows more conspicuous each year.
In March 2025, Idaho became the latest state to enact a shield law, with its Republican-led legislature approving the law unanimously. There is no reason for Massachusetts not to follow suit.
This legislation carries no fiscal cost. It has no formal opposition. It has the support of every major news and press organization in the state, as well as of the ACLU of Massachusetts and Common Cause. What it needs now is a vote. The people of Massachusetts deserve the same protections for a free and vigorous press that citizens in the vast majority of states already enjoy. The Legislature has just weeks to act. It should not let this historic opportunity slip away.
Robert J. Ambrogi is the executive director of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association.
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