As President Joe Biden enters his final months in office, a collective voice resounding from criminal justice reform advocates from coast to coast is calling for the POTUS to pardon Edwin Rubis and other federal inmates currently doing time for nonviolent cannabis crimes.
With Election Day less than six weeks away, the nation will soon know who will be the next President of the United States. The next president will need to wait until Inauguration Day in January 2025 to take power, realistically leaving President Biden nearly four full months to cap his agenda and secure his legacy.
Having granted clemency to just 150 of the thousands of petitions his administration has received, Biden is batting just 1.4% on this core human rights issue. Not one cannabis prisoner has been released.
President Biden is likely going to grant more pardons before leaving office. Edwin Rubis is an ideal candidate for release, showing remorse, reform, and the ability to be a productive member of society after serving 27 years for nonviolent cannabis trafficking charges in the 1990s.
“I’m still confined in a twelve-by-twelve dungeon-looking prison cell, adorned with a metal bunk and a paper-thin mattress. I’m still living with the illusion of reprieve that perhaps one day, someone, someday, somehow, will read my story and do something about it,” wrote Rubis in a 2021 essay titled One More Casualty From “The War on Drugs”.
In spite of his circumstances, Rubis refuses to give up hope. Now that you have read his story, here are some ways you can do something about it.
- Visit FreedomGrow.org where you can donate to help free prisoners like Edwin, and also sign their petition to President Biden seeking clemency for Rubis and many others similarly doing time for nonviolent cannabis crimes.
- Sign this Change.org petition and share it widely. We are well on our way to 150k!
- Write to the White House directly, including the current USDOJ Pardon Attorney Elizabeth G. Oyer.*
- Spread the word! This is an easy win for the White House and a second chance for Edwin Rubis and others. Talk to your friends, family, and co-workers about this effort. Fill comment sections on all social media platforms with #FreeEdwinRubis.
*Remember to be respectful in any and all communication with the White House or the Department of Justice.
The reality is, when a new administration takes office in 2025, clemency for cannabis prisoners will once again plummet on politicians’ priority lists. This is why President Biden must act, and act fast, to leverage the power of the presidential pardon in a manner that 84% of registered voters support.
“The efforts to free Edwin have, so far, fallen short,” says Bill Levers, co-founder of Beard Bros Media and COO of Freedom Grow, “but seeing him spend another decade in prison is not an option. Please join us in encouraging President Biden to consider clemency for Edwin Rubis and let’s have him home by Christmas.”
Learn more at https://beardbrospharms.com/media-room-2/edwin-rubis/ or contact: info@freedomgrow.org
You can donate directly to this cause HERE
About Edwin Rubis
Edwin Rubis is serving a 40 year sentence in federal prison for conspiracy to possess and distribute marijuana. Convicted in 1998 on these nonviolent charges, Edwin has watched from behind bars as states have continued to legalize cannabis for recreational use and reap the benefits.
About Freedom Grow
Freedom Grow is an all-volunteer non-profit 501c3 organization helping cannabis prisoners regain freedom while supporting their sacrifices through ’The Wish Program’ which helps prisoners with commissary money, books, magazines, family outreach, and public education.
About Beard Bros Pharms
Beard Bros Pharms is an award-winning multinational cannabis brand. They also provide industry information, insights, and guidance to cannabis professionals and consumers via beardbrospharms.com, their weekly newsletters, and social media presence.
With over two decades of cannabis production and grassroots advocacy and activism, Beard Bros combines deep legacy cannabis experience with a commitment to quality and justice.
This news article contains the opinion of Bill Levers, and while subjective, the facts of the story do not intend to present false or misleading information on the convicted individual or the legal matter and facts herein.
