In his brief pre-taped pardon announcement, Biden appealed to state leaders to take their cues from his administration's action on the issue.
"I'm calling on all governors to do the same for state marijuana possession offenses."President Joe Biden
And so far, all signs point to Kentucky's chief executive following Biden's lead.
But Beshear isn't signing off on similar action just yet, saying in a statement that while he agrees that "no one should be in jail simply because of possession of marijuana," he wants more details from the Biden administration on how his pardon will work and exactly what it will cover.
ACLU Policy Strategist Kungu Njuguna tells WHAS the bulk of weed possession convictions take place at the state level and he, along with other advocates, are pushing for immediate action from Beshear.
"So think what the governor could do with the stroke of a pen today," Njuguna said. "He could help a lot of Kentuckians and I hope he does that."
In addition to the increasing legalization of marijuana in states, advocates of the move also point to what they say are major racial disparities when it comes to who is sitting in jail right now on possession charges.
With Beshear already poised to release plans for executive action loosening medical marijuana restrictions in Kentucky, a statewide marijuana possession pardon could be folded into that announcement.
