phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES JULY 28TH–AUG 3RD, 2022 State Licensed Dispensaries & Doctor Certifications | CANNABIS | Purge File BY DAVID ABBOTT T he case of a Tempe barber could have a profound effect on a key aspect of marijuana legalization, as thestate of Arizona has appealed an expungement granted last September after the records of his arrest were sealed. The appellate case involves Daniel Santillanes, owner of the Tempe barber- shop Elite on Mill. He has been hampered in his efforts to expand his business because of marijuana convictions that took place more than a decade ago. In February 2011, Santillanes was arrested in Chandler after police found approximately 5.6 ounces of “high-grade” marijuana, a scale, and drug paraphernalia in his vehicle. When they searched his home, police found 10 pounds of cannabis packaged individually in plastic bags as well as a pipe used to smoke it. In total, there were four counts against Santillanes, including a low- level felony conviction of facilitation to possess marijuana for sale or transport. In March 2011, he was sentenced to two years’ supervised probation, three months in jail, and 24 hours of community service. The court’s decision could make it more difficult for the state to appeal expunge- ments that have been approved by increasing the burden of proof needed to overturn them. It also represents another step in the process to define the details that will ulti- mately shape the way cannabis laws will be enforced by the legal system in the future. Since his conviction, Santillanes has lived the life of a law-abiding citizen, according to his attorney Derek Debus, a criminal defense attorney for Stone Rose New Times Photo-Illustration. Source photos: Getty Images Arizona appeals an expungement in a case that defines Proposition 207 enforcement. Law in Scottsdale who frequents Santillanes’ shop. “He’s got two kids and owns a successful barbershop in Tempe,” Debus told Phoenix New Times. “He’s been trying to expand his business but couldn’t get a fingerprint clear- ance card because of the felony. He’s done everything he’s supposed to, and he’s really trying to move his life forward.” Santillanes thought his past was behind him and he was moving forward, but now he must wait for the appeals process to play out. Expungement One of the big selling points for the Smart and Safe Arizona Act, Proposition 207, which legalized adult recreational cannabis in Arizona, was the possibility of expungement for an estimated 192,000 Arizonans. Intended to alleviate some of the damage done to individuals as a result of heavy-handed enforcement of previous drug laws, expungement seals records from certain offenses so individuals hampered by the decades-long war on drugs may go about their lives more freely. Any conviction that has been decrimi- nalized or made legal can be expunged so long as it is below the possession limits outlined in the statute. Eligible convictions include possession, consumption, or transportation of 2.5 ounces or less of marijuana or 12.5 grams or less of marijuana concentrate; posses- sion, consumption, cultivation, or processing of not more than six marijuana plants at an individual’s residence for personal use; possession, use, or transpor- tation of paraphernalia related to mari- juana cultivation, manufacturing, processing, or consumption. >> p 39 37
