WA courts work to vacate hundreds of thousands of illegal drug convictions
When Lisa Giap opened an email from the Pierce County Superior Court in January 2024 that said her previous drug conviction from 2015 had been cleared from her criminal record, she was stunned.
It wasn’t until she called the court clerk to confirm that the reality set in.
“It was definitely a big moment for me and my family, just to know that that’s gone,” said 38-year-old Giap. “I’m finally able to put this behind me.”
Giap is one of many Washingtonians eligible to have their case vacated after the Washington Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the state’s simple drug possession law was unconstitutional because it lacked language related to intent. The ruling, known as State v. Blake, was historic in that it not only made Washington’s law void but also made hundreds of thousands of past misdemeanor and felony convictions dating back to 1971 eligible to be wiped from a person’s criminal record — and any financial costs stemming directly from the conviction eligible to be refunded. A new law criminalizing drug possession, coined the “Blake-fix” went into effect in July 2023.
https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/02/16/wa-courts-work-to-vacate-hundreds-of-thousands-of-illegal-drug-convictions/