They were convicted on marijuana charges. Now they’re first in line to sell it legally

TRENTON, N.J. — Tahir Johnson has been arrested on marijuana possession charges three times. Now, for the first time in his life, his conviction on one of those charges won’t hurt his employment prospects. It will help.

Johnson, 39, will be one of the first people with a marijuana-related conviction to own and operate a legal dispensary in New Jersey when he opens Simply Pure Trenton in March in his hometown of Ewing, which borders the state’s capital city. He was among about a dozen in the state to win a conditional license in 2022 because of his status as a “social equity applicant.”

“I checked all the boxes,” Johnson said of his qualifications for the application. “And I was especially confident because of my previous arrests.”

New Jersey is prioritizing granting licenses to dispensaries run by minorities, women and disabled veterans; dispensaries located in “impact zones,” or communities disproportionately affected by policing and marijuana arrests; and dispensaries run by people with prior marijuana convictions. It’s part of a concerted effort to redress decades of racially biased anti-drug policies.

Johnson fit into all three priority categories. Since he won his conditional license, he raised capital, purchased a property and secured approval from municipal authorities.