www.stltoday.com Open in urlscan Pro
192.104.183.109 Public Scan

Back to summary

URL:
https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/column/tony-messenger/messenger-missouri-man-with-an-expunged-pot-case-asks-for-a-mor...
Submission: On December 01 via manual (December 1st 2023, 2:52:26 pm UTC) from US — Scanned from US

Form analysis
10 forms found in the DOM

POST https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/

<form class="pu-form" action="https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/" method="post" target="_blank">
  <input name="return" type="hidden" value="https://stltoday.com/newsletters/thank-you/#tracking-source=breaking&amp;ir=true">
  <input id="pu-list-breaking-email-regwall" name="subscribe[]" type="hidden" value="1">
  <input class="hide" id="hp-breaking-email-regwall" name="phone" type="text">
  <input id="pu-source-breaking-email-regwall" type="hidden" name="source" value="Regwall widget: breaking">
  <div class="form-group">
    <div class="input-group email-input input-group-lg">
      <input id="pu-email-breaking-email-regwall" type="email" name="email" class="form-control" required="" placeholder="Email Address">
      <span class="input-group-btn">
        <button id="pu-btn-breaking-email-regwall" type="submit" class="btn btn-primary">Sign up!</button>
      </span>
    </div>
  </div>
  <div id="x-email-lists"></div>
  <div class="disclaimer text-center">
    <svg class="tnt-svg tnt-user tnt-w-16" aria-hidden="true" data-prefix="fas" data-icon="user" role="presentation" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 512 512" data-fa-i2svg="">
      <path fill="currentColor"
        d="M256 0c88.366 0 160 71.634 160 160s-71.634 160-160 160S96 248.366 96 160 167.634 0 256 0zm183.283 333.821l-71.313-17.828c-74.923 53.89-165.738 41.864-223.94 0l-71.313 17.828C29.981 344.505 0 382.903 0 426.955V464c0 26.51 21.49 48 48 48h416c26.51 0 48-21.49 48-48v-37.045c0-44.052-29.981-82.45-72.717-93.134z">
      </path>
    </svg> Already a Subscriber?
    <a href="https://www.stltoday.com/users/login/?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stltoday.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fcolumn%2Ftony-messenger%2Fmessenger-missouri-man-with-an-expunged-pot-case-asks-for-a-more-just-sentence%2Farticle_bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30.html">Sign in</a>
  </div>
  <div class="terms text-center">
    <a href="/terms/">Terms of Service</a> <a href="/privacy/">Privacy Policy</a>
  </div>
</form>

POST https://www.stltoday.com/users/logout/

<form method="post" action="https://www.stltoday.com/users/logout/" id="user-logout-form"><input type="hidden" name="referer_url"
    value="https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/column/tony-messenger/messenger-missouri-man-with-an-expunged-pot-case-asks-for-a-more-just-sentence/article_bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30.html"><input type="submit" name="logout" value="Logout"
    class="hide">
</form>

GET /search/

<form action="/search/" method="GET">
  <input type="hidden" name="sd" value="desc">
  <input type="hidden" name="l" value="25">
  <input type="hidden" name="s" value="start_time">
  <input type="hidden" name="f" value="html">
  <input type="hidden" name="t" value="article,video,youtube,collection">
  <input type="hidden" name="app" value="editorial">
  <input type="hidden" name="nsa" value="eedition">
  <div class="input-group input-group-lg">
    <input id="mobile-search-q" name="q" title="Site Search" type="text" placeholder="Search..." class="form-control search-term" autocomplete="off">
    <span class="input-group-btn">
      <button class="btn btn-link" aria-label="Submit Site Search" type="submit">
        <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" iewbox="0 0 19.9 19.7" stroke-width="1.5" width="24" height="24">
          <g fill="none" stroke="currentColor">
            <path stroke-linecap="round" d="M18.5 18.3l-5.4-5.4"></path>
            <circle cx="8" cy="8" r="7"></circle>
          </g>
        </svg>
      </button>
    </span>
  </div>
</form>

GET /search/

<form action="/search/" method="GET">
  <input type="hidden" name="sd" value="desc">
  <input type="hidden" name="l" value="25">
  <input type="hidden" name="s" value="start_time">
  <input type="hidden" name="f" value="html">
  <input type="hidden" name="t" value="article,video,youtube,collection">
  <input type="hidden" name="app" value="editorial">
  <input type="hidden" name="nsa" value="eedition">
  <div class="input-group input-group-lg">
    <input id="mobile-search-q" name="q" title="Site Search" type="text" placeholder="Search..." class="form-control search-term" autocomplete="off">
    <span class="input-group-btn">
      <button class="btn btn-link" aria-label="Submit Site Search" type="submit">
        <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" iewbox="0 0 19.9 19.7" stroke-width="1.5" width="24" height="24">
          <g fill="none" stroke="currentColor">
            <path stroke-linecap="round" d="M18.5 18.3l-5.4-5.4"></path>
            <circle cx="8" cy="8" r="7"></circle>
          </g>
        </svg>
      </button>
    </span>
  </div>
</form>

GET /search/

<form action="/search/" method="GET">
  <input type="hidden" name="sd" value="desc">
  <input type="hidden" name="l" value="25">
  <input type="hidden" name="s" value="start_time">
  <input type="hidden" name="f" value="html">
  <input type="hidden" name="t" value="article,video,youtube,collection">
  <input type="hidden" name="app" value="editorial">
  <input type="hidden" name="nsa" value="eedition">
  <div class="input-group">
    <span class="input-group-btn">
      <button class="btn btn-link" aria-label="Submit Site Search" type="submit">
        <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" iewbox="0 0 19.9 19.7" stroke-width="1.5" width="24" height="24">
          <g fill="none" stroke="currentColor">
            <path stroke-linecap="round" d="M18.5 18.3l-5.4-5.4"></path>
            <circle cx="8" cy="8" r="7"></circle>
          </g>
        </svg>
      </button>
    </span>
    <input name="q" title="Site Search" type="text" placeholder="Search St. Louis Post-Dispatch" class="form-control search-term" autocomplete="off">
  </div>
</form>

POST /users/admin/list/

<form method="post" data-uuid="bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30" class="save-list-bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30-form save-asset-to-list" action="/users/admin/list/">
  <input type="hidden" name="action" value="addasset">
  <input type="hidden" name="format" value="json">
  <input type="hidden" name="listasset" value="bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30">
  <input type="hidden" name="listapp" value="editorial">
  <input type="hidden" name="autocreate" value="true">
  <input type="hidden" name="listname" value="articles">
  <input class="hide" type="submit" name="submit" value="Save">
</form>

POST {{action}}

<form id="follow-notify-form" class="follow-notify-form" action="{{action}}" method="post">
  <input class="input-notification-name" type="hidden" name="title" value="{{title}}">
  <div class="row">
    <div class="col-sm-6">
      <button class="btn btn-success btn-block follow-btn" data-tncms-track-dmp="is_followed_notifications_user">
        <i class="fas tnt-spinner tnt-pulse" style="display:none;"></i> Save </button>
    </div>
    <div class="col-sm-6">
      <a class="btn btn-default btn-block" href="https://www.stltoday.com/users/admin/savedsearch/">Manage followed notifications</a>
    </div>
  </div>
</form>

POST /users/admin/list/

<form method="post" data-uuid="bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30" class="save-list-bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30-form save-asset-to-list" action="/users/admin/list/">
  <input type="hidden" name="action" value="addasset">
  <input type="hidden" name="format" value="json">
  <input type="hidden" name="listasset" value="bb87b834-8fbe-11ee-b1ad-1b6deb8b4d30">
  <input type="hidden" name="listapp" value="editorial">
  <input type="hidden" name="autocreate" value="true">
  <input type="hidden" name="listname" value="articles">
  <input class="hide" type="submit" name="submit" value="Save">
</form>

POST https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/

<form class="pu-form" action="https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/" method="post" target="_blank">
  <input name="return" type="hidden" value="https://stltoday.com/newsletters/thank-you/#tracking-source=breaking&amp;ir=true">
  <input id="pu-list-breaking-email-article" name="subscribe[]" type="hidden" value="1">
  <input class="hide" id="hp-breaking-email-article" name="phone" type="text">
  <input id="pu-source-breaking-email-article" type="hidden" name="source" value="In-article widget: breaking">
  <div class="form-group">
    <div class="input-group email-input ">
      <input id="pu-email-breaking-email-article" type="email" name="email" class="form-control" required="" placeholder="Email Address">
      <span class="input-group-btn">
        <button id="pu-btn-breaking-email-article" type="submit" class="btn btn-danger">Sign up!</button>
      </span>
    </div>
  </div>
  <div id="x-email-lists"></div>
  <div class="disclaimer text-center">
    <small>* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and <a href="https://www.stltoday.com/privacy/#tracking-source=in-article" target="_blank">privacy policy</a>.</small>
  </div>
</form>

POST {{action}}

<form id="follow-notify-form" class="follow-notify-form" action="{{action}}" method="post">
  <input class="input-notification-name" type="hidden" name="title" value="{{title}}">
  <div class="row">
    <div class="col-sm-6">
      <button class="btn btn-success btn-block follow-btn" data-tncms-track-dmp="is_followed_notifications_user">
        <i class="fas tnt-spinner tnt-pulse" style="display:none;"></i> Save </button>
    </div>
    <div class="col-sm-6">
      <a class="btn btn-default btn-block" href="https://www.stltoday.com/users/admin/savedsearch/">Manage followed notifications</a>
    </div>
  </div>
</form>

Text Content

Skip to main contentSkip to main content

BE THE FIRST TO KNOW

Get local news delivered to your inbox!

Already a Subscriber? Sign in
Terms of Service Privacy Policy
Back to homepage
Subscriber Login

Last chance! Subscribe with this special offer to keep reading

Loading&hellp;
starting at $ 14.99 for 26 weeks $1 for 26 weeks
New subscribers only
Sign Up
Terms and Conditions apply

Enjoy these exclusive benefits:

Unlimited access to our E-edition

Unlimited articles on stltoday.com and our mobile app

FREE Access to Newspapers.com archives (last 2 years)

Games and puzzles online

{{title}}
{{description}}
{{banner}}
{{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}}
{{promotional_format_dollars}} {{promotional_price}}
{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}
(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax)
{{action_button}}

{{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}
{{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}}
{{term}}
{{tagline}}
{{action_button}}
{{special_title}}
{{html}}

You are the owner of this article.
Edit Article Add New Article Close
You have permission to edit this article.
Edit Close

46°
* Log In
* Subscribe $1 for 26 weeks

* Guest
* Logout

Read Today's E-edition

* News
* Metro
* St. Charles
* Illinois
* Nation & World
* Explore
* Email newsletters
* STL 100 Restaurants
* Top Workplaces
* Winning STL
* Homicide tracker
* Public salaries
* News topics
* Education
* Health care
* Law & order
* Politics
* Traffic
* Weather
* Columnists
* Business
* Health care
* Nation & World
* Opinion
* Editorials
* Columnists
* Mailbag
* Submit a letter
* Obituaries
* Share your story
* Find an Obituary
* Sports
* Cardinals
* Blues
* Mizzou
* Illini
* SLU
* STL City SC
* Forums
* Betting
* High school sports
* Schedules
* Schools
* Stats
* Fun & games
* Comics - A to Z
* Games
* Puzzles
* Events
* Life & Entertainment
* Books
* Dining
* Music
* Movies & TV
* Arts & Theatre
* Home & garden
* Pets
* People
* Travel
* Advice
* Digital exclusives
* Archives
* E-edition
* Live chats
* Mobile apps
* Newsletters
* Podcasts
* Photo galleries
* Videos
* Share with us
* News tip
* Press releases
* Share video
* Send a story
* Share a photo
* St. Louis Best Bridal
* STL Pinch Hits
* Feast Magazine
* Ladue News
* Brand Ave. Studios
* College Connection
* Nurses
* Stories of Honor
* Teacher Appreciation

* Buy & Sell
* Place an Ad
* Marketplace
* Public Notices
* Homes
* Shop Local
* Jobs
* Customer service
* Manage Subscription
* Activate Digital Subscription
* Contact us

* Facebook
* Twitter
* LinkedIn
* YouTube
* Pinterest
* Instagram

Subscribe $1 for 26 weeks
Read Today's E-edition
Subscribe

* Log In

* Welcome, Guest
* My Subscription
Help Center
* My Account
* Dashboard
* Profile
* Saved items
*
* Logout

* E-Edition
* News
* Obits
* Sports
* Opinion
* Life & Entertainment
* Business
* Jobs
* STL Headliner

* 46° Cloudy

Share This
* Facebook
* Twitter
* WhatsApp
* SMS
* Email

Messenger: Missouri man with an expunged pot case asks for a more just sentence
1 Comments
Share this
* Facebook
* Twitter
* WhatsApp
* SMS
* Email
* Print
* Copy article link
* Save

top story

MESSENGER: MISSOURI MAN WITH AN EXPUNGED POT CASE ASKS FOR A MORE JUST SENTENCE

* Dec 1, 2023
* 2 hrs ago
* 1

TONY MESSENGER

Metro columnist

* Author facebook
* Author linkedin
* Author twitter
* Author email

Follow Tony Messenger
Close

GET EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS ON {{SUBJECT}} DAILY!

Your notification has been saved.
There was a problem saving your notification.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching
items.

Save
Manage followed notifications
Close

FOLLOWED NOTIFICATIONS

PLEASE LOG IN TO USE THIS FEATURE

* Facebook
* Twitter
* WhatsApp
* SMS
* Email
* Print
* Copy article link
* Save

PACIFIC — Kurt Usry is a test case for whether the Missouri Constitution means
what it says.

Last November, Missouri voters changed that constitution by passing Amendment 3,
which legalized recreational marijuana in the state. But it also expunged some
nonviolent marijuana offenses to clean the records of Missourians convicted for
partaking in, or selling, a substance that voters had decided was now legal.

Usry grew up in New Melle, in St. Charles County. When he was 22, he sold a
quarter-ounce of marijuana — “dirt weed,” he calls it — to an undercover police
officer for $40.

He was convicted and served his time. Not much longer, he picked up another drug
charge: possession of three grams of cocaine. He went to prison for three years.

PEOPLE ARE ALSO READING…

* 18 best shampoos for hair growth
* 3 charged with trapping Indian student, forcing him to work in St. Charles
County home
* 6 weeks before deadline, 3,400 gun owners have registered guns covered by
Illinois ban
* Cardinals and Cy Young runner-up Sonny Gray finalizing three-year contract,
per sources
* U.S. Steel closes Granite City furnace ‘indefinitely,’ warns 1,000 of layoffs
* Sonny Gray welcomes leading role in Cardinals’ rotation. ‘You want someone
with edge.'
* Hochman: Mizzou’s Cody Schrader, Heisman finalist? Looking at the local
legend’s chances
* McClellan: Could a St. Louisan be the most important person ever?
* These Missouri inmates run their own corner of the prison. The warden is OK
with that.
* Mizzou offensive lineman EJ Ndoma-Ogar headed to transfer portal
* Pope punishes leading critic Cardinal Burke in second action against
conservative American prelates
* Missouri teen Ruby Leigh advances to ‘The Voice’ top 12 with a Linda Ronstadt
song
* 14 Best Eye Creams for Wrinkles in 2024
* 13 best colognes for men in 2024
* Goold's chat: Does signing All-Star Sonny Gray cap Cardinals' rotation
revival?

While on parole in 2011, he was charged and convicted of possessing a “two liter
‘shake-n-bake’ meth lab” found on the side of the road. This time, he was
sentenced to 20 years in prison without the possibility of parole. That’s
because he was considered a “prior and persistent drug offender.”

Thanks to voters, that’s no longer true.

Earlier this year, Usry’s pot conviction disappeared.

Here’s what voters put into the state constitution about such old convictions:
“The person whose record is expunged shall be treated in all respects as if he
or she had never been arrested, convicted, or sentenced for the offense, and the
conviction and sentence shall be vacated as legally invalid. … The effect of
such expungement shall be to restore such a person to the status the person
occupied prior to such arrest, plea, or conviction and as if such event had
never taken place.”

Usry is asking a St. Charles County judge to decide if the words that voters put
in the constitution mean what they say. This month, his attorney, Brian Cooke,
filed a motion asking the judge to resentence Usry, based on the fact that Usry
was no longer considered a “prior and persistent” offender.

Cooke isn’t asking that the 20-year sentence change. He’s asking that Usry be
eligible for parole, as he would have been if the pot conviction wasn’t used to
enhance his later offense. Cooke is representing Usry pro-bono. He credits his
client for coming up with the argument for a resentencing.

The case presents a prickly legal question. Historically, Missouri courts don’t
like to look backward. If they did, Usry might already be a free man. That’s
because in 2014, the Missouri Legislature got rid of the ability for judges to
send non-violent drug offenders away without the possibility of parole. The
legislature, to its credit, realized that the over-criminalization of drug
addiction doesn’t serve society well. The courts are sometimes slower to adapt.

In 2020, the Missouri Supreme Court almost sent Dimetrious Woods back to prison
— after he had been paroled and free for two years. The court said the change to
the drug law couldn’t be applied retroactively. Woods would have been locked up
again if not for a commutation of his sentence by Gov. Mike Parson.

Now, Usry is asking to be eligible for parole because voters changed the state
constitution so that in at least one type of case — a nonviolent marijuana
conviction — courts can look backward and change the records of Missourians.

Usry spent all of his 30s in prison. He’s 43 now. He’s missed most of the life
of his son, who is autistic and is now 20. His mother has died and his father is
in poor health. Usry believes he’s served his time, and the Missouri Legislature
does, as well.

Now it’s up to a judge to decide if voters’ actions truly carry the power of
law.

“If I am to be treated as that conviction never existed, then I am no longer a
prior and persistent drug offender,” Usry told me in an email. “If I never sold
that quarter bag then I could never qualify for this kind of sentence.”

According to new court records, that quarter-bag of dirt weed never existed. It
has vanished into thin air. All that remains, Usry says, is for the court to
treat him like the “event had never taken place.”

Metro

MESSENGER: FOR FIRST ACT OF CLEMENCY, PARSON CHOOSES ST. LOUIS NATIVE WHO FACED
RETURN TO PRISON

* Tony Messenger

Metro

MESSENGER: STATE FLIPS THE SCRIPT IN ATTEMPT TO ENFORCE 40-YEAR ROBBERY SENTENCE

* Tony Messenger

Metro

MESSENGER: MAN FACING RETURN TO PRISON ASKS MISSOURI ATTORNEY GENERAL TO BE A
‘MINISTER OF JUSTICE’

* Tony Messenger

Metro

MESSENGER: FREE FOR NEARLY TWO YEARS, REFORMED DRUG DEALER FEARS COURT RULING
WILL SEND HIM BACK TO PRISON

* Tony Messenger

Metro

MESSENGER: A JUDGE SET FORMER DRUG DEALER FREE, BUT MISSOURI SUPREME COURT MIGHT
LOCK HIM UP AGAIN

* Tony Messenger

Video Player is loading.
Play Video
Play
Mute

Current Time 0:00
/
Duration 0:49
Loaded: 0%

0:00
Stream Type LIVE
Seek to live, currently behind liveLIVE
Remaining Time -0:49
1x
Playback Rate

Chapters
* Chapters

Descriptions
* descriptions off, selected

Captions
* captions settings, opens captions settings dialog
* captions off, selected

Audio Track
* default, selected

Picture-in-PictureFullscreen

This is a modal window.

Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.

TextColorWhiteBlackRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentBackgroundColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyOpaqueSemi-TransparentTransparentWindowColorBlackWhiteRedGreenBlueYellowMagentaCyanTransparencyTransparentSemi-TransparentOpaque
Font Size50%75%100%125%150%175%200%300%400%Text Edge
StyleNoneRaisedDepressedUniformDropshadowFont FamilyProportional
Sans-SerifMonospace Sans-SerifProportional SerifMonospace SerifCasualScriptSmall
Caps
Reset restore all settings to the default valuesDone
Close Modal Dialog

End of dialog window.

St. Louis Post-Dispatch metro columnist Tony Messenger discusses what he likes
to write about.

1 Comments

AROUND THE WEB

(PICS) HER DRESS AT THE OSCARS WILL BE SPOKEN ABOUT FOR CENTURIES

DIABETES IS NOT FROM SWEETS! MEET THE MAIN ENEMY OF DIABETES

TAYLOR SWIFT'S PRIVATE ISLAND COST HER $17.75M, AND THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE

BUFFALO: SECURELY INVEST WITH 2023 EAGLE COINS

THE BRA DESIGNED BY THE 60-YEAR-OLD GRANDMA ARE TAKING NEW YORK BY STORM!

AMERICA'S MOST MISERABLE CITY IS IN NEW YORK

PODIATRIST: DON'T DELAY, DO THIS IMMEDIATELY IF YOU HAVE NEUROPATHY

THE ANIMAL MOST LIKELY TO KILL YOU IN EVERY STATE, NEW YORK IS TERRIFYING

HERE ARE 23+ HOTTEST GIFTS OF 2023

BE THE FIRST TO KNOW

Get local news delivered to your inbox!

* I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes
agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.

TONY MESSENGER

Metro columnist

* Author facebook
* Author linkedin
* Author twitter
* Author email

Follow Tony Messenger
Close

GET EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS ON {{SUBJECT}} DAILY!

Your notification has been saved.
There was a problem saving your notification.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching
items.

Save
Manage followed notifications
Close

FOLLOWED NOTIFICATIONS

PLEASE LOG IN TO USE THIS FEATURE

RELATED TO THIS STORY

www.stltoday.com Open in urlscan Pro 192.104.183.109 Public Scan

Form analysis 10 forms found in the DOM

POST https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/

POST https://www.stltoday.com/users/logout/

GET /search/

GET /search/

GET /search/

POST /users/admin/list/

POST {{action}}

POST /users/admin/list/

POST https://leeaws.com/cio/subscribe/

POST {{action}}

Text Content

www.stltoday.com Open in urlscan Pro
192.104.183.109 Public Scan

Form analysis
10 forms found in the DOM