CASE SUMMARY:

Kevin Allen is serving a 35-year prison sentence in Louisiana for a non-violent cannabis offense, making his case one of the most widely cited examples of extreme sentencing under outdated marijuana laws. Allen was convicted in 2014 for selling a total of $20 worth of marijuana to a confidential informant in two small transactions that took place in 2012 and 2013.  Although the offense involved a very small amount of cannabis, prosecutors enhanced his sentence using Louisiana’s habitual offender law, which allows penalties to increase significantly for individuals with prior drug convictions.  

 

As a result, Allen was originally sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, despite the fact that none of his prior offenses involved violence.  

 

In 2022, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that the life sentence was constitutionally excessive and ordered a new sentence. He was later resentenced to 35 years in prison.  

 

Louisiana has begun modernizing its cannabis laws by allowing medical marijuana sales through licensed dispensaries, yet recreational cannabis remains illegal and many individuals are still incarcerated under older prohibition-era laws.

 

Since legal sales began in 2019, Louisiana’s medical cannabis market has steadily grown. The state now has over 53,000 registered medical cannabis patients, and the market is projected to reach approximately $330 million in annual sales by 2025.  

Louisiana also collects taxes from these sales. State marijuana tax revenue has increased significantly in recent years, reaching about $3.6 million in cannabis tax revenue in 2024 from the medical program.  

 

At the same time, individuals such as Kevin O’Brien Allen remain incarcerated for non-violent marijuana offenses committed during the height of prohibition. Allen is serving a 35-year sentence for selling approximately $20 worth of marijuana, a case that Forgotten Prisoner view as emblematic of outdated cannabis sentencing laws.

 

As Louisiana’s legal cannabis market continues to grow and generate revenue, many believe the state should also examine retroactive justice, reviewing extreme sentences imposed during the War on Drugs to ensure that cannabis reform includes fairness for those still imprisoned for non-violent cannabis offenses.