'Recently Pardoned?': Company Kicks Off Hiring Campaign With Focus On 2nd Chances

LINCOLN HEIGHTS (CBSLA) — For David Elias, the CEO of Lowell Herb Co., giving second chances is personal.

"Had I not been given a second chance, it's arguable that a lot of what I have today wouldn't be my reality," he said.

To that end, Lowell - a company known for its pre-rolled marijuana cigarettes - kicked off a hiring campaign this month with a billboard that states, "Recently Pardoned? We're Hiring."

The billboard is about a half block from N. Mission Street and only a mile and a half from Men's Central Jail and Twin Towers.

Jails – where the pool of candidates – may have spent time in. But there's only one catch: the candidate's record can only include "non-violent cannabis offenses."

That can include possession of pot.

"Things that are now legal today that people were arrested for in the past," said Elias, who explains that the day the billboard went up, the company received 100 resumes.

"Two of the people we interviewed yesterday immediately said that they didn't even think it was real." he said.

But it's no joke.

"I would imagine that the first time they're having an open conversation about a record and the next question is, 'Great, tell me about your skills,' " he said.

Lowell Herb Co. plans to hire a handful of people to help with everything from harvesting to hand making the product to sales and marketing.

"People that need that second chance, there's not a whole lot of places you can go that are in the business of second chances," Elias added.