Portland, Maine Could Make Marijuana Busts Lowest Priority

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 14, 2011 Legislation, News

Could Portland become Potland? Enforcement of marijuana laws will become the lowest priority for police in Portland, Maine, if supporters of a petition drive are successful.

Under the proposal being circulated by Sensible Portland, police would refrain from arresting or even fining anyone 21 or older for possession of marijuana or paraphernalia, reports Ann S. Kim at the The Portland Press Herald. Police would also be directed to refrain from trying to even find out whether someone has cannabis or paraphernalia.

The proposed ordinance is in line with the values of a community that has supported Maine’s medical marijuana laws, according to John Eder, spokesman and organizer for Sensible Portland.

The eagerness of those who sign the petition and other anecdotal evidence indicate that Portland residents don’t want police wasting resources pursuing people with small amounts of pot, Eder said.

Police Searching For Owner Of 38 Bales Of Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 13, 2011 News

Photo: CBS 12

Broward County Sheriff’s detectives are looking for the owner of 38 bales of marijuana that were left inside a van in West Park, Florida.

Broward County, Florida Sheriff’s Office detectives are looking for the rightful owner of 38 bales of marijuana that were left unattended inside a van in West Park.

Deputies responded to the parking lot of the Home Depot on Friday morning after someone complained about a van that was parked across several parking spaces, reports CBS 12. Deputies inspected the exterior of the van and smelled a strong odor of marijuana coming form inside.

Peeking through the van’s windows, all they could see was a blue tarp covering a “large bundle.”

Feds Forced To Give Back $14K Seized From Pot Dispensary

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 13, 2011 Dispensaries, News

Graphic: Hollywood Goodfella

Federal authorities agreed last week to give back nearly half of the $29,350 in cash seized from a man who represents a man who operates a medical marijuana dispensary in San Marcos, California.

The decision to return $14,383 — about 49 percent of the money seized — was part of a settlement that stems from a December incident in which Ron Chang, the man behind the collective, was stopped by federal agents while hauling marijuana on Pala Road, reports Teri Figueroa of the North County Times.

Law enforcement claims that smugglers use the well-traveled back road to avoid the border checkpoint near Temecula on Interstate 15.

Chang’s attempt to set up a dispensary caused a stir in conservative San Marcos, which enacted rules preventing any such businesses from setting up shop in the city of about 84,000 residents.

Oregon May Double Medical Marijuana Card Fees

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 13, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Medical Marijuana Hut

Budget-strapped Oregon lawmakers may have decided to tap the state’s popular medical marijuana program for an estimated $7 million to fund other health programs, doubling the annual fee charged medical marijuana patients from $100 to $200.

If there’s a silver lining to that cloud, it’s the fact that in so doing, the legislators have also decided to reject a whole pile of bills that would have made it much harder for people in the state to get a medical marijuana card. Some members of Oregon’s medical marijuana community, even as they cry foul at the doubling of patient fees, believe it may move the state one step closer to their goal of bringing medicinal cannabis into the mainstream economy, reports Jonathan J. Cooper at CNBC.

“It’s not good for patients,” said Christine McGarvin, a member of the state’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Committee. “I do appreciate the politics of it.”

Colorado Medical Marijuana Regulators Helping Bust Grow Sites

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 13, 2011 Growing, Legislation, News

Photo: Cannabis Therapy Institute

The MMED’s new logo. Whoever thought they’d see a law enforcement badge with the words “medical marijuana” on it? Just in case we forget how they look at medical marijuana patients and providers, it has ‘CRIMINAL’ right up at the top and center.

Colorado medical marijuana regulators have partnered up with local law enforcement to help cities shut down what they say are illegal commercial cannabis cultivation sites and prosecute those running them.

As the only state with medical marijuana regulations allowing companies to profit from selling cannabis, Colorado has adopted strict business licensing requirements, reports the Associated Press, making it easier for law enforcement to find, raid, and prosecute marijuana cultivators.

The Legislature passed a law last year, HB 1284, requiring a special marijuana business license for dispensaries, cultivators, and cannabis-infused product manufacturers. Under a constitutional amendment passed by voters in 2000, medical marijuana patients had to be registered with the state, but businesses providing it had not been required to register until the new law passed.

Canada: Marijuana Patients Allowed To Vape In Airports, Planes

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 13, 2011 Medical, News

Photo: urbangrower

Vapes on a plane! Lisa Mamakind was told that as long as patients aren’t using the devices during the times when passengers aren’t allowed to use electronics, she was free to medicate as needed.

Health Canada-licensed medical marijuana patients are now allowed to consume cannabis through vaporization both in airports while waiting for their flights, and while on the plane during the flight, according to Lisa Mamakind and Cannabis Culture magazine.

“At the end of May 2011, as a license-holder, I took it up myself to clear up any ambiguities in regard to where and when I’m able to medicate,” Mamakind writes in Cannabis Culture. “Up until this point, we could only speculate as to what exactly were the policies of the corporations and agencies we deal with when we choose air travel.”

R.I. State Police Want Medical Marijuana Grower Information

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 10, 2011 Medical, News

Photo: Ocean State Cannabis

The new colonel of the Rhode Island state police wants state health officials to provide law enforcement with information about medical marijuana caregivers if they are targets of criminal investigations.

Col. Steven G. O’Donnell told The Associated Press that being able to verify whether an individual is authorized to grow cannabis at home would prevent unnecessary police search warrants and raids.

O’Donnell claimed it would save money on investigations and protect participants in the state’s medical marijuana program.

WA Supreme Court: You Can Be Fired For Medical Cannabis

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 10, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Photo: LawyersandSettlements.com

If you live in Washington state, it doesn’t even matter if medical marijuana is legal. You can be fired for using it — even legally — even if only if your off hours.

Employers in Washington state are allowed to fire employees who fail a drug test, even if they have a valid medical marijuana authorization, the state Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.

The court ruled that TeleTech Customer Care, a Colorado-based company that handles customer service for Sprint from its facility in Bremerton, Washington, was allowed to fire a woman for failing its required drug test, even though she is a legal medical marijuana patient, reports J.B. Wogan at the Seattle Times.

The plaintiff was pulled out of her training class after just a week and fired on the spot on October 18, 2006, because she failed a pre-employment drug screen. She had a valid medical marijuana authorization from her doctor, and sued under the name Jane Roe.

U.S. Atty.: Feds Won’t Allow Sale Of Pot Anywhere In Oregon

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 10, 2011 Dispensaries, News

Graphic: Cannabis Fantastic

The U.S. Attorney for Oregon has served notice on all medical marijuana growers and dispensary operators, saying the federal government “will not allow” the sale of cannabis anywhere in Oregon.

U.S. Attorney Dwight Holton issued the warning not only to growers, but to landlords, reports Thom Jensen at KATU News. Holton’s warning is part of what seems to be a federal campaign to intimidate medical marijuana providers and patients nationwide in states that heve legalized medicinal cannabis.

“Knowingly financing a marijuana dispensary or allowing one to operate on your property also violates federal law and could subject financier and landlords to civil and criminal penalties,” Holton’s warning reads [PDF].

Coloradans Fight Back Against Marijuana Patient Surveillance

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 10, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Graphic: Patient and Caregiver Rights Litigation Project

New statutes and rules governing medical marijuana go into effect in Colorado on July 1. But the Cannabis Therapy Institute is calling the HB 1284, passed in 2010 by the Legislature, “expensive and unnecessary government over-regulation,” and CTI is calling on patients to join “the legal fight to defeat these laws.”

Yearly Archives: 2011