Yearly Archives: 2011

Sensible Washington Planning A Big 4/20 For Legalization

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 18, 2011 News

Last week, Washington Governor Chris Gregoire said she plans to veto a medical cannabis bill that has the support of many doctors, patients, city governments, and the Legislature. According to its supporters, the bill, SB 5073, had been carefully written and amended to ensure that Washington would have the soundest medical cannabis regulations in the country, protecting patients, providing clarity for law enforcement, and allowing cities to enact smart zoning regulations to keep dispensaries from being located near schools.

Instead, the governor appears to be misinterpreting established federal policy in order to veto it, potentially leaving Washington with its existing mess of unregulated dispensaries and inviting more conflicts between law enforcement and the communities they’re supposed to protect.

Group: Washington Gov. Gregoire ‘A Liar’ About Dispensaries

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation

Gov. Christine “Pants On Fire” Gregoire seems to have appointed herself a federal official. Hey Chrissie, Obama’s not gonna give you that plum Cabinet appointment he promised you unless he gets reelected.

CannaCare, a medical marijuana activist group in Washington state, is calling Governor Chris Gregoire “a liar” for claiming state officials could be arrested by federal agents if she signs a bill that would legalize medical marijuana dispensaries in the state.

Gov. Gregoire told the Seattle Times, reacting to a medical marijuana dispensary bill currently in the Legislature, “In light of the Department of Justice’s guidance, it is clear that I cannot sign a bill that authorizes our state employees to license marijuana dispensaries when the department would prosecute those involved.”

The governor, in effect, asked the federal government for permission to sign a bill in a state of which she is presumptively in charge. This pitiable attempt to gain cover for her own political cowardice is certainly contemptible enough on its own.

But CannaCare, led by firebrand Steve Sarich, goes a little farther than that.

“Governor Christine Gregoire is a liar!” the group headlines a press release.

“Under most circumstances, this would be considered a pretty brash statement,” Sarich says in the release. “Frankly, if she wasn’t an attorney, and the former Attorney General of the State of Washington, it might very well be. The fact is that she was the Attorney General of a state that has had a medical marijuana law for over a decade and has had to grapple with state versus federal law issues on numerous occasions.”

Pot Prisoner Marc Emery Denied Transfer Home To Canada

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 15, 2011 News

Graphic: Cannabis Culture

The U.S. Department of Justice has refused imprisoned marijuana entrepreneur and activist Marc Emery’s request for transfer back to Canada, meaning that he will likely spend most or all of his five-year sentence in a U.S. federal prison.

In a phone call Friday afternoon from a prisoner transfer center in Oklahoma, Marc informed his wife and fellow activist Jodie Emery that he received a letter from the Canadian consulate with the news that the U.S. government would not approve his treaty transfer back to Canada due to the supposed “seriousness of the offense” and “law enforcement concerns,” reports Cannabis Culture.

If both the U.S. and Canadian governments had approved the transfer, Emery would have been transferred to a Canadian prison, closer to his friends and family, and would have been eligible for parole almost immediately upon his return.

“I’m really stunned and greatly saddened,” Jodie Emery told Cannabis Culture. “It looks like the DEA and the U.S. government want their pound of flesh, and they want Marc to suffer down there as a nonviolent, peaceful political party leader imprisoned for his activism. This is devastating.”

“Marc has never harmed anyone and has devoted his life to fighting oppression,” Jodie said. “He’s been punished for speaking out for the rights of tens of millions of cannabis consumers here and in the U.S., and it’s truly frightening.”

Vermont Senate Backs Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation

Graphic: THC Finder

Vermont senators voted overwhelmingly 25-4 on Thursday to legalize medical marijuana dispensaries in the state.

“We will protect patients by providing a legal source,” said state Sen. Jeanette White (D-Windham), reports Terri Hallenbeck at the Burlington Free Press.

Vermont already has a medical marijuana law, passed in 2004, which allows those with qualifying conditions to sign up for the state’s medical marijuana registry and use the drug legally. This bill would give those patients a legal way to buy marijuana if they don’t grow it themselves, according to White.

Arizona Gets 110 Medical Marijuana Applications On First Day

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 15, 2011 Medical, News

Graphic: THC Finder

The Arizona Department of Health received 110 electronic applications — almost 60 percent of them for chronic pain — and authorized at least 44 people to use medical marijuana on Wednesday, the first day the program was active.

Their cards were mailed on Thursday, reports Mary K. Reinhart at AZCentral, allowing them to buy and possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana every two weeks, and grow up to 12 plants.

Those who live closer than 25 miles to the nearest dispensary eventually won’t be allowed to grow their own, but until the dispensaries are up and running, all patients are allowed to grow.

About a third of the applications were rejected for various reasons, including problems with physician forms certifying the patient has a specific debilitating medical condition and could benefit from using marijuana.

THC Driving Limits Could Jail Innocent People For Months

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 15, 2011 Legislation, News

Photo: Quincy Hoang x-Attorney

The Colorado Senate is set to take up HB 1261, a bill that would set THC driving limits at five nanograms per milliliter of blood — a level that’s too low, according to many critics of the bill. Medical marijuana patients, especially, who are accustomed to the presence of cannabis in their systems, could be unfairly targeted, according to advocates.

Even its sponsor, Rep. Claire Levy, now thinks the five-nanogram number may be too strict, reports Michael Roberts at Denver Westword. And according to attorney M. Colin Breesee, there are even bigger problems with the bill, including test results that can take months to come back, and prosecutors who don’t understand them when they do.

According to Breesee, a delay of two months between collection of a blood sample and results returned is hardly unusual. In fact, he said, one recent client had to wait nearly three months.

Feds Throw Weight Around On Washington’s Med Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 14, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Cannabis Defense Coalition

Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire is chicken to sign legislation legalizing medical marijuana dispensaries without asking for the federal government’s permission first.

Gov. Gregoire Practically Invited The Feds To Stick Their Noses In

The feds are throwing their weight around again when it comes to Washington state’s medical marijuana law. A proposal to rewrite the state’s medicinal cannabis rules attracted federal attention after Governor Christine Gregoire asked for “clear guidance” about the U.S. Department of Justice’s position on state-licensed medical marijuana dispensaries, which would be legalized under the new rules.

Gov. Gregoire, who sent the letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on Wednesday, claims she “became concerned” about a “potential federal crackdown” after speaking with the U.S. attorneys for Eastern and Western Washington, Michael Ormsby and Jenny Durkan, reports Jonathan Martin at the Seattle Times.

Canada Expected To Appeal Decision Striking Down Pot Laws

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 14, 2011 Global, Legislation, News

Photo: Matt Mernagh

Canadian medical marijuana patient and Toke of the Town contributor Matt Mernagh won big this week, with an Ontario judge striking down Canada’s pot laws

An appeal by the federal government of yesterday’s Ontario court decision striking down Canada’s marijuana laws is all but certain, according to political observers.

The government is now awaiting direction from the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, reports Jennifer Yang at the Toronto Star. Lawmakers and law enforcement officers are “looking for guidance” on how to react to the court ruling.

“We are disappointed with this decision,” said Tim Vail, spokesperson for Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq. “The independent Public Prosecution Service has to decide whether to appeal this decision. While the courts have said that there must be reasonable access to marijuana for medical purposes, we believe that this must be done in a controlled fashion to ensure public safety.”

The Public Prosecution service is “studying” the decision and has 30 days to appeal the ruling, which it is expected to do.

In the meantime, Ontario Provincial Police will continue to enforce the marijuana laws, even though they could soon cease to exist.

Jamaica Taking Another Look At Marijuana Decriminalization

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 14, 2011 Global, Legislation

Photo: Matt Lennert/flickr

A Jamaican farmer in his field of ganja

Top government officials in Jamaica have said they will review recommendations to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal and religious use in the Caribbean island nation.

Six Cabinet ministers in Prime Minister Bruce Golding’s administration will evaluate a 2001 report by the National Commission for Ganja, reports David McFadden of Bloomberg Businessweek.

The commission, which included academics and doctors and was appointed by a government led by the current opposition party, argued that cannabis was “culturally entrenched” in Jamaica and that moderate use had no negative health effects on most users.

It’s Taking Effect! Arizona’s Medical Marijuana Law Kicks In

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 14, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: THC Finder

As of Thursday, April 14, the Arizona medical marijuana law is now in effect. The state is taking applications for registry cards from seriously ill patients who have a doctor’s recommendation to use cannabis for medicinal purposes.

Some are estimating that around 20,000 Arizonans will qualify for medical marijuana, reports Joleah Nowicki at Phoenix Political Buzz Examiner, but such estimates almost always turn out to be way too low.

The application system will be entirely online, according to the Department of Health Services, and anyone trying to apply in person or by phone will be turned away, reports Amanda Lee Myers at The Associated Press.

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