Multiple medical marijuana bills are bouncing around the statehouse, and more and more Florida Lawmakers are beginning to voice their support of the approval of medical marijuana in the state.
Democratic Rep. Katie Edwards, Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz, and Senator Jeff Clemens took turns Monday voicing their opinions on the subject.
| Greg Skidmore/Flickr. |
| Chris Christie doesn’t want you to get high. |
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has made it really clear that he won’t relax the state medical marijuana laws or even consider recreational cannabis legalization. But in case you missed the point, ol’ Tollbooth Christie reiterated his point yesterday at a town hall meeting.
“They want tax revenue from legalization,” Christie told the crowd in Sayreville, New Jersey last night. “It’s the motivation for the bill and I am not going to turn our state into a place where people fly in to get high for tax revenue. I’ve made it very clear since 2009 that I oppose this … it’s not going to happen under this [governor]under any circumstances.”
Support it or not, Americans find the legalization of marijuana to be an inevitable thing according to a Pew Research Poll released this week. Seventy-five percent of the nearly 2,000 adults polled said that marijuana will be legally sold and taxed in this country eventually.
Notably, 54 percent said that marijuana should be legalized for adults and 76 percent said marijuana possession of small amounts isn’t worth going to jail over.
| Show me medical marijuana legalization. |
Despite some setbacks earlier this year, marijuana-reform advocates say that a medical-marijuana bill is off to a good start in the legislative process and might have a chance of getting on the November ballot.
SB 951, which was introduced by Senator Jason Holsman, would legalize marijuana solely for medicinal purposes. People suffering from certain conditions would be allowed up to four ounces of their medicine and sales on it would be taxed at a rate of 8 percent.
In a highly unusual move, the Denver coroner’s says that marijuana intoxication was the major contributing factor in Levy Thamba’s death by jumping from a hotel balcony last month because the college student had eaten a marijuana edible before the incident.
The coroner’s office says the facts of the case explain why the decision to include information about marijuana was made, though the facts leave a lot of unanswered questions.
A federal judge has green-lighted a lawsuit brought by Occupy protesters against law enforcement agencies that allegedly gave them pot as part of officers’ Drug Recognition Expert training.
The ruling means the case is headed toward a trial which could reveal where officers got the pot they allegedly doled out to protesters in exchange for their participation in the controversial program, which was the subject of a five part report from the Minneapolis City Pages.
| Jay Kumar Koulampet/Commons. |
| Wisconsin state Capitol. |
A bill that would allow children suffering from severe seizure disorders to access cannabidiol (CBD) oil for treatment was unanimously approved by the Wisconsin state Senate yesterday — though just where that oil would come from is unclear.
The bill has already been given the green light by the state House, and now heads to Gov. Scott Walker for approval. Walker has not indicated which way he plans to go with the bill.
Medical marijuana dispensaries, farms and testing facilities all became legal yesterday in Nevada, though it could take months before any of them open to the general public.
The state Legislative Commission adopted the final rules for the industry Monday, beginning the licensing phase for cities and counties across the state that have chosen to allow the businesses to operate.
| Medical and recreational marijuana for sale in Colorado. |
Kevin Sabet is not one of the more than 70 percent of Floridians who want Amendment 2 to pass in November. Sabet — director of the drug policy institute at the University of Florida and a professor at the college of medicine there too (in other words: dude profits from prohibition and addiction) — is one of the few experts who’s been outspoken in opposition to the medical marijuana movement.
Originally from California, he witnessed the effects of legalization there and claims it’s one of the reasons he’s so passionately against medical marijuana. He’s worked in the Obama, Bush, and Clinton administrations, so he insists that he comes at the issue with a nonpartisan point of view. He’s cofounder and director of Smarter Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) and works closely with Patrick Kennedy on the left and David Frum (former speechwriter for George W. Bush) on the right.
If you’re going to fight cannabis prohibitionists, you’ve got to know where they stand. Check out the Broward-Palm Beach New Times interview with Sabet.
| Flickr/Fleur-Design. |
Two St. Louis-area Police officers face drug charges on suspicion of robbing heroin while on duty before selling the drugs to a dealer and splitting the profit.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office charged Hillsdale Police Lieutenant Parrish Swanson, 40, of St. Louis, and Officer Raymond Stephens, 28, of St. Charles, with felony counts of conspiracy to distribute and attempted distribution of heroin, according to a release.
The Riverfront Times has more.