Legislation

No California Pot Money For Washington Legalization Drive

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 9, 2010 Legislation, News

Grass will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no grass. But Washington’s weed warriors won’t have either, if they are depending on California

Sensible Washington, the Washington state group trying to put a marijuana legalization initiative on November’s ballot, came back home empty-handed after a fundraising trip to California, according to an attorney who co-sponsors I-1068.

Among the marijuana luminaries in California who refused to contribute to Washington’s legalization effort were Richard Lee, arguably the most famous pot entrepreneur in the Golden State, reports Nina Shapiro at Seattle Weekly.

Seattle marijuana attorney Douglas Hiatt, who co-sponsors I-1068, Washington’s legalization initiative, said he and co-sponsor Vivian McPeak, director of Seattle Hempfest, met with Lee on their April fundraising trip to California.

MI Supreme Court: Legal To Drive With THC Metabolites In Body

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 9, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: HempNews.tv

Michigan drivers can no longer be convicted for the simple presence of THC byproducts in their bodies after smoking marijuana. The Michigan Supreme Court’s liberal majority ruled Tuesday that it is not illegal to drive while having marijuana byproducts internally.

Until Tuesday’s ruling, if you smoked a joint over the weekend and then got drug tested on Monday morning — or even a month later — you could be convicted of “Driving Under the Influence of Drugs” (DUID), even if you are no longer high, just because inactive chemical traces of THC remain in your bloodstream.

According to the court, 11-carboxy-THC, a metabolite of tetrahydrocannabinol, one of the main active ingredients in marijuana, cannot be considered a controlled substance under Michigan law, according to The Associated Press.

The justices ruled that 11-carboxy-THC is a byproduct created when the body breaks down (metabolizes) THC.

L.A. Councilman Wants To Ban Marijuana Delivery

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 9, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation

Graphic: Cheech and Chong Tickets

After extensive press coverage of the burgeoning medical marijuana delivery scene, a Los Angeles city councilman is asking his peers to ban mobile pot shops as part of its strict dispensary law that took effect Monday.

Councilman Jose Juizar introduced the amendment, calling mobile dispensaries a “ruse” to get around the city’s law, which effectively put 80 percent of L.A.’s dispensaries out of business this week, reports Dennis Romero at the L.A. Weekly.

Any marijuana delivery service would be explicitly prohibited under the new amendment, unless it involves a dispensary currently compliant with city regulations and is carried out by a patient’s “primary caregiver” — which would effectively end legal pot delivery in Los Angeles, according to the Weekly.

Philadelphia Chills Out (A Little) About Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 8, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: Ron Tarver

Hundreds marched in Philadelphia on the afternoon of May 1, 2010 to support the legalization of marijuana.

Philadelphia is finally starting to chill out about pot. Starting Tuesday, June 8, folks caught in the City of Brotherly Love with 30 grams or less of marijuana will probably see their charges downgraded to a summary offense.

What that means is that after you take a class and pay a $200 fine, any record of the arrest would be expunged.

That’s quite an improvement in a city that until now has been chiefly known for arresting blacks at a far higher rate than whites for marijuana offenses.

The new procedure will likely be followed in several thousand marijuana cases a year, according to Deputy District Attorney Ed McCann, reports Peter Mucha at the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Washington: Pot Legalization Has Poll Numbers, But No Money

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 8, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: Emerald Sun

The people of Washington state want to legalize marijuana — and they would vote to do exactly that — if it were only on the ballot, according to the latest polls. But they may not get that chance.

Even though poll numbers show a majority of residents support it, an attempt to legalize marijuana in Washington state for adults may not make the ballot in November, as the signature gathering phase enters its final three weeks.

Initiative 1068 would remove all state penalties for the possession, cultivation, use and sale of marijuana. Statewide polls have suggested it would pass, reports Gene Johnson of The Associated Press.

According to campaign chairman Douglas Hiatt on Monday, more than 100,000 people have signed a petition to get the initiative on the ballot. The group’s goal is to gather 320,000 signatures. It needs 241,153 valid signatures by July 2 to qualify for the ballot.

The cash-strapped I-1068 campaign can’t afford to pay signature gatherers, so it has depended entirely on the efforts of volunteers.

Maine Still Struggling With New Medical Marijuana Rules

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 8, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: Bangor Metro

Maine’s efforts to provide approved patients with safe, legal access to medical marijuana continued Monday in the State House, where health officials are trying to fine-tune the rules and procedures. Two months ago, Gov. John Baldacci signed a bill into law that creates eight licensed medical marijuana dispensaries throughout the state, along with a state registry of patients authorized to use and possess cannabis.

Some patients, however, say the registration fees required to enroll in the system are too expensive and the amounts allowed are too low, reports A.J. Higgins at The Maine Public Broadcasting Network.

New Pot Dispensary Law Could Have ‘Disastrous’ Impact On L.A.

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 7, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation

Photo: Robyn Beck

The City of Los Angeles is expected to begin enforcing Monday an ordinance that could shut down more than 400 medical marijuana dispensaries in the city. Approved by the City Council, the ordinance gives collectives that opened prior to November 13, 2007 (about 130 of which remain) six months to comply with new regulations.

Many of the 130 pre-moratorium dispensaries will be forced into new locations by strict zoning restrictions in the ordinance.

Colorado Gives Marijuana Dispensaries Legal Status

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 7, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation

Photo: A Greener Country

Colorado Governor Bill Ritter on Monday signed legislation that will regulate the state’s medical marijuana dispensaries through a system of local and state licenses, but will still allow individual localities to ban dispensaries.

State officials estimate that about half of the dispensaries currently operating will be able to comply with the new rules.

There are about 1,100 medical marijuana shops in Colorado, the most in any state other than California, which does not have statewide dispensary regulations.

Pot & CA Governor Race: ‘Neither Party Offers Significant Choice’

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 7, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: Orange Juice

CA gubernatorial hopeful Meg Whitman: “I am absolutely, 100 percent not in favor of legalizing marijuana for any reason”

When it comes to gubernatorial candidates in California, marijuana advocates are seemingly forced to choose between dumb and dumber in the June 8 primary election.

“Neither party offers a significant choice,” according to the Drug Policy Forum of California, a pro-legalization group.

“I am absolutely, 100 percent not in favor of legalizing marijuana for any reason,” said GOP front-runner Meg Whitman.

Whitman, the former CEO of eBay, donated big bucks to help defeat Proposition 5, the Non-Violent Offenders Rehabilitation Act of 2008. EBay subsidiary PayPal has a policy of blackballing even legal medical marijuana businesses, according to DPF.

N.J.’s Medical Marijuana Law Delayed Again; Advocates Upset

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on June 7, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: John Munson/The Star-Ledger

Medical marijuana advocates rally at the statehouse to encourage Gov Chris Christie to give up his request to delay enactment of the state’s medical marijuana law by six to 12 months.

Implementation of New Jersey’s long-awaited medical marijuana law has been delayed once again. Governor Chris Christie’s Republican administration is dragging its feet on implementation of the law that former Democratic Governor Jon Corzine signed in January.

The measure, already the most restrictive in the nation, was passed by the Legislature in January and was scheduled to take effect six months later. Regulations were to be in place by October, when six state-licensed dispensaries would begin selling marijuana to qualified patients.

But on May 21, the Governor’s office suggested the seriously ill patients should just wait for six to 12 more months before they can use the medicine that helps them most.

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