Legislation

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Senate Judiciary Chairman Wants To Resolve Federal/State Marijuana Conflicts

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 13, 2012 Legislation, News

Sen. Patrick Leahy: “One option would be to amend the Federal Controlled Substances Act to allow possession of up to one ounce of marijuana”

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy: “Legislative Options Exist” to Resolve Potential Federal/State Conflict Over Marijuana Legalization in Colorado and Washington

Seeks Assurances From Obama Administration That State Officials Will Not Be Prosecuted For Implementing New Laws

In a letter to U.S. Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) asked how the federal government intends to deal with states like Colorado and Washington that recently voted to regulate and tax marijuana like alcohol. In the letter, Senator Leahy also suggested that federal legislation could be introduced to legalize up to an ounce of marijuana, at least in states that have legalized marijuana.

The letter, sent last week but reported on Thursday in the Huffington Post, notes that “[o]ne option would be to amend the Federal Controlled Substances Act to allow possession of up to one ounce of marijuana, at least in jurisdictions where it is legal under state law.”

Former 502 Backer Now Says New Pot Law Too Restrictive

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 12, 2012 Legislation, News

Drug War Odyssey

“I now question whether Washington state’s initiative needed to be as restrictive as it is.”

~ Norm Stamper, former police chief of Seattle

Norm Stamper — the former police chief of Seattle and current member of legalization group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) who was one of the biggest supporters of I-502 in Washington state — now says that the measure is probably too restrictive.

While it’s a real shame that Norm couldn’t have taken a closer look at the restrictive and downright scary portions of I-502 before giving countless interviews and writing dozens of letters to the editor in support of the measure, the former cop’s about-face does highlight the glaring flaws in Washington’s “legalization” law, and serves to temper the euphoria which has gripped many in the Evergreen State’s cannabis community.

Just a month after the election, Stamper told the Seattle Weekly‘s Nina Shapiro, “I now question whether Washington state’s initiative needed to be as restrictive as it is.”

Marijuana Legalization In Ohio: Just A Matter Of Time?

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 11, 2012 Legislation, News

Some marijuana activists in Ohio believe it’s only a matter of time before people in the Buckeye state will enjoy the same freedoms as those in Colorado and Washington — the freedom to use cannabis legally.

Activist Brian Joslyn, a member of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), said he didn’t expect help from the Ohio Legislature in legalizing cannabis; instead, he believes the people need to do it for themselves, reports 10TV News.

10tv.com

Brian Joslyn: “I think if everybody was just given a ballot right now to vote on this measure, I think it would pass”

“I think if everybody was just given a ballot right now to vote on this measure, I think it would pass,” he said.

As a lawyer, Joslyn said he’d seen the negative effects that marijuana prohibition has on dozens of clients, including a recent couple.

“His wife has cancer so he was growing marijuana and providing her with edible marijuana,” Joslyn said.

Now, both the cancer-stricken wife and her husband are behind bars.

British MPs After Year-Long Study: Legalize Cannabis

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 10, 2012 Global, Legislation, News

Mary Jane’s Garden

Senior MPs in the Parliament of the United Kingdom, after a year-long study, on Monday called for the legalization of cannabis.

According to the Ministers, the U.K.’s current approach just isn’t working. The recommendation, called “shock verdict” by Kevin Schofield at The Sun, came in a report from Parliament’s Home Affairs Committee.

The move came after a year-long investigation which included witnesses such as comedian and former heroin addict Russell Brand, who called for simple drug possession to no longer be considered a crime.

FREEDOM! Marijuana Now Legal For Adults In Colorado

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 10, 2012 Legislation, News

Pakalert Press

Amendment 64 Officially Becomes Law; Gov. Hickenlooper Signs Voter-Approved Initiative

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper on Monday signed an executive order formalizing Amendment 64 as part of the state Constitution and officially making the limited personal use, possession, and limited home-growing of marijuana legal for adults 21 and older.

The governor had until January 5 to sign the executive order, but he did so only four days after Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler certified the results from the November 6 general election.

“Voters were loud and clear on Election Day,” Gov. Hickenlooper said, reports Patrick Malone at The Coloradoan. “We will begin working immediately with the General Assembly and state agencies to implement Amendment 64.”

Washington Bar Welcomes Pot Smokers

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 10, 2012 Culture, Legislation, News

KING 5

Frank Schnarr, Frankie’s Bar & Grill: “To bring in another type of person to come in my establishment is a plus for me”

Things are changing in Washington state now that residents voted last month to legalize marijuana. As of Thursday, Washingtonians can smoke weed in the privacy of their own homes. And now, Frankie’s Bar & Grill in the capital city of Olympia has invited pot smokers to toke up there.

Owner Frank Schnarr, 62, said he hasn’t smoked any marijuana since he fought in Vietnam in the 1970s, but he could sure use the extra income. “I’m about to lose my business,” he told Jonathan Kaminsky of Reuters. “So I’ve got to figure out some way to get people in here.”

“To bring in another type of person to come in my establishment is a plus for me,” Schnarr told MyNorthwest.com.

Czech Parliament Approves Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 7, 2012 Global, Legislation, Medical

The Weed Blog

The Czech Republic’s lower house of Parliament has approved legislation to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. The bill still needs to be approved by the upper house to become law.

Politicians agreed that marijuana would initially be imported, and later grown locally by registered farms, reports RT.com.

Patients would need a doctor’s prescription to get cannabis at pharmacies, reports The Associated Press. Marijuana will not be covered by health insurance, and patients will not be allowed to grow it at home.

“The point of the proposal is to make medical marijuana accessible to patients that need it and that already use it today, even when it is against the law,” Pavel Bern, one of a group of deputies who wrote the bill, told Reuters.

Fox News Caught Faking Again: Drivers On Cannabis

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 7, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

Fox News, for whatever reason, just can’t be trusted to report accurately on marijuana issues.

In the latest example of this truism, Fox News in Colorado was caught cheating by a participant in a driving simulator test for medical marijuana patients.

This participant went in undercover with a camera to expose the truth about “driving high” and the fact that Fox News designed the test to fail.

Gallup Poll: 63% Say Feds Should Butt Out When States Legalize

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 7, 2012 Legislation, News

Legalizing Marijuana

Americans overwhelmingly agree, by an almost 2-to-1 margin, that the federal government should not enforce federal marijuana laws in states that legalize cannabis, according to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll.

“These polls are making it quite clear that most Americans do not want the federal government to stand in the way after a state’s voters have approved a ballot measure to make marijuana legal for adults,” said Steve Fox, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP). “The initiatives in Colorado and Washington received strong majority support because the voters believe regulating marijuana like alcohol would make their communities safer than the current system of prohibition.”

“It’s not just the people of Colorado and Washington who want to see these ballot measures implemented in accordance with the will of the voters,” Fox said. “It’s nearly two-thirds of all Americans. The Obama administration should not undermine their sensible action by ensuring marijuana sales remain underground where the profits prop up cartels and gangs instead of legitimate businesses.”

The question became a very timely one on Thursday, as Washington became the first state in the U.S. to legalize and regulate the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults 21 and older, reports USA Today.

Today Is Marijuana Legalization Day In Washington State

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 6, 2012 Culture, Legislation, News

Steve Elliott ~alapoet~

By Phillip Dawdy

Special to Toke of the Town

Today is Legalization Day in Washington. Evergreen State voters made a loud and clear statement on November 6, dear readers, and here we are 30 days later leading the way in — finally! — taking cannabis to a new and different place.

This is the first time full legalization (or “legalization,” as some I-502 detractors still insist) has happened anywhere on Earth since America banned the fabulous cannabis plant in 1937. That’s a big deal — for Washington, for America, and for the world.

Even if you didn’t vote for 502 due to its many flaws, I encourage you to embrace this moment because something like this only comes around once in our lives. Americans, including my grandfather, have died for our right to tell the feds to stuff it over cannabis.

Breathe deep. Full absorption.

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