Legislation

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Dispensary Asks CA Gov. Brown To Join Marijuana Petition

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 8, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Kevin Reed, The Green Cross: “It’s high time Governor Brown take action to advance meaningful policies”

The Green Cross, San Francisco’s first licensed medical cannabis dispensary, is urging California Governor Jerry Brown to join a federal petition to reschedule marijuana filed by Governors Christine Gregoire (D-WA) and Lincoln Chafee (I-RI).

Since the petition was filed on November 30, Governor Peter Shumlin (D-VT) has signaled he also supports it. All three governors represent states that have adopted laws allowing the use of medical marijuana by qualified patients.

Under the federal Controlled Substances Act, the U.S. government considers marijuana a Schedule I substance, a category reserved for dangerous drugs with a high potential for addiction and no medical value.

Feds To Meet With California’s Ammiano On Marijuana Laws

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 8, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

bkusler

California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano: “This is a crisis, and it’s putting patients at risk”

We’re two months into a confusing crackdown by the federal Department of Justice on medical marijuana dispensaries, and California Assemblyman Tom Ammiano is expected to meet soon with the U.S. Attorney’s office.

The private meeting is expected to take place next week between Ammiano (D-S.F.) and federal prosecutor Melinda Haag, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, reports Dan Aiello at The Bar Area Reporter.

The decision by Haag to meet with Ammiano comes just a week after U.S. District Court Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong ruled against three Bay Area medical marijuana dispensaries, one of the dispensary’s patients, and another’s landlord.

“U.S. Attorney Haag’s office has responded to our request and Assemblyman Ammiano will be meeting her sometime next week,” said Quintin Mecke, Ammiano’s communications director.

Participants at the meeting have not been confirmed; “no other elected official[s]” will be there, according to Mecke. “This meeting is on behalf of our office,” he said.

Federal prosecutors have threatened dispensaries with eviction, landlords with property seizures, and both with imprisonment. Scattered raids have been reported, with patient records being seized at one dispensary in Sacramento.

Colorado Will Ask DEA To Reschedule Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 8, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Wussup Hater

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper apparently doesn’t plan to sign a petition from Govs. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island and Chris Gregoire of Washington which asks the federal government to change the classification of marijuana, but Colorado will reportedly file its own request before the end of the year.

Gov. Hickenlooper’s spokesperson told Fox News that the governors have a valid point in pushing the petition, reports Scot Kersgaard at the Colorado Independent.

“The governors in Washington and Rhode Island raise a valid conflict that needs to be resolved,” said Eric Brown, a spokesman for Gov. Hickenlooper. “Colorado law requires that we make a similar ask of the federal government by Jan. 1. We will do that. We will also continue to consult with other governors on the issue and with Colorado’s attorney general before deciding whether anything else will be done.”

Medical Marijuana Ban/Repeal: Long Beach Eyes Third Option

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 7, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

LBCA

The fate of the entire American medical marijuana community could depend on decisions made by the City of Long Beach. The recent court ruling of Pack v City of Long Beach could take cannabis medicine away from ailing citizens and lead to lost jobs, lost tax revenue, and increased crime rates.

On Wednesday, December 7, the Long Beach Collective Association (LBCA) submitted amendment language to the mayor, Long Beach City Council, and city attorney, which recommends language that would allow the current ordinance to remain functional under the evolving California law.

This “third option” was drafted by the LBCA’s legal team at the request of Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal and several other council members at the November 1 council meeting.

Congress Set To Escalate Drug War After Decades Of Failure

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 7, 2011 Legislation, News

Break The Matrix

The U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote on two bills that would escalate the War On Drugs.

One bill scheduled to be voted on Wednesday (HR 1254) would criminalize possession and sales of chemical compounds found in products such as “K2,” “Spice,” and “bath salts.” A second bill which is expected to be voted on next week (HR 313) would make it a federal crime to engage in an activity in another country that would violate U.S. drug laws if committed in the United States — even if the activity is actually legal in the other country.

Both bills are expected to pass and would subject more Americans to lengthy federal prison terms — while increasing already-skyrocketing prison expenses that taxpayers have to pay. This comes at a time when members of Congress are cutting drug education, treatment and prevention, citing the need to “reduce federal expenses.”

Medical Marijuana Patients Propose L.A. Regulation Solution

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 6, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

UMMP

James Shaw, director of the Los Angeles-based Union of Medical Marijuana patients, on Tuesday announced an alternative to a ban on nearly 400 local medicinal cannabis dispensaries which was proposed by City Councilman Jose Huizar last month.

“Councilman Huizar seems unaware that there is a reasonable way to regulate medical cannabis patient associations now using technology which we have developed in conjunction with AgSite Secure,” Shaw said.

If that sounds like Shaw is selling something, yes he is; however, keep an open mind, because third-party verification may be a way out of the conundrum in which California dispensaries find themselves.

According to Shaw, the recent Second Court of Appeals decision cited by the Councilman, known as Pack v. Long Beach, which rejected the ability of cities to issue paid permits to authorize dispensaries, did not mean a ban was the only alternative to a complete lack of regulation.

N.J. Medical Marijuana Program Gets The Green Light

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 6, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

The Weed Blog

Almost two years after the law was passed, New Jersey lawmakers finally announced last week that the state’s medical marijuana program — the most restrictive medicinal cannabis law in the United States — would be fully functional sometime in 2012.

Gov. Chris Christie had issued a surprise announcement in July that the state would go forward with its often-stalled medical marijuana program, reports John Farley at Thirteen.

The Garden State’s medicinal cannabis program has been in transition for months now. In 2010, the State Senate passed the Compassionate Care Act, which required the state to license six medical marijuana dispensaries.

But even though an overwhelming 86 percent of New Jersey voters support medicinal cananbis, Christie put the program on hold, seeking assurance from federal officials that state marijuana workers and doctors would not be prosecuted, reported the Star-Ledger.

Cops Fired For Supporting Marijuana Legalization; Lawsuits Filed

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 5, 2011 Culture, Legislation

Rose Law Group

Border Patrol Agent Bryan Gonzalez was fired merely for verbally expressing frustration with the war on marijuana and voicing support for LEAP

Maybe Frank Zappa was right to ask, “Who are the Brain Police?” Remarks from a Border Patrol agent expressing dissatisfaction with the Drug War — made on the job to a fellow agent, a few feet from the Mexican border — later resulted in the agent’s firing after his remarks were passed along to headquarters.

Bryan Gonzalez, a young agent stationed in Deming, New Mexico, was in his Border Patrol vehicle next to the border when he pulled up to a fellow agent to chat about the frustrations of the job, reports Marc Lacey at The New York Times.

If marijuana were legalized, Gonzalez told the other agent, the drug-related violence across the border in Mexico would cease. He then mentioned an organization called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), consisting of former cops, judges and prosecutors who favor ending the War On Drugs.

“Now that The New York Times has featured LEAP and the emerging debate in the law enforcement community about ending the ‘war on drugs,’ hopefully this will lead to more sympathetic cops getting in touch with us and joining the movement,” LEAP’s media relations director, Tom Angell, told Toke of the Town on Monday morning.

“I’m already hearing from a lot of news outlets that don’t normally cover LEAP that the Times story caught their attention,” Angell said.

N.J. Poll Shows Majority Support For Marijuana Decrim

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 1, 2011 Legislation, News

Releaf

Six of every 10 New Jerseyans support the penalties for marijuana should be relaxed — with more than half thinking there should be no penalties at all — and one-third would completely legalize its sale and use, according to a poll released on Wednesday. The poll also showed overwhelming levels of support for the medicinal use of cannabis.

The Rutgers-Eagleton Poll has, for almost 40 years, asked New Jersey residents about penalties for marijuana use, and they’ve become more relaxed about the issue, reports New Jersey Newsroom. Back in May 1972, four in 10 New Jerseyans said penalties for cannabis use should be lowered.

Vermont Governor Supports Doctors Prescribing Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 1, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

The Walrus Speaks

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin supports Wednesday’s call by Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire and Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee to reschedule marijuana, allowing it to be prescribed by doctors and sold by pharmacies

A spokeswoman for Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin said he supports and will sign on to an effort to allow doctors to prescribe medical marijuana, and pharmacists to fill the prescriptions.

Shumlin is joining a petition by Washington Governor Christine Gregoire and Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to change marijuana’s current classification as a Schedule I drug, reports the Associated Press. Schedule I classification makes cannabis illegal to prescribe or dispense for medicinal use.

Vermont’s current medicinal cannabis law allows a small number of very sick people in the state to register with the state Department of Public Safety and sets up procedures for them to obtain marijuana.

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