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Medical Marijuana Clubs Open As Arizona Law Is Debated

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 18, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: Howard Fischer/Capitol Media Services

Mike Miller of the Arizona Compassion Association presides over the counter at The 2811 Club.

Medical marijuana dispensaries aren’t yet allowed to open in Arizona, pending a judge’s ruling on Proposition 203, the ballot initiative approved by voters last November. But that’s not keeping some patients from finding cannabis.

At least a few clubs providing patients with medical marijuana have opened to fill that need, reports Emily Holden at The Arizona Republic.

The new state law allows medical marijuana cardholders to grow their own cannabis and to share it with each other, as long as there are no dispensaries within 25 miles. Since no dispensaries are yet allowed, all patients are currently eligible to grow. These clubs have developed as go-between.

The new law was meant to create a regulated industry of dispensaries, said Joe Yuhas, spokesman for the Arizona Medical Marijuana Association, which led the campaign for Prop 203. Instead, the pot clubs are an unintended consequence of the dispute between state and federal laws regarding pot.

“We’re going to see more and more developments like this,” Yuhas said.

Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition Takes It To The People

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 18, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Photo: AMMJC

Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition Co-President Ron Crumpton, right, is interviewed by newspaper reporter Jason Bacaj of The Anniston Star.

State Lawmaker: ‘Good Possibility’ He Will Sponsor A Medical Marijuana Bill In Alabama Legislature

Did you know that the Heart of Dixie stands an excellent chance to become the first medical marijuana state in the Deep South?

The newest Alabama group working to allow marijuana as medicine is taking its message to the people with a series of picnic-style meetings across the state. The Alabama Medical Marijuana Coalition (AMMJC) group’s second event, was held Saturday in Jacksonville at Germania Springs Park.

A crowd that grew to close to 70 people was on hand for the picnic, including a state lawmaker who said there is a “good possibility” that he will sponsor a medical marijuana bill in the Alabama Legislature next year.

Israel: Government Debates Future of Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 15, 2011 Global, Legislation, Medical

Photo: The Jerusalem Post

The government of Israel is expected to decide on establishing a state agency which would be responsible for authorizing and processing requests for medical cannabis.

Currently, about 6,000 patients receive medical marijuana in Israel, reports Judy Siegel Itzkovich at the The Jerusalem Post. But the number of authorizations could reach 40,000 in five years, according to Dr. Yehuda Baruch, a psychiatrist at the Abarbanel Mental Health Center in Bat Yam who has, for the last two years, single-handedly been responsible for the matter.

Oakland Could Charge $211K A Year For Pot Cultivation Permit

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Growing, Medical

Photo: Hollywood Grind

Oakland, California’s plan to license and regulate large-scale medical marijuana farms have taken another tentative step forward after several setbacks. Unfortunately, the news isn’t particularly good for smaller growers.

The city’s rules and laws about medicinal cannabis dispensaries have sometimes been controversial, but mostly successful, with four dispensaries in town servicing thousands of patients and enjoying about $28 million in annual sales, reports Sean Maher at the Oakland Tribune.

But City Council members including Desley Brooks have long argued that there is little local control over where those four dispensaries get their marijuana. They have proposed, instead, city-licensed, industrial-scale marijuana grow operations to supply the dispensaries.

Two Different Ohio Groups Pushing For Medical Marijuana

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

Graphic: Squidoo

Two different groups are moving ahead with plans to put medical marijuana before Ohio voters next year.

Cleveland billionaire Peter Lewis is organizing and funding a medical marijuana ballot issue, while another group has been quietly laying the groundwork for a constitutional amendment, reports Alan Johnson at The Columbus Dispatch.

If approved by voters, the Ohio Medical Cannabis Act of 2012 would establish a regulatory system modeled after the Ohio State Liquor Control system. (OK, that seems a little strange — why would a medicine be controlled by the liquor board?) There would be an Ohio Commission of Cannabis Control, plus a state division and superintendent to run it.

Marijuana purchases would require a doctor’s authorization and would be subject to state and local sales taxes.

Is It Really A Surprise For The Feds To Say No To Marijuana?

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 13, 2011 Culture, Medical, News

Graphic: Salem News

The Anatomy of a Memo

By Jack Rikess

Toke of the Town

Northern California Correspondent

In a incredibly chicken-shit way, the Department of Justice did a news dump last Friday night after all the big news services had gone to bed, releasing a memo meant to “clarify” its position whether marijuana should remained classified as a Schedule I drug, which means that it has no medicinal benefit.

Big surprise! The DOJ said the scheduling remains the same. “Not so fast, partner, nothing changing as far as we’re concerned.” Marijuana is to remain classified as a Schedule I drug because of its “lack of medicinal benefits.”

My first question is could there be a conflict of interest with a agency like the Department of Justice that is home to the DEA, Bureau of Prisons, National Drug Intelligence Center, Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Marshals Service, Interpol, FBI, and the ATF?

Are these really the guys we want deciding whether marijuana’s good for you or not?

Is it really a surprise then when they said, “No?”

Man Grew Marijuana For Wife With Cancer; Could Get 8 Years

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 13, 2011 Growing, Medical, News

Photo: Real Missions, Real Life

A legal, card-carrying medical marijuana caregiver who was growing cannabis in his backyard to treat his wife’s Stage 3 breast cancer will be sentenced on Thursday for “manufacturing marijuana.”

Gary Alan Katz, 59, pleaded guilty last month to the charge after officers with the Livingston and Washtenaw Narcotics Enforcement Team (LAWNET) raided his home on August 10, 2010, reports Lisa Roose-Church at the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus.

Both the defendant and his wife, Jeanne Katz — who wasn’t charged in the case — declined to comment.

“The fact you’re doing a good thing on the side doesn’t justify” illegal behavior, Prosecutor David Morse said when asked why Gary Katz was charged.

“We cut the guy some slack,” Morse claimed. “There were guns recovered. He could have been charged as a felon in possession of a firearm … I recognize he may have been doing some good things here, but there are other ways to help.” Yeah, like throwing the caregiver in prison?

Unemployment Pay Awarded To Fired Medical Marijuana Patient

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 12, 2011 Medical, News

Photo: 303 Magazine

A medical marijuana patient in Colorado has been rewarded unemployment benefits after being fired from his job for positive drug test results.

The Colorado Court of Appeals ruled in Sosa v. Industrial Claim Appeals Office that the evidence presented by an employer at a claims hearing fell short of proving a sufficient basis for the denial of unemployment benefits to the man, who tested positive in the employer’s drug screen, according to Lexology.

A registered medical marijuana patient was required to undergo urinalysis when his supervisor claimed the employee exhibited “behavior suggesting he might be under the influence of drugs.”

When asked to undergo testing, he responded that he would likely test positive, as he was a medical marijuana patient and had recently consumed marijuana for medicinal purposes.

Federal Medical Marijuana ‘Clarification’ Another Disappointment

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on July 11, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Photo: Roger Goodman for Congress

Roger Goodman: “Sorry, DOJ. Please give it another try.”

Last week’s Department of Justice memo, supposedly meant to “clarify” the DOJ’s position on medical marijuana, doesn’t reflect any real changes in policy from prior administrations.

This latest “clarification” was seemingly needed after a prior “clarification” in 2009 gave many the impression that the DOJ would not prosecute medical marijuana patients and providers in states that had authorized such programs.

That 2009 document, called the “Ogden Memo,” did not actually provide for a hard change in policy, but rather directed U.S. Attorneys to be careful in how they use their limited department resources, suggesting that prosecuting medical marijuana patients is not a good use of government funds.

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