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Illinois: Medical Marijuana Bill Falls Short By 4 Votes

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 6, 2011 Legislation, Medical

The Illinois House on Thursday afternoon narrowly voted down the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. The bill fell just four votes short of the 60 needed to become law.

Sponsor Lou Lang (D-Skokie) pledged to continue working for medical marijuana in Illinois, reports Hannah Hess at STLtoday.

“What we have to do now is wait for the new session to start, introduce a new piece of legislation and start over,” Lang said after the bill was defeated.

The medical marijuana bill — SB 1381 — would have allowed people suffering from chronic pain or nausea caused by certain debilitating conditions including cancer and AIDS to use cannabis medicinally with authorization from their doctor.

Group Sues To Dump Parts Of Colorado’s Medical Marijuana Law

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 6, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Patient and Caregiver Rights Litigation Project

A medical marijuana advocacy group in Colorado has filed a lawsuit to overturn parts of that state’s medical marijuana law dealing with patient privacy, safe access, Department of Revenue regulation, and physician recommendations.

Kathleen Chippi and the Patient and Caregiver Rights Litigation Project want to scrap parts of House Bill 1284 and Senate Bill 109. The suit was filed by Wednesday with the state Supreme Court, in an attempt to fast-track the process and bypass lower appellate courts.

“This petition was necessary to stop the state’s blatant attack on fundamental constitutional patient and caregiver rights,” Chippi said. “Coloradans need immediate clarification on rights they enjoyed from 2000 through 2009, and why some of those rights were extinguished by the state Legislature in 2010.”

“Medical marijuana patients are sick of being treated like second-class citizens,” Chippi said.

Illinois House Reportedly Ready To Legalize Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 6, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: The Fresh Scent

”As of this moment I have enough committed votes to pass the bill”

~ Rep. Lou Lang

The Illinois House may vote on a bill to legalize medical marijuana on Thursday, January 6, the sponsor, Rep. Lou Lang (D-Skokie), said this morning.

“As of this moment I have enough committed votes to pass the bill if, number one, everyone’s here, and number two, everyone told me the truth,” Lang said, reports Hannah Hess at STLtoday.

The bill would allow people receiving treatment for cancer, AIDS and other serious illnesses to use marijuana for pain and nausea, with a doctor’s authorization and state certification.

Treatment Of Medical Marijuana Arrestees ‘Appalling’: Attorney

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 5, 2011 Medical, News

Artwork by Jimmy Wheeler (R.I.P.)

An attorney representing a majority of the 12 San Luis Obispo County, California residents arrested last week for allegedly operating mobile medical marijuana delivery services said Tuesday that they received “appalling treatment” when task force officers arrested them at their homes.

According to one report of the raids, the police kept people, including a grandmother and two children, handcuffed facedown on the ground. The children were later hauled off to CPS after their parents were thrown in jail.

The arrests were made on December 27. Three other people from around Southern California were also arrested, reports Cynthia Lambert at The San Luis Obispo Tribune.

Two of the arrestees, Valerie Hosking, 41, and David Hosking, 46, both of Pismo Beach, were arraigned December 30 and each charged with two counts or selling or furnishing marijuana or hashish. A pre-preliminary hearing is set for January 20 for the two.

Judge To Hear DEA Call For Medical Marijuana Patient Records

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 5, 2011 Medical, News

Photo: Grand Rapids Press

A hearing is set next week in the federal government’s fight to access medical marijuana patient records from the state of Michigan.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents are asking Michigan to turn over the patient records as part of an investigation in the Lansing area. The request is a sign that voter approval won’t stop the DEA from enforcing federal drug laws. Sixty-three percent of Michigan voters approved medical marijuana in 2008.

In June, the DEA served a subpoena on the Michigan Department of Community Health, but the state refused to turn over the records, citing confidentiality laws, reports John Agar at The Grand Rapids Press.

Maine Marijuana Patients Register With State To Meet Mandate

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on January 3, 2011 Dispensaries, Growing, Medical

Photo: MyFoxMaine

Starting January 1, medical marijuana patients in Maine are required by law to register with the state.

More than 400 residents of Maine have applied to be medical marijuana patients under a new state law. Starting January 1, Mainers must be registered with the state before legally using cannabis medicinally.

For the past decade in Maine, ever since voters approved medical marijuana in 1999, patients had needed only a doctor’s authorization to use cannabis medicinally.

Applications flooded into the Maine Department of Health and Human Services in the final days and weeks of 2010, with hundreds more expected in the next several weeks, reports John Richardson at The Portland Press Herald. State officials said that expect to register 1,200 or more patients by the time the initial rush is over this spring.

“Everybody’s coming in at the last minute,” said Catherine Cobb, director of licensing and regulatory services for the health department. “We’ve been hammered.”

Police Aggressively Raid Medical Marijuana Delivery Services

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 30, 2010 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Graphic: KSBY

Grandmother and Children Handcuffed, Forced Facedown To The Ground; Children Taken From Parents

Aggressive raids against five collectively run medical marijuana delivery services were staged by a Narcotics Task Force of local and state law enforcement agencies on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday this week in San Luis Obispo County, California.

The raids resulted in at least 13 people being arrested on felony charges, with bails of up to $100,000. Several of those arrested were charged with child endangerment, after Child Protective Services (CPS) removed at least six children from the homes of three different families.

In one report of this week’s raids, the police kept people, including a grandmother and two children, handcuffed facedown on the ground. The children were later hauled off to CPS after their parents were thrown in jail.

Medical Marijuana Patient Records Found Near Dumpster

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 29, 2010 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Photo: 9News.com

Patient privacy is compromised as a Denver resident finds medical marijuana patient information in an alley

Medical marijuana patient records allegedly from the Apothecary of Colorado, a dispensary, were found in an alley in Denver on Tuesday.

The records were found in a binder and include medical marijuana patient applications, medical condition information, Social Security numbers, and copies of drivers licenses and birth certificates.

The records were discovered by Denver resident Harold Morton in a box next to his dumpster, reports Dave DeLozier at 9News.com.

Woman Fired Over Medical Marijuana To Get Day In High Court

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 27, 2010 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Working World

Should companies be able to fire employees for using medical marijuana — at home, with no effects on job performance — even in states where the medicinal use of cannabis is legal?

Washington judges and lawmakers will be wrestling with that question next month as the state Supreme Court hears the case of a woman fired for legally using pot medicinally, and the Legislature looks at a bill to expand patient protections in the state’s 12-year-old medical marijuana law, reports Vanessa Ho of the Seattle P.I.

The case before the high court involves a woman suing her former employer after she failed a drug test and was fired from a customer-service job in Bremerton. The woman, using “Jane Roe” as a pseudonym in court records, was using marijuana authorized by her doctor for debilitating migraines.

Feds Want Michigan Medical Marijuana Patient Records

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 27, 2010 Medical, News

Photo: The Atlantean Conspiracy

Federal agents want the state of Michigan to turn over records in a medical marijuana investigation of seven people in the Lansing area.

The U.S. Attorney’s office is asking a judge to order Michigan to comply with a subpoena.

In a court filing last week, prosecutors said the state is resisting because of privacy provisions in Michigan law, reports the Associated Press.

Federal drug agents want to see the records of medical marijuana patients and caregivers for seven people.

The seven are are not identified in court documents.

There are no details about the investigation, according to AP.

In a court document, Assistant U.S. Attorney John Bruha said possession and distribution of marijuana are illegal under federal law.

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