Medical

Pot Patients, Growers Prepare To Fight County Restrictions

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 23, 2010 Growing, Medical, News

Photo: Julie R. Johnson/Corning Observer

Ken and Kathy Prather, owners of medical marijuana dispensary Tehama Herbal Collective in Corning, California

Hundreds of people are signing up as litigants in a class action lawsuit to be filed against Tehama County, California, for its recently approved medical marijuana cultivation regulations.

Many of the potential litigants, medical marijuana growers and patients, met in Red Bluff on Thursday to fill out forms naming themselves as plaintiffs in a lawsuit being backed by California NORML, reports Julie R. Johnson of Tri-County Newspapers.

Kathy Prather, co-owner of Tehama Herbal Collective (THC), a marijuana dispensary in Corning, said the lawsuit will be filed against Tehama County because of its recent ordinance regulating medical cannabis cultivation.

MI: Medical Pot Demand Booming; Agency Can’t Keep Pace

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 23, 2010 Medical, News

Graphic: Medical Marijuana Blog

One year into Michigan’s medical marijuana law, health officials can’t keep up with the demand.

Because of a growing backlog of about 3,000 applications, those wishing to use marijuana medically or grow it for patients have a three-month wait for registry cards, according to the Michigan Department of Community Health, reports Scott Davis at Lansing State Journal.

“We’re (now) getting a thousand applications a week,” said department spokesman James McCurtis. “It’s going to take some time to get through all applications, even with new help.”

The department said it had issued 13,239 permits for use of marijuana and 5,460 permits for caregivers to grow it, as of April 16. The program kicked off in April 2009.

Colorado House Approves Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 22, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Cannabis N.I.

The Colorado House of Representatives has approved and sent to the state Senate a bill that would allow the state to license medical marijuana dispensaries, growers and people who make medical cannabis-infused edibles.

Under the bill, HB 1284, owners of medical marijuana dispensaries would be required to undergo criminal background checks. Anyone with a drug felony would be barred from owning a pot shop.

The bill passed 39-23 with bipartisan support, reports the Vail Daily.

Many medical marijuana activists are unhappy with the legislation.

“These bills will create a government-sponsored monopoly of a few mega-Walmart dispensaries,” said Lauri Kriho, director of Cannabis Therapy Institute (CTI).

Lawyers Say Marijuana’s Drug Status Should Change

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 22, 2010 Medical, News

Graphic: Salem News

The New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday published an editorial by two law professors arguing that the federal government should change to a less restrictive status for marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act.

Marijuana’s current Schedule I status, according to the professors, stops researchers from studying the medical benefits and health risks of cannabinoid-based medicine, even though state laws in 14 states allow doctors to recommend the drug, reports Lauren Cox at ABC News.

“Although state laws represent a political response to patients seeking relief from debilitating symptoms, they are inadequate to advance effective treatment,” the professors argue. “Medical experts emphasize the need to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule II drug to facilitate rigorous scientific evaluation of the potential therapeutic benefits of cannabinoids and to determine the optimal dose and delivery route for conditions in which efficacy is established.”

Michigan: Deputies, DEA Arrest Medical Marijuana Patients

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 22, 2010 Growing, Medical, News

Photo: WNEM

Deputies haul away marijuana after raiding what patients described as a medical marijuana grow operation

Two medical marijuana patients were arrested last week by Saginaw County, Michigan sheriff’s deputies and federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) officers.

According to arrested couple, the marijuana they grew was for medical purposes in accordance with Michigan’s medical marijuana law, but the sheriff’s office said they were not following state guidelines, reports WNEM.

Hundreds of marijuana plants, guns and other possessions were seized in the raids last week.

John Roberts, 48, of Thomas Township, protested the arrest and said the growing and use of marijuana by patients is legal.

Wisconsin Court Tosses Pot Conviction, Scolds And Fines City

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 21, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Legal Juice

A Wisconsin appeals court threw out a man’s Grand Chute marijuana conviction Tuesday and soundly scolded the city for its bad behavior, even levying a $200 fine against the city’s law firm.

The court made its ruling after deciding that the town’s possession ordinance includes an exception for medical marijuana that is at odds with state law.

In a refreshing turn of events, the Third District Court of Appeals verbally spanked the city for its bad behavior. “We are astonished by the Town’s brazen misrepresentations, which are not supported by record citations,” the Court of Appeals wrote.

The court chided the town’s attorneys, calling them responsible for “grossly misrepresenting the record, omitting record citations, and citing a document not made part of the record.”

Lansing’s First Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 21, 2010 Dispensaries, Medical

Photo: Rod Sanford/Lansing State Journal

Marijuana dispensary owner Danny Trevino calls Lansing, Mich. police Tuesday after they left a note at the storefront that he uses

Lansing’s first official medical marijuana dispensary has opened, testing the limits of Michigan’s medical marijuana law. The business, still unnamed, opened last week as city officials work toward drafting a city ordinance to regulate cannabis related businesses, reports Scott Davis at Lansing State Journal.

“It gives peace of mind that there is a place where I can go to buy it,” said Darryl Brija, 52, a state-certified medical marijuana patient who has a degenerative back disease. “It’s a good thing for people who can’t grow it themselves.”

Across Street From 420 Rally, House Toughens Medical Pot Rules

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 21, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: Joe Amon/The Denver Post

Thousands gathered in the park across from the Colorado State Capitol in Denver to support the legalization of marijuana, April 20, 2010.

Colorado state lawmakers at the Capitol on Tuesday toughened regulations for the booming medical marijuana industry as clouds of smoke wafted from a pro-pot really across the street.

The House ultimately passed a bill to create rules for marijuana dispensaries, focusing largely on licensing requirements, tax policy and signage rules, reports John Ingold at The Denver Post.

D.C. Medical Marijuana Bill Up For A Vote 4/20

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 20, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: Executive Healthcare

The D.C. Council will vote Tuesday, April 20, on a much-anticipated proposal to allow chronically ill patients to receive a doctor’s recommendation to use marijuana medically, and buy it from a city-licensed dispensary.

Under the bill, which has already passed two committees, patients who suffer from HIV, glaucoma, cancer, or a “chronic and lasting disease” and who get a doctor’s recommendation will be allowed to possess up to two ounces of marijuana, defined as a “30-day supply,” reports Tim Craig at The Washington Post.

‘Auditors With Guns’ In Colorado? Pot Bills Gut Protections

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 16, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Cannabis Therapy Institute

Two law enforcement bills are now working their way through the Colorado Legislature that would, according to Cannabis Therapy Institute, seriously harm medical marijuana patients and their caregivers. According to CTI, both of these bills have seen strong support from legislators, both Democrats and Republicans.

Law enforcement bill #1 (SB 109) would destroy the confidentiality of the Registry by allowing the government to use patient records to determine “suspicious” activity by physicians. It allocates more than $1 million of patient registration fees to prosecute these supposedly “suspicious” physicians.

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