The passage of a medical marijuana proposal is in the hands of the New York Senate, though it’s unclear which way the Republican-heavy group will lean and they’ve only got two weeks to decide.
The New York state General Assembly handily passed a medical cannabis bill that would legalize the use and possession of up to 2.5 ounces as well as create state-regulated medical marijuana dispensaries last week on a 91 to 34 vote.
| Flickr/C. Burnett. |
Some sick and ill Iowa residents will now have access to a very limited form of medical marijuana after Gov. Terry Branstad signed a CBD-only medical cannabis bill into law last Friday.
But to access that medicine, patients are going to have to navigate some major legal gray areas and travel at least two states away.
| Toke of the Town. |
Medical marijuana activist John Tracey acted on two eminently reasonable beliefs late last July. The result? He got busted.
Belief 1: That a Black Sabbath concert would provide a mother lode of support for a petition to put a referendum on medical marijuana on this fall’s ballot.
Belief 2: That the First Amendment is in effect at Cruzan Amphitheatre, since it’s owned by the South Florida Fair and is, by state law, public property.
He was right about one of those things.
| “Hi, we’re in Delaware.” |
A proposal just now working its way through the Delaware House would make the possession of up to an ounce of herb legal in the state for adults 21 and up. The bill would not allow public consumption or allow for legal cultivation. So if you if procure it illegally and avoid law enforcement who can still bust you for selling and purchasing pot, at least you can smoke it in your house.
New Mexico police have stepped across the line of definable brutality and into sadistic quarters with their latest scandal. Marlene Tapia, who in a federal lawsuit filed this week by the ACLU, says a Bernalillo County corrections officer brutalized her by spraying mace inside her vagina during a strip search.
On Valentine’s Day in 1967, social activist Abbie Hoffman sent out 3,000 pre-rolled joints to random names in a New York phonebook, with Jimi Hendrix rumored to fund Hoffman’s illegal giveaway. Although the 60s are over, pothead philanthropy still exists.
Enter: the Weed Fairy.
| Minnesota Gov. Scot Dibble signing the marijuana bill into law. |
You might have noticed Governor Dayton didn’t hold any sort of elaborate signing ceremony for the medical marijuana bill. One big reason for that is advocates for the bill aren’t totally happy with it. In fact, they’re planning to deliver flowers to the Governor’s Residence tomorrow morning at 11 on behalf of the thousands of seriously ill Minnesotans who won’t be able to access medical marijuana under the state’s new system.
Get more of the local angle over at the Minneapolis City Pages.
When a Colorado community doesn’t want a marijuana cultivation warehouse, some people assume that the area is anti-pot and, therefore, anti-Colorado. However, one Boulder farming community is fighting a battle against marijuana that has nothing to do with any stereotypes about the plant.
Paul Cure of Cure Organic Farms has spent the last ten years building up a certified organic farm with his wife, Anne. To be certified organic by the government, the Cures had to pay thousands of dollars in fees and maintain strict requirements on their growing and handling of food.
In a historic move late last night, the U.S. House passed an amendment barring the U.S. Justice Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration from going after medical marijuana operations and users in states where it is legal on a 219 to 189 vote – one vote more than it needed to be approved.
Look outside, you might actually see pigs flying today.
| Gary Lee’s Motor Club & Grub. |
As you can tell by this photo, Gary Lee’s Motor Club & Grub boasts a rather large bar — which should indicate the sort of intoxicant in which the venue specializes.
Nonetheless, Israel Perez, who’s racked up 48 charges, nineteen of them felonies, since 1993, allegedly chose this location to try selling some marijuana — and when he was asked to stop, he’s said to have expressed his displeasure with a gun. The Latest Word has more.