| Viva la mota! |
Uruguayan lawmakers Wednesday night approved a bill that would legalize marijuana possession and use for adults 18 and up in that country as well as establish government-regulated cannabis shops where the plant will be sold.
If the bill makes it to law, Uruguay will be the first country to re-legalize cannabis in nearly 80 years.
Another favorable court ruling for the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act means that would-be dispensaries have much more time to set up operations. Maricopa Superior Court Judge Randall Warner’s July 29 ruling, released today, stops the state from denying dispensary approvals because of failure to meet a set deadline.
In a hempseed shell, the court order means that several planned dispensary companies won’t be shut out of the game, and that the state’s qualified patients will have no shortage of places to buy their medicine. Phoenix New Times has the full story.
| Daniel Chong via SizzleRossilini / YouTube. |
Remember the case of Daniel Chong, the UCSD student celebrating 4/20 last year when the DEA locked him up for nearly five days without food, water or any contact with his captors? Yes his name is Chong. Yes he was busted by the feds. Yes he was celebrating marijuana’s international holiday. (No, he doesn’t have a friend named Cheech).
Well, Chong is getting nearly a million a day in settlement money for his ordeal, his attorneys said today: Julia Yoo, a partner in the San Diego firm that represents the student, confirmed for the Weekly Chong’s $4.1 million settlement with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. LA Weekly has the full story.
A $125,000 marijuana grow south of Houston has been uprooted thanks to a tip from an anonymous narc citizen who used an app created by the sheriff’s department that allows people to send in photos as well as coordinates to crimes – or things that citizens perceive to be crimes.
All of the plants have been destroyed, but thankfully nobody has been arrested. We think the senseless destruction of such a healthy, natural and domestic garden should be punishment enough and the cops should hopefully just let the case die (they won’t, but a marijuana writer can dream can’t he?).
| Illinois.gov |
| Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn. |
After months of waiting for their governor to sign laws into place, Illinois may finally have legalized medical marijuana by next week.
Or then again, they might not. Gov. Pat Quinn isn’t exactly saying which way he’s leaning at this point — only that something will happen next week.
| Wikimedia commons/Joe Bielawa. |
| “You, pass me that joint.” |
When entering the United States at one of our many border locations, it is best to not draw attention to yourself if you are – by chance – bringing something less-than-legal back into the country with you. Not drawing attention to yourself is impossible, however, when you’re the world’s biggest teen boy pop sensation traveling in a million-dollar tour bus as Just Bieber found out Sunday.
While en-route from Canada back to the U.S. the bus was stopped by patrol agents at the U.S./Canadian border. The Biebs, however, wasn’t around to catch the charge – that went to his bus driver.
A bill to outright legalize cannabis in Uruguay is starting to see action. According to the Drug Policy Alliance, the Uruguayan House of Representatives is set to vote on a legalization bill this summer – likely tomorrow.
The bill would still have to be approved by the Uruguayan senate and signed by President José Mujica before becoming law. Thankfully, the legalization idea came straight from Mujica’s office and his Frente Amplio party has majorities in both chambers of the legislature. If passed, Uruguayans over the age of 18 would be able to buy just under a half-ounce of cannabis per month at a government-regulated shop.
| Hemp, lots of hemp. |
Before Colorado farmers can plant industrial hemp, the state Department of Agriculture must come up with a way to register and inspect their crops. To help establish those regulations, lawmakers authorized the creation of a nine-member advisory committee.
The members of that committee have been chosen, and the group met for the first time in mid-July. Farmer-turned-political-activist Mike Bowman was there and we caught up with him about the group’s progress. Denver Westword has the full story.
| Kim Sidwell. |
| Denver 4/20 rally. |
The City of Denver looks like it will be asking voters to approve a 5 percent tax on recreational marijuana sales if/when the shops open for business next year.
Council voted last night on a proposal that sets an initial 5 percent tax that could be lowered to 3.5 percent or raised to as high as 15 percent. Council still has a few more steps to go through before the measure would be approved. Even then, Colorado law requires tax measures to go before voters for approval.
| Washington D.C., now with MMJ! |
Legal medical cannabis is being sold just blocks from the White House doors.
After a long, drawn-out wait, Capital City Cannabis opened for business yesterday, making it Washington D.C.’s first medical marijuana dispensary. “It’s so exciting to welcome patients into Capital City Care for the first time,” general manager David Guard said in a prepared statement. “Every day we hear from people who are suffering from serious illnesses and need another option for treating their symptoms. It’s an honor to be able to help them improve their quality of life and provide care to this large under-served population.”