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Strict laws in the city and county of Los Angeles have, over the years, led to the closure of hundreds of illicit marijuana dispensaries, action hailed by some as a way to combat drug-related crime such as robberies and loitering.

But a new study contradicts the argument, sometimes made by law enforcement itself, that weed stores are crime magnets. The research, published in the July issue of the Journal of Urban Economics, took a close look at the city’s closure of hundreds of illicit dispensaries in 2010.

It concluded that crime around pot shops forced to shut down actually increased afterward. “When marijuana dispensaries were shut down, we found the opposite of what we were expecting,” says the paper’s co-author, USC business economics professor Tom Y. Chang. “Crime actually increased in the areas that closed relative to the ones allowed to stay open.”

In November California voters will have a chance to legalize recreational marijuana — and speculators are licking their lips at the prospect of a green rush in the Golden State. One analysis says California’s legal pot revenues could more than double — from $2.7 billion in 2015 to $6.6 billion in 2020 — if we fully legalize cannabis.

But in the biggest marijuana market in the United States (the city of Los Angeles has more dispensaries than the entire state of Colorado), the industry’s growth could lag, even if recreational weed is passed by voters.

An organization that represents the majority of legit (medical) marijuana shops in L.A. is pushing to cap the city’s number of dispensaries — medical or not — at 135. The organization, the United Cannabis Business Alliance (UCBA), has just filed its initiative language with the L.A. City Attorney’s Office …

California’s dominant political party is saying yes to drugs.

The California Democratic Party’s executive board met in Long Beach over the weekend. It voted to endorse a number of ballot measures, including the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), which is headed for your vote in November.

The initiative would legalize holding up to an ounce of weed for those older than 21 — no doctor’s note necessary.