A ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana use in California has received enough signatures to place it before voters next year, organizers said.

The “Tax, Regulate and Control Cannabis Act of 2010” has garnered 680,000 signatures, more than the 433,971 required to be placed on the state’s ballot, said Salwa [...]]]> From Bloomberg News:

A ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana use in California has received enough signatures to place it before voters next year, organizers said.

The “Tax, Regulate and Control Cannabis Act of 2010” has garnered 680,000 signatures, more than the 433,971 required to be placed on the state’s ballot, said Salwa Ibrahim, a spokeswoman for the measure’s sponsor, Oaksterdam University in Oakland, which bills itself as “America’s first cannabis college.”

“We’re going to keep collecting signatures until we have to turn it in,” before the February deadline, Ibrahim said in an interview today. “They’re from all over the state of California.”

The measure, which must be certified by the secretary of state before it can officially be placed on the ballot, would allow adults 21 and older to possess an ounce of marijuana and cultivate 25 square feet (2.3 square meters) for personal consumption, Ibrahim said. Cities and counties can decide how and if to tax commercial sales and cultivation.

“So for instance, in a Danville or Alamo, if they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, we do not want dispensaries or any of that in our communities,’ that’s fine, they don’t have to have it,” she said. “But a place like Oakland, where we desperately need the revenue, it would be a perfect fit.”

A Field Poll conducted in April showed that 56 percent of registered voters in California supported legalizing and taxing marijuana.

With the help of key suburban votes, a plan to let those suffering from certain medical ailments and conditions use marijuana cleared the Illinois Senate Wednesday. The plan was approved 30-28 in the 59-member chamber, garnering the bare minimum of votes needed.

“This is not recreational,” said state Sen. [...]]]> From the Chicago Daily Herald:

With the help of key suburban votes, a plan to let those suffering from certain medical ailments and conditions use marijuana cleared the Illinois Senate Wednesday. The plan was approved 30-28 in the 59-member chamber, garnering the bare minimum of votes needed.

“This is not recreational,” said state Sen. Linda Holmes, an Aurora Democrat who has multiple sclerosis. She said the issue is helping people with debilitating conditions improve their quality of life.

“It is long overdue,” said Holmes, one of five area Democrats to vote “yes.”

The Illinois Senate narrowly approved legislation that would permit the use of marijuana for specific medical ailments. The vote was 30-28 with one member voting present. It now advances to the Illinois House for consideration.

Local senators voting yes:

Don Harmon, Oak Park Democrat

Linda Holmes, Aurora Democrat

Dan Kotowski, Park Ridge Democrat

Terry Link, Waukegan Democrat

Arthur “AJ” Wilhelmi, Joliet Democrat

Local senators voting no:

Pamela J. Althoff, McHenry Republican

Michael Bond, Grayslake Democrat

Dan Cronin, Elmhurst Republican

Kirk W. Dillard, Hinsdale Republican

Dan Duffy, Lake Barrington Republican

Susan Garrett, Lake Forest Democrat

Randall M. Hultgren, Winfield Republican

Chris Lauzen, Aurora Republican

John J. Millner, Carol Stream Republican

Matt Murphy, Palatine Republican

Michael Noland, Elgin Democrat

Carole Pankau, Itasca Republican

Source: Senate roll call, SB1381

Speaking with reporters, [...]]]> Truly a landmark event in the medical cannabis movement!

Obama Administration

to Stop Raids on

Medical Marijuana Dispensers

From the NY Times:

Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. on Wednesday outlined a shift in the enforcement of federal drug laws, saying the administration would effectively end the Bush administration’s frequent raids on distributors of medical marijuana.

Speaking with reporters, Mr. Holder provided few specifics but said the Justice Department’s enforcement policy would now be restricted to traffickers who falsely masqueraded as medical dispensaries and “use medical marijuana laws as a shield.”

In the Bush administration, federal agents raided medical marijuana distributors that violated federal statutes even if the dispensaries appeared to be complying with state laws. The raids produced a flood of complaints, particularly in California, which in 1996 became the first state to legalize marijuana sales to people with doctors’ prescriptions.

Graham Boyd, the director of the American Civil Liberties Union drug law project, said Mr. Holder’s remarks created a reasonable balance between conflicting state and federal laws and “seem to finally end the policy war over medical marijuana.” He said officials in California and the 12 other states that have authorized the use of medical marijuana had hesitated to adopt regulations to carry out their laws because of uncertainty created by the Bush administration.

Mr. Holder said the new approach was consistent with statements made by President Obama in the campaign and was based on an assessment of how to allocate scarce enforcement resources. He said dispensaries operating in accord with California law would not be a priority for the administration.

Mr. Holder’s comments appeared to be an effort to clarify the policy after some news reports last month interpreted his answer to a reporter’s question to be a flat assertion that all raids on marijuana growers would cease. Department officials said Mr. Holder had not intended to assert any policy change last month but was decidedly doing so on Wednesday.

Ethan Nadelmann, the founder of the Drug Policy Alliance, said Mr. Holder was telling the Drug Enforcement Administration that it should leave legitimate growers of medical marijuana untouched. “The message from the Bush Justice Department was ‘watch out — we have the authority to go after everybody,’ ” he said.

On other matters, in his first wide-ranging conversation with reporters as attorney general, Mr. Holder said the Justice Department was still reviewing the case files of detainees held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to determine whether they could be released or would be tried in a civilian criminal court or some other legal forum. He said it was possible that some detainees like the Uighurs held in Cuba could be released into the United States.

I am deeply concerned with the targeting and arresting of cannabis users; this is an economic issue, as well as a social issue. We have a very limited amount of resources here on Maui—even less now that we are in an official “recession.”

Do [...]]]> Fantastic commentary in today’s Maui Weekly from reader Ahiena Yamakawa of Makawao.

I am deeply concerned with the targeting and arresting of cannabis users; this is an economic issue, as well as a social issue. We have a very limited amount of resources here on Maui—even less now that we are in an official “recession.”

Do we really think it is a wise priority to be spending so much of our time and resources going after sick people growing their own medication? I know some think these people are just “potheads” taking advantage of the system, or that cannabis is a gateway drug, but it does not evoke violence or break up families anywhere near the effects of batu, alcohol, methamphetamine, or crack cocaine.

We need to use our resources more efficiently; if we have two years of resources to put into an operation to break up a “medical marijuana drug ring,” can we triple the effort to rid our island of ice and meth labs? What is really more dangerous, the “gateway drug,” or the drugs you find on the other side of the gate?

The realistic, cost-effective solution to dealing with drugs is to use government money to go after the worst drugs in our society: heroin, ice, etc.

If we want to eradicate marijuana, don’t waste government money on green harvest; just allow people to grow industrial hemp for a myriad of organic uses, and it will seed out the drug crops without the government expending money. Annually, our country imprisons 800,000 people for marijuana crimes—just imagine if those 800,000 spaces in our jails were used for serious drug offenses instead.

From The Boston Globe:

“It’s no longer a crime to have one ounce or less of pot in Massachusetts. The state’s new marijuana decriminalization law, approved by voters in a November referendum, goes into effect today. Those who are caught with an [...]]]> A new law that decriminalizes marijuana goes into effect TODAY across the state of Massachusetts.

From The Boston Globe:

“It’s no longer a crime to have one ounce or less of pot in Massachusetts. The state’s new marijuana decriminalization law, approved by voters in a November referendum, goes into effect today. Those who are caught with an ounce or less would get a ticket similar to a building code citation. They could appeal the civil infraction in court within 21 days or pay a $100 fine set in the law.”

Boston.com has a great Q&A interview with Gregory I. Massing, an attorney with the state’s executive office of public safety & security, regarding the impact of this new law.

Q: Are people allowed to smoke marijuana in public now as long as it is an ounce or less?

A: The new $100 civil penalty for possession of an ounce or less of marijuana applies to smoking marijuana in public: you can’t smoke it without possessing it. Question 2 gives municipalities the option to pass ordinances or by-laws to make public use of marijuana a crime.

Q: Are people allowed to smoke or use marijuana in private?

A: The same $100 civil penalty applies to smoking or using an ounce or less of marijuana in private. Question 2 did not change the criminal laws prohibiting possession of more than an ounce of marijuana, nor did it change the laws regarding distribution of any amount of marijuana.

Q: Is it legal to buy or sell marijuana?

A: Question 2 did not change the criminal laws prohibiting the distribution, sale, trafficking, or manufacturing of marijuana, or the possession of any amount of marijuana with intent to distribute, sell, traffic, or manufacture. Someone who buys more than an ounce of marijuana can be prosecuted for possessing more than an ounce of marijuana, which is still a crime. Someone who buys an ounce or less of marijuana is subject to the new $100 civil penalty. It is possible that someone who buys any amount of marijuana could be prosecuted for conspiracy to distribute marijuana. The decision whether or not to charge conspiracy is in the discretion of the relevant police department and district attorney’s office.

Q: Do the same laws apply to minors as adults?

A: Yes, except under Question 2 there are additional provisions (including a requirement to attend a drug awareness program) for persons under 18 who possess an ounce or less of marijuana. See our web site for provisions for offenders under 18.

New Jersey moved closer to allowing chronically ill patients to smoke marijuana to relieve symptoms of pain and nausea by advancing a medical marijuana bill Monday.

The bill was approved 6-1 by the Senate Health Committee following a lengthy and sometimes passionate hearing that attracted scores of supporters and detractors including a doctor, multiple sclerosis [...]]]> From WCBS2.com:

New Jersey moved closer to allowing chronically ill patients to smoke marijuana to relieve symptoms of pain and nausea by advancing a medical marijuana bill Monday.

The bill was approved 6-1 by the Senate Health Committee following a lengthy and sometimes passionate hearing that attracted scores of supporters and detractors including a doctor, multiple sclerosis patients, and a marijuana grower from Canada.

More excellent details [...]]]> Yes, I realize this blog is called California Cannabis. However, sometimes we need to throw the spotlight on other states across the country. A movement is building people. In Spring 2009 a key bill being introduced by Barney Frank would decriminalize possession of 3.5 ounces of marijuana or less on a federal level.

More excellent details from David Abel of the Boston Globe:

Advocates for the decriminalization of marijuana, savoring their success this week in Massachusetts, said they look forward to a day under an Obama administration and a Democrat-led Congress when it’s no longer a federal crime to possess small amounts of the drug.

They cited a bill introduced in the spring by Representative Barney Frank, which would decriminalize possession of marijuana in amounts of 3.5 ounces or less anywhere in the United States. The bill, if it became law, would end federal prosecution of such crimes, but it would not supersede state laws.

The advocates said they hope the bill would lead to hearings and spark more support from fellow lawmakers in the coming session.

“We anticipate the bill will be reintroduced fairly early in the next session,” said Keith Stroup, legal counsel and founder of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), which has long lobbied for the legalization and decriminalization of marijuana. “Then what we expect is that we will be able to get legislative hearings this session, and maybe a vote on the floor of the House.”

He said his organization, which helped Frank draft his bill, is looking for a sponsor in the Senate.

But Frank said in a telephone interview that he doesn’t foresee his bill passing anytime soon. The Newton Democrat said it will take a lot more time before enough of his fellow lawmakers want to take a stand on the issue.

“What needs to happen is that constituents who support this need to make more calls,” Frank said. “This is a case of people being ahead of the politicians.”

This week, Massachusetts became the 13th state in the country to decriminalize marijuana when voters approved Question 2 on the ballot, which made getting caught with less than an ounce of marijuana punishable by a civil fine of $100.

The change in the law means someone found carrying multiple joints will no longer be reported to the state’s criminal history board. The law will require those younger than age 18 to complete a drug awareness program and community service, and for those who don’t, the fine will increase to as much as $1,000.

The vote in Massachusetts follows a form of decriminalization that passed seven years ago in Nevada, where it remains a felony for anyone under age 21 to possess marijuana. The other states – Maine, New York, California, North Carolina, Oregon, Ohio, Arizona, Colorado, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska – decriminalized marijuana in the 1970s, according to NORML.

Michigan became the 13th state to legalise marijuana for medical use, while Massachusetts decriminalised possession of one ounce or less of the substance, making the offence punishable with a citation and a $100 fine.

“Tonight’s results represent a sea change,” said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, which backed the [...]]]> From the UK Guardian:

Michigan became the 13th state to legalise marijuana for medical use, while Massachusetts decriminalised possession of one ounce or less of the substance, making the offence punishable with a citation and a $100 fine.

“Tonight’s results represent a sea change,” said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, which backed the Massachusetts and Michigan ballot proposals. “Voters have spectacularly rejected eight years of the most intense government war on marijuana since the days of ‘Reefer Madness.’”