“This is Debate Week here at U-T TV and today we’re talking about medical marijuana dispensaries. Technically any marijuana use is illegal under federal law, but California voters have approved it for medical use. The question is: would you want a medical marijuana dispensary in your neighborhood? One side is fighting to make dispensaries legal in SD, while the other side is against having shops in the city. What’s your take?” – U-T San Diego
By Barry Blunt Proposition D Defeated Ordinance F, and Numerous Dispensaries Will Be Forced To Shutter Their Doors, Leaving Countless Patients In Dire Straits. It’s Time Stoners Put The Bong Down and Start Voting. PROPOSITION D – MEDICAL MARIJUANA REGULATION AND TAXATION YES Votes 160,349 - or 62.91% NO Votes 94,524 – or 37.08% INITIATIVE ORDINANCE F – MEDICAL MARIJUANA REGULATION AND TAXATION YES Votes 97,353 – or 41.58% NO Votes 136,764 – or 58.41% The immediate future of Los Angeles’ medical marijuana dispensaries was decided by the voters and [Continue Reading]
By Terrie Best – San Diego Americans for Safe Access Court Support Coordinator San Diego, CA – San Diego’s medical cannabis community saw history in the making when the city’s Mayor, Bob Filner, showed up to a federal hearing, sat with his arm around the defendant’s elderly mother and held a press conference discussing jury nullification – calling the practice of nullifying unjust laws by virtue of acquittal verdicts “the law of the land” – and discussing his own fight against similar laws during the civil rights movement. The federal [Continue Reading]
Anyone who consumes cannabis on a regular basis knows that it doesn’t make you a dangerous drive. To many people, it makes them a safer, more focused driver that’s more aware of their surroundings and the dangers associated with controlling tons of gasoline-filled metal. Not only has this been an anecdotal truth for as long as cars and cannabis have been paired, science has also been clear that consuming marijuana doesn’t make you a dangerous driver, and may in fact make some people safer drivers. More research is needed, but [Continue Reading]
By Monterey Bud Strange memories on this nervous morning-after LA’s special election. It’s been six years after the 2007 city moratorium on new medical marijuana collectives. Seemingly a lifetime since California first enacted prop 215 in 1996. The kind of historical peak rarely witnessed in one’s lifetime – an erratic beast of progress has been temporarily hindered. Safe access to medical marijuana in Los Angeles hit a slight bump in the road last night. That’s right, Los Angeles city residents overwhelmingly decided to restrict the number of medicinal cannabis collectives that have germinated and taken root [Continue Reading]
Opinion in Koon case overrules Court of Appeals; “Michigan Vehicle Code’s zero-tolerance provision… is inconsistent with the MMMA (and) does not apply to the medical use of marijuana.” LANSING- Michigan’s Supreme Court has overturned a Court of Appeals decision in the case of People v Koon and provided protections for medical marijuana patients who are driving with marijuana in their bloodstream. In a unanimous opinion, and without oral argument, the Justices held that the previous Court of Appeals decision in Koon that supported zero tolerance was incorrect and violated the MMMA. The [Continue Reading]
The Mayor of San Diego is encouraging jurors of an upcoming medical marijuana case to reject the prosecution’s argument, which rests on the fact that marijuana is banned at the federal level. The feds arrested Ronnie Chang of San Marcos in 2009 for operating a medical marijuana dispensary. He is just one of the many Californians who have faced legal consequences for their state-sanctioned efforts to bring relief to patients. Mayor Bob Filner is outraged at Chang’s situation. “Someone should not be going through this stage of prosecution for trying to [Continue Reading]
By Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director Brain imaging research published this month in the journal Molecular Psychiatry provides physiological evidence as to why cannabis may mitigate certain symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Post-traumatic stress syndrome is an anxiety disorder that is estimated to impact some eight million Americans annually. Yet, to date, there are no pharmaceutical treatments specifically designed or approved to target symptoms of PTSD. Investigators at the New York University School of Medicine and the New York University Langone Medical Center, Steven and Alexandra Cohen Veterans Center for the Study of Post-Traumatic Stress [Continue Reading]
Legislation to protect owners and operators of nonprofit medical marijuana dispensaries has been approved by the California Senate. Senate Bill 439 passed with a 22 to 12 vote, with not a single Republican voting in favor, and now heads to the state’s House of Representatives. If approved, the measure would clear up some of the confusion associated with the state’s fluctuating medical cannabis industry, and would provide dispensary owners the clearest legal protection they’ve ever had in the state. “We want to create more certainty where little or none exists now”, stated [Continue Reading]
Medical Marijuana Patients and Advocates Call for Immediate Passage of New York’s Bill A poll released by the Siena Research Institute found that 82% of New York voters support allowing seriously and terminally ill people to legally use marijuana for medical purposes if recommended by a doctor. The poll of 623 registered voters also found that Democrats and Republicans are equally likely to support medical marijuana – for both groups, support registered at 81%. Meanwhile, members of the Independence and other parties showed even greater support (89%), and even 77% percent of [Continue Reading]
