Cannabis news roundup

Cannabis News Roundup: February 15, 2013

Steven Short — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 22:29:35 +0000

(ASA) // The US House of Representatives was heard oral arguments Tuesday about whether cities have the authority to ban cannabis dispensaries within their jurisdictions. The defense argued that distribution should be permitted, because medical cannabis is legal statewide, thus superseding local ordinances. The Court didn’t seem convinced, but their ruling will not come until spring. Roughly 200 cities and counties in California have dispensary bans.

Cannabis News Roundup: February 1, 2013

Steven Short — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 21:50:21 +0000

(SFGate) // Close Harborside Health Center in Oakland and “tens of thousands of patients” will be forced to buy cannabis on street corners. That’s the City of Oakland’s argument, as presented yesterday in the on-going forfeiture case against the mega-dispensary and the US Attorney. The US Attorney, in turn, says Oakland doesn’t have any legal rights in this case. No comment from the judge on her eventual decision.

Cannabis News Roundup: January 18, 2013

Steven Short and Steven Short — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:04:50 +0000

(ASA) // Advocacy group Americans for Safe Access is claiming a court victory after the California Supreme Court this week “denied depublication” of a closely watched cannabis dispensary case from San Diego. One element: the Attorney General argued that members of cannabis collectives had to contribute in some manner to the cultivation of the cannabis they purchase. The court did not agree.

Who passed the first drug laws in America?

Steven Short — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 02:22:00 +0000

"People often forget that at the turn of the last century, drugs were entirely legal," says Bay Area resident Dale Gieringer, coordinator of the California chapter of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.