Newsom: Legalization “not a done deal” ... Senate committee approves banking amendment ... Dabbing pluses and minuses ...
LEGALIZATION & LEGISLATION
Marijuana is legal in Colorado, until you smoke it // Associated Press
“The amendment that legalized marijuana doesn't give people the right to use it ‘openly or publicly,’ a nod to critics who said legalization would lead to an explosion of Amsterdam-style clubs. But Colorado's constitution doesn't ban public use, either, leading to a confusing patchwork of local policies on weed clubs.”
Richmond goes for the gold with cultivation policy // East Bay Times
Starting today, Richmond “will allow an unlimited number of permits for commercial cannabis grows as well as businesses that produce edibles ... The goal of the new law is to bring a sometimes shady industry into the sunlight and generate money for a city that is perpetually strapped for cash.”
COPS & COURTS
Santa Rosa cannabis oil producer back in business // SFGate
“Major California medical cannabis company Care By Design has resumed oil-making operations in Santa Rosa this week, after a disgruntled employee sparked a massive, 100-officer raid of their commercial extraction operation” last week.
Arrests in Livermore after SF cannabis show // East Bay Times
“Tensions between police and medical marijuana advocates escalated this week with the arrest of four men in a pot collective in Livermore after they returned from a cannabis trade show in San Francisco.” Supporters think at least one of the the men was targeted “because he has been outspoken in defending rights of patients to use medical marijuana.”
Snoop Dogg butts heads with Toronto Maple Leafs // TSN.com
The hockey team says the rapper mogul’s Leafs By Snoop trademark application might “cause confusion in the marketplace,” so they’re suing.
Man slits his throat in courtroom after sentence // New York Times
“An American man who had been convicted of growing marijuana in Taiwan killed himself in a courtroom after he was sentenced to a four-year prison term, according to court officials.”
ELECTION
Newsom: AUMA won’t forget the little guy // MJ Biz Daily
“Smaller farmers, mom-and-pop businesses and existing medical marijuana companies will have a place in California’s recreational cannabis industry if voters pass a legalization measure this fall.
“That’s the message California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom ... gave marijuana business professionals on Tuesday” at the National Cannabis Industry Association conference in Oakland.
Recreational cannabis “not a done deal” says Lt. Gov. // SF Chronicle
“Leading cannabis activists, including Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, warned Tuesday that if California voters don’t support legalizing marijuana for adult recreational use in November it could set momentum on the issue back at least a decade.”
If AUMA passes in California, will the rest of the U.S. follow? // L.A.Weekly
A majority of likely California voters favor legalization of recreational cannabis, and so do most registered voters nationwide.
California Democrats support AUMA // L. A. Times
“The California Democratic Party on Sunday stayed true to its left-leaning political ideals, voting to support ballot initiatives to legalize pot and repeal the death penalty.”
BUSINESS
Senate committee approves marijuana banking amendment // Marijuana.com
“The Senate Appropriations Committee approved an amendment last week to prevent the Treasury Department from punishing banks that open accounts for the state-legal marijuana businesses.” California Senator Dianne Feinstein was the lone “no” vote among Democrats.
No need for approved dispensary, neighbors charge // Bay Area Reporter
“There is no ‘necessity’ or other commanding reason why [the dispensary] must be sited” in San Francisco’s Cow Hollow neighborhood. “There are many delivery services and it appears that there have been and are other possible sites,” a neighborhood association said in their complaint.
HEALTH
“Dabbing” pluses and minuses // L.A. Weekly
Dabbing is “the flash vaporization of marijuana concentrate” that “produces a kind of euphoric high that is more intense than other methods of ingesting THC. Its intensity can be compared to cocaine users who shifted from snorting the substance to smoking it.” And that’s where the danger begins.
Adolescent use of marijuana and alcohol studied // Rand Corp.
“ ‘Many youth tend to think that alcohol use has more consequences than marijuana use and therefore view marijuana use as safer than drinking’,” the lead author of the study says. “ ‘However, youth need to better understand the harms of marijuana use, such as the potential effect on their developing brain and how it can affect performance in both adolescence and adulthood’.”
OPINION
Is the dispensary at risk when a customer does something illegal? // The Portland Mercury
It depends, as you’ll read here, but scrupulous adherence to all state requirements would be a strong defense.
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