Author: Marijuana Moment
[ad_1] “We thought that if we just sat around and let the time continue to run, we would lose our rights, or have to file an immediate appeal.” By Alander Rocha, Alabama Reflector Applicants denied a medical cannabis license will have to wait to appeal the decision by the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC). The Montgomery Circuit Court Friday issued a stay order on the appeals process for applicants denied a license by the AMCC after one of the companies, Alabama Always, filed a motion Thursday requesting the court enter a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction on AMCC’s decision…
[ad_1] “A generalized smell of raw marijuana does not justify a search of every compartment of an automobile.” By Sophie Nieto-Muñoz, New Jersey Monitor The state Supreme Court said in a unanimous ruling Thursday that police officers improperly used the smell of marijuana to search a man’s car on the New Jersey Turnpike in 2016, a decision that allows the man to withdraw his guilty plea to a weapons offense. The ruling comes more than two years after Gov. Phil Murphy (D) signed a law that bars police from using the odor of cannabis as probable cause to search someone…
[ad_1] “As regulators and stakeholders sit down to hash out the framework for legalizing marijuana nationally, they must not pull up a chair for smelly old Joe Camel.” By Shaleen Title, Parabola Center for Law and Policy Next week, state marijuana officials from around the U.S. will gather in Annapolis, Maryland for one of the year’s most consequential—yet lowest-profile—meetings in all of drug policy. The annual “external stakeholders” conference organized by the Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA) is essentially the big, national, behind-closed-doors meeting between major marijuana associations and the public officials who oversee their industry. I’m a former member of…
[ad_1] “We are designating at least one way to show eligibility with very specific documentation but also allowing for applicants to show eligibility in other ways.” By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent In St. Louis in the 1980s, if you got caught with even a “butt of a joint,” you were going to do jail time, said Bob Ramsey, who was assistant public defender at the time. Ramsey particularly remembers the head of the prosecutor’s marijuana task force, under then-Circuit Attorney George Peach. “She was just absolutely ruthless and brutal,” Ramsey said. “You didn’t even bother to talk to her because…
[ad_1] “This type of thoughtful and restorative relief is consistent with your support of historic and meaningful smart justice reform efforts.” By Aaron Sanderford, Nebraska Examiner A refreshed Nebraska Pardons Board meets for the first time Thursday, adding a first-year governor and attorney general to a three-person panel that returns the secretary of state. The board, which has the state’s power to set aside criminal convictions and consequences, will consider the commutations of three criminal sentences, the pardons of 51 people and restoring the driver’s licenses of three people. But three state senators who worked this spring with Gov. Jim Pillen (R)…
[ad_1] “Simply put, federally rescheduling cannabis does nothing to address the growing and untenable divide between state and federal cannabis laws.” By Paul Armentano, NORML Since California legalized the use of cannabis for medical purposes in 1996, there has existed a growing chasm between state-level marijuana policies and federal law. Today, the majority of states and the District of Columbia authorize the state-licensed production and sale of cannabis to qualifying patients. Twenty-three of these states also regulate the possession and use of marijuana by adults. Nonetheless, under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970, the cannabis plant is classified as a prohibited controlled…
[ad_1] “I don’t know if they have the correct guidance on how to charge without overstepping.” By Sophie Nieto-Muñoz, New Jersey Monitor A New Jersey state lawmaker who visited Colorado and saw how the first state to sell legal recreational cannabis deals with motorists driving under the influence wants to create a marijuana enforcement division under the state Attorney General’s Office. Assemblywoman Shanique Speight (D) said she wants the new division to compile data to give law enforcement officers some clarity on the state’s cannabis law, which she said has left them confused over when they can and can’t charge…
[ad_1] “I know we’re all concerned about it, but it would have been just a catastrophe if the applicants went through their numbers and found an error.” By Alander Rocha, Alabama Reflector The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) Friday voted to delay the issuing of state licenses for medical cannabis businesses, citing possible irregularities in the scoring of applicants. Members of the AMCC said they wanted an independent review of all scoring data to ensure the credibility of the process and the fairness of the outcome. AMCC did not say if it had evidence of wrongdoing in the process. “I…
[ad_1] “This gives an opportunity for virtually every community to have access.” By Dave Williams, Capitol Beat Georgians eligible to treat their chronic illnesses with cannabis oil soon will have a lot more choices of places to get the medicine. The state Board of Pharmacy has released a set of regulations that will allow Georgia’s independent pharmacies to dispense cannabis oil to eligible patients enrolled in a registry maintained by the state Department of Public Health. The General Assembly passed legislation in 2019 legalizing the cultivation of marijuana in Georgia under close supervision and the conversion of the leafy crop…
[ad_1] “They’ve taken a while, but I think they’re great appointments.” By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Current Rhode Island now has its long-awaited Cannabis Control Commission. The Rhode Island Senate on Tuesday unanimously confirmed the appointments of Kimberly Ahern as the chair of the three-member commission, along with Robert Jacquard and Olayiwola Oduyingbo. All three have legal backgrounds and experience in public service. “I think they’re going to do great work,” Senate President Dominick Ruggerio (D) said after the vote. “They’ve taken a while, but I think they’re great appointments.” The formation of the commission comes more than a year…
[ad_1] “I think it’s just an opportunity to continue to gather information on the topic. You’re starting to see real data come out across states that have legalized that I think it’s important to analyze and understand.” By Whitney Downard, Indiana Capital Chronicle Legislators will spend their interim break studying various topics of interest, including the impacts of cannabis legalization on the workforce and possible tax reform. “We’ve got a good cross section of subjects that touch a lot of different areas of the state’s business,” GOP Senate Leader Rodric Bray said Tuesday. “We’ve got a lot of work to…
[ad_1] “More than likely than not there will be lawsuits, just looking from other states, just looking at how it has gone from elsewhere.” By Ralph Chapoco, Alabama Reflector The players for the nascent medical cannabis industry have been chosen amid suspicion about the process and criticism from those left out. The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Monday awarded 16 licenses for production and distribution of medical cannabis, out of more than 90 firms that applied for licenses. “To the recipients, let me say that we look forward to working with you in a partnership manner in which all you know…