Before you get sucked into celebrating today’s total solar eclipse, catch up on some of our top trending stories from last week. ICYMI, check out Law Street’s best of the week below!

Hawaii’s First Marijuana Dispensary Has Already Run Out of Weed

Less than a week after opening, Hawaii’s first–and only–medical marijuana dispensary has already been forced to temporarily close due to not enough marijuana on hand. Maui Grown Therapies announced in a press release Sunday that it will close Monday and Tuesday as it awaits action from the Department of Health’s Labs Division to “help unclog a backlog of products.”

Bureau of Prisons to Provide Free Feminine Hygiene Products

The Bureau of Prisons released a memo last week declaring that feminine hygiene products would be provided to inmates for free. While this will only affect female inmates who are currently incarcerated in federal prisons, it’s a notable step forward for inmates who struggle to access basic hygienic products.

Trump’s Bid to Build Sydney’s First Casino Was Denied Over Mafia Links

In 1987, Donald Trump tried to open the first casino in Sydney but was rejected because of his ties to the mafia, according to a cabinet report that was obtained by The Australian. According to the secret report, which now has been declassified because 30 years have passed, the New South Wales police board warned the local government that it could be “dangerous” to allow Trump to open the casino. The public was not informed why at the time. The state government also dismissed two other bidders.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Now that medical marijuana is legal in more than half the country, patients suffering from chronic pain or PTSD are flocking to marijuana dispensaries across the nation for symptom relief. But what if I told you that marijuana may not actually help with either ailment?

Apparently, there is little scientific evidence to draw conclusions about the benefits and harms of marijuana in patients with PTSD and chronic pain, according to two studies published Monday in the journal “Annals of Internal Medicine.”

In an editorial accompanying the research, Dr. Sachin Patel of Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital noted that the findings aren’t unique, and that “scientific evidence for the effectiveness and safety of cannabis and cannabinoid products in treating medical and psychiatric disease has recently come under substantial scrutiny.”

“The current studies highlight the real and urgent need for high-quality clinical trials in both of these areas,” Patel continued in an email to Reuters. “If cannabis is being considered for medical use, it should certainly be after all well-established treatments have failed.”

Both of the studies were conducted by researchers at the Veterans Affairs Portland Health Care System and funded by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.

Is Marijuana Causing More Harm Than Good?

Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for medical use, and the number of medical and recreational users has nearly doubled between 2001 and 2013, with one in 10 adults saying they use it.

According to the researchers, more than one third of patients seeking cannabis for medical purposes in states where it is legal list PTSD as the primary reason for their request, and between 45 percent and 80 percent of people who seek medical cannabis do so for pain management.

For one of the studies, the team of researchers reviewed 27 studies examining marijuana use for chronic pain. While they weren’t able to conclude that it helped pain sufferers, they did find evidence that marijuana led to an increased risk of car accidents, psychotic symptoms, and short-term cognitive impairment.

When reviewing prior research on the effects of marijuana on PTSD, they “found low- to moderate-strength evidence that cannabis use is associated with an increased risk for psychotic symptoms, psychosis, mania, and–in active users–short-term cognitive dysfunction,” the authors noted.

In fact, one of the studies they examined involving veterans with PTSD showed a small but “significant” worsening of symptoms among veterans who either started or continued using cannabis during the study period.

It’s important to note again that the researchers maintained that there was insufficient evidence for them to draw firm conclusions about the effectiveness of cannabis in both patient populations.

Is This Fuel for Sessions?

Short answer: probably not.

It’s no secret that Attorney General Jeff Sessions is actively looking for research to support his disapproval of marijuana legalization. After his Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety failed to offer up any new suggestions for dealing with marijuana in states that have legalized it, experts said that Sessions could still invoke federal law to push his anti-marijuana agenda.

While these new studies cast doubt on marijuana’s effectiveness at treating these particular ailments, the findings don’t definitively negate prior research attesting to the benefits of marijuana for patients suffering from chronic pain and PTSD. The effectiveness of marijuana treating these symptoms could also depend on potency and dose, Patel said in an email to CNN. Most studies use lower doses and lower potencies of medical marijuana than what is found in dispensaries.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Less than a week after opening, Hawaii’s first–and only–medical marijuana dispensary has already been forced to temporarily close due to not enough marijuana on hand.

Maui Grown Therapies announced in a press release Sunday that it will close Monday and Tuesday as it awaits action from the Department of Health’s Labs Division to “help unclog a backlog of products.”

The Maui-based dispensary officially opened for business on August 8, but it was only permitted to sell flowers to patients. Trouble began after company officials anticipated a recent batch of flowers to clear lab certification by Saturday–but that didn’t happen. As a result, the company says it sold out of its first batch due to “high demand.”

“It’s unfortunate that an administrative hindrance of this magnitude prevents patients from getting the help they need,” said Christopher Cole, director of product management for Maui Grown Therapies. “We had planned to open with a full range of derivative products such as concentrates, oils, capsules and topical products, but at the eleventh hour we discovered that the State Labs Division had failed to certify a lab to conduct testing of manufactured products.”

The supply issues are incredibly disappointing to Hawaiians, who have waited 17 years for a legal way to purchase medical marijuana. Hawaii was among the first states to legalize medical marijuana in 2000, but it wasn’t until 2015 that dispensaries were legalized.

If this shaky launch sounds vaguely similar, that’s because it should. In July, Nevada’s governor declared a marijuana state of emergency to push lawmakers to adopt emergency legislation to fix its supply bottleneck. While Nevada acted quickly to work out some of its supply chain kinks, Hawaii’s state offices were closed over the weekend and so far have not released a statement addressing plans to fix the problem.

“We could serve thousands of patients with the amount of manufactured product we currently have available for final compliance testing,” said Cole. “Even though we were approved by the Department of Health on May 24^th to manufacture cannabis products, the restrictions placed on the only licensed lab have prevented us from offering these products to our patients–and it is entirely unclear to us when this will change.”

Hawaii granted licenses to eight medical marijuana dispensaries throughout the Hawaiian islands last year. While several dispensaries began growing and harvesting the product, they were unable to sell it because until recently the state had not certified a lab.

According to the Cannabist, Honolulu-based dispensary Aloha Green was inspected Tuesday by the Department of Health and later announced it would open for sales Wednesday.

Maui Grown Therapies has also changed its operating hours to accommodate demand and will reopen for business Wednesday.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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The Senate Appropriations Committee approved an amendment Thursday that would block the Department of Justice from using any funds to undermine state medical marijuana legislation.

The effort, led by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT),  specifically prohibits the Justice Department from using federal funds to prevent certain states “from implementing their own State laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession or cultivation of medical marijuana.”

“The Senate is sending a clear message to Jeff Sessions–keep your hands off states that have reformed their marijuana laws,” said Michael Collins, Deputy Director of the Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of National Affairs. “Today’s vote is a huge win for the marijuana reform movement, because in the face of real pressure from the Department of Justice, the Senate has opted to block Jeff Sessions from interfering with any medical marijuana law.”

Congress has added the amendment, also known as Rohrabacher-Farr, to federal budgets every year since 2014. In May, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sent a letter to Congressional leadership, personally requesting that Congressional leaders exclude the amendment, signaling a possible federal crackdown on marijuana.

Sessions, who oversees the Drug Enforcement Agency, defended the request, writing in the letter:

I believe it would be unwise for Congress to restrict the discretion of the Department to fund particular prosecutions, particularly in the midst of an historic drug epidemic and potentially long-term uptick in violent crime. The Department must be in a position to use all laws available to combat the transnational drug organizations and dangerous drug traffickers who threaten American lives.

Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have passed laws legalizing various forms of medical marijuana, and there are currently over 2 million registered patients.

Last August, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled that the amendment’s language prevents the federal government from prosecuting state-authorized medical marijuana users, if no state laws have been broken.

The Senate Committee still has to approve the amendment for the final appropriations budget. But Thursday’s vote is a clear rebuke of Sessions, who is expected to unveil a DOJ task force report soon linking marijuana to violent crime.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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A House committee on Tuesday blocked an amendment in a VA spending bill that would have expanded access to medical marijuana for veterans. Because marijuana is classified as a Schedule I substance, it is banned by the federal government. Even as states legalize cannabis for medical and recreational purposes, veterans have struggled to gain access to medical marijuana through the VA.

Sponsored by Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), the Veterans Equal Access amendment would bar federal funds from blocking veterans’ access to medical marijuana in states that have legalized it. The amendment, proposed as part of the 2018 Military Construction bill, would have permitted VA doctors to “make appropriate recommendations, fill out forms, or take steps to comply” with medical marijuana programs in states that have legalized it.

In the 29 states–plus D.C.–that have legalized medical marijuana, VA doctors cannot prescribe or recommend medical marijuana to their patients, because the VA is a federal agency. For veterans afflicted with psychiatric conditions, like PTSD, medical marijuana can be an effective tool–and is much less dangerous than opiates. The American Legion and other veterans groups support greater access to medical marijuana for veterans.

“Given that veterans are more likely to commit suicide or die from opiate overdoses than civilians, our fight to provide them safer alternatives won’t stop here,” Blumenauer, a founding member of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, said in a statement. “We have stronger support in the House and Senate than ever before, and we will keep advocating for a more rational approach.”

For the last several years, a growing group of lawmakers from both parties have tried to tie the equal access amendment to the VA spending bill. Last year, both the House and the Senate passed the amendment, but it was dropped during conference discussions on the final bill. This year’s effort is not entirely dead. Earlier this month, the Senate Appropriations Committee easily passed a similar amendment, so when both chambers meet to hash out the final VA bill, it could still make the cut.

“All we want is equal treatment for our wounded warriors,” Blumenauer added. “This provision overwhelmingly passed on the House floor last year – and bipartisan support has only grown. It’s outrageous that the Rules Committee won’t even allow a vote for our veterans. They deserve better. They deserve compassion.”

Despite the federal government’s reluctance to reform marijuana laws, or to reclassify marijuana, a bipartisan chorus is growing in support of legalization–Blumenauer’s amendment was co-sponsored by nine Democrats and nine Republicans. And though the House committee did not pass the amendment, at least one Republican member publicly supported it.

“I’ve seen firsthand the benefit people can derive from medical marijuana,” Representative Dan Newhouse (R-WA) said. “It seems to me if it’s available and it works, we should make that available to our veterans as well.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Opponents of marijuana legalization often cite safety concerns, especially regarding the effects it would have on drivers. Alcohol causes enough harm, why add marijuana to the mix? Two recent studies, both published last week, provide some insights into how legalization has–or has not–affected crash and fatality rates.

The first study, conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), analyzed insurance claims for car crashes between January 2012 and October 2016. The study compared claims filed in states that have legalized marijuana–Colorado, Washington, and Oregon–with states nearby that have not. In the states that had legalized pot, insurance claims were about three percent higher than what would be expected if they had not legalized pot, the study found.

“The combined-state analysis shows that the first three states to legalize recreational marijuana have experienced more crashes,” Matt Moore, the senior vice president of IIHS’s Highway Loss Data Institute, said in a statement. “The individual state analyses suggest that the size of the effect varies by state.”

David Zuby, executive vice president and chief research officer at IIHS, said: “Worry that legalized marijuana is increasing crash rates isn’t misplaced,” adding that the findings “should give other states eyeing legalization pause.”

But another study published in the American Journal of Public Health found no significant uptick in crashes due to legalization.

Using federal data on vehicle collisions between 2009 to 2015, the study found no increase in crashes between Washington and Colorado–both of which have legalized recreational marijuana–and other states.

“Three years after recreational marijuana legalization, changes in motor vehicle crash fatality rates for Washington and Colorado were not statistically different from those in similar states without recreational marijuana legalization,” the study concluded.

While previous studies have illustrated the dangers of driving under the influence of marijuana, others have suggested that states with medical marijuana laws have seen a drop in traffic incidents. A study published last December, also in the American Journal of Public Health, found an 11 percent drop in crash fatalities in the 28 states (and D.C.) that have legalized medical marijuana.

Dr. Silvia Martins, the author of that study, theorized that the drop could be the result of drivers swapping alcohol, a substance that led to about 10,300 driving deaths in 2015, to marijuana.

“We found evidence that states with the marijuana laws in place compared with those which did not, reported, on average, lower rates of drivers endorsing driving after having too many drinks,” Martins said in a statement when the study was published last year.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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It is accepted wisdom at this point that Attorney General Jeff Sessions is no fan of marijuana, including in its medicinal capacity. He is adamant that “good people don’t smoke marijuana.” He recently compared medical marijuana, which has never led to an overdose death, to opioids, which kill nearly a hundred Americans each day.

Now, Sessions is pushing congressional leaders to allow the Justice Department to use its funds to prosecute medical marijuana-related crimes, even in states that have legalized medical marijuana. In a letter sent last month to top-ranking representatives and senators, obtained by MassRoots on Monday, Sessions shows his opposition to a budget provision that would prohibit the Justice Department from spending federal cash to crack down on states with legal medical marijuana laws. He wrote:

I believe it would be unwise for Congress to restrict the discretion of the Department to fund particular prosecutions, particularly in the midst of an historic drug epidemic and potentially long-term uptick in violent crime. The Department must be in a position to use all laws available to combat the transnational drug organizations and dangerous drug traffickers who threaten American lives.

Sessions is referring to the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, a budget rider, introduced in 2014, that prevents the Justice Department from allocating funds to press cases against medical marijuana actors in states that have legalized cannabis for medicinal purposes. The amendment was included in the Fiscal Year 2017 omnibus spending bill, which passed early last month, states:

None of the funds made available in this Act to the Department of Justice may be used […] to prevent any of them from implementing their own laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana.

Though the spending bill, which will fund the government until October 1, included the amendment, it is unclear whether it will make the next one. In the letter, which was provided to MassRoots by a congressional staffer, Sessions argues that the amendment prevents the DOJ from cracking down on gangs that operate in states where medical marijuana is lawful.

“Drug traffickers already cultivate and distribute marijuana inside the United States under the guise of state medical marijuana laws,” he wrote. “In particular, Cuban, Asian, Caucasian, and Eurasian criminal organizations have established marijuana operations in state-approved marijuana markets.”

The Obama Administration was no fan of the amendment either. For one, the Justice Department lobbied Congress to strike down the provision in 2014, arguing that it might “limit or possibly eliminate the Department’s ability to enforce federal law in recreational marijuana cases as well.” And even after the amendment passed, the administration still managed to prosecute individuals and organizations in states where medical marijuana had been legalized.

Representatives Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Sam Farr (D-CA) responded by writing a letter to DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz, saying the administration’s interpretation of the amendment “clearly is a stretch.” They added:

The implementation of state law is carried out by individuals and businesses as the state authorizes them to do. For DOJ to argue otherwise is a tortuous twisting of the text of [the provision] and common sense and the use of federal funds to prevent these individuals and businesses from acting in accordance with state law is clearly in violation of Rohrabacher-Farr.

If the Sessions-led Justice Department takes a similar tactic as the previous administration, it will certainly be hearing from Rohrabacher and Farr.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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California’s economy, the sixth largest in the world, could receive a $5 billion boost from legal recreational marijuana sales, according to a new state-sponsored study.

The study, as reported by the Los Angeles Times, projects that the share of illegal sales will decline from 75 percent of the total market to 29.5 percent after the legal framework goes into effect. California is expected to issue the first licenses to recreational marijuana businesses at the top of next year.

California’s Bureau of Marijuana Control commissioned the study, which was conducted by the University of California’s Agricultural Issues Center. The study examined the expected impact of Prop 64, which legalized recreational marijuana throughout the state in November, on California’s marijuana market.

According to the LA Times, recreational marijuana use will make up over 61 percent of the overall market. However, the costs associated with legal regulations–legal marijuana will be taxed at 15 percent–will encourage people to, at least initially, remain in the illegal market. Still, for a variety of reasons, a large chunk of Californians are expected to shift to the legal, regulated market for their pot fix.

The study said:

We projected that when legally allowed, slightly more than half of the demand currently in the illegal adult-use segment will quickly move to the legal adult-use segment to avoid the inconvenience, stigma, and legal risks of buying from an unlicensed seller.

According to Lori Ajax, the director of the Bureau of Marijuana Control, the nearly 30 percent of people projected to resist the legal market will eventually enter the regulated marketplace.

“It’s going to take some time,” Ajax told the LA Times. “While it’s unlikely that everyone will come into the regulated market on Day One, we plan to continue working with stakeholders as we move forward to increase participation over time.”

Legalization will also affect the medical cannabis market; legal medical marijuana sales will drop from 25 percent of the market to 9 percent, or from $2.6 billion to $600 million, the study found. As fewer people need to obtain a medical marijuana license, more will simply purchase cannabis through the regulated market.

“Revenues for medical cannabis in Washington State, for instance, fell by one-third in the first year after the legal adult-use cannabis system took effect, and by more subsequently,” the study said.

Some who are opposed to California’s legalization effort see the study, and its finding that 29.5 percent of people will still purchase pot from the black market, as justification that a legal market is little more than a smokescreen.

“We have seen this in other states too, that the legal market is easily undercut by the well-established underground market,” Kevin Sabet, president of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, which opposes legalization of the drug, told the LA Times. “This is unsurprising. It is just one more unrealized promise from the marijuana industry.”

But the study pointed to another potential boon to California’s economy that legalization might provide: marijuana tourism. The study found:

Given that adult-use cannabis remains illegal in most other states, California’s legalized adult-use industry may attract some new visitors whose primary reason for visiting the state is cannabis tourism, as has been observed in Colorado.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Detroit city officials have shuttered over 150 medical marijuana dispensaries since last year, with dozens of additional closings expected in the coming months. The closings reflect the ever-shifting regulatory framework surrounding pot legalization, and how businesses that are slow to respond to new rules could find their doors padlocked.

Melvin Butch Hollowell, the Detroit corporation counsel, told the Detroit Free Press that the city has closed 167 dispensaries around the city since last year.

“None of them were operating lawfully,” he said. “At the time I sent a letter to each one of them indicating that unless you have a fully licensed facility, you are operating at your own risk.” Hollowell also indicated that another 51 closings are in the offing. Detroit is rife with unlicensed or otherwise illegal marijuana establishments; Hollowell said 283 total have been identified, and as of last week, a mere five marijuana facilities in Detroit are fully licensed.

According to the city’s medical marijuana ordinances, which took effect on March 1, 2016 (Michigan voters legalized pot for medical use in 2008), dispensaries have to abide by a number of zoning and other regulations in order to qualify for a license. For instance, marijuana businesses must be more than 1,000 feet away from the following areas: churches, schools, parks, liquor stores (and other places where alcohol is sold), libraries, and child care centers. Marijuana businesses are also required to close by 8 p.m.

Hollowell told the Free Press that city officials go through the courts when seeking an order to shutter an illegal marijuana business. Because the public pushed legalization in 2008, he said, his team pursues the closings “in a way that is consistent with keeping our neighborhoods respected and at the same time, allowing for those dispensaries to operate in their specific areas that we’ve identified as being lawful.”

And according to Winfred Blackmon, the chairman of the Metropolitan Detroit Community Action Coalition, complaints from Detroit residents helped propel the recent surge in dispensary closings. He told the Free Press: “People started getting frustrated with the marijuana shops that kept popping up around their houses and schools.”

Michigan is also weighing a ballot measure for next November that, if voted through, would legalize marijuana for recreational use as well. Language for the measure was submitted to the Board of State Canvassers earlier this month; it is currently under review.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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New Jersey State Senator Nicholas Scutari introduced legislation on Monday that would legalize recreational marijuana use in the Garden State. But in a news conference, Scutari said he does not expect his bill to pass under the current governor, Chris Christie, who is a fervent critic of recreational marijuana. Instead, his intention is to create the groundwork for the next governor to build on.

“It is time to end the detrimental effect these archaic laws are having on our residents and our state,” Scutari said. His proposal would legalize limited quantities of marijuana for recreational use. Medical marijuana, while strictly regulated, is already permitted in New Jersey. Per Scutari’s legislation, possession of up to once ounce of marijuana would be legal. Home cultivation would not be allowed. And a sales tax on marijuana would be imposed, increasing over time.

New Jersey is one of a number of states that have recently proposed a marijuana legalization bill. Last November, many states passed ballot measures that legalized pot use, both recreationally and medically. Currently, medical marijuana is legal in 29 states and D.C. Recreational marijuana is legal in eight states and D.C. But under Christie, full legalization in New Jersey has gone nowhere. In the early stages of his presidential campaign in 2015, he said marijuana is banned at the federal level and “should be enforced in all 50 states.”

With New Jersey’s gubernatorial election taking place in November, Scutari’s proposal, along with any other marijuana legalization effort, is unlikely to have any impact until next year. The Democratic front-runner in the race to replace Christie, Phil Murphy, has expressed support for reforming New Jersey’s marijuana laws. And Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno, the Republican front-runner, has not explicitly stated her views concerning marijuana reform.

But for now, legalizing recreational marijuana in New Jersey is a far-fetched endeavor. Earlier this month, Christie said “crazy liberals” want to legalize marijuana. “They want that blood money? Let them do it,” the governor said. Perhaps foreshadowing the fortunes of Scutari’s bill, Christie added: “And they will. Let me tell you something — this will be like priority number one come January. I guarantee you, if we have a Democratic governor, it will be priority number one.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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THC, the psychoactive compound in cannabis, improves the memory of aging mice, according to a new study published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine. By conducting cognitive tests on dozens of mice, the researchers determined small doses of THC improved the older creatures’ ability to remember how to perform a number of tasks. Proving the same is true for aging human brains will be quite difficult, however, as recent studies have found that THC can have adverse affects on developing human brains.

“Together, these results reveal a profound, long-lasting improvement of cognitive performance resulting from a low dose of THC treatment in mature and old animals,” the German and Israeli scientists who conducted the study wrote.

The scientists provided some of the mice–aged two months, 12 months, and 18 months old–with daily doses of THC. Others were given a control substance that did not contain THC. The older mice–the 12- and 18-month-olds–showed an improvement in their ability to solve memory-based tasks–like navigating a water maze–with THC in their system.

The two-month-old mice, however, showed the reverse effect. According to the researchers, the younger mice who had ingested THC showed a decline in their ability to solve the cognitive tasks. This mirrors the findings of studies that suggest cannabis has adverse affects on developing human brains. One recent study showed that young people who smoked marijuana daily for a period of a few years almost directly led to cognitive decline.

In the U.S., marijuana is prohibited at the federal level. In recent years, however, eight states and D.C. have legalized pot for recreational use; twenty-nine states (and D.C.) have legalized marijuana use for medical purposes, and nearly a dozen others allow some form of CBD (cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive compound of the cannabis plant) use, also for medical purposes.

As the laws loosen, and the stigma surrounding marijuana use dissipates, marijuana-as-medicine is becoming an increasingly likely reality. Therapeutic uses for marijuana–to help alleviate pain, for instance–have been observed anecdotally for years. But there’s not much in the realm of concrete data proving marijuana’s medical properties exists. And further research is difficult because of the DEA’s classification of marijuana as a Schedule I substance. There is only one government-sanctioned research facility in the U.S.

But despite the lack of robust scientific data on marijuana’s effects on the human brain, the researchers of the recent study published in Nature Medicine are hopeful that THC may one day prove to be a reliable tonic for an aging brain. They wrote that a “chronic, low-dose treatment with THC or cannabis extracts could be a potential strategy to slow down or even to reverse cognitive decline in the elderly.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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A provision that directs the Justice Department to respect states’ medical marijuana laws is included in the new spending bill, which Congress is expected to pass this week. The provision, known as the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment, should soothe concerns that Attorney General Jeff Sessions will increase enforcement of the federal marijuana ban–at least regarding medical marijuana. The amendment does not explicitly protect recreational marijuana laws, which are in place in eight states and D.C.

Initially introduced in 2014–and included in every budget since then–by Representatives Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) and Sam Farr (D-CA), the amendment bars the Justice Department from allocating funds to enforcing the federal ban on medical marijuana activities in states where use, distribution, and cultivation is legal in some capacity. Twenty-nine states and D.C. have legalized marijuana for medical use. More than a dozen others have legalized cannabidiol (CBD)–a non-psychoactive element of marijuana that has therapeutic effects–for limited use.

“None of the funds made available in this Act to the Department of Justice may be used […] to prevent any of them from implementing their own laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana,” the amendment states.

After weeks of uncertainty about what the budget would include, Congress reached an agreement on how to fund the government last weekend. President Donald Trump’s promised border wall with Mexico will not receive government money, according to the agreement, which the House is scheduled to take up on Wednesday. Democrats were largely happy with the spending bill, which will fund the government through September.

The budget placates Democrats who were worried about deep cuts to the EPA’s budget, or funds allocated to hard-line immigration programs, like a deportation force. And the renewal of the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment should, at least in regards to medical marijuana, alleviate concerns that the Trump Administration will initiate a war on marijuana.

Sessions has made comments–before he was attorney general and when he was an Alabama Senator–that have given pro-marijuana advocates, and a growing number of Republican and Democratic lawmakers, cause for concern. He once said, “good people don’t smoke marijuana.” He has equated the dangers of medical marijuana and heroin. And he recently affirmed that it is illegal to use or distribute marijuana, “whether a state legalizes it or not.” But the inclusion of the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment should, at least in part, temper concerns that Sessions is gunning for a major enforcement campaign.

Rohrabacher, a member of the recently established Congressional Cannabis Caucus, wrote a letter in April to members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies, asking them to renew his eponymous amendment. “We believe such a policy is not only consistent with the wishes of a bipartisan majority of the members of the House, but also with the wishes of the American people,” he wrote. 

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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By the summer of 2018, recreational marijuana in Canada could be legal. Later this week, Parliament will take up a bill that would satisfy a popular campaign promise of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party: legalizing recreational marijuana in Canada. Medical marijuana is already legal in the country. But some government officials think the target date for legalization, July 1, is too ambitious, and implementation is more likely to begin in 2019.

Details of the bill were reported by Canadian press outlets last week. The framework will largely follow the recommendations from a government-appointed task force. According to the bill, provinces will have a great deal of power in drafting the details of the legal framework. Provinces will determine the price of marijuana and how the drug would be distributed.

Federal officials will largely be responsible for issuing licenses and setting safety standards. Ottawa has set a minimum age limit of 18, but the provinces can increase that threshold if they choose. And in regard to homegrown cannabis, residents would be allowed to cultivate up to four plants per household. Though the proposed bill grants provinces a considerable amount of power and flexibility, Canada’s fast-track to legalization worries some provincial officials.

“We do support medicinal uses of marijuana, but we also know that there’s going to be some significant issues that arise as a result of legalization from a recreational perspective … not only with respect to impaired driving but with respect to a whole host of other issues,” Saskatchewan’s justice minister Gordon Wyant recently said.

Trudeau has made it clear that until a law is passed that legalizes recreational marijuana, possessing or selling the drug remains illegal. “Until we have a framework to control and regulate marijuana, the current laws apply,” the prime minister said last month. March saw a number of raids on dispensaries in Toronto, with authorities arresting a number of marijuana business owners, including Canada’s “Prince of Pot” Marc Emery.

Some members of Trudeau’s party, despite being in favor of legalization, would like to see the target legalization date of July 1 moved back. Canada celebrates its independence on that day. “I’m probably out on a limb on this one but … I don’t believe July 1 should be an implementation date for anything; it is a day of celebration for the anniversary and founding of our country,” Bill Blair, a Liberal lawmaker, recently told the Canadian press. “I don’t think that’s an appropriate date.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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A bill introduced last month in California would bar state agencies from cooperating with federal law enforcement in cracking down on marijuana in the state. Marijuana is legal, both medically and recreationally, in the Golden State. That legalization is at odds with the federal marijuana ban and its classification of marijuana as a Schedule I substance. If the bill passes, California could become a sort of sanctuary state for marijuana growers, much like certain cities are sanctuary cities for undocumented immigrants.

Introduced by Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer, a Democrat, the bill states:

This bill would prohibit a state or local agency, as defined, from taking certain actions without a court order signed by a judge, including using agency money, facilities, property, equipment, or personnel to assist a federal agency to investigate, detain, detect, report, or arrest a person for commercial or noncommercial marijuana or medical cannabis activity that is authorized by law in the State of California and transferring an individual to federal law enforcement authorities for purposes of marijuana enforcement.

Many marijuana advocates, users, and distributors are worried that the new administration, and a Justice Department led by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, will harshly enforce the federal ban. Sessions has made incendiary remarks about marijuana–“good people don’t smoke marijuana,” he once said–but he also signaled enforcement won’t radically change under his watch. He recently said that the Cole Memo, an Obama-era directive to prioritize state marijuana laws over the federal prohibition, was still “valid.” But a handful of California lawmakers are not taking their chances; the proposed bill is a pre-emptive defense mechanism in case Sessions does step up enforcement.

To Donny Youngblood, the president of the California State Sheriffs’ Association, the bill is “quite offensive.” In an interview with the LA Times, Youngblood, the sheriff of Kern County, said growing and selling pot “is still a federal felony and we are still in the United States of America, and the state of California cannot take over the United States.”

The contradictory marijuana laws in the U.S. have sowed confusion in states that have legalized the drug in some form. Archaic practices, like marijuana businesses operating on a cash-only basis, are also a result of the tension between state-level and federal laws. Twenty-eight states and Washington D.C. have medical marijuana laws in place; eight states and D.C. have passed some sort of recreational marijuana legislation. Last November, California passed Prop 64, which legalized recreational use.

For Hezekiah Allen, the executive director of the California Growers Association, the bill is meant to provide a sense of security for California’s marijuana businesses. Allen, in an interview with the LA Times, said that due to the election of President Donald Trump, and the new anti-marijuana attorney general, businesses “will need to feel confident that the state will protect them from the federal government.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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In Sunday’s episode of “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” the comedian delved into the twisted, backward world of America’s marijuana laws, a topic that is “genuinely worth worrying about,” he said. Over the course of 16 minutes, Oliver gave a brief marijuana history lesson–featuring Richard Nixon in rare form–and plucked some present-day examples of people whom the country’s contradictory laws affect.

Oliver began with a brief historical overview of how marijuana laws have evolved since the War on Drugs, launched in the 1970s by Nixon, or “the Mozart of racially motivated lawmaking,” as Oliver calls him. The comedian pulled up an audio recording of Nixon talking about the perpetrators behind the marijuana legalization effort:

You know it’s a funny thing, every one of the bastards that are out for legalizing marijuana is Jewish. What the Christ is the matter with the Jews… I suppose it’s because most of them are psychiatrists, you know, there’s so many, all the greatest psychiatrists are Jewish. By God we are going to hit the marijuana thing, and I want to hit it right square in the puss.

After skewering Nixon (and the uncanny similarities between his word choice and our current president’s), John Oliver delved deep into the issue. “If you have marijuana right now, even if you are acting completely legally according to your state, you may still be in serious jeopardy,” Oliver said, mentioning that 44 states have legalized medical marijuana in some form, and eight states and D.C. have legalized the drug for recreational use. But, he stressed, because of the federal ban on marijuana, unjust criminal penalties are common, and some perfectly legal businesses are forced to operate on a cash-only basis.

Read More: The State of Weed: Marijuana Legalization State by State

Due to the tension between state and the federal law when it comes to marijuana, dispensaries can sometimes be arbitrarily raided and minor infractions can result in jail time. Legal businesses like dispensaries are also handcuffed by the federal ban. Many banks won’t allow them to open accounts, which can force marijuana businesses to solely accept cash from patrons, pay their employees with cash-stuffed envelopes, and stash their profits in safes, a dangerous practice for any type of business. In addition, as Oliver noted, many marijuana business-owners are barred from taking federal tax deductions.

Oliver brought up the story of a man who had a legal medical marijuana card for his paralysis but was fired by his employer because he failed a drug test. Oliver compared the absurdity of the man’s story to “driving exactly the speed limit, and getting pulled over by a cop who tells you, ‘sorry, the federal speed limit is three, and the legal age to drive is 62, and also you have to be drunk.'”

A large chunk of the segment was dedicated to medical marijuana laws. Oliver took aim at the federal classification of marijuana as a Schedule I substance, which puts it on par with heroin and LSD. He also mentioned Danny Belcher, a veteran in Kentucky who was denied marijuana to treat his PTSD by the VA. Medical marijuana is legal in Kentucky, but because Belcher’s health care was administered by the VA, a federal department, doctors were unable to prescribe him marijuana.

“A doctor shouldn’t be ignored because he recommends marijuana,” Oliver quipped, pulling up pictures of Dr. Phil and Dr. OZ, “a doctor should only be ignored because he is televised.” Oliver also expressed concern over how Attorney General Jeff Sessions (“the concept of golf expressed in man form”) will enforce the federal ban. Sessions has stated “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” though he has said he will uphold the Cole Memo, which directs the Justice Department to prioritize state law over federal law in regard to marijuana.

Oliver concluded by calling for “sensible” reforms: “I’m not saying there shouldn’t be laws that place sensible restrictions on marijuana as there are with other substances, but our federal laws desperately need to be brought up to date.”

Here’s the full video:

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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States where medical marijuana is legal have seen drops in opioid hospitalizations and overdoses, according to a new study published in the April issue of the Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal. And despite the loosening of marijuana laws across the country, states that have legalized medical marijuana have not seen an uptick in marijuana hospitalizations. Opioids have ravaged communities across the nation, and some researchers see marijuana as a viable alternative for treating certain ailments.

In states with medical marijuana laws in place, hospitalizations for opioid dependence and abuse dropped by an average of 23 percent, according to the study. In addition, treatment for overdoses decreased by an average of 13 percent. Yuyan Shi, the study’s author, told Reuters that legalizing medical marijuana “may have reduced hospitalization related to opioid pain relievers.” But Shi cautioned that the results are “still preliminary.”

Marijuana’s potential as a replacement for opioids stands in stark contrast to comments Attorney General Jeff Sessions made a few weeks ago. “I am astonished to hear people suggest that we can solve our heroin crisis by legalizing marijuana,” he said, “so people can trade one life-wrecking dependency for another.” Pro-marijuana activists and many others are concerned that Sessions, who once said “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” will crack down on marijuana use, even in states where it is legal.

Comparing the two substances is precarious. Heroin is highly addictive–and is upending communities all over the country–while there has never been a reported marijuana overdose, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. But the DEA does classify both heroin and marijuana as Schedule I substances.

Despite Sessions’ fear mongering and the federal illegality of marijuana, doctors sometimes prescribe or recommend medical marijuana to patients as a substitute for treating side effects from certain diseases, in lieu of Vicodin or Oxycontin, two powerful opioids. Prescription pain medications or other opioids like heroin kill 91 Americans each day.

Roughly 60 percent of Americans live in an area–one of 28 states or D.C.–where medical marijuana is legal, and researchers are increasingly examining the drug’s medical utility. A report in January from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found that marijuana does in fact have therapeutic properties. Still, the Drug and Alcohol Dependence study came to a restrained conclusion: “future investigation is needed to explore the causal pathways of these findings.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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As Deryn Blackwell was dying of cancer, his mother, Callie, sought out something, anything, that could relieve his pain. Finally, after three excruciating years of watching Deryn suffer, she found a potential aid: marijuana.

Now, three years after illicitly providing marijuana to Deryn–his doctor would not prescribe him the drug–Callie claims it saved his life. She reveals Deryn’s story in a new tell-all book set for release next month in Britain titled “The Boy in 7 Billion.”

While Deryn’s story is indeed inspiring, researchers caution that it cannot be taken as evidence that marijuana can treat cancer. Anecdotal tales like Deryn’s exist, but clinical trials have not found concrete evidence that marijuana is an effective cancer treatment. It is also unclear if the cannabis tincture Deryn consumed was the direct cause of his recovery.

“It could have been a number of things,” Emma Smith, a science information manager for Cancer Research UK, told Britain’s online newspaper The Independent. “Perhaps cannabis did help, perhaps it didn’t.”

“Because it’s just one person’s story, without a doctor analyzing all the clinical evidence and comparing him to somebody that didn’t get cannabis, we still don’t know for certain it was the cannabis that helped him.”

Deryn’s ordeal began in 2010 when, at ten-years-old, he was diagnosed with leukemia. Eighteen months later he was diagnosed with a second rare form of cancer.

In an excerpt from Blackwell’s book printed in the Daily Mail, Callie writes:

By 2013, after nearly four years of hospital treatment, it seemed that the only thing left for him were opiate drugs to ease the pain as he reached the end of his life. Like any mother would be, I was desperate to find something to alleviate his suffering.

Marijuana has been shown to alleviate some side effects of cancer, including nausea. But according to the American Cancer Society, studies on cannabinoids have not shown that “they help control or cure the disease.”

Medical marijuana is still illegal in the United Kingdom. The only licensed marijuana-based medicine available is Sativex, which is used to treat patients with multiple sclerosis.

After conducting extensive research on the benefits of marijuana, Callie asked Deryn’s doctor if Bedrocan, a cannabis-based painkiller, would be a better alternative than her son’s “mind-numbing morphine.” The doctor said that while it was an effective painkiller, it had not been tested on children and she couldn’t prescribe it to him.

That’s when Callie and her husband, Simon, decided to take matters into their own hands. Simon traveled to a nearby service station and purchased cannabis illegally from a dealer. Back home, Callie whipped up a tincture that would be compatible for a vaporizer pen, which Deryn would later use when the doctors weren’t around.

“We felt like naughty schoolkids who were having a sneaky cigarette around the back of the bike sheds,” Callie wrote.

Devyn, now 17, made a gradual recovery and is currently attending school and working as a part-time chef of vegan food.

Callie said she’ll probably “never be totally free” of the fear that his cancer will return, but she is confident her son can endure. “I am reminded of my miracle boy every time I look at Deryn and I know deep in my heart that whatever the future may throw at us, we can cope,” she wrote. “We always do.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Oregon Issues First Recreational Marijuana Recall After Failed Pesticide Test appeared first on Law Street.

When you were younger you probably heard of teenagers getting fooled into buying ziplock bags of scrunched-up oregano, thinking it was marijuana. While pranking teens tends to be pretty easy, is the government just as gullible? Many people questioning the quality of marijuana research findings are wondering that very thing, after a new report from the Washington Post revealed that government marijuana looks nothing like marijuana you’d find on the streets.

According to the Post, researchers have been required to use marijuana provided by the federal government ever since the 1960s. As it turns out, all federal marijuana is grown at a single facility at the University of Mississippi, overseen by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). But the marijuana made at this lab looks drastically different from the stuff you’d buy from a local dealer or dispensary.

This is what government marijuana looks like:

Government marijuana looks nothing like the real stuff. See for yourself. https://t.co/UKNSYwqPWQ pic.twitter.com/IbQv8p5NWu

— Washington Post (@washingtonpost) March 13, 2017

While weed comes in different colors, densities, and shapes, it’s easy to notice the differences between the commercial weed and the government marijuana by looking at the side-by-side comparisons. The image on the left looks like the real deal, while the image on the right resembles something closer to dried rosemary or grass clippings than actual marijuana.

“In two decades of smoking weed, I’ve never seen anything that looks like that,” said Jake Browne, a cannabis critic for the Denver Post’s Cannabist marijuana news site. “People typically smoke the flower of the plant, but here you can clearly see stems and leaves in there as well, parts that should be discarded. Inhaling that would be like eating an apple, including the seeds inside it and the branch it grew on.”

Twitter quickly mocked the quality of the government weed in the photo as well:

no wonder the government hates weed they’ve been smoking grass clippings this whole time https://t.co/W7iAHdMKhd

— ㅤ (@BryannaRusnak) March 14, 2017

thought this was gonna be an “Obamacare vs. Trumpcare” joke https://t.co/oMRIurnu8s

— Zeru (@DoubleStraps) March 13, 2017

Hey @SnoopDogg this is the marijuana that the government distributes for medical research, care to comment? pic.twitter.com/jBi6WTPgL9

— Christopher Ingraham (@_cingraham) March 13, 2017

But it isn’t just the weed’s appearance that is different.

The potency of government marijuana typically maxes out at about 13 percent THC, but some reports put that number much lower. By comparison, commercial weed available in Colorado averages at about 19 percent THC, according to a laboratory that tests commercial marijuana in the state.

“It’s akin to investigating the effects of bourbon by giving people Bud Light,” wrote the Post.

Last summer the DEA formally took steps to end the monopoly on the production of research grade marijuana, but so far, no other producers have been approved.

The founding director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, Rick Doblin, contends that the marijuana being used for research isn’t all bad. “[NIDA’s] marijuana is fine if you want to do academic research,” Doblin said.

Right now marijuana research is in high demand, as states look to cannabis studies for guidance while weighing the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana for medical or recreational purposes. But in order to ensure the credibility of this research, the government may want to look into providing researchers marijuana that real people would actually want to smoke.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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As soon as Jeff Sessions was nominated by President Donald Trump for the position of Attorney General, pro-medical marijuana advocates had reason to feel uneasy. Sessions has long been anti-marijuana, and while he has previously indicated that federal enforcement of marijuana law wouldn’t change too much, there are still concerns that under his tenure, the DOJ will decide to crack down. Sessions addressed law enforcement officials in Richmond, Virginia, earlier today, and his comments about marijuana should only heighten those concerns. But was Sessions right?

Let’s check out what he said:

He stated, “I think medical marijuana has been hyped, maybe too much.” He went on to say:

I realize this may be an unfashionable belief in a time of growing tolerance of drug use. But too many lives are at stake to worry about being fashionable. I reject the idea that America will be a better place if marijuana is sold in every corner store. And I am astonished to hear people suggest that we can solve our heroin crisis by legalizing marijuana–so people can trade one life-wrecking dependency for another that’s only slightly less awful. Our nation needs to say clearly once again that using drugs will destroy your life.

That’s a lot to unpack. Here are the three biggest issues with Sessions’s comments:

“Marijuana Sold in Every Corner Store”

That would be unfortunate, but no one is proposing anything like that. Every state that has legalized marijuana also puts in place a way to regulate sales–the only exception perhaps being the very grey area of D.C.’s sort-of legal marijuana laws that are still being blocked by Congress. Medical marijuana is similarly strictly regulated. And it’s also worth pointing out that two things that are arguably just as dangerous as weed, and certainly more addictive–alcohol and cigarettes–are available at corner stores. Sessions’s comment about “marijuana sold in every corner store” is clear fear-mongering. It paints pro-legalization efforts as extreme and impractical, and ignores the serious regulatory work that goes hand-in-hand with legalization.

Legalizing recreational marijuana and extending medical marijuana efforts are not to be taken lightly. Many considerations are paramount–for example, how marijuana affects young people, and how our DUI laws need to be altered. Those concerns are not to be downplayed. But they’re not to be fabricated either, and the idea that marijuana will suddenly be as easy to get as groceries is a falsehood.

“One Life-wrecking Dependency for Another That’s Only Slightly Less Awful” and “Using Drugs Will Destroy Your Life”

Heroin is absolutely a life-wrecking dependency. And given the huge rise in overdoses, particularly in rural areas of the United States, it’s heartening to hear a politician talk seriously about combatting it. But claiming that marijuana is a “life-wrecking dependency” is, once again, clear fear-mongering on Sessions’s part.

Marijuana dependence is certainly possible. Studies indicate that less than 10 percent of people who use marijuana become dependent on it, although that number rises to 17 percent if you look exclusively at people who begin using marijuana in their teens. Heroin, however, is one of the most addictive drugs out there. (And perhaps we should tell AG Sessions that alcohol and tobacco, available at your friendly neighborhood corner store, also rank in the top 10 most addictive drugs.)

Again, this is not to say that marijuana shouldn’t be strictly regulated, or that it’s impossible to become addicted to it. But to compare heroin addiction to marijuana does a serious disservice to the millions of Americans who have been affected by heroin. Fighting against marijuana–whether that be medical marijuana or recreational marijuana–is not going to do much to combat heroin addiction. Other factors, like prescription drug use, are significantly more pressing. Almost 80 percent of heroin addicts report having misused prescription drugs prior to getting hooked on heroin. While people who are addicted to marijuana are three times more likely to become addicted to heroin than non-addicts, people who abuse prescription opioid painkillers are a staggering 40 times more likely to become addicted to heroin.

“Medical Marijuana Has Been Hyped, Maybe Too Much”

Generally speaking, Sessions’s remarks today were confusing. While he said “medical marijuana has been hyped, maybe too much,” it’s unclear that he was speaking just about medical marijuana. His rhetoric–“legalizing marijuana” and “sold in every corner store” seemed to track more with arguments against recreational marijuana. And if he was talking about medical marijuana, that’s equally confusing, given that there’s evidence to suggest that opioid use does decrease in states that legalize medical marijuana. Given the deadliness of opioid overdoses compared to marijuana (note: there were zero overdoses on marijuana in 2015) that possibility seems at the very least worth exploring.

Sessions did roll back his comments during a question and answer segment after his remarks. He said that the Obama-era Cole Memo, which de-prioritizes the enforcement of federal anti-marijuana law in states where it has been legalized, was “valid.” But the fact that Sessions made the remarks in the first place indicate that pro-medical and recreational marijuana advocates have every reason to remain concerned.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Israel’s Cabinet announced on Sunday that the country, already one of the world’s leaders in medical marijuana innovation, is decriminalizing recreational marijuana use. Despite its innovations in medical marijuana research, Israel previously viewed recreational use as a criminal offense; although enforcement was lenient. But now, Israel is officially joining a handful of other countries–including the Netherlands, Mexico, Czech Republic, Costa Rica, and Portugal–in officially treating marijuana use as a public health issue, not a criminal offense.

The Cabinet’s announcement drew bi-partisan applause. “Whether one supports use of cannabis or is opposed, it is wrong to judge cannabis users per criminal law and its derivatives,” said right-wing Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, adding that Israel “cannot turn a blind eye in light of changes worldwide regarding cannabis consumption and effect.”

And Tamar Zandberg, member of the left-wing Meretz Party, and chairwoman of the Committee on Drug and Alcohol Abuse, said Sunday’s announcement is “a message that millions of Israelis who consume cannabis are not criminals.”

Under the new decriminalization model, first time users, if caught smoking pot in public, will be slapped with a 1,000 shekel ($271) fine, but no criminal charges would be brought. A subsequent offense would double the fine. And a third could require rehabilitation, education, and a suspended driver’s license. The money collected by fining public marijuana users would help fund rehabilitation clinics and educational programs. A fourth offense could result in criminal charges.

The medical marijuana industry in Israel, while still relatively nascent, is backed by the government and is a growing source of innovation in the private sector. There are 25,000 registered medical marijuana patients in Israel, a number that is expected to grow exponentially over the next few years. Following Sunday’s announcement, the government will set up a special team tasked with regulating and carrying out the decriminalization policy. The new policy is based on the findings of a committee led the the Public Security Ministry Director General Rotem Peleg.

The Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan said Sunday’s announcement “is an important step on the way to implementing the new policy that will put emphasis on explaining and treating” marijuana use, “rather than on criminal enforcement.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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All Cannabis in America coverage is written by Alexis Evans and Alec Siegel and brought to you by Law Street Media.

STATE OF WEED: WATCH

Will the U.S. Finally End its Prohibition on Marijuana?

A freshman representative from Virginia introduced legislation last week that would remove marijuana from the federal Controlled Substances Act. This measure, introduced by Representative Thomas Garrett (R-VA), is identical to legislation introduced by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in 2015 that never really went anywhere. The bill would not effectively legalize the sale and use of marijuana in all 50 states; instead, it would allow states the ability to make their own decisions on marijuana policy without the threat of federal interference.

NFLPA Will Explore if Marijuana is Safer Than Opiates 

The NFL Players Association will look into whether marijuana is a safer pain management alternative for athletes than opiates. During a taping of the NBC Sports “Pro Football Talk Live” radio show, NFLPA President Eric Winston revealed that owners may soon have no choice but to embrace it.

Colorado Could Become the First State to Legalize “Pot Clubs”

In a five-to-two vote, the Colorado Senate Business, Labor, and Technology Committee recently passed a bill that would bring “pot clubs” to the state. Senate Bill 184, titled Private Marijuana Clubs Open and Public Use, would allow individuals 21 years and older to publicly consume marijuana in privately-owned marijuana clubs. The bill will now move to a full Senate vote.

All links are to primary sources. For more information on state laws for possessing, selling, and cultivating marijuana, click here to read “The State of Weed: Marijuana Legalization State by State.”

LAW STREET CANNABIS COVERAGE

Will the Trump Administration Crack Down on Marijuana?

By Alec Siegel

White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer suggested the Justice Department will increase its enforcement of federal marijuana laws. Marijuana is banned at the federal level, but is legal, recreationally or medically, in 28 states and D.C. However Spicer did say the president sees a “big difference” between recreational and medical marijuana.

Congress Now Has A Bipartisan Cannabis Caucus

By Alexis Evans

A group of pro-pot federal lawmakers has teamed up to announce the formation of the first-ever Congressional Cannabis Caucus. The bipartisan effort will work on legislation related to marijuana legalization and regulation, proving that perhaps Congress is taking the issue of marijuana legalization seriously.

Hemp Industries Association Sues DEA for Regulating Hemp as a Schedule I Drug

By Alexis Evans

The Hemp Industries Association (HIA) has filed a motion against the DEA, challenging the agency’s handling of hemp foods as Schedule I drugs. On February 6, the HIA filed a motion to find the DEA in contempt of court for failing to comply with a 13-year-old court injunction, prohibiting the agency from regulating hemp food products as Schedule I controlled substances.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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The marijuana industry and the Trump Administration seem to be locked in a battle of chicken. Known Russian affiliate Attorney General Jeff Sessions and active Venmo user Press Secretary Sean Spicer have drawn battle lines, but we’ve been waiting to see who will make the first move. Until now.

In an attempt to circumvent the inevitable nationwide crackdown on legal marijuana, a group of bipartisan Oregon lawmakers are leading the charge with direct state actions.

According to CBS News, the committee responsible for crafting Oregon’s pot policies has proposed legislation that requires marijuana businesses to destroy customers’ personal information (such as names, addresses and birth dates, gathered for marketing purposes) within 48 hours.

via GIPHY

The measure is scheduled for its first hearing Tuesday. Before it can take effect, it must first pass the full legislature, before finally being approved by the state’s governor, who has vowed to protect Oregon’s pot market.

“I could see where the federal government would come in and try to gather this information from businesses that have stockpiled it and retained it in their records,” said Democratic State Sen. Floyd Prozanski, a bill sponsor who is also a prosecutor. “I think we as legislators have a duty to protect our citizens.”

Even though marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, eight states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana. However, only four of those states have established legal dispensaries. These shops are required to check the driver’s licenses of customers to verify they are at least 21. But some take it a step further, logging driver’s license numbers, birthdays, addresses, and other personal information into their systems.

“The reason we keep that information is to reach out to them–it’s marketing, just like any retailer,” said Donald Morse, executive director of the Oregon Cannabis Business Council.

Lawmakers fear that this same information could one day be used by the feds to build legal cases against individuals who have purchased marijuana, albeit legally. While the Justice Department doesn’t typically go after individuals, this could be a serious violation of privacy.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post The Trump Effect?: Oregon Lawmakers Push to Protect Pot Privacy appeared first on Law Street.

In a press conference on Thursday, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer suggested the Justice Department will increase its enforcement of federal marijuana laws. Marijuana is banned at the federal level, but is legal, recreationally or medically, in 28 states and D.C. However Spicer did say the president sees a “big difference” between recreational and medical marijuana.

“I do believe you will see greater enforcement of it,” Spicer said, referring to the federal marijuana ban. “When you see something like the opioid addiction crisis blossoming in so many states around this country, the last thing we should be doing is encouraging people,” he added. “There is still a federal law that we need to abide by when it comes to recreational marijuana and drugs of that nature.”

Spicer’s remarks seem to contradict comments Trump made during the campaign. At a rally in October 2015, Trump said marijuana policy is a “state-by-state” issue. Trump hardly has fixed positions on certain issues, however, and his views on marijuana enforcement might have evolved since late 2015. Spicer’s comments also implied that marijuana use can lead to more dangerous drug use, like opioids. There is limited, if any, evidence to support the so-called “gateway drug” theory.

Marijuana advocates have been wary about the new attorney general, Jeff Sessions, because of anti-marijuana comments he made when he was a senator from Alabama. But during his hearing last month, Sessions said he “won’t commit to never enforcing federal law” but added that doing so is “a problem of resources for the federal government.” That there are more pressing issues than marijuana enforcement on the Justice Department’s agenda–narcotics trafficking and criminal justice, for example–might be the best buffer against a clamp down on marijuana use in states where the practice is legal.

The Congressional Cannabis Caucus, created last week and co-chaired by a bi-partisan group of congressman, released a statement in response to Spicer’s comments. “We hope today’s comments do not reflect the views of the President and his administration,” said the group, which consists of Reps. Earl Blumenauer (R-OR), Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Jared Polis (D-CO), and Don Young (R-AK). “We stand ready to educate this administration on the need for more sensible marijuana policies and share the many experiences states have had with the legalization of cannabis.”

In 2013, the Deputy Attorney James Cole, responding to the recent recreational marijuana legalization in Washington and Colorado, issued a memo that directed the federal government to consider state laws when enforcing the federal marijuana ban. The Cole Memo reiterated that marijuana trafficking and related criminal activity–such as selling to minors–should be aggressively enforced. Indeed, the Obama Administration conducted raids on growing facilities in states that legalized the drug. But the Cole Memo instructed deference to state law when it comes to possessing or selling small amounts of marijuana.

For all of the uncertainty Spicer’s comments cast on marijuana enforcement, he made clear that the president respects and understands the medical utilization of marijuana. “The president understands the pain and suffering that many people go through who are facing, especially terminal diseases,” Spicer said, “and the comfort that some of these drugs, including medical marijuana, can bring to them.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Will the Trump Administration Crack Down on Marijuana? appeared first on Law Street.

When his father was dying of cancer in 1999, Daniel Reingold brewed a remedy that would not cure his fatal disease, but might alleviate his pain: marijuana-infused tea. Reingold, now the president and CEO of RiverSpring Health, later brought his first-hand experience with the medical properties of marijuana to a nursing home his company operates in the Bronx. The Hebrew Home, in Riverdale, allows its residents to find late-in-life relief from a leaf that doesn’t grow in the facility’s garden: marijuana, in the form of cannabidiol (CBD) pills. 

As states continue to loosen the laws for marijuana use, the drug is reaching people who might have grown up in the age of “Reefer Madness.” Though marijuana use has shot up among all demographics over the past decade, use among adults ages 65 and up has increased exponentially. According to one recent study, between 2006 and 2013, marijuana use among people 65 and up has increased by 250 percent.

In some of the 28 states (and the District of Columbia) that have legalized marijuana for medical use, elderly residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities can use marijuana pills in lieu of drugs like morphine. But at many of them, because the drug is banned at the federal level, the staff will not directly administer or oversee use, instead following a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. Residents can obtain cannabis products from a dispensary, and stow them away in their rooms. Some are worried that this is a health hazard, especially since the effects of marijuana on older people are far from understood.

“If residents are taking it, they are taking it undercover without the staff knowing so it’s not part of their care plan,” Dr. Cheryl Phillips, senior vice president for public policy and health services for a group that represents more than 2,000 nursing homes, told The New York Times. “I think that creates a safety problem.”

But for some residents at places like the Hebrew Home, popping a pill filled with cannabis oil is no different than using any other medication–aside from the stigma that comes with it. “It’s got a stigma,” Marcia Dunetz, 80, told the Times. “People don’t really believe you’re not really getting high if you take it.” Dunetz, a Parkinson’s patient, said since using marijuana she no longer wakes up with headaches, and feels less dizzy and nauseous.

Because marijuana is banned, in all capacities, at the federal level, staff at many assisted living facilities and nursing homes could theoretically be committing a crime if they were to administer marijuana to residents and patients. That possibility deters the staff and the owners wary of doing so. And at government-supported nursing homes, there is the possibility that Medicare and Medicaid could take a hit if the staff were giving their patients pot.

And then there is the great unknown of how marijuana affects older people. Should they consume less? Will it adversely affect their brains? “On the one hand, cannabis may be an effective substitute for prescription opioids and other misused medications; on the other hand, cannabis has emerged as an alternative for the undertreatment of pain at the end of life,” said a study published in January in the Oxford University Press.

Ruth Brunn, a 98-year-old with neuropathy living at the Hebrew Home, does not know what long-term affects taking cannabis oil pills will have on her (long-term has a different meaning for her, perhaps), but that doesn’t matter. “I don’t feel high or stoned,” she told the Times. “All I know is I feel better when I take this.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post The New Drug Gaining Popularity in Nursing Homes: Marijuana Pills appeared first on Law Street.

Happy Presidents Day! For those of you lucky enough to have the day off from school or work, grab a coffee, put your feet up, and catch up on Law Street’s best of the week below.

Jeff Sessions Signals Marijuana Enforcement Will Remain the Same

Marijuana advocates have been worried for months about the recently confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions. He once said “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” and he has joked that he thought the Ku Klux Klan “were OK until I found out they smoked pot.” But last week, Sessions spoke with Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, and may have finally hinted at how he might enforce the federal marijuana ban as attorney general.

Oroville Dam Overflow: The Environment and Failing Infrastructure

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post ICYMI: Best of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

A new law passed by the New Mexico Senate Monday is seeking to expand the state’s existing medical marijuana program to include more qualifying conditions following rising demand.

New Mexico’s medical cannabis program was established in 2007. As the law stands, patients with qualifying conditions–such as HIV/AIDS, Crohn’s disease, Lou Gehrig’s disease, PTSD, arthritis, and more–can obtain a medical marijuana permit from their doctors. If the recently introduced law passes a vote by the House of Representatives, 14 more qualifying conditions would be added to the existing list. This would include patients who suffer from substance abuse disorders.

The bill, which is sponsored by Sen. Cisco McSorley (D-Albuquerque), would also expand the number of marijuana plants that growers are allowed to cultivate once the number of registered patients state-wide reaches 35,000. There are currently roughly 32,000 patients registered with New Mexico’s medical marijuana program; growers are only permitted to grow 450 plants each.

Visitors who are enrolled in other state medical marijuana programs would be able to purchase cannabis in New Mexico as well under the new provisions.

Following last November’s election, 28 states have legalized marijuana in some form. As Law Street previously reported, New Mexico is also in the running to become the next state to legalize recreational marijuana. A few weeks ago, lawmakers in New Mexico’s House and Senate introduced bills to regulate and tax recreational marijuana.

In 2016, three separate pieces of legislation involving recreational marijuana were introduced to the state’s legislature. One was passed by two Senate committees before being narrowly defeated on the Senate floor. But if public opinion is any indication of where a state stands on a certain issue, then recent polls in New Mexico seem to point to a sunny future for marijuana supporters in the state. According to one recent poll, 61 percent of people in New Mexico said they supported full legalization.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post New Mexico Senate Votes to Expand Medical Marijuana Program appeared first on Law Street.

Marijuana advocates have been worried for months about the recently confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions. He once said “good people don’t smoke marijuana,” and he has joked that he thought the Ku Klux Klan “were OK until I found out they smoked pot.” But last week, Sessions spoke with Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones, and may have finally hinted at how he might enforce the federal marijuana ban as attorney general.

“Regarding the prioritization of federal resources to combat marijuana, he didn’t see the federal government getting involved in marijuana use or low-level state, what are traditionally state and local crimes, but, I don’t think he ruled out the possibility of the federal government getting involved in larger-scale operations,” Jones said.

If what Jones said is to be taken as Sessions’ stance on enforcing marijuana laws at the state-level, then not much would change. President Barack Obama routinely cracked down on medical marijuana dispensaries and growers, even ones in states that legalized the drug. During Obama’s first three years in office, the Justice Department conducted over 100 raids.

Despite a history of anti-marijuana comments, Sessions has stayed consistent when asked about how he will enforce the federal marijuana ban as attorney general. In his hearing last month, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) asked Sessions how he would handle marijuana enforcement. “I won’t commit to never enforcing federal law,” he responded, “but absolutely it’s a problem of resources for the federal government.”

As more and more states legalize pot in some form–28 states and D.C. have already done so–enforcing the federal ban will become increasingly difficult. Nearly one quarter of Americans now live in a state with some form of legal marijuana, either medical or recreational. And according to a recent Gallup poll, 60 percent of Americans favor marijuana legalization, the highest rate in 47 years.

The attorney general is meant to enforce the law based on the law, not his or her own opinions. And in his hearing, Sessions swore under oath to ditch his personal viewpoints when enforcing U.S. law. “It’s not so much the attorney general’s job to decide what laws to enforce. We should do our jobs and enforce laws effectively as we’re able,” Sessions said during his hearing. “The U.S. Congress made the possession of marijuana in every state — and the distribution — an illegal act. If that’s something that’s not desired any longer, Congress should pass a law to change the rule.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Jeff Sessions Signals Marijuana Enforcement Will Remain the Same appeared first on Law Street.

Israel is one step closer to exporting medical marijuana to countries that have legalized the drug for medical use. On Sunday, Yoav Kisch, a lawmaker from the ruling Likud party, introduced legislation that would allow Israel to export medical marijuana.

Medical marijuana is legal in Israel, but its local market isn’t exactly what you’d call a cash cow. Roughly 23,000 patients have permits to buy from the country’s nine licensed suppliers, and the market is projected to be worth between $15 million to $20 million.

“Exporting medical cannabis is pushing forward the economy and developing the agricultural sector,” Kisch said. “My bill defines for the first time the whole field of medical cannabis and allows regulating its export.”

Kisch also noted that Canada and Australia began exporting medical marijuana last year, and reaped the economic benefits. The bill, which could spend months navigating the Knesset (Israel’s lawmaking body), would likely expand Israel’s net marijuana profits. Citing recent research, Kisch said Israel stands to make over one billion NIS (or nearly $267 million) by exporting medical marijuana.

With its envelope-pushing research and relative government support for legalization, Israel is a beacon for marijuana investors around the world. As of 2016, the country had attracted roughly $100 million in investments. But it’s not just the scientists, business people, and lawmakers that place Israel at the forefront of a still nascent global industry–it’s the people.

In Tel Aviv Saturday night, thousands of Israelis showed up to encourage the Knesset to legalize recreational marijuana. Two members of parliament were also in attendance: MK Sharren Haskel of the Likud party, which is led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and MK Tamar Zandberg of the opposing Meretz party.

“This is a health campaign, a campaign for quality of life,” Zandberg said.

Last month, Israel’s Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced that he would be adopting the “Portugal Model,” in which marijuana is treated as a health issue, not a criminal offense. The new model has yet to go into effect, but a majority of lawmakers support the policy shift.

As it fully implements its decriminalization laws and aims to begin exporting medical cannabis, Israel is poised to continue breaking ground in the cannabis field.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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All Cannabis in America coverage is written by Alexis Evans and Alec Siegel and brought to you by Law Street Media.

State of Weed: Watch

Maryland Lawmakers Push For Recreational Marijuana 

During a news conference last week, a trio of Democratic Maryland lawmakers said they would introduce two pieces of legislation: one to tax recreational marijuana sales, and another to regulate a legal market. The bills would regulate and tax marijuana like alcohol: use would be permitted for adults 21 and up, and it would be illegal to consume marijuana in public. Cultivators would pay a $30 per ounce excise tax, and there would be a 9 percent sales tax levied on retail products.

Will Rhode Island Reject Recreational Weed…Again?

After multiple failed attempts, Rhode Island could finally legalize recreational marijuana. State Representatives Scott Slater (D-Providence) and Joshua Miller (D-Providence) have proposed a new measure to legalize recreational marijuana for those 21 years and older. The Cannabis Regulation, Control, and Taxation Act will include mandatory product testing and labeling, restrictions on advertising, funding to law enforcement, limits on THC quantity per product, and mandatory reviews for all sale products.

Hawaii Approves First Two Medical Dispensaries 

After two years of waiting, Maui Wellness Group, d.b.a. Maui Grown Therapies, and Aloha Green Holdings on Oahu have been given the green light from the Hawaii State Department of Health to begin growing medical marijuana. The state legalized dispensaries in 2015, and sales were originally set to begin in July 2016. However, growers were still waiting on a seed-to-sale tracking system to be implemented, which stalled the approval.

All links are to primary sources. For more information on state laws for possessing, selling, and cultivating marijuana, click here to read “The State of Weed: Marijuana Legalization State by State.”

Law Street Cannabis Coverage

Recreational Marijuana is Officially Legal in Maine

By Alec Siegel

After nearly three months of being suspended in legislative limbo, Maine’s recreational marijuana bill officially went into effect on January 30. People 21 and older can now possess up to two and a half ounces of cannabis; they can also grow up to six mature plants, and 12 immature plants. But after Governor Paul LePage signed a moratorium on January 27, retail sales of marijuana will be frozen until February 2018, giving lawmakers time to close any loopholes that appeared in the original legalization measure.

Will New Mexico Legalize Recreational Marijuana Next?

Israeli Government Will Pay $2 Million to Fund Medical Cannabis Research

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Cannabis in America February 2017: Which State Will Be Next to Legalize? appeared first on Law Street.

Maryland might be the next state to legalize recreational marijuana. During a news conference on Monday, a trio of Democratic lawmakers said they would introduce two pieces of legislation: one to tax recreational marijuana sales, and another to regulate a legal market. But some Maryland Democrats would like to see the state iron out its medical marijuana program before tackling recreational use.

The bills propose regulating and taxing marijuana like alcohol is regulated and taxed: use would be permitted for adults 21 and up, and it would be illegal to consume marijuana in public. Cultivators would pay a $30 per ounce excise tax, and there would be a nine percent sales tax levied on retail products.

“This legislation will effectively end the failed policy of cannabis prohibition in Maryland and replace it with a much more sensible system,” said Sen. Richard Madaleno (D-Montgomery), one of the sponsors of the bills. “It establishes a thoughtful regulatory scheme and tax structure based on best practices and lessons learned from other states.”

The proposed regulatory framework is modeled after Colorado, which legalized recreational marijuana in 2012. Revenue from the taxes would funnel into community school programs, substance abuse treatment and prevention programs, and workforce development programs. Maryland has been slowly creeping toward full legalization since 2013, when the state legalized medical marijuana.

The state’s medical program was deliberated on for nearly three years: permits were finally issued to growers, processors, and dispensaries in 2016. But after lawsuits and complaints about how the permits were issued, medical marijuana patients in Maryland will not have access to the drug until sometime this year. Until the medical program is fully implemented, some lawmakers and activists say, recreational legislation should not be put forward.

“We need to get the medical marijuana program up and running before we move to full-blown legalization,” Del. Cheryl D. Glenn (D-Baltimore) told The Washington Post. But according to a poll from last fall, most Marylanders (61 percent) support legalizing recreational marijuana, up from 49 percent in 2014.

Del. David Moon (D-Montgomery) is introducing separate legislation that would allow voters in 2018 to determine if the state’s constitution should be changed to legalize marijuana. In order to end up on the 2018 ballot, a constitutional amendment would need to garner a two-thirds majority vote in the legislature. Moon is confident that, somehow, Maryland will legalize recreational marijuana. “You can smell the inevitability of this in the air,” he said.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Will Maryland be the Next State to Legalize Recreational Marijuana? appeared first on Law Street.

Israel’s Ministries of Agriculture and Health announced Monday that they will be collaborating to pour over $2 million in state funds into medical cannabis research. It is the first collaborative effort between the two departments. The cash infusion is projected to fund 13 studies, which range from developing new medical cannabis strands to investigating the plant’s effects on multiple sclerosis.

Israel, which greatly expanded its legal medical marijuana program last summer, is one of the world’s leading innovators in marijuana research. In fact, it was an Israeli professor, Raphael Mechoulam, who first discovered marijuana’s active ingredient, THC, in 1964. Today, Israel is a beacon of light for the global mission to further investigate the medical properties of the drug. Marijuana research in many countries–including the U.S., aside from a few exceptions–is barred.

In the U.S., 29 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana in some form, either recreationally or medically. At the federal level, however, the drug is illegal and is classified as a Schedule I substance, which effectively means it cannot be used in scientific trials. Even though recreational marijuana use and possession is barred in Israel, the tiny country has made large strides in its medical program.

Last year, Israel drastically loosened its medical marijuana laws. More doctors could fill cannabis prescriptions. Limits on the number of marijuana growers were lifted. And cannabis could be sold at approved pharmacies. Now, as Israel’s number of medical marijuana patients hits 25,000, the government is looking for more ways to fill the international gap in marijuana research. Israel is even exploring ways to export its medical marijuana as a prescription medication to pharmacies around the world.

The 13 studies will have a number of biochemical and medical goals, including researching the effects of cannabis on vision, and if marijuana use can lead to colon cancer. There will also be studies into increasing crop yield. Developing new technologies for irrigating and fertilizing cannabis plants is another stated goal. Drug companies, universities, research institutes, and hospitals will conduct the research, which is expected to last five years. Uri Ariel, the Minister of Agriculture, said: “The program shows that agriculture is important in all aspects of life.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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A popular cannabis-based ingredient has officially been classified as medicine in the UK, after healthcare officials scrutinized claims speaking to its effectiveness. The Medicines & Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced earlier this week the addition of cannabidiol, or CBD oil, to its list of medicines after reviewing several manufacturing companies’ “overt medicinal claims” that the product provides relief for patients.

Gerald Heddel, director of inspection and enforcement at the agency, told Sky News:

The change really came about with us offering an opinion that CBD is in fact a medicine, and that opinion was based on the fact that we noted that people were making some quite stark claims about serious diseases that could be treated with CBD.

CBD, unlike THC, is a non-psychoactive natural component of marijuana that contains various medical properties, making it an anticonvulsant, antipsychotic, anti-inflammatory, antiemetic, anti-oxidant, anti-depressant, and anti-tumoral. It can be used to treat  a number of medical conditions including epilepsy, ALS, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, and chronic pain. CBD can also be used reduce the intoxicating effects of THC, such as memory impairment and paranoia.

MHRA reversed its stance on CBD just a few month after sending cease and desist letters to CBD producers across the UK. The governmental agency released an assessment that stated:

The MHRA has now completed it’s review and has considered all information available to it relating to Cannabidiol (CBD) and having taken into account all the scientific advice and evidence, it has come to an opinion that products containing Cannabidiol will satisfy the second limb of the definition of a ‘medicinal product’ because it may be used by or administered to human beings either with a view to restoring, correcting or modifying physiological functions by exerting a pharmacological, immunological or metabolic action, or to making a medical diagnosis.

This is the first time a form of cannabis has been seen as medically beneficial to the UK’s government, which could mean a legitimate medical marijuana industry is in the country’s future.

In December, the U.S. reclassified CBD oil as a Schedule 1 Drug under federal law in an effort to track quantities of CBD and other marijuana extracts imported and exported to and from the U.S. separately from quantities of marijuana.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post UK Officially Classifies CBD Oil as a Medicinal Ingredient appeared first on Law Street.

Happy New Year, and welcome to the first ICYMI of 2017. Check out our top three articles this week, and enjoy the start to your year.

Arizona Medical Marijuana Patients Granted DUI Defense Options

Arizona medical marijuana cardholders now have a better ability to defend themselves if they are charged with a marijuana DUI. The Arizona State Court of Appeals ruled that prosecutors must present sufficient evidence that an individual was actually impaired at the time of the arrest. Read the full article here.

U.S. Returns 10,000 Acres of Land to Okinawa

The U.S. military handed back nearly 10,000 acres of land to Okinawa on Thursday, the largest land transfer since the U.S. occupation of the Pacific island ended in 1972. Belonging to the 19,300-acre Jungle Warfare Training Center in the northern part of Okinawa, the land equaled 17 percent of the American-owned land on the island, according to the military. Read the full article here.

John Kerry Outlines Middle East Peace Plan in Controversial Speech

In a lengthy and detailed speech on Wednesday, Secretary of State John Kerry defended the U.S.’s decision to abstain from a vote condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank and advocated for a two-state solution as the path to peace in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Read the full article here.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post ICYMI: Best of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

Next year could be the year that South Carolina establishes a legal medical marijuana program. Representative Todd Rutherford, a Democrat, recently pre-filed the “Put Patients First Act,” or H. 3128, which would allow people suffering from certain diseases to be prescribed medical cannabis by their doctors.

H. 3128 would permit marijuana to be provided to patients with cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, and potentially other medical conditions such as cachexia, severe pain or nausea, seizures, and muscle spasms. Patients could possess up to two ounces of marijuana and, while waiting for dispensaries to open, could grow up to six plants in their homes.

The most recent legal movement for marijuana in South Carolina came in 2014, when the state passed a bill that permitted hemp farms, and allowed children to use cannabidiol for medical trials. But the last time the state legislature took up a medical marijuana proposal was in 2007; that bill failed to pass.

“The time has come to put aside archaic misconceptions of medical marijuana and put patients first,” Rutherford said in a statement to Columbia-based news outlet WLTX. “I hear devastating stories every single day from people who are battling epilepsy or suffering from a brain tumor who desperately need medical marijuana to treat the debilitating symptoms.”

Rutherford pre-filed another medical marijuana bill, House Bill 3162, which would allow veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder to use marijuana. In order to reach a House vote, both bills would need to pass a committee vote. If the House passes the bills, they would move to the Senate, and finally, to the governor’s desk.

Cannabis remains illegal in much of the South, save for Florida, which passed a medical marijuana bill on Election Day, and Louisiana. The legalization flurry on November 8, when eight states legalized marijuana in some form, passed over South Carolina. And as 2016 comes to a close, more than a quarter of Americans live in a state where pot is at least medically available.

South Carolina, if Rutherford’s bill can garner enough traction and support, could join the legion of states whose marijuana laws are rapidly changing. South Carolinians are ready for a change in the law: in a poll conducted in October, 78 percent said they support medical marijuana.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post South Carolina Lawmaker Introduces Medical Marijuana Bill appeared first on Law Street.

Arizona medical marijuana cardholders now have a better ability to defend themselves if they are charged with a marijuana DUI. The Arizona State Court of Appeals ruled that prosecutors must present sufficient evidence that an individual was actually impaired at the time of the arrest.

The ruling overturned a man’s marijuana  conviction, after the defense argued he should have been able to present evidence that he wasn’t impaired. Nadir Ishak was pulled over by police in 2013 after he was seen drifting into another lane. According to the officer, Ishak admitted that he had smoked marijuana earlier that morning and was exhibiting body and eye tremors during the test. Ishak was acquitted of the charge of driving under the influence but convicted for driving with marijuana in his body. However, the judge determined there wasn’t enough evidence to support that conviction.

“[A]ccording to evidence here, there is no scientific consensus about the concentration of THC that generally is sufficient to impair a human being,” appellate Judge Diane Johnsen wrote.

The appeals judge determined that defendants can defend a conviction “through cross-examination of prosecution witnesses or by providing their own testimony and evidence on whether they were impaired.”

According to the Associated Press, the ruling was made possible thanks to a 2015 Arizona Supreme Court decision that determined patients could use their medical marijuana cards as a defense, but not as immunity. Cardholders can try to prove that they didn’t have enough THC, marijuana’s major psychoactive component, in their system to impair their ability to operate the vehicle safety.

This decision is seen as a major setback for prosecutors since Arizona, unlike some other states, has no laws outlining the legal limit of THC that may be absorbed in the blood before an individual is determined to be impaired.

While this decision doesn’t mean medical marijuana cardholders cannot be convicted of DUIs, it does grant users more freedom in protecting their right to a prescription. Patients must decide for themselves if medicating with  cannabis before driving is worth the risk of a potential arrest.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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States with medical marijuana laws have fewer traffic fatalities than those without, especially among younger drivers, says a new study.

Researchers at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health found on average an 11 percent reduction in traffic fatalities when examining places that have enacted medical-marijuana laws–in total, 28 states and the District of Columbia.

There was also a strong correlation between the presence of medical marijuana dispensaries and fewer traffic fatalities, claimed the study, which was published in the American Journal of Public Health.

The presence of medical marijuana laws seemed to have the biggest effect on the number of traffic fatalities for individuals between the ages of 15 and 44, with special emphasis on those aged 25 to 44 years.

Dr, Silvia Martins, a physician and associate professor who was a senior author of the study, told the Washington Post that the lower traffic fatality rates could be related to lower levels of alcohol-impaired driving as people–especially younger people–substitute weed for booze.

“We found evidence that states with the marijuana laws in place compared with those which did not, reported, on average, lower rates of drivers endorsing driving after having too many drinks,” Martins said in a written statement.

However, not every state experienced a substantial reduction in traffic fatalities. California and New Mexico, for example, both experienced gradual increases in traffic deaths after initial reductions of 16 percent and 17.5 percent, respectively.

“These findings provide evidence of the heterogeneity of medical marijuana laws and indicate the need for further research on the particularities of implementing the laws at the local level,” said Julian Santaella-Tenorio, a doctoral student in epidemiology at Columbia, and the study’s lead author. “It also indicates an interaction of medical marijuana laws with other aspects, such as stronger police enforcement, that may influence traffic fatality rates.”

While medical marijuana laws have seemingly influenced these rates, they may not be the sole factor driving the change.

According to Martins, other factors that might help explain the correlation could be the “strength of public health laws related to driving, infrastructure characteristics, or the quality of health care systems.”

Researchers used National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data on traffic fatalities from 1985 to 2014 to conduct the study. Factors such as whether the states had graduated driver licensing laws, as well as median household income, unemployment rates, laws increasing the speed limit to 70 mph or more, laws on enforcing the use of seat belts, and bans on using cellphones and texting while driving were all taken into account.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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The Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) added a new code Wednesday to its Federal Register that reclassifies CBD oil and other marijuana extracts as Schedule 1 drugs. This effectively makes all forms of marijuana illegal under federal law, sending shockwaves throughout the cannabis industry.

In the announcement titled “Establishment of a New Drug Code for Marihuana Extract,” the DEA created a new code for marijuana extract, which is defined as: “an extract containing one or more cannabinoids that has been derived from any plant of the genus Cannabis, other than the separated resin (whether crude or purified) obtained from the plant.’’

According to the DEA, this code will allow the agency to track quantities of CBD and other marijuana extracts imported and exported to and from the U.S. separately from quantities of marijuana.

CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a natural cannabis compound that is useful for treating a number of medical conditions including epilepsy, anxiety, schizophrenia, and chronic pain. Unlike THC, CBD does not get you high. Despite this, it is now listed under the same classification of “hard drugs” as heroin, LSD, and bath salts.

Nate Bradley, executive director of the California Cannabis Industry Association, criticized the move in an interview with Westworld. Bradley called it another example of the government neglecting modern science, saying:

It’s common knowledge that CBD has numerous medical uses, including curbing the effects of epilepsy and reducing muscle inflammation from injuries. To deny that shows a complete disregard for the facts.

The new classification has the possibility to interfere greatly with commerce in the growing medical CBD industry, leaving businesses that currently produce and sell the once-legal drug in a kind of legal limbo. It also opens up consumers and patients who rely on the non-psychoactive oil to possible criminal charges.

CBD is available nationwide, and as mentioned in our “State of Weed” coverage on marijuana legalization state by state, it is legal for select medical purposes in a number of states where neither medical nor recreational marijuana are legal.

Political commentators have speculated on the impact Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) could have on the cannabis industry if confirmed as Attorney General under the new Trump administration. Sessions has been an outspoken opponent of marijuana legalization, and could use his authority to enforce federal marijuana laws over state legislation.

The code will go into effect January 13, 2017.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post CBD and Other Marijuana Extracts Made Illegal Under New DEA Code appeared first on Law Street.

Israel’s central drug enforcement body, the Israel Anti-Drug Authority (IADA), expressed its support of marijuana decriminalization during a Knesset special committee hearing on Monday. Eitan Gorani, chairman of IADA, said the authority “favors the Portugal model,” referencing Portugal’s focus on marijuana, and all other drugs for that matter, as a public health issue, not a criminal one. Portugal decriminalized all drugs, including marijuana, in 2000.

Gorani’s statement came during the Knesset’s Special Committee on Drug and Alcohol Abuse. “We believe that, as a result of developments in the world, the main problem of using cannabis is social and medical, while the criminal matter is only tangential,” he said.

Israel has some of the most liberal medical marijuana laws in the world, and certainly in the Middle East. Recreational cannabis is illegal, but Israel has a wide-ranging medical program, and pharmacies will be selling the drug in the next few months. About 27,000 Israelis are medical marijuana patients, and use medical marijuana to ease their maladies.

Gorani was not the only person present at the special committee hearing to express support for decriminalizing weed. Tamar Zandberg, chairman of the special committee, said: “Israel is advancing toward a new era, and it seems that legalization of marijuana is just a matter of time.” But not every member of the Knesset, Israel’s legislative body, is in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Oren Hazan, a member of the Likud Party, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s party, said it is “absurd for a committee that is supposed to fight drug addiction to encourage the use of a drug that will mess up young people’s heads and destroy the Israel Defense Forces.” And Health Minister Ya’acov Litzman, while proposing a bill earlier this year that widened the scope of Israel’s medical marijuana program, has been opposed to legalizing it for recreational use.

There have been a number of bills that have been proposed legalizing small amounts of marijuana, but all have been struck down. Monday was the first time Israel’s drug enforcement body recommended decriminalizing marijuana. But as the top cabinet members, including Litzman and Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan oppose IADA’s recommendation, decriminalization could still be a ways off.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Students in New Jersey’s Ridgefield Park School District can now legally receive medical marijuana treatments while on school grounds thanks to a recent Board of Education ruling.

The measure approved Wednesday permits parents or guardians to administer medical marijuana to students while on school grounds, on a school bus, or at a school-sponsored event. Governor Chris Christie signed the legislation earlier this month in an effort to allow caregivers the ability to give edible medical marijuana to their sick and disabled children–the law specifically prohibits smoking marijuana.

In order to legally receive the drug, a child must be diagnosed with a developmental disability, and be a registered patient with the state medicinal marijuana program.

The bill was inspired by Roger and Lora Barbour’s fight to allow their 16-year-old daughter Genny to bring her medicine to school. Genny, who was diagnosed with autism and severe epilepsy, takes prescribed cannabis oil multiple times a day to treat her seizures. Since she began the regimen, she has been seizure-free.

Medical marijuana is now legal in 28 states, and four states, including New Jersey, Colorado, Maine, and Washington, have legislation specifically regarding schools.

According to NorthJersey.com, parents will need to submit a written request to the principal to have a primary caregiver administer the drug while on school property. The principal, school nurse, and superintendent will review each request to determine approval.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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In the 1960’s, an Israeli scientist, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, was one of the first to discover CBD in a cannabis plant. Soon after, he unraveled the structure of THC, the psychoactive property of the plant. Now, two Israeli companies are breaking new ground, becoming the first in the world to develop an inhaler that will administer medical marijuana in precise, doctor-prescribed doses. Developed by Syqe Medical and marketed and distributed by Teva Pharmaceuticals, the inhaler is set to hit the market as soon as it’s approved by the Health Ministry. It has already been approved for hospital use. 

Syqe Medical, in a statement released Monday, said its groundbreaking product will “revolutionize the field of medical cannabis,” and “will allow medical professionals to prescribe an optimal dose of cannabis, alleviating the patient’s symptoms while minimizing the psychoactive effects.” Patients at Rambam Medical Center in the port city of Haifa have been using the inhaler for the past year, but now the product–the inhaler itself is a onetime purchase and the disposable cartridges last one month–is ready to hit the market.

Teva signs deal to market Syqe Medical’s cannabis inhaler https://t.co/YYjFulvaDq

— Remi L. Roy (@remilroy) November 28, 2016

Inhaling marijuana, in contrast to smoking or eating it, offers patients and doctors greater precision when ingesting and prescribing the drug for specific diseases. Other modes of ingestion are difficult to monitor and dose. According to a statement from Teva Pharmaceuticals, the world’s largest generic drugmaker, the inhaler would be the first in the world to deliver precise doses of cannabis. Plenty of people around the world use inhalers to deliver medical marijuana, but the doses are not measured or precise according to their diagnosis.

Israel legalized medical marijuana in 1992, and the latest statistics put its number of patients at 26,000, a number that is expected to double by 2018. Teva Pharmaceuticals, which is also one of the world’s top ten drug companies, said in a statement that its partnership with Syqe Medical “demonstrates the company’s commitment to improving the health of its patients and it is consistent with Teva Israel’s strategy of investing in — or partnering with — local startups and groundbreaking Israeli initiatives while providing access to innovative technologies and advanced medical devices.”

Editor’s Note: This post was updated on 11/29 to clarify that the Syqe inhaler has already been approved for hospital use. 

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Days after eight states voted to legalize marijuana in some form or to expand existing laws, President-elect Donald Trump picked Sen. Jeff Sessions, a vocal critic of legalization, to head the Justice Department as the new attorney general. With the disparate marijuana laws between the federal government and states, marijuana and criminal justice advocacy groups, not to mention users and regulated sellers, are expressing concerns about how the Trump Administration would affect the state-level legal market.

During a Senate hearing in April, Sessions offered a glimpse of his views on marijuana, attitudes that might shape his approach as attorney general. “We need grown-ups in Washington to say marijuana is not the kind of thing that ought to be legalized, it ought not to be minimized, that it is in fact a very real danger,” he said. He added that marijuana “is dangerous, you cannot play with it, it is not funny,” and “good people don’t smoke marijuana.”

As attorney general, Sessions would oversee federal prosecutors as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration. It’s unclear how he would enforce the federal ban at the state level, if he would at all, but it’s the ambiguity and the unknown, with a noted marijuana critic at the helm, that is worrying to advocacy groups and other actors in states where the industry is regulated. 

Trump, who has expressed his support for states’ rights to legalize pot, would have the ability to block any crackdowns administered by Sessions. But another unknown is how hands-on Trump will be with the Justice Department, especially concerning marijuana law. John Hudak, a marijuana policy expert with the Brookings Institution, spoke with The New York Times recently about what Sessions would have the reign to do. He said:

As attorney general, Sessions would have the ability to rescind two Justice Department directives–known as the Cole and Ogden memos–that called for stepping back from marijuana prosecutions. He could also use federal law enforcement power against operators and sue state regulators to block state systems.

As it currently stands, marijuana is designated a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, and is illegal at the federal level. Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have legalized weed in some form, however, and the majority of Americans, around 60 percent, live in one of these places. How Trump might deal with reconciling federal and state marijuana laws, and how his newly appointed attorney general might steer the Justice Department in such matters, is an open question that will take at least a few months to answer.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Walk around some pet stores in the U.S., and you might stumble upon a deceiving product: wishbone-shaped treats, that look like any other dog treat, but are made with CBD, the non-psychoactive cannabinoid in the cannabis plant. No, adding the treat to your puppy’s Iams or your kitty’s Meow Mix won’t have them watching Planet Earth while debating the answers of the multiverse, but it might help relieve their anxiety, or other physical ailments like inflammation and pain. As more states legalize medical or recreational marijuana, pet owners are increasingly turning to pot-for-pet edibles to alleviate their furry friends’ maladies and discomforts.

Some pet stores and dispensaries in states where recreational or medical marijuana is legal offer pot-based products for pets; not just for dogs and cats, but pigs, horses, and other small mammals as well. Pet edibles come in different forms, and are made with different ingredients. Some only contain CBD, which lacks the psychoactive effects of THC, an ingredient that is dangerous for animals to consume. Others contain traces of both CBD and THC, and can only be administered if the owner obtains a medical marijuana license in a state where medical marijuana is permitted.

Regulators have not approved these products, and the federal classification of marijuana as an illegal substance has some stores and owners reluctant to sell or buy pot-based pet treats. And while there is no scientific, data-based evidence for the positive effects of pot on pets, there are plenty of anecdotes that are enough to have some buyers reaching for cannabis’ curative properties.

Some products have found ways around federal and state laws to allow people to purchase pot-based pet treats and oils even without a medical marijuana license. Hemp, which is increasingly being legally cultivated in at least 30 states, is sometimes used. Products made with hemp, which contains less THC than marijuana, do not require medical marijuana licenses for purchase.

Unfortunately, some statistics also show that since marijuana legalization, there has been an uptick in pets getting ill from unwittingly sneaking edibles from their owner. From 2012 to 2015 the Pet Poison Helpline saw a fourfold increase in calls from people whose pets became intoxicated with marijuana. In 2014, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals received over 200 more calls related to pets poisoned by cannabis than in 2013.

At least one state has tried to pass a law allowing veterinarians to prescribe marijuana to people’s pets. A law in Nevada that would allow vets to administer medical licenses to pets was struck down in 2015. So while the dream of getting high with your dog is potentially dangerous and should largely remain a dream, the market for animal edibles is one that will probably continue to grow.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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It’s probably safe to say that the creators of California’s Prop 64 probably didn’t intend to cost the state millions–before earning it billions–with the legalization of recreational marijuana. But that’s exactly what may have happened thanks to a legislative blunder that will give medical marijuana patients a lengthy tax holiday.

Prop 64 was designed to apply a 15 percent excise tax to all recreational and medical marijuana sales starting January 1, 2018. The excise tax would be tacked onto a 7.5 percent sales tax for recreational marijuana, but Prop 64 repealed that tax for medical marijuana.

According to the Washington Post, the tax exemption was intended to give medical marijuana users a tax break beginning in 2018, but the January 1, 2018 target date was regrettably omitted from the 62-page initiative. Therefore, the tax exemption went into effect this week once the initiative passed. The initiative’s creators argued that it wasn’t their intention to grant a 14-month tax holiday to medical marijuana users, but California’s Board of Equalization ruled otherwise.

“The resulting revenue loss for 2017 is estimated to be as much as $49.5 million,” said board member Jerome Horton, citing the total tax revenue collected from 1,632 dispensaries in 2014. “Local cities who anticipate preserving their revenue from medical marijuana may get nothing since Proposition 64 provides for a complete exemption from medical marijuana.”

There are precedents for ignoring legal provisions that clearly contain clerical errors, but the Board didn’t see fit to invoke them. That means the provision is legally binding, despite its financial implications.

This marijuana loophole has many people who were interested in using recreational weed considering medical marijuana cards as a more cost-effective alternative.

David Goldman, a medical marijuana patient and president of the Brownie Mary Democratic Club–the first politically affiliated Cannabis club in California–told the San Francisco Chronicle that he intends to keep using his medical card despite Prop 64 being passed.

“I purposely renewed my registration this month,” said Goldman. “If you spend more than $100 on cannabis in a month, you will probably do better if you get the state card.”

In order to become a medical marijuana patient in California, individuals must first obtain a recommendation from a doctor before applying for a Medical Marijuana Identification Card or MMIC with the California Department of Public Health, which includes a $100 fee.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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All eyes were on the results of the presidential election on Tuesday night, and rightfully so. But America is changing in other ways, chief among which is the widening acceptance of marijuana. Nine states voted on ballot measures to legalize marijuana either recreationally or medically. See how the four states with medical measures on their ballots voted below.

Arkansas

Courtesy of J. Stephen Conn; License (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Results: Passed

Issue 6 will legalize medical marijuana for 17 qualifying conditions. It will also designate money made from pot taxes to technical institutes, vocational schools, workforce training, and the General Fund. An additional measure, Issue 7, was stricken from the ballot by the Arkansas Supreme Court on October 27.

Analysis: Medical marijuana in Arkansas garnered enough support over the past four years to shift a majority of the state from rejecting it in 2012 to supporting it in 2016. Issue 6 passed with 53 percent of the vote on Tuesday night, bringing another medical marijuana program–along with Louisiana and Florida–to the South.

“When you have a red state doing a progressive issue, it gives people in the U.S. Congress the color — for lack of a better word — to allow reform at the national level,” said David Couch, the lawyer who sponsored Issue 6.

For more information on marijuana legalization state by state, click here for “The State of Weed.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Right now we all hear a lot of “Hillary Clinton this,” “Donald Trump that.” Love or hate Donald and Hillary, the 2016 presidential election has dominated our newsfeeds and happy hour conversations. And don’t get me wrong–the presidential election is incredibly important. But many of the laws that affect us on a day-to-day basis are made at the state level, often by our state legislators, but also by us, the American people. States give voters the opportunity to weigh in on important questions, and in some cases directly impact our state’s laws through ballot measures. And there’s a bunch up for grabs this year that millennials should be paying attention to. Learn more about ballot measures, and Law Street’s picks for the top five types of ballot measures we should all be paying attention to below. 

What is a Ballot Measure?

Generally speaking, a ballot measure is a public vote on a proposed issue or question that voters get to weigh in on. Rules about ballot measures vary from state to state and there are a few different ways that ballot measures end up on the ballot. One type, a ballot initiative, requires signatures from citizens who want to see the question weighed by voters. Another option is legislative referral, in which the legislature puts up a law it’s considering to be voted on. In some states, this process is required to pass an amendment to the state constitution.

Why Should I Care About Ballot Measures?

They give you a chance to weigh in directly on issues. America’s government is, at its core, a representative democracy. We elect people to make decisions for us, and we have to accept that sometimes we don’t like those decisions. We, as millennials, routinely answer in polls that we don’t trust the government, the path our country is on, or our elected officials.

But ballot initiatives are different–they’re a real, legitimate way to vote on issues we care about. There’s not really political middlemen to deal with. They’re direct democracy. Regardless of how you feel about the politicians you’ll be asked to vote for in November, it’s important that you make your voice heard on these issues, many of which can and likely will affect millennials.

Gun Control

Image courtesy of Peretz Partensky; License: (CC BY-SA 2.0)

What States are Looking at Gun Control Measures?

California’s Proposition 63: Proposition 63, which is also called the “Safety for All Initiative,” would prohibit Californians from owning high-capacity magazines, make any gun theft a felony, and tighten a variety of loopholes regarding felons owning guns. The especially contentious part of the proposal, however, is that it would require a background check and a four-year permit to obtain ammunition. Here’s the full text.

Maine’s Question 3: Question 3 would require a background check when an individual who is not a licensed firearm dealer sells or transfers a gun to another individual. They would have to meet at a licensed firearm dealer in order to conduct the background check, although there are exceptions, such as for family members. Here’s the full text.

Nevada’s Question 1: Nevada will be asking voters to vote on whether firearm transfers have to go through licensed gun dealers, and therefore be required to have a background check. Like Maine, there would be some exceptions to these provisions, like temporary transfers or transfers to family members would not require a gun dealer. Here’s the full text.

Washington’s Initiative 1491: Formally named the “Individual Gun Access Prevention by Court Order” a “yes” vote on this initiative would allow the use of courts to issue “extreme risk protection orders,” that would prevent someone from having a firearm. This would be used for people who pose a serious threat to themselves or others. Here’s the full text.

Image copyright Law Street Media

Why should we be paying attention to gun control measures?

From Columbine, to Virginia Tech, to Sandy Hook, our lives have been marked by high profile gun violence. We learned what to do if there was an armed shooter in our schools–a drill that probably would have been unthinkable to our parents. We grew up watching violent movies and playing first person shooter video games–a phenomenon that had some worried about the relationship between young people and violence. And guns affect many of our daily lives too–54 percent of Americans killed by gun violence in 2010 were under the age of 30. But exactly how to deal with this violence hasn’t necessarily manifested itself in strong support for one side or the other: do we need more control or less?

Millennials remain split on gun control measures as a whole. A 2015 Gallup poll found that 50 percent of millennials support more gun control, which stands in contrast to 57 percent of the 30-49 age bracket. A 2015 Pew poll also saw millennials almost perfectly split on whether or not to ban assault weapons.

These measures give us the chance to weigh in more directly depending on how we feel about the prospect of more restrictions and the Second Amendment.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Election Day 2016: Top 5 Ballot Measures to Watch appeared first on Law Street.

Canada’s biggest pharmacy chain is hoping to be the first in the country to sell legal medical marijuana over the counter. Shoppers Drug Mart has confirmed that it applied to the Canadian government earlier this year to become a licensed medical marijuana distributer.

In email statement Tuesday, Shoppers Drug Mart spokeswoman Tammy Smitham confirmed the news adding, “We have no intention of producing medical marijuana, but we do want the ability to dispense medical marijuana to our patients in conjunction with counseling from a pharmacist.”

Under Canadian federal law, patients with prescriptions are only able to purchase medical marijuana directly from one of a few dozen licensed producers. Producers are required to securely ship pot directly to the patient by mail order only.

“We believe that allowing medical marijuana to be dispensed through pharmacy would increase access, safety, quality and security for the thousands of Canadians who use the drug as part of their medication therapy,” explained Smitham. “We are hoping that the Government of Canada will revise the current regulations to allow for the dispensing of medical marijuana at pharmacy.”

Canada currently has an exceptionally large number of medical marijuana users; experts estimate that there are approximately 80,000 to 90,000 registered marijuana patients in the country.

In August, the Canadian Pharmacist Association argued in favor of clinical oversight from pharmacists to minimize harms associated with use of all forms of marijuana in its submission to the federal task force studying marijuana legalization and regulation.

“We know that these medications are potent, we know that marijuana is potent and that there can be drug interactions with medical marijuana,” said spokesman Phil Emberley, adding:

The other reason to have it available through pharmacies is that pharmacies can potentially have it paid for through a third party payer. If a physician prescribes it, a pharmacist dispenses it, then their insurance program could potentially pay for it, which I don’t think is going to be possible on the recreational side.

Shoppers has more than 1,200 locations across Canada. If approved, it could set the tone for other pharmacies to follow suit in expanding to serve medical marijuana over-the-counter. Its competitor Rexall told CNNMoney that it is monitoring the situation, but not applying for a distribution license at this point.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Edible marijuana has a bit of a bad reputation. Take too little and expect to ask yourself “is anything happening?” about a thousand times for the next several hours, but take too much and well….you’ll be high as a kite. Relax, you likely won’t die; however, increased heart rate, paranoia, and  nausea are all possible side effects of “greening out.”

Hoping to help end some of the stigma surrounding baked goods like “pot brownies,” edible producers have begun to take the guess work out of  marijuana edibles with microdosing.

Microdosing aims to get people high–but not too high–by lowering the dose of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, to small amounts typically ranging between 5 and 10 milligrams. The practice doesn’t just apply to baked goods. Aside from brownie bites, these marijuana-infused products also include chocolates, bottled water, and even barbecue sauce.

Seattle edibles producer Spot is one of the companies taking advantage of the trend in hopes of carving out a chunk of the $5.4 billion legal industry. Co-founder Tim Moxey claims his company’s five milligram indica brownie bites are the “right level to be at,” and  aren’t “going to make you lose control.”

“No one is going to get weirded out at five milligrams,” Moxey explained. “That’s why these products are selling so quickly.”

What often sets these microdosed products apart, is the clear labeling. In fact, only 17 percent of marijuana products have been found to be labeled properly. This can be especially problematic when, say, a marijuana-infused candy bar is meant to be split into 16 pieces instead of munched on, as Maureen Dowd famously found out.

Microdosing isn’t for everyone. The subtle “mood enhancing” dose is geared more toward novice pot users, or consumers looking for a more casual experience.

“It’s that person looking for a glass of wine or beer in the evening [type] experience,” said Kristi Knoblich, chief operating officer and cofounder of pot-infused chocolates company Kiva Confections.. “We’re looking for that person who isn’t looking to get blasted.”

As states continue to pass recreational and medical marijuana measures, more Americans will find themselves exposed to this growing marijuana market. If retailers continue to ensure edible users’ experiences go a little smoother, then these mini edibles very well may just be the future.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Find out what’s buzzing on Law Street by catching up on the best stories from last week. Our 2017 rankings for “Crime in America” are out, so check out the top ten safest and most dangerous cities over 200,000. Also, learn more about Instagram’s censoring of legal medical marijuana posts. ICYMI–Check out the top stories below!

1. Crime in America 2017: Top 10 Safest Cities Over 200,000

Irvine, California, and Gilbert, Arizona, remained the two safest cities in the United States with populations over 200,000 for the fourth year in a row. Newcomers to this year’s list included Glendale, California, which previously wasn’t included because its population was below the 200,000 person threshold, and Scottsdale, Arizona, which was not included in the FBI’s statistics last year. While the overall rate of violent crime rose by a small margin in the United States–roughly 3 percent–the safest cities were a mixed bag, with both notable increases and decreases in violent crime rates. Read the full article here.

2. Instagram is Censoring Accounts With Pictures of Legal Weed

Instagram has been deleting accounts that contain pictures of marijuana, even if the location where the account is based has legalized the drug in some form. Two companies in Canada, where medical marijuana is legal, recently had their accounts shut down by the social media giant after featuring pictures of legal weed. Read the full article here.

3. Crime in America 2017: Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities Under 200,000

Rockford, Illinois, is the most dangerous city in the U.S. with a population between 100,000-200,000 people, displacing Little Rock, Arkansas, which now ranks as #2. Tallahassee, Florida moved onto the list at #8 after just missing the cut at #12 last year; Odessa, Texas also moved from #11 to #9. Many of the rest of the positions held steady and only saw small increases or decreases in their violent crime rates. Read the full article here.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post ICYMI: Best of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

Happy Monday Law Streeters! Start your week of right with Law Street’s top stories from last week, which include everything you need to know going into tonight’s first presidential debate, Instagram censoring medical marijuana posts, and a Tulsa officer charged in Terence Crutcher’s Death. ICYMI–check out the top stories below!

1. What You Need to Know About the First Presidential Debate

On Monday September 26, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will go head-to-head in the first presidential debate. The debate starts at 9 p.m. EST and will air on all major news networks and stream live on Twitter. Make sure you’re following Law Street on Twitter and Facebook for live debate coverage and commentary. For everything you need to know heading into round one, read the full article here.

2. Instagram is Censoring Accounts With Pictures of Legal Weed

Instagram has been deleting accounts that contain pictures of marijuana, even if the location where the account is based has legalized the drug in some form. Two companies in Canada, where medical marijuana is legal, recently had their accounts shut down by the social media giant after featuring pictures of legal weed. Read the full article here.

3. Tulsa Officer Charged With Manslaughter in Terence Crutcher’s Death

Betty Shelby, the police officer who shot Terence Crutcher on a highway in Tulsa, Oklahoma last week, was formally charged with manslaughter. Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler announced on Thursday that he had charged officer Shelby with first-degree manslaughter, which would amount to a minimum of four years in prison if convicted. Read the full article here.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post ICYMI: Best of the Week appeared first on Law Street.

New Jersey legislators are now weighing a bill that would legalize recreational marijuana in the state. A new bill introduced by New Jersey State Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll, a Republican, would treat it a lot like tobacco, by allowing it to be sold at places like gas stations, grocery stores, and convenience stores.

Marijuana would be able to be sold to individuals over the age of 19 in unlimited amounts. Carroll told Politico:

To me it’s just not a big deal. It’s already ubiquitous. Anybody who thinks this is somehow going to increase the availability of marijuana has never been 19. If that’s the case, then what’s the big deal about having it available at the local 7-Eleven?

The whole point here is to get the government out of the business of treating at least marijuana use as a crime and treat it instead as a social problem.

The legalization of recreational marijuana at the state level obviously doesn’t mean that New Jersey users would be in the free and clear when it comes to federal law–weed is still treated as a Schedule I substance. This can also be problematic for businesses selling recreational marijuana in states that have legalized it–for example, national banks may be reluctant to work with them, and the IRS doesn’t allow businesses that sell marijuana to take certain tax deductions.

It’s also important to note that this legalization wouldn’t affect medical marijuana, which is already legal in the state of New Jersey.

Carroll’s introduction of the bill is somewhat interesting, given that he is viewed as one of the most conservative state legislators in New Jersey. And while he claims that he has never used marijuana himself, he has consistently taken bold stances when it comes to drug laws. For example, Carroll has repeatedly said the “War on Drugs” has been a failure.

But one of Carroll’s fellow Republicans may create a problem if the bill makes it to the governor’s desk–Governor Chris Christie has promised to veto any bill that legalizes recreational marijuana. While Christie is about to be term limited out from running again, there’s no way to know what the next governor’s position on recreational marijuana will be like.

But the fact that a lawmaker is even proposing treating marijuana like tobacco would have been borderline unthinkable just a few years ago. A handful of states have officially legalized recreational use, and more states are considering it in November. Keep an eye on Law Street’s Cannabis in America coverage to stay as up-to-date as possible.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Will New Jersey Start Treating Weed like Tobacco? appeared first on Law Street.

Instagram has been deleting accounts that contain pictures of marijuana, even if the location where the account is based has legalized the drug in some form. Two companies in Canada, where medical marijuana is legal, recently had their accounts shut down by the social media giant after featuring pictures of legal weed.

Lift Cannabis Co. is a Canadian website that reviews legal strains of weed through licensed producers. A Lift representative told VICE that his company’s Instagram account was deactivated last week.

“Nothing we’re sharing is against the law,” said Lift communications director David Brown. “Instagram is a US-based company. I suspect they don’t really understand the rules involving Canada.”

Lift isn’t the only Canadian company whose Instagram account has recently been taken down.

Tweed, Canada’s largest licensed producer of medical marijuana, used its Instagram as a vital piece of its marketing strategy since advertising medical marijuana in Canada is not permitted. Its account has been shut down twice.

“The work it takes to build an online community isn’t worth it if there’s the constant risk of it disappearing,” Tweed spokesman Jordan Sinclair told VICE. He said Tweed will not open another Instagram account, but will rebuild its social presence on Snapchat and Massroots as alternatives.

Instagram’s community guidelines state: “Offering sexual services, buying or selling firearms and illegal or prescription drugs (even if it’s legal in your region) is also not allowed. Remember to always follow the law when offering to sell or buy other regulated goods.”

However, there are accounts that have pictures of marijuana plants or promote illegal weed that haven’t been deactivated. Cannabis Culture, which sells recreational weed (which is still technically illegal) in parts of Vancouver and Toronto, has an operational account. Leafy and Weedmaps, smart phone apps which review dispensaries and use GPS technology to locate them for the use, both have operating Instagram accounts as well.

Brown is dumbfounded by the seemingly arbitrary account take downs.

“So a company that operates with the entirely legal medical cannabis space in Canada gets deleted, twice, but a company that cover the federally illegal recreational culture in the US and around the world gets a pass,” Brown said. “No rhyme or reason.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Instagram is Censoring Accounts With Pictures of Legal Weed appeared first on Law Street.

Medical marijuana in Canada: there’s an app for that. Aurora Cannabis, an Alberta-based producer, launched a mobile app, believed to be the first legal app of its kind. Medical marijuana patients can now order “Sentinel,” “Snow Dome,” or other strains from their smartphones and tablets, streamlining the consumption process for the 80,000 to 90,000 Canadians with a prescription for pot.

“The fact is that people live on their phones and tablets,” said Cam Battley of Aurora Cannabis. “They use them to shop for everything from consumer products and health products to medicine. It is an acknowledgment of the reality of how people operate today.”

The app includes pictures, product descriptions, and lists the price per gram of the different strains. Customers in parts of Alberta, a western province in Canada, will receive same-day delivery, and customers everywhere get free delivery for orders of five grams or more. Cannabis is legal for medical purposes in Canada, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government is expected to legalize recreational marijuana next Spring.

Presenting the first mobile app for buying federally legal medical marijuana!
Registered Aurora clients only #acmpr pic.twitter.com/sazrxUh5wA

— Aurora Cannabis Inc (@Aurora_MMJ) September 12, 2016

Aurora Cannabis is one of 35 licensed producers of medical marijuana in the country. At its production facility in Cremona, Alberta, Aurora has ten rooms in which it cultivates its plants. The company has 7,700 registered patients. Health Canada, the government arm that regulates and oversees the marijuana industry, does not allow producers to advertise their products, but they can provide basic information on their websites, and now, their mobile apps.

In an email to Canada’s CBC News, a Health Canada spokesman said his department “does not have any concerns at this time” regarding Aurora’s app.

There are other weed-related apps on the iTunes store. Weedmaps is a marijuana directory, providing customers with the locations of doctors and dispensaries. Leafly also has a map function, but it also acts as a compilation of information regarding the thousands of strains of the drug. But according to Battley, his company’s app is the first to directly connect consumer to producer.

As cannabis laws continue to loosen in Canada and the U.S., expect to see more pot apps pop up in the near future.

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post First Medical Marijuana App Launches in Canada appeared first on Law Street.

Medical marijuana officially became legal in the state of Ohio today, making Ohio the 25th state to legalize medicinal pot. However, confusing rules and a slow implementation schedule could mean patients may have to wait between one to two years before they can get their hands on it.

As of September 8, Marijuana will be legal for approved patients to consume in the form of edibles, patches, tinctures, oils, and vapors. Smoking is still prohibited.

Governor John Kasich signed the bill into law earlier this year as part of the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program. The move came after voters failed to pass the previous year a constitutional amendment proposed by ResponsibleOhio on the statewide ballot that would have made both medical and recreational marijuana legal in the state, as well as granted exclusive growing rights to the 10 investor groups backing the backing the campaign.

What are the Problems?

While the program may be legal now, there currently are a long list of set backs and challenges that will make it incredibly difficult for patients to take advantage of the program.

Problem 1: Recommendations

Qualifying Ohioans will be required to obtain a recommendation for medical marijuana, but the federal government prohibits doctors from being able to prescribe marijuana. Therefore, patients will need to get recommendations from a certified physician instead–but currently there are no physicians certified.

“Doctors really are in limbo,” said Reginald Fields, a spokesman for the Ohio State Medical Association, to the Associated Press. “There’s a little confusion out there, so we’re essentially asking physicians to stand by until some of these issues are clarified and we can assure they’re acting on the right side of the law.”

Problem 2: Dispensaries

Another problem is figuring out from where the patients will obtain marijuana. Under the Ohio law, patients will be able to purchase the drug from licensed dispensaries, but it could be years before cultivators, dispensaries, and testing laboratories are up and running.

Problem 3: Legal Limbo

Due to clashes with federal law, banks are unable to handle money made from marijuana-related businesses, and lawyers are caught up in an ethical battle on whether or not to handle marijuana cases, which violate federal law. Then there’s also the question of what rights qualifying Ohioans will have when it comes to transporting their drugs, as well their ability to consume them in other states.

All of these problems will make it hard for Ohioans to gain access to the drug. Even so, the state is making an effort to move forward with the program. It has been given 30 days from Thursday to appoint members to the Medical Marijuana Advisory Committee, which will help develop regulations and make recommendations for putting a medical marijuana system in place.

The program is required to be fully operational no later than September 2018.

Qualifying medical conditions for the program include: AIDS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy or another seizure disorder, fibromyalgia, glaucoma, hepatitis C, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, pain that is either chronic and severe or intractable, Parkinson’s disease, positive status for HIV, post-traumatic stress disorder, sickle cell anemia, spinal cord disease or injury, Tourette’s syndrome, traumatic brain injury, and ulcerative colitis.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Medical Marijuana is Legal in Ohio, But Patients Will Be Waiting to Obtain it appeared first on Law Street.

As marijuana is slowly legalized both for recreational and medicinal purposes in a variety of states across the United States, those states’ laws sometimes come head-to-head with already-existing federal legislation. These clashes are problematic, and they can create legal gray areas that courts then need to weigh in on. That’s exactly what happened recently in a federal appeals court in San Francisco, when the court ruled that the federal government’s prohibition on medical marijuana users obtaining a firearm does not violate the Second Amendment.

The case was sparked by a Nevada woman named S. Rowan Wilson, who in 2011 tried to purchase a gun. She had a medical marijuana card, which was legal given that Nevada had legalized medicinal weed over a decade before.  The store refused to sell her the gun, because in 1968 Congress passed a law prohibiting anyone who used illegal drugs from obtaining a firearm. While Wilson wasn’t exactly using an illegal drug–at least under Nevada law–marijuana is still illegal under federal law. That’s what makes this case a perfect example of the confusing interplay between state and federal law when it comes to marijuana, yet Wilson was upset by what she saw as a violation of her Second Amendment rights.

So, Wilson sued the government. According to Consumerist, she:

Filed a federal lawsuit alleging that this refusal to sell her a firearm violated her First and Second Amendment rights, along with the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fifth Amendment. She subsequently claimed that the ATF notice that clarified the legality of selling firearms to medical marijuana users violated the Administrative Procedure Act by effectively making new rules without going through the necessary processes.

But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed 3-0 that “Congress reasonably concluded that marijuana and other drug use ‘raises the risk of irrational or unpredictable behavior with which gun use should not be associated.'”

Wilson now has the option to continue forward with the suit–it could hypothetically make its way to SCOTUS–but it’s unclear if she will do so. Yet as more states legalize marijuana, particularly for medical purposes, these are questions that courts are going to become increasingly familiar with.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Federal Appeals Court: Medical Marijuana Users Can’t Buy Firearms appeared first on Law Street.

New York officials are finally addressing concerns regarding the state’s fledgling medical marijuana program in order to better meet patients’ needs and improve accessibility. Per recommendations from the New York State Department of Health, the state will begin to offer home delivery services for patients too ill to travel, as well as enable nurse practitioners to prescribe the drug.

The changes come in response to a two-year report issued two weeks ago by the Health Department on medical marijuana use under the Compassionate Care Act. The Department of Health offered a list of 12 recommendations intended to grow the program, which has struggled to gain traction since it was first legalized in 2014.

Unlike some other states, New York does not allow medical marijuana to be smoked, but it can be consumed in a variety of other non-smokable forms including tinctures, liquids, oils, vapors, and capsules. While medical marijuana advocates have often criticized the limitations of the program, changes couldn’t be made until the state had sufficient information about the problems.

“We don’t want the federal government to come in and exercise an enormous amount of oversight and shut the entire program down,”Alphonso David, Governor Cuomo’s counsel, told the New York Times. “We’ve always been interested in expanding the program. We just wanted to make sure we had the data to support it.”

According to the Associated Press, the state intends to implement all 12 of the Health Department’s recommendations, which also include plans for more dispensaries around the state and reviewing whether to make chronic pain a condition eligible for marijuana. Only residents who suffer from severe, debilitating, or life-threatening medical conditions like cancer, AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, and epilepsy are currently eligible to qualify for the program.

Here is a list of all of the Health Department’s recommendations:

1. Authorizing nurse practitioners to certify medical marijuana patients.
2. Exploring ways to make it easier for healthcare facilities and schools to possess, secure, and administer medical marijuana products.
3. Making several general amendments to the regulations to enhance the program, including but not limited to: streamlining manufacturing requirements and broadening the capability for registered organizations to advertise their participation in the program.
4. Evaluating allowing distribution of Medical Marijuana to certified patients through home delivery services provided by registered organizations.
5. Working with the registered organizations to make more brands of medical marijuana products available to patients.
6. Continuing outreach to encourage the easing of federal restrictions on and impediments to scientific research on the potential benefits of medical marijuana, as well as the Registered Organizations’ ability to conduct financial transactions and establish traditional banking relationships.
7. Conducting a review of evidence for the medical use of marijuana in patients suffering from chronic intractable pain.
8. Identifying opportunities to enhance the practitioner, patient, and caregiver certification and registration system.
9. Meet additional patient demand and increase access to medical marijuana throughout New York State with five additional organizations over the next two years.
10. Making independent laboratories in NY apply for ELAP certification to perform testing of medical marijuana products for registered organizations.
11. Expanding the financial hardship waiver for the $50 patient and caregiver application fee for registration.
12. Streamlining and enhancing the practitioner registration process, to make it easier for practitioners to register with the program.

According to the Times, we can expect changes to the program as early as the end of next month.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post New York Expands Medical Marijuana Program to Include Home Delivery appeared first on Law Street.

Maryland officials announced the recipients of preliminary licenses to grow and process medical marijuana Monday, two years after then-Governor Martin O’Malley passed Maryland’s first workable medical marijuana law. The licenses are expected to be extremely lucrative in the state based on the limited number of businesses that can participate in the industry, as well as the few restrictions on who can buy the drug.

The Natalie M. LaPrade Medical Cannabis Commission was placed in charge of the selection process,  choosing 15 growers and 15 processors out of the more than 1,000 overall applicants.

According to Baltimore ABC affiliate, the selections for grower entities and locations are:

• Curio Cultivation LLC – Baltimore County
• Doctors Orders Maryland LLC – Dorchester County
• Forward Gro LLC – Anne Arundel County
• Freestate Wellness LLC – Howard County
• Green Leaf Medical LLC – Frederick County
• Grow West MD LLC – Garrett County
• Harvest of Maryland LLC – Washington County
• HMS Health LLC – Frederick County
• Holistic Industries LLC – Prince George’s County
• Kind Therapeutics USA LLC – Washington County
• Maryland Compassionate Care and Wellness LLC – Carroll County
• MaryMed LLC – Dorchester County
• Shore Natural Rx LLC – Worcester County
• SunMed Growers LLC – Cecil County
• Temescal Wellness of MD LLC – Baltimore City

The processor entities and locations are:

• AFS Maryland LLC – Wicomico County
• Blair Wellness Center LLC – Worcester County
• Chesapeake Alternatives LLC – Queen Anne’s County
• Curio Manufacturing LLC – Baltimore County
• Doctors Orders Maryland LLC – Dorchester County
• FGM Processing LLC – Charles County
• Holistic Industries LLC – Prince George’s County
• Kind Therapeutics USA LLC – Washington County
• Maryland Compassionate Care and Wellness – Carroll County
• MaryMed LLC – Dorchester County
• Pharmaculture Corporation – Alleghany County
• Pro Green Medical LLC – Frederick County
• Rosebud Organics LLC – Montgomery County
• Seven Points Agro-Therapeutics LLC – Prince George’s County
• Temescal Wellness of MD – Baltimore City

The top applicants were selected on August 5; however, the commission waited more than a week to release the names to the public. Some of the names on the list include companies with ties to politicians and law enforcement, as well as growers from other states including Colorado, New York, and Illinois.

The number of growers and processors was capped at 15 each due to a stipulation in Maryland’s medical marijuana law, but some applicants received licenses in both categories. Aside from the 30 winners, the panel also chose five applicants to be alternates in each category, in case any of the top 15 fail to be licensed after another round of inspections, reviews, and background checks.

In total, the commission received 145 grower applications and 124 processor applications. According to the Baltimore Sun, 800 applicants also applied for 94 dispensary licenses to sell the legalized cannabis product; however, medical cannabis won’t be available for purchase in dispensaries until 2017.

Patients suffering from medical conditions that cause severe or chronic pain, nausea, seizures, severe muscle spasms, and severe appetite loss, as well as people with glaucoma or post-traumatic stress disorder will have access to the medical marijuana cards once the program takes off. In the meantime, marijuana advocates frustrated with Maryland’s slower than average implementation of the law will have to wait just a little longer before they see the changes in full effect.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Preliminary Licenses to Grow and Process Marijuana Named in Maryland appeared first on Law Street.

I’m a little late for the gathering of the parade, but can still smell it from at least two blocks away. The cloudy New York sky matches the fumes from the joints as the 17th annual NYC Cannabis Parade marches south on Broadway toward Union Square. An enormous hot air balloon in the shape of a lit joint is carried along to the chanting of classic rock songs, with the lyrics replaced by one word–‘marijuana’.

The group in the parade was as diverse as New York itself–people of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds, people wearing all green, people in one-pieces with weed patterns, and one group wearing t-shirts saying “Law enforcement for legalization.”

Image courtesy of Evershed Mattingly

“I’m in the long-term care field, and I see way too many people in jail for just using,” said Jeanette McDonald, one of the t-shirt wearers. She’s not a user herself, but is all for the medical use of marijuana for pain management. “To arrest them doesn’t make any sense, go after the terrorists instead.”

The medical use of weed to ease pain seemed to be the most important aspect for many people at the event. Beata Kosmik, dressed in a green creation with a crown of tulle on her head, is in a band that performs to raise awareness about the medical benefits of marijuana. She’s an eco educator–campaigning for a natural, green way of life. Her granddaughter has Dravet syndrome, a kind of infant epilepsy that can be alleviated by a drug containing cannabis but is still in the research stage here in the U.S., so she lives in London.

Image courtesy of Evershed Mattingly

Steven, who wore American Flag overalls and carried a Pride flag, told me he wants decriminalization of all drugs. “It’s corrupt–all these people that are incarcerated for using, it breaks up families, people go to jail for this. Weed doesn’t kill.” Steven also pointed out that so many Afro-American youths get locked up for something that now is considered cool by young white hipsters.

Marijuana was legalized for medical use in New York almost a year ago, and the law came into effect in January. But among the states that allow some kind of marijuana use, it’s one of the most restrictive, and it’s really hard for patients to gain access to legal pot. Classic smoking is actually still forbidden. But if the participants of the Cannabis Parade get their way, that will soon be changed.

To sum up the situation, Steven said: “America has bad fucking karma. The roller coaster is going downhill, and now it’s time to deal with it.”

Emma Von Zeipel

Emma Von Zeipel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. She is originally from one of the islands of Stockholm, Sweden. After working for Democratic Voice of Burma in Thailand, she ended up in New York City. She has a BA in journalism from Stockholm University and is passionate about human rights, good books, horses, and European chocolate. Contact Emma at EVonZeipel@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post The Fight for Total Legalization Continues at the NYC Cannabis Parade appeared first on Law Street.

Whoopi Goldberg is the latest celebrity to try to get in on the legal marijuana market. She has started the “Whoopi & Maya brand,” which will produce marijuana-infused products advertised as solutions for pesky period cramps.

Whoopi Goldberg partners with Maya Elisabeth, And announces launch of @whoopiandmaya. A product line for women. pic.twitter.com/sUC5N8rs8r

— _DCNetwork_ (@_DCNetwork_) March 30, 2016

Goldberg is teaming up with Maya Elisabeth from Om Edibles, an all-female edibles company, hence the company name. They plan on starting with four products, available this April. The products will only be sold in California right now due to complicated legal restrictions in other states. According to the Daily Beast, the product line will include:

A ‘raw sipping chocolate’ infused with CBD or THC, a tincture (liquid extract) for ‘serious discomfort,’ a THC-infused bath soak, and a topical rub for localized pain.

Goldberg has been transparent about her marijuana use, particularly the fact that she uses a vape pen to help her with pain relief and dealing with stress. Goldberg explained her motivation for creating these products, highlighting the difficulties that are inherent in using medical marijuana:

For me, I feel like if you don’t want to get high high, this is a product specifically just to get rid of discomfort. Smoking a joint is fine, but most people can’t smoke a joint and go to work.

This, you can put it in your purse. You can put the rub on your lower stomach and lower back at work, and then when you get home you can get in the tub for a soak or make tea, and it allows you to continue to work throughout the day.

It makes sense that Goldberg wants to tap into the rapidly-growing marijuana market. The results of early legalization in states like Colorado and Washington look very good, the market is growing annually by 31 percent, and some experts estimate that it could become a $20 billion market by 2020.

While others have called their product niche, Goldberg and Elisabeth disagree, given that women do make up a little over half of the United States population. If the marijuana industry grows as quickly as is expected, and these products catch on, Goldberg and Elisabeth could have a total winner on their hands.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Whoopi Goldberg is a Ganjapreneur Who Wants to Help Treat Your Period Cramps appeared first on Law Street.

Oregon’s first week of selling legalized marijuana has been, by pretty much all accounts, a success. The first week of sales topped an estimated $11 million, blowing sales from other states with legalized weed, including Colorado and Washington, out of the water. If those sales keep up, Oregon can expect to see a pretty noticeable bump in new revenue when the sales taxes kick in this January.

Oregon began selling legal marijuana for recreational uses on October 1, after Ballot Measure 91 to legalize it was successful during the 2014 midterm elections. Just over 56 percent of voters voted to legalize marijuana, and the state took almost a year to put in place the necessary regulations and protocols to sell legalized week. However, there are still some aspects of the industry that are being sorted out.

Currently, only adults 21 and older are allowed to purchase marijuana. Only “flower and dry leaf products, plants, and seeds” are being sold and there are restrictions on the amounts of those items that are able to be sold. Other products, like edibles, are still not being sold to recreational users as some regulation kinks are worked out, but are still available to medical marijuana license holders.

Currently, only licensed medical marijuana dispensaries are allowed to sell the products; there are roughly 200 of those in Oregon. There are plans to begin allowing standalone stores dedicated to selling legalized marijuana sometime next year. Additionally, there are some places where legalized marijuana won’t be sold in Oregon, as the state has allowed individual cities and counties to prohibit the sale.

One the first day of sales–October 1–the Oregon Retail Cannabis Association estimated that there was roughly $3.5 million in sales. This is good news for the state, given that it set a tax revenue goal of $9 million for the first fiscal year. Recreational marijuana won’t be taxed in Oregon until January, at 25 percent. The Oregon Retail Cannabis Association is very optimistic about that $9 million goal–it believes that the tax revenue brought in will be three to four times as much.

So far Oregon’s foray into legalized marijuana has been a success, even just a week in. While there are still regulations that need to be figured out, and the addition of taxes in January may slow down some sales, Oregon is on its way to being a great economic example in the argument for legalizing marijuana.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Oregon’s First Week of Legalized Weed Sales Rakes in $11 Million appeared first on Law Street.

College students are big partiers–that’s no secret. But their vice of choice may be changing. Marijuana use is up among college students, surpassing cigarettes for the first time. Even more surprisingly, rates of alcohol abuse are also falling.

The study looked at 1,500 students at two and four year universities around the country in order to reach its conclusions. According to the study, habitual cigarette usage among students is down to about five percent, a sizable drop from years past. Just 16 years ago, in 1999, 19 percent of college students reported daily cigarette use. On the other hand, almost six percent of college students use marijuana daily. That’s the highest rate since 1980, when data reporting marijuana use among college students was first reported.

The rate of students using marijuana semi-regularly is also up. According to the Chicago Tribune: “Twenty-one percent of the college students surveyed said they had used marijuana at least once during the previous month, and 34 percent said they had used it in the past year.”

Incidences of dangerous drinking among college students are also decreasing. Binge drinking among college students, defined as having five or more drinks in a row in the past two weeks has dropped  from 44 percent in 1984 to 35 percent in 2014. Extreme binge drinking, which is defined as “having had 15 or more drinks in a row at least once in the previous two weeks,” is falling. Only five percent of students reported that behavior in this year’s study.

But this news isn’t unique to college students. This sort of shift is consistent with the general population’s views on cigarettes and marijuana. Now that multiple states have legalized the recreational use of marijuana, and medical use is all but commonplace in many other states, the use of weed is becoming more and more acceptable. A majority of Americans–a slim majority, but a majority all the same–believe that recreational marijuana should be legalized for adults. Additionally, a majority of Americans believe that alcohol is more dangerous to an individual’s health than marijuana. And possibly most strikingly, almost exactly half of Americans have tried marijuana at some point in their lives.

Of course as weed becomes more acceptable generally nationwide, it’s important that the risks that are still associated with marijuana, particularly for young people, are not overly minimized. Some studies have raised concerns that for young people whose brains are still developing, marijuana can have some negative long term effects.

That being said, overall there’s a lot of good news in the study. Alcohol and cigarettes have long been consumed at worrisome levels by college students. College students will probably always partake in illegal substances, but changes to the ways in which they do so will probably continue to reflect the national zeitgeist when it comes to drug and alcohol acceptance.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post College Students Are Smoking More Marijuana, Fewer Cigarettes appeared first on Law Street.

In Colorado and thinking about smoking marijuana after work? Might want to reconsider that. Even though many Colorado residents qualify to use medical marijuana regularly, it can carry many consequences for consumers. In a landmark Colorado Supreme Court decision, Coats v. Dish Network, the court decided that employers can now lawfully terminate employees for using medical marijuana, even if they are off the clock.

This case originated in 2010 when Dish Network fired an employee, Brandon Coats, for not passing a random drug test. Testing positive for marijuana went against the company’s “zero-tolerance” drug policy. Coats is a quadriplegic who is licensed to use medical marijuana under Colorado state law to help ease the pain of his muscle spasms. He claims that he never used marijuana while working, nor was he ever high at work. Coats filed the lawsuit claiming that his rights were violated since he is legally allowed to use marijuana in the state of Colorado, so this should not affect his status of employment.

Colorado Supreme Court: Worker can be fired for using pot even though it's legal in state http://t.co/VNP5g4CEZY pic.twitter.com/DSeFkSGZJ4

— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) June 15, 2015

In a unanimous decision, all six judges ruled in favor of Dish Network, stating that the company was in the right when it let go of Coats. This case sets a precedent for future workplace conflicts over the matter. Medical marijuana is legal in Colorado, as well as recreational marijuana, but it is still illegal in all forms under federal law. Federal law trumps state law and so despite some people being able to obtain licenses to use medical marijuana, they still have to obey their employers’ drug policies.

Colorado is one of the most liberal states in the United States when it comes to marijuana use, as it legalized the medical consumption of it in 2001, and the recreational use of it became legal in 2012.  Marijuana use in Colorado has become ubiquitous. Doctors prescribe medical marijuana to patients for a multitude of reasons, such as to help combat the nausea induced by chemotherapy, to treat seizure disorders, or to curb the poor appetite and weight loss associated with HIV. People can grow the plant in their basements and there are dispensaries throughout many of the major cities. People can even take yoga classes focused on marijuana or marijuana themed cooking classes. Reports state that the legalization of cannabis has caused crime rates to decrease, lowered unemployment rates, and has contributed to greater economic growth thanks to the enormous tax revenues that the sales have created.

This decision will clear up many issues in Colorado, although it could also cause tensions to rise among citizens throughout the state and the whole country. Seeing how this case will impact other states’ decisions regarding the workplace and the use of medical marijuana will be interesting, considering that 23 other states have legalized it for medical consumption so far. To avoid future legal problems, this decision will likely prompt other companies to devise new drug policies so it is clear what they expect of their employees.

Toni Keddell

Toni Keddell is a member of the University of Maryland Class of 2017 and a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Toni at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Can You Be Fired for Legal Marijuana Use? appeared first on Law Street.

The Supreme Court of Canada has just ruled that the users of marijuana for medical purposes now have the right to bake the drugs in cookies, take it in lozenge form or as tropical oils in addition to smoking it. The unanimous ruling against the federal government expands the definition of medical marijuana beyond the “dried” form, and speaks volumes about the changes happening in the marijuana industry.

The Court found that the current restriction to dried marijuana violates the right to liberty and security “in a manner that is arbitrary and hence is not in accord with the principles of fundamental justice.” Restricting medical access  in Canada to marijuana in a dried form has now been declared “null and void.” That renders sections four and five of the Controlled Drug and Substances Act, which prohibits possession and trafficking of non-dried forms of cannabis, unenforceable.

This decision supports earlier rulings by lower Courts in British Columbia that said they went against a person’s right to consume medical marijuana in the form they choose.

Medical marijuana patients don’t always want to expose themselves to the effects of smoking the drugs. Inhaling marijuana could present health risks, and is said to be less effective for some conditions that administer cannabis derivatives. With inhalation being a large issue, the smoking process is said to irritate the lungs, which is why smokers are more likely to have an ongoing cough or other health problems like chest colds and lung infections.

A 2011 systematic review of the research concluded that long-term marijuana smoking is associated with an increased risk of some respiratory problems, including an increase in cough, sputum production, airway inflammation, and wheezing–similar to that of tobacco smoking. 

Some medical marijuana users wanted to avoid those side effects. But other methods like brewing marijuana leaves in tea or baking weed into brownies left patients vulnerable to be charged with possession and trafficking under the law.

“This is monumental,” said David Posner, CEO of Nutritional High, a Canadian company that has been testing marijuana-infused candy and drinks for sale in the United States later this year. “Another market the size of California just opened up for our products.”

So what does this mean for the U.S. exactly? Four states–Washington, Colorado, Oregon, and Alaska, as well as Washington D.C.–have legalized marijuana, while a total of 14 states have decriminalized certain amounts of possession. Legal marijuana is said to be the fastest-growing industry in the U.S. According to ArcView, over the next five years, the marijuana industry is expected to continue to grow. They are predicting that 14 more states will legalize recreational marijuana and two more will legalize medical marijuana. At least ten states are already considering legalizing recreational marijuana in just the next two years through ballot measures or state legislatures.

In that context, Canada extending its medical marijuana market, and the U.S.’s current growing market promise continued growth. Non-traditional ways to consume marijuana will continue to rise–this week’s decision was just the beginning.

Angel Idowu

Angel Idowu is a member of the Beloit College Class of 2016 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer of 2015. Contact Angel at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Weed Trend Grows: Canada Legalizes Medical Edibles appeared first on Law Street.

On New Year’s Day 2014, it became legal in Colorado to sell marijuana in specially licensed dispensaries to adults 21 years and older. Much like any liquor store, you can walk in, show your ID, and make your purchase. But the dispensaries don’t just sell marijuana you smoke; you can also buy edibles, as well–marijuana you eat. As a newly legal product, the state was in uncharted territory. As we fast forward a little more than a year later, what are the state regulations on edibles, what effects have the sale of edibles had, and are other states following suit?

What is edible Marijuana?

The Science

Cannabis, or marijuana, has three primary active compounds: THC, CBD, and CBG. THC is the only psychoactive ingredient. CBD and CBG have medicinal properties and alter the effects of THC. The drug reacts with the body’s endocannabinoid system, a “regulatory mechanism that modulates the release of compounds produced throughout the body,” and causes humans to experience a high. Marijuana can be vaporized, smoked, or consumed orally.

When marijuana is smoked or vaporized, delta-9-THC is absorbed through the lungs and heads straight to the brain. The onset high is relatively quicker and shorter than if marijuana is eaten. When the marijuana is consumed and digested by the liver, the delta-9-THC turns into 11-hydroxy-THC. The transformation causes the THC to quickly bypass the blood-brain barrier and produce a more psychedelic effect than smoked THC. Smoked and vaporized marijuana completely sidestep the liver and the THC never converts.

While the high from smoking marijuana is faster, edible highs last longer. When smoking marijuana, 50 to 60 percent of the THC in a joint can reach the blood plasma. The peak of the high can come after five to 10 minutes of smoking. In comparison, only ten to 20 percent of the THC in edibles hit the blood plasma and the high takes effect an hour or two later. The high from edible marijuana is described as a “whole body” high and can last from six to ten hours. Essentially, people experience the highs from smoking eating marijuana differently.

Why would someone choose edibles over smoking?

Although the high from edibles lasts longer, it isn’t necessarily stronger. The high from smoking is rapid and strong, and the effects wear off rather quickly. It is also relatively easy to know when you’ve reached a limit since the high is so immediate. One answer could be personal choice–some people prefer the experience of edibles. Edibles could also alleviate any problems a person has with consuming smoke, and coughing fits are essentially eliminated.

Also, edibles are inconspicuous. A person eating won’t invite attention the way someone smoking will. This is probably most important to medicinal marijuana patients. Amanda Reiman, policy manager of the California Drug Policy Alliance, explains that “people using marijuana medicinally for long-lasting chronic pain often prefer oral ingestion because it lasts longer and they don’t have to consume as often.” Bob Eschino, a partner at Medically Correct, says “They’re discreet, and it’s an easy way to dose the medication…especially here in Colorado, where you can’t smoke in public, you can still medicate with edibles.”

Edible Products

The sky seems to be the limit. Marijuana comes in the form of cookies, gummies, brownies, caramels, hard candies, chocolate bars, Rice Krispies treats, and beyond. Colorado dispensaries estimate edibles account for 20-40 percent of sales. Nearly five million edibles were sold in Colorado in 2014. For example, Dixie Elixirs, a popular cannabis products store, sold THC-infused mints, truffles, dew drops, whipped cream, coffee, and tea all in a variety of flavors. There are plenty of companies getting onboard. In an interview just this past February, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream even stated they would experiment with cannabis-infused ice cream if legal hurdles were removed.

Health Concerns

A major issue when ingesting marijuana is a person’s inability to predict the right amount to take. In order to receive the intended effect, there are many factors to take into consideration. Dosage is based on the type of marijuana, tolerance, body weight, gender, body chemistry, and more. The issue is further exacerbated by the fact that an edible’s effect can take an hour to two hours to reach its height. This prompts impatient people to ingest more.

The Cannabist, which seeks to educate readers about marijuana, recommends the following steps to be safe. First, a user must acknowledge his or her drug history and tolerance and recognize body factors like body type and gender when ascertaining the proper dosage. Also, it’s recommended when eating an edible to have a full stomach or to do so while also consuming food. Next, a user should measure by milligrams. A unit is generally ten milligrams of cannabinoids. A user should stick to a brand that works for him after lightly experimenting with a variety. Be patient, and cautious.

Controversy arose after a string of tragic incidents occurred involving edible marijuana. Levy Thamba, a Wyoming college student, committed suicide by jumping from a hotel balcony after eating an entire marijuana-infused cookie. The recommend dosage was probably only a portion of that cookie. Lack of portion control knowledge is a problem. Al Bronstein, a physician and medical director of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center, explains “[portion control is] difficult to do, practically. I know, myself: I wish I could only eat one-eighth of a Snickers bar and leave the rest for later.” Another concern is that consumers don’t realize that ten milligrams refers to one-tenth of a candy bar, for example, as opposed to the entire thing.

A Colorado man was accused of killing his wife after consuming pot candy. This man is thought to also have been on prescription drugs. As with alcohol, it is extremely dangerous to mix marijuana and prescription drugs.

Another major concern is children accidentally ingesting edibles that look like their non-marijuana-infused counterparts. According to a 2013 JAMA Pediatrics study, Children’s Hospital Colorado saw a “significant spike in the number of children treated for accidentally eating marijuana-laced treats” after the new marijuana-based laws were set in place. In one month, three seventh graders were hospitalized after ingesting marijuana-infused brownies.

The culmination of these events prompted public outcry that inspired new and stricter regulations on the selling and packaging of edible marijuana

Laws and Regulations

Stricter laws and regulations in Colorado went into effect on February 1, 2015 aimed at standardizing the labeling, packaging, and potency of edibles.

The recommend amount to take is one unit or ten milligrams. According to the new law, to avoid any consumer confusion, the serving portion must be transparently clear and marked “in a way that enables a reasonable person to intuitively determine how much of the product constitutes a single serving of active THC.” For example, Dixie Elixir’s marijuana-infused mints used to come in a loose tin of ten, with ten milligrams of THC each. They are now wrapped individually and sold at 16 mints of five milligrams apiece.

Packaging must now be child-resistant. Packages must be “constructed to be significantly difficult for children under five years of age to open…opaque so that the packaging does not allow the product to be seen without opening the packaging material…[and] resealable for any product intended for more than a single use.”

Labels must be more informative and give clear warning signs such as “This product is unlawful outside the State of Colorado” and/or “The intoxicating effects of this product may be delayed by two or more hours.” This specifically targets overdoses caused by impatience and overconsumption while a user is waiting for the drug to take effect.

The Marijuana Enforcement Agency now provides incentives for companies to sell ten milligram-portioned products. Manufacturers will face larger obstacles for production of ten to 100 milligram products.

Other Laws

Marijuana is still prohibited under federal law. This means you can still be fired for recreational use, and it can also lead to the loss of benefits, public housing, and financial aid.

Driving under the influence of marijuana will always be illegal, like alcohol. In Colorado, you can transport an unopened original package, but never across state lines. It is also forbidden to fly with marijuana even if you are traveling to another state with legalized marijuana.

You can obtain marijuana from a licensed dispensary or another adult over 21 as long as no money is exchanged. It is illegal to sell or resell any marijuana.

Alaska and Washington have also legalized marijuana for adult use with similar regulations. Washington D.C. and Oregon are following suit, but certain aspects of regulation have yet to go into effect. A total of 23 states allow marijuana for medical necessity.

Conclusion

Education and clear information are both vital. The tragedies surrounding edible marijuana seem like they most likely could have been avoided if these regulations were initially set in place, but it is hard to say for sure. Legalized marijuana, including edibles and other products, remains a new territory. New consumers need to learn what is safe and right for them as a learning curve is involved. If you are going to try it, it is important to be as informed as possible and in a safe environment. In the future, additional states may follow suit and legalize marijuana, and these questions will remain essential to keeping everyone as safe as possible.

Resources

Primary

Colorado Department of Revenue: Retail Marijuana Regulations

Additional

ABC News: Why Marijuana Edibles Might Be More Dangerous Than Smoking

Cannabist: Get Educated About Edibles: Eight Tips For Getting the Right Dose

Cannabist: New Rules in Effect for Colorado Marijuana Edibles Feb. 1

CBS: Colorado Moves to Curb Dangers of Edible Pot Products

BoingBoing: Everything You Need to Know about Marijuana Edibles

Consumer Responsibly: Know the Law

Denver Post: More Than 15 Months in, Pot-infused Edibles Still Confound

Dixie Elixirs: Products

Huffington Post: Ben & Jerry’s Founders Are Totally Down With Weed Ice Cream When It’s Legal

Jessica McLaughlin

Jessica McLaughlin is a graduate of the University of Maryland with a degree in English Literature and Spanish. She works in the publishing industry and recently moved back to the DC area after living in NYC. Contact Jessica at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Marijuana Edibles: A New Challenge for Regulators appeared first on Law Street.

There’s a hot, new startup in town and it’s solving a problem that has long gone unanswered–how to get medical marijuana delivered to you. It’s called Eaze and it’s being promoted as Uber for weed. As more and more states legalize marijuana, and many more allow the substance to be used for medicinal purposes, the commercial industry is going to continue booming. Eaze wants a piece of that–and from the looks of it, so do Eaze’s many investors.

The San Francisco-based company has already gotten quite a bit of funding. In its series A funding round–essentially its first big push for venture capital money–it received a very impressive grand total of $10 million. One of the more prominent investors is Casa Verde Capital. For those of you for whom that doesn’t ring a bell, that’s the name of the venture capital fund run by Snoop Dogg. Although this was Eaze’s first major funding push, it also received $1.5 million at the beginning of last year to get started.

Calling Eaze the Uber of weed, or at least medical marijuana, seems pretty much spot on. Users can order the drug with the click of a button, and Eaze promises a ten minute or less turn-around time. The company connects already-existing dispensaries with customers, and has a fleet of drivers ready to transport the orders. Eaze also allows customers to look through what each dispensary offers, including lab results, in order to find a good match between customer and product.

The business certainly has some kinks to work out, but they seem to be relatively minor. TechCrunch’s Ryan Lawler tried it out over the weekend and pointed out that right now it only accepts cash, which can be viewed as inconvenience for anyone who operates mostly in plastic.

Eaze isn’t the only business trying to capitalize on medical marijuana, however. There are plenty of others that have similar ideas and business plans. Some of the more well known include Nestdrop, Meadow, Grassp, Dave, and Canary, each of which have slightly different business models, platforms, and markets.

Moreover, that’s only considering the weed delivery industry. Other pot-based startups have already begun to try to break off chunks of what will inevitably end up being a gigantic market. For example, Privateer Holdings, based in Seattle, recently raised $75 million in funding for its many endeavors in the marijuana market. Privateer Holdings already has a hold on the Canadian medical marijuana market, and plans on “branding” marijuana to sell in the United States. One of those brands will be “Marley Natural“–based on the late Bob Marley. The business will involve his family and estate.

Now that the tide really does seem to be turning both for medical and recreational weed, it seems like there’s no good reason for funders not to back some of these projects. After all, legal marijuana has been named the fastest growing industry in the United States. A company like Eaze has the potential to become massively profitable, given the convenience of having items delivered to your door, as well as its ability to prevent any sort of “high” driving. Snoop Dogg’s investment is probably a pretty good one, and with that kind of backing, we should expect to see Eaze expand with this growing market.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post New Snoop Dogg-Backed Startup Brings Weed to Your Door appeared first on Law Street.

It’s official. Two more states — Oregon and Alaska — have joined Colorado and Washington in legalizing marijuana.

Oregon’s Measure 91 had a convincing victory, winning approximately 54 percent of the vote. Like Washington and Colorado, Oregon will now allow regulated and taxed sales of marijuana to adults. Stores will probably come sometime in 2016, a timeline consistent with those that Colorado and Washington set for themselves previously.

Ballot Measure 2 passed in Alaska by a margin of roughly 52-48 percent. In 90 days it will become the law of the state, and the state will create mechanisms to regulate the use and sale of legalized recreational marijuana. Alaska has long had a lax view on marijuana laws — a 1975 court decision legalized very small amounts in the home, although it was incredibly narrow and not really followed. In addition, Alaskans have tried a few times to get legal marijuana on the ballot, voting on the issue in 2000 and 2004. While both measures obviously failed, Alaska has certainly had a storied and complicated history with marijuana legalization.

And then, of course, there’s D.C. Our nation’s capital legalized recreational marijuana use, although not the sale of marijuana. There’s confusion over what this actually means, though. Congress technically has oversight over the District, and it can take measures to basically make sure that nothing ever comes out of the passage of this initiative. D.C.’s ability to actually govern itself and the people who live within its borders is notoriously limited. No one can do anything to stop the 735,000 people who live in Alaska from legalizing marijuana, but D.C.’s 650,000 are prohibited by officials they didn’t even elect. That’s why there’s a big question mark next to D.C. — no one really knows what will happen here.

As fascinating as the wins were for the future of marijuana legalization, it’s also interesting to look at what they mean for the overall scheme of American politics. Democrats lost last night on pretty much every level. Some marijuana legalization was one of the very few things that Democrats support that made it through. But what’s important to remember about marijuana legalization is that it’s not so much a Democratic value, it’s also a very Libertarian issue. There are reasons for both Democrats and Libertarians to support marijuana legalization, which may have been one of the reasons that it passed. It’s a strange phenomenon, as 538‘s Ben Casselman tweeted:

So voters want a higher minimum wage, legal pot, abortion access and GOP representation. Ok then.

— Ben Casselman (@bencasselman) November 5, 2014

So, the success of marijuana legalization in an election where so many other Democratic measures failed could mean a few things. It could mean that the Libertarian wing of the Republican party is really becoming sort of a dark horse among Millennials who are frustrated with the way that Democrats have been running the country, but aren’t willing to align with the Republican base or the Tea Party on most social issues. Or it could just mean that Oregon, Alaska, and the District of Columbia really enjoy getting high and don’t mind the increase in taxes that comes with the legalization of marijuana. Either way, it will be interesting to see if anything at all comes of the measure in D.C., as well as which states will be next to hop on the marijuana legalization bus.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Oregon and Alaska Legalize Marijuana appeared first on Law Street.

Hey y’all!

The Berkley City Council in California has unanimously approved an ordinance requiring pot dispensaries donate 2 percent of their product to “patients” making under $32,000 a year. A single person is eligible for this “welfare weed” if they make $32,000 or under, but if that person has a family, the family income has to be $46,000 or under. This ordinance will go into effect in August 2015, but I imagine there will be some pushback over the next year about whether this should actually go into effect or not. I mean really, allowing free weed to those already on welfare? We all might as well quit our jobs or take on low-paying jobs and wait for our handouts. This is getting a little bit ridiculous. How many people in Berkley actually need free weed!?!

There are only three licensed dispensaries in the Berkley city limits and one of those dispensaries, House of Compassion, claims they already had:

[A] program in place that allocated a pound of marijuana for giveaway each week. The pound is broken up into 3.5-gram parcels and distributed on Mondays to anyone who can prove that they are on welfare (using an EBT card or other form of proof) and have been certified to use medical marijuana.

So why the need to create an ordinance if one location already has this program and there are only three dispensaries in the city? I don’t feel right about the reasoning behind this ordinance or the idea that marijuana should be free to anyone. And to be honest, I don’t think it should be legalized.

I don’t believe that every medical marijuana cardholder is someone who is genuinely sick or needing it for medicinal purposes. Back in 2011, the top three reasons physicians gave for recommending medical marijuana were “back/spine/neck pain” at 31 percent, “sleep disorders” at 16 percent and “anxiety/depression” at 13 percent. That is a total of 60 percent. SIXTY PERCENT! Now, I understand that many of these patients probably went through a very frustrating period of trial and error with other medical remedies, like pills, and nothing worked. But realistically how many of these “patients” were telling the truth? I understand, for the most part, the benefits of medical marijuana for some, but not everyone that has an ailment. I get the need for medical marijuana for people diagnosed with cancer or HIV/AIDS–those are diseases that can really take a toll on your body. But the “I need pot because I’m depressed” thing doesn’t sit well with me. Anyone can claim they are depressed or anxious or have certain levels of pain when in reality they don’t. Symptoms can be faked and I know people who have done so, which is why I am so cynical about the whole thing.

My biggest issue with the Berkley City Council is that they basically have said that if you need pot and are on welfare you might as well get it for free. They are allowing the lazy to be even lazier.

In Texas, the Texas Senate passed a bill last year that approved drug testing of welfare applicants so I can’t imagine the ideals of the Berkley City Council will breach the Texas boarder anytime soon. Which is great. Legalizing marijuana is probably one of the most reckless things a state can do. I love the fact that the Texas Senate allows for drug testing and if someone fails that drug test three times, no more welfare for them! “Taxpayer money should not be used to subsidize someone’s drug habit,” read a statement made by Texas State Sen. Jane Nelson, (R-Flower Mound.) I could not agree more!

I’ve seen the functioning pothead who will smoke a blunt everyday but still be able to go to work and act like a contributing member of society. I’ve seen the pothead who will sit at home, smoke out of their glass pipe in front of the computer and play mindless video games all day long, contributing nothing to their own lives or to society. I also recently had a friend tell me that she wished her husband would stop smoking pot but she recognizes that if he doesn’t smoke his four or five blunts throughout the day he turns into a completely different person, so she accepts his decision to smoke weed everyday, all day long. Dependence. Addiction. Altered mood. These are things that marijuana does to a person and it isn’t something that we should condone.

Marijuana’s second hand smoke is said to be very dangerous to children and pregnant women. Obviously there isn’t a whole lot of testing that has been done on the subject because of the dangers but there have been a few and the results appear to be compelling. According to studies, just like any other illicit drug, marijuana and secondhand marijuana smoke can cause premature labor, low birth weights and even neurological damage. There are people reckless enough out there that will disregard warnings and expose their loved ones to the second hand effects of marijuana. This short, but very interesting and to the point, article really brings to light what can happen to young children that are exposed to it in the womb or through second hand smoke.

Now I am not a believer in the “marijuana is a gateway drug to other drugs” idea–I think it is completely inaccurate–but I do think that allowing our country to accept an illegal drug like marijuana simply opens the door to other illegal drugs like opiates. At one point opiates were used like Tylenol is today. We should not revert back to the days of not knowing just to appease the drug users of the world; drugs are illegal for a reason. They do more harm than good.

—

Allison Dawson (@AllyD528) Born in Germany, raised in Mississippi and Texas. Graduate of Texas Tech University and Arizona State University. Currently dedicating her life to studying for the LSAT. Twitter junkie. Conservative.

Featured Image Courtesy of [Ian Sane via Flickr]

Allison Dawson

Allison Dawson was born in Germany and raised in Mississippi and Texas. A graduate of Texas Tech University and Arizona State University, she’s currently dedicating her life to studying for the LSAT. Twitter junkie. Conservative. Get in touch with Allison at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Welfare Weed – Let the Lazy Be Lazier appeared first on Law Street.

When it comes to alcohol, the laws regulating when someone is “over the limit” are pretty easy to remember. For drivers over 21, the legal blood alcohol content (BAC) limit in all 50 states is .08. For most of us, that means roughly one drink per hour. But as some states legalize recreational use of marijuana, and others allow its use for medical purposes, defining driving under the influence is becoming increasingly difficult.

One of the big problems is that we don’t quite know how badly marijuana affects driving. Experts point out that it’s obviously bad to drive when any senses are impaired — but we still allow people to have a drink before they drive, because a safe threshold has been determined. That threshold hasn’t really been identified for marijuana use yet.

Marijuana users are definitely impaired. Reaction times for example, are usually slower. But unlike those who have had alcohol, people under the influence of marijuana are usually more aware of that impairment. They are more likely to be cautious and compensate for their dulled senses. Currently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is working on a study to figure out how exactly smoking marijuana can affect driving. In states that do allow marijuana, whether or not the legalization has led to more fatal crashes is virtually impossible to determine. Some studies claim that it has, others say that there’s no correlation. With such a small sample population, as well as so many other contributing factors to automobile accidents, it’s just too soon to tell what effect marijuana use has on driving conditions as a whole.

The states that have legalized marijuana, or allow it for medical purposes, have attempted to institute some parameters. For example, Colorado has set the DUI limit for marijuana intoxication at 5 nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood. Some people worry, however, that it’s too early to appropriately determine such limits, and that until we can do so, a limit like Colorado’s is arbitrary. The Marijuana Policy Project stated:

The inability to accurately measure marijuana impairment is why both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the National Institute on Drug Abuse have stated that marijuana impairment testing via blood sampling is unreliable.

The main complaint stems from the fact that there’s no good way to easily test marijuana intoxication. When someone is pulled over and suspected of driving while drunk, there are small breathalyzers that can be used to determine BAC. No comparative tool has been invented for marijuana intoxication at this point. There is apparently a very preliminary marijuana breathalyzer being created by a Canadian police officer; he has named it the “Cannabix.” It’s still in the very preliminary stages, and scientists aren’t sure about the efficiency or accuracy of a breath-based marijuana test.

As more states move toward the legalization of marijuana — currently there are serious pushes in Alaska, Massachusetts, Oregon, New York, and Washington D.C. — the question of marijuana DUIs needs an answer. Zero tolerance policies seem tough, especially with the now relatively common use of medical marijuana. But how much marijuana in your blood is too much? Scientists will have to tell us — hopefully the new National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study will provide us with some answers.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Marijuana DUIs: How Much Weed is Too Much to Drive? appeared first on Law Street.

With the legalization of marijuana in Colorado and Washington, people who choose to smoke marijuana for recreational purposes will not face criminal charges. But they could be at risk of losing their jobs. This ongoing debate between employees and employers continues to be fueled by state legislation and employment drug testing policy. The courts must now analyze and settle questions regarding the controversy. Although in certain states, employees are not breaking the law by using marijuana, employers continue to implement pre-screening and routine drug tests. Workers are beginning to take action against what they believe to be violations of their rights. This leads to an inherent disconnect between the law and companies’ policies – so here is everything you need to know about marijuana, employment, and drug testing policies.

History of Drug Testing

In order to explain the divide between state law and employee drug testing, let us examine the history of testing policies and procedures. Surprisingly, not all workplaces require drug testing; the power to choose whether or not to implement the procedure is given directly to the corporation. According to Drug Testing USA, there are three factors that are taken into consideration regarding employee drug testing laws:

“1) who can be tested and under what circumstances (pre‐employment, random, etc.), 2) how testing is to be conducted (in a law, via on‐site devices, etc.), and 3) the procedures to be observed by the testing entity.”

As a result, companies have the power to alter and update their employee requirements to align with state legislation. Yet, in recent cases, companies chose to adhere to their original methods. Later, we will examine how the courts respond when employees challenge employers’ practice.

Who is tested?

If employers do not require mandatory drug screenings, do they have the right to single out individuals and conduct a test based on “reasonable suspicions?” If they do, employers must be sure to adhere to a strict guideline of how they define suspicious behavior in order to avoid a lawsuit. According to the Northwest Justice Project, “it is legal for a private employer to require a drug test of its employees, unless the employer uses the test to discriminate against certain people.”

Who conducts the tests?

There is a discrepancy between the law and employee protocol. Although Colorado and Washington have legalized marijuana, this does not mean that businesses have to follow suit. In a company’s defense, retaining a safe and efficient system is vital to the company reputation and prosperity. But an individual could argue that employee drug testing is a violation of their privacy. Since drug testing lacks federal legislation, and designates most of the power directly to the businesses themselves, it is a corporation’s decision whether to drug test or not.

Ethics: Is an employer testing for marijuana a violation of privacy?

Technically, drug testing is classified as a form of search and seizure. When employers choose to test employees, they are compromising the individual’s Fourth Amendment rights which read, “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” A common argument is that what an individual does on their own time should not be used against them professionally. The concept of employee drug testing is similar to employers researching their employees’ social media accounts. If a person chooses to party and live promiscuously on their own time, should employers have the right to judge the employee even if they are a capable and efficient worker? The employer could argue that this is a practical and fair assessment in evaluating employees. However, the employee could dispute that they have the right to privacy within their personal lives, and should not have to change their habits or filter their social media on account of being judged by an employer.

Case Study: National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab (1989)

In a 1986 case, National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab, the National Treasury Employees Union argued that drug testing was violating their privacy rights and the Fourth Amendment. Originally the State Court of Eastern Louisiana ruled in their favor, yet the case ultimately went to the United States Court of Appeals. There, the court ruled that the government’s policy on drugs surpassed the desires of the union. Although testing potentially violated employees’ rights, “balancing the individual’s privacy expectations against the government’s special needs” became the basis for enacting the tests. The ruling outlined several factors which the employer must abide by to protect the employee’s rights and ultimately upheld the standard that, “no privacy invasions should be permitted unless some good end is served.” This case made drug testing legally applicable to businesses if they choose to enact such as policy as long as they abide by the ruling’s contingencies.

Case Study: Johnson v. City of Plainfield (1990)

 “Even if drug testing is found to be constitutional, we must measure what we have gained in finding the guilty against what we have wrought upon the innocent.”

-Johnson v. City of Plainfield

In Johnson v. City of Plainfield, the courts questioned the constitutionality of employee drug testing, and decided that it must be decided on a case-by-case basis. In 1986 in New Jersey, the City of Plainfield Fire Department employees were subjected to an abrupt urine test. Sixteen of the firefighters tested positive for unspecified drugs and were fired without pay. Several of the firefighters felt that accusations were false, and that certain medication could have tainted the urinalysis since no information was provided about those present substances. Additionally, they felt that their privacy had been violated because a member of the same sex had monitored them during the urine test. Finally, they argued that their morales were tainted by the positive drug tests. In the ruling, “[the] court suggest[ed] that the factual findings in this matter should cause us to pause in the nationwide rush toward massive and mandatory drug testing.” This case illustrated a shift from a more conservative stance on employee drug testing to a more reformed view.

Case Study: Colorado

Although marijuana is now legal in Colorado, not all businesses condone recreational usage. Section 6 of Amendment 64, which legalized recreational marijuana, states that:

“Nothing in this section is intended to require an employer to permit or accommodate the use, consumption, possession, transfer, display, transportation, sale or growing of marijuana in the workplace or to affect the ability of employers to have policies restricting the use of marijuana by employees.”

Legally, employees can be tested for marijuana. According to The Denver Post, “despite marijuana’s legal status in Colorado, courts have ruled that employers have the right to fire workers for using pot, even off-duty.” There is no protection against losing your job because of marijuana use, so employees must make wise decisions when partaking in recreational use or they could be at risk for losing their jobs.

Does that violate employees’ rights and the law? According to Amendment 64, Colorado marijuana legalization, “specifically gives employers the right to have a Zero Tolerance Policy.” Therefore companies who choose to enact the policy are abiding by not only federal, but also state law.

Fox Business discusses how Colorado and Washington employers are wrestling with new marijuana laws:

Medical Marijuana

While Colorado and Washington have fully legalized marijuana, a more applicable nationwide debate is medical marijuana. Only a handful of states have provided legal protection to individuals with a prescription for medical marijuana. How do employers handle individuals who smoke to ease the symptoms of painful and sometimes crippling illnesses?

History of Legislation

The 1990 American with Disabilities Act protects individuals with disabilities. It assures that disabled citizens will receive protection from discrimination in the workplace and have the freedom to use certain aides to function in the workplace; yet it does not cover medical marijuana.

The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 gives individuals some protection against criminal charges, such as possession, when they use cannabis for medical purposes. However, it does not include any safeguard for employees from being terminated for violating a company’s drug policy.

Finally, in the 2008 case, Ross v. RagingWire Telecommunications, individuals who used cannabis for medical purposes were denied protection from being terminated from their job.

However, there are some loopholes that certain states provide; in California, a smoker who uses medical marijuana can negotiate with the following letters:

1. Pre-employment Negotiation Letter (.doc).
2. Negotiation Letter for Currently Employed Patients (.doc)
3. Termination Negotiation Letter (.doc)

These letters do not guarantee an employee defense against termination, yet they give an employee a chance to petition to preserve their job.

To see a debate about the legality of medical marijuana in the workplace, click here:

Case Study: Brandon Coats v. Dish Network

In a 2010 Colorado case, a quadriplegic man, Brandon Coats, was fired from the Dish Network for testing positive for marijuana. Coats smoked medical marijuana to alleviate severe pain he experienced on a regular basis. When Coats brought the case to the Colorado Court of Appeals  in 2013,  the court confirmed that Dish had the right to fire Coats for violating company drug policy. When Coats appealed, the appellate court ultimately ruled that: “federal law trumps state law.” Montana, Oregon, and Washington also heard similar cases. All cases resulted in the same ruling– federal law overrides state law, and employers can choose to terminate employees if they do not abide by the company’s drug policy.

Employers retain the right to test and terminate employees for testing positive for THC regardless of the circumstances.

Future Amendments

Will the legislation amend the requirements for employers to accept the use of medical marijuana? Individuals that suffer from chronic illnesses are put in potential financial jeopardy. Yet employers are liable for mistakes made on the job due to marijuana use. As of now, employers have no intention of changing the policy, and legislatures are leaving the power to the businesses. Is this ethical? It has been scientifically proven that marijuana can help with extreme illnesses in a way which no other medication can. Employers are putting individuals who are already in a precarious situation in jeopardy. On the other hand, businesses have a reputation to maintain and would like to remain efficient in a competitive field.

Legal Inconsistency Throughout the States

Currently, every case regarding employees’ rights to marijuana use has been overruled by federal law, which still sees marijuana as illegal. This legal generalization may not suffice with the innovations to state laws that continue to develop. Legislation needs to take into consideration all of the ripple effects that marijuana will have on businesses. When drug testing was deemed constitutionally appropriate, marijuana was distinctly illegal. Now with all of the unique exceptions and amendments to state laws, there are constant inconsistencies. National businesses are now also put in an difficult situation when dealing with the marijuana laws unique to their state– how does a nationwide company handle state-to-state laws regarding their policy on employee drug testing?  Legislation needs to step up and tie up all the loose ends to protect employees as well as protect corporations from being sued by individuals who feel that their rights are being challenged.

Resources

Primary

US District Court, New Jersey: Johnson v. City of Plainfield

US Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit: National Treasury Employees Union v. Von Raab

Department of Labor: Drug-Free Workplace Policy Builder

California EDD: Misconduct MC 270

Additional

Regulate Marijuana: Amendment 64: The Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act of 2012

MAPI: Changing State Marijuana Laws and Employer Drug Testing Policies

The New York Times: Creating Confusion in the Workplace

Americans for Safe Access: Employment 

Huffington Post: Employers Can Fire You For Using Marijuana, But Brandon Coats’ Case Could Change Everything

Madeleine Stern

Madeleine Stern attended George Mason University majoring in Journalism and minoring in Theater. Her writing on solitary confinement inspired her to pursue a graduate degree in clinical counseling after graduation. Madeleine is an avid runner, dedicated animal lover, and a children’s ballet instructor. Contact Madeleine at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

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There’s been a lot of talk about marijuana lately. This year we’ve seen the implementation of Amendment 64 in Colorado and Initiative 502 in Washington, both passed in 2012. Aside from the 18 states and the District of Columbia that have approved marijuana for medical use, two states have approved measures to legalize recreational use for adults 21 and over. With the sophisticated enforcement of these initiatives we must ask ourselves, has marijuana gone mainstream?

One might think, but this is a paradox when it comes to the criminal justice system. The latest FBI Uniform Crime Report shows that the highest amount of arrests were for drug abuse violations, with more than 42 percent of violators being arrested for marijuana possession. So marijuana is cleared for medical use but possessing it is a crime that led to more arrests than any other in 2012. Not only that, but these arrests consume massive amounts of money due to the cost of prosecuting, incarcerating, and having offenders under the watchful eye of the courts as a result probation or parole. These non-violent criminals are a drain of financial resources and increase criminal justice caseloads. As a result, many states are considering decriminalizing marijuana as is the case in places like Maryland and the District of Columbia.

The prohibition of marijuana seems to be losing popularity as the combination of decreased funds in state budgets continue, and more medical uses for the drug are found. On top of efforts to decriminalize and legalize marijuana, there seems to be a new level of acceptance when you consider the number of apps that have been created that allow potential marijuana dispensary customer to locate dispensaries from their phones. Even more than being able to get directions to the local dispensary, there are game-like apps such as Weed Firm that allow users to create their own cyber pot shops.

Weed Firm, a creation of Manitoba Games, was offered by the Apple App Store and allowed users to create their own marijuana plant mixtures that could then be sold to virtual customers. The game was complete with seed, potting, and fertilizer options for growers to make their favorite combinations. One of the more unsavory game features was the option to either pay the local thugs for the ability to sell marijuana on their turf, or have them take all of your plants and profit as payment. Manitoba Games was pleased to announce that Weed Firm was number one on every Apple App Store category. Unfortunately for Manitoba Games, Apple recently decided to remove the app from the store. As you can expect, the gaming company was not pleased with this decision and released a hilarious statement discussing the matter. In their statement, Manitoba Games has vowed to return to Apple’s App Store with a more acceptable, censored version of Weed Firm.

If technology is any indication of the changing opinion on marijuana, then its safe to say marijuana is no longer considered taboo. This change is a result of realizing the prohibition of marijuana has been unsuccessful. Financially, states cannot support the incarceration of large amounts of people for non-violent crimes like marijuana possession. It’s even harder to explain that people are being classified as criminals as a result of being in possession of a plant that is used for medical purposes. It seems that the evolution of marijuana and its negative associations are as old as Reefer Madness. This post does not advocate for the legalization of marijuana, but rather to explain some of the changes in public opinion and the influence it has on technology.

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Teerah Goodrum (@AisleNotes), is a recent Graduate of Howard University with a concentration in Public Administration and Public Policy. Her time on Capitol Hill as a Science and Technology Legislative Assistant has given her insight into the tech community. In her spare time she enjoys visiting her favorite city, Seattle, and playing fantasy football.

Featured image courtesy of [O’Dea via Wikipedia]

Teerah Goodrum

Teerah Goodrum is a Graduate of Howard University with a Masters degree in Public Administration and Public Policy. Her time on Capitol Hill as a Science and Technology Legislative Assistant has given her insight into the tech community. In her spare time she enjoys visiting her favorite city, Seattle, and playing fantasy football. Contact Teerah at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post Marijuana Apps May Indicate a Change in Public Opinion appeared first on Law Street.

During the 2012 elections, Colorado voters voted to legalize recreational marijuana, with about 54 percent of Colorado residents voting yes. As of yesterday, recreational marijuana became retailed at twenty-four stores around the state, though most of the locations were in Denver.

Despite awful weather in Colorado, shoppers waited in long lines to purchase the first legal pot in the United States. Yesterday was nicknamed “Green Wednesday” because of its popularity.

Understanding the new marijuana laws in Colorado are relatively easy if you compare them to alcohol laws. When they were written by the Colorado legislature, they loosely based the new marijuana laws off of already existing alcohol regulation laws. The reasoning for this is that legalization advocates have argued that marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol, so it makes sense to provide similar laws for the two. For example:

• You must be 21 or older to purchase marijuana.
• It is illegal to distribute marijuana to anyone who is under the age of 21.
• It is illegal to drive while under the influence of marijuana.
• It is not limited to residents, but visitors to Colorado may partake as well.
• There are limits to where smoking can take place. Marijuana cannot be consumed openly and publicly. Although this is stricter than open container laws, it is the same idea.

There are of course, other sections that differ from already in place alcohol laws:

• There’s a limit on how much you can buy. Residents can purchase up to an ounce; out of state visitors can purchase one quarter of an ounce.
• As of right now, Marijuana can only be bought with cash, although that may change as the market evolves.
• Marijuana cannot be brought across state lines.

There are other interesting rules that are specific to the sale of marijuana. A system called the Marijuana Inventory Tracking System (MITS) will log sales, and stores are required to keep it updated on sales. Any marijuana sold must be put in a child resistant package. Retailers cannot advertise in an outlet where 30% or more of viewers may be under 21. These are just a sampling of the safeguards that Colorado has put in place.

After the first day, it seems like the sales are going well. In fact, demand threatens to outpace supply. There are some complaints, of course. One of the concerns about selling recreational marijuana is that it would price medical marijuana license holders out of the market, but Colorado is making sure that won’t be the case. Medical marijuana will be sold more cheaply than its recreational counterpart.

There’s also a concern that demand will outpace supply–leading to inflated prices. There was no implementation of any sort of statewide pricing structure or rules, so stores can essentially charge what they wish. By the end of the day yesterday, one store sold 1/8th of an ounce of pot for $70. There’s also the state and local taxes to think about–they total about 25% of the cost.

Many onlookers have harkened this as an interesting experiment that will have some hand in dictating what marijuana legalization may look like in the rest of the United States. Colorado’s market is the first of its kind. It even differs from the Netherlands in that there’s no unregulated production.

Washington state also legalized marijuana during the 2012 elections, although they probably will not begin legal retailing until this summer. Colorado’s successes and failures may help Washington, and potentially other states, set up their market.

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Anneliese Mahoney (@AMahoney8672) is Lead Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

Featured image courtesy of [PabloEvans via Flickr]

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post A Breakdown of Colorado’s New Marijuana Laws appeared first on Law Street.