Newsletter
MO medical cannabis campaign sniping begins (Newsletter: August 7, 2018)
Study: Dispensary proximity doesn’t increase teen use; Grandma jailed for medical cannabis pushes legalization; OK gov signs new regs
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
Just days after three medical marijuana measures qualified for Missouri’s ballot, sponsoring organizations are already sniping at competing groups.
The 80-year-old Michigan grandmother who was jailed for an expired medical cannabis card is now asking voters to approve a full marijuana legalization measure this November.
A study found that proximity to marijuana dispensaries doesn’t increase teen use, nor does pricing or the variety of cannabis products that are available.
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) signed new, less restrictive medical cannabis regulations into law.
/ FEDERAL
U.S. Sens. Cory Booker and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) spoke about the importance of allowing marijuana businesses to access banks as well as support for medical cannabis.
Congressman Sean Duffy (R-WI) slammed Democratic challengers for supporting the legalization of marijuana, which he called a “gateway drug.”
Congresswoman Jacky Rosen (D-NV), a U.S. Senate candidate, tweeted, “Senator Heller stood on the sidelines while Jeff Sessions attacked our marijuana industry. In the Senate, I’ll work to protect it from federal interference so we can keep raising revenue and creating jobs.”
/ STATES
Florida’s attorney general filed a 57-page brief defending the state’s ban on smoking medical cannabis. Separately, a judge struck down several provisions of the state’s medical cannabis business licensing scheme as unconstitutional.
Oklahoma activists are accusing one another of artificially inflating signature numbers for a proposed marijuana legalization ballot measure. Separately, the State Bureau of Investigation modified a firearms license application to mention that people who use medical cannabis will be denied gun rights.
New Jersey’s health commissioner called for federal marijuana descheduling.
New Mexico Democratic gubernatorial candidate Michelle Lujan Grisham is touting an endorsement from the Drug Policy Alliance.
As advocates focus on provisions on the federal Farm Bill that would prevent people with felony drug convictions from participating in the hemp industry, a number of states already have more far-reaching bans.
/ LOCAL
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s district attorney will no longer pursue low-level marijuana cases.
The Racine, Wisconsin City Council voted to place marijuana advisory questions on the November ballot.
Committees of the Portage and Forest County, Wisconsin Boards voted to advance marijuana legalization advisory ballot questions.
Humboldt County, California officials sent more than 300 cease-and-desist letters to people suspected of growing marijuana without permits.
Manhattan’s district attorney said he thinks it will take several years before New York legalizes marijuana.
/ INTERNATIONAL
Argentina’s Congress is considering decriminalizing drugs.
Here’s a look at marijuana policy reform efforts in Portugal.
Norway is looking at decriminalizing drugs.
/ ADVOCACY
A survey from the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii asked state and federal candidates whether they support legalizing marijuana.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A study found that “patient-managed cannabis use is associated with clinically significant improvements in self-reported symptom relief for treating a wide range of health conditions, along with frequent positive and negative side effects.”
A study of mice “contradicts the belief that THC consumption has a negative effect on male reproductive processes.”
A study concluded that “e-cigarette use predicts subsequent marijuana use among youth, with a stronger associations among young adolescents.”
A study found that knowledge of one’s state’s medical cannabis laws “was significantly lower among adolescents than adults.”
/ OPINION & ANALYSIS
The Asbury Park Press editorial board has concerns about marijuana legalization in New Jersey but is pessimistic it can be stopped.
/ BUSINESS
Chewing gum magnate William Wrigley Jr. II is investing in medical cannabis company Surterra Wellness.
/ CULTURE
Rapper Snoop Dogg and former NBA player Matt Barnes spoke about the medical benefits of cannabis.
Organizers of the Maine Lobster Festival Sea Goddess pageant are under fire after stripping the title from the winner because she was pictured holding a marijuana joint and vaporizer.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
