DC Inches Closer to Safe Access, Provisionally Approves 4 Dispensaries Paul Marini | April 13, 2012 The D.C. Deparment of Health's Health Regulation and Licensing Administration (HRLA) finally unveiled the names of the business that will be directly providing safe access through dispensaries to the District's medical cannabis patients. Yesterday, the HRLA announced which dispensary applicants received scores... Read more
Patient Cultivation Passes NH Senate Paul Marini | April 04, 2012 When the New Hampshire Senate passed SB 409 last week, perhaps the most noteworthy component of the story was overlooked. Bucking the unfortunate and ill-advised trend of “recently” passed bills in east coast states like New Jersey and Delaware, and... Read more
Another Small Step: Protecting Patients from Arrest in Maryland Paul Marini | March 20, 2012 [caption id="attachment_2438" align="alignnone" width="201" caption="Gov. O'Malley"][/caption]Patients Not Criminals!While the Maryland medical cannabis community entered the 2012 legislative session with high hopes because of three bills in the house proposing medical cannabis access points, the Governor O'Malley has come out in... Read more
Educating Health Care Workers About Medical Cannabis Paul Marini | March 19, 2012 Guest blog by Amanda Reiman, PhD MSW, Director of Research and Patient Services at Berkeley Patients GroupSince California passed Proposition 215 in 1996, great effort has been made to educate patients, caregivers and dispensary operators on the use, benefits, and... Read more
Tension Builds Between Local and Federal Officials over DOJ Crackdown on Medical Marijuana Paul Marini | March 16, 2012 Late last year, U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag successfully shut down Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana (MAMM), the oldest operating dispensary in California, by threatening its landlord with asset forfeiture. It didn’t seem to matter that MAMM had the staunch support... Read more
California Court of Appeal Issues Mixed Ruling on Medical Marijuana Paul Marini | March 07, 2012 Landmark decision denies localities the right to ban dispensaries outright Last week the California Court of Appeal issued another landmark decision on medical marijuana, which is sure to have a far-reaching ripple effect throughout the state. The Fourth Appellate District... Read more
Obama Pot Justice? Not! Paul Marini | March 01, 2012 Guest blog by journalist Paul BoergerCandidate and President Barak Obama promised a more reasoned drug policy, but Dr. Mollie Fry and her husband attorney Dale Schafer are now serving five years in federal prison for conspiracy to cultivate and distribute... Read more
Reason TV on Cedars-Sinai denying liver transplant to medical marijuana patient Norman Smith Paul Marini | February 29, 2012 The fight to get a liver transplant for Norman Smith took another big step today with a Reason TV expose, "Transplant Denied," featuring Smith and Steph Sherer, Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the group that’s throwing its... Read more
Landmark Court Decision Affirms Legality of Storefront Dispensaries in California Paul Marini | February 28, 2012 Second District Court of Appeal rejects Attorney General’s argument that all collective members must participate in cultivationThe California Court of Appeal issued a landmark published decision last week affirming the legality of storefront dispensaries and rejecting the argument that every... Read more
Medical Marijuana Week - Day 4: Protesting the federal crack down nationwide Paul Marini | February 16, 2012 During Obama’s Presidency, his administration has used a series of familiar and new tactics to interfere with state medical cannabis laws including nearly 200 SWAT-style raids leading to more than 60 indictments, threat letters to landlords and government officials, gross... Read more