California State, Local Elected Officials Blast Federal Attacks on Medical Marijuana Paul Marini | October 31, 2011 Earlier this month, in response to federal attacks by California’s U.S. Attorneys, several local and state officials spoke out against the aggressive interference in their medical marijuana laws. State Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and Assembly member Tom Ammiano (D-San... Read more
Members of Congress Urge President Obama to Reschedule Cannabis Paul Marini | October 28, 2011 Today, in a joint effort between Congressional Representatives and Americans for Safe Access, several members of Congress sent a letter to President Obama expressing "concern with the recent activity by the Department of Justice against legitimate medical cannabis dispensaries in... Read more
California Medical Association Says U.S. Has “Failed Public Health Policy” on Medical Marijuana, Urges Rescheduling Paul Marini | October 19, 2011 The first broad marijuana policy statement by a state medical association has become a hot topic of conversation, repeatedly referring to the current federal approach as a “failed public health policy.” Indeed, the October 14, 2011 official policy statement by... Read more
The Ongoing Saga of Federal Interference in Washington State & Push Back from Congress Paul Marini | October 15, 2011 Earlier this year, on April 21st, the Washington State legislature passed SB 5073, a bill that would have established a licensing system for the dozens of medical marijuana distribution centers that existed to provide much-needed medication to thousands of patients... Read more
Some City Council Members in LA and Long Beach Move to Ban Patients’ Coops and Collectives Paul Marini | October 12, 2011 [caption id="attachment_1977" align="alignnone" width="202" caption="Long Beach City Attorney Robert Shannon"][/caption]In the wake of a confusing ruling in Pack v. Long Beach from California’s Second Appellate District, efforts are under way in Los Angeles and Long Beach to ban medical cannabis... Read more
RAND Buckles to Political Pressure on Medical Marijuana Paul Marini | October 12, 2011 A Los Angeles-based study issued less than a month ago by the RAND Corporation, which analyzed levels of crime around the city’s medical marijuana dispensaries, has been pulled as a result of political pressure. Warren Robak of the media relations... Read more
Elected Officials Push Back Against Threats by DOJ Over Medical Marijuana Paul Marini | October 11, 2011 On Friday, President Obama’s Justice Department (DOJ) made clear its motivations to disrupt and undermine California’s medical marijuana laws. However, advocates argue that last week’s announcement by the state’s four U.S. Attorneys, which included threats against property owners, comes after... Read more
Push Back on the Federal Attack Paul Marini | October 08, 2011 The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a major new crackdown on medical cannabis patients, providers, growers, and property owners on Friday. US Attorneys told reporters at a press conference in Sacramento that every medical cannabis patients’ cooperative and collective in... Read more
CA Congressman Stark Pushes Back on IRS Paul Marini | October 06, 2011 [caption id="attachment_1949" align="alignnone" width="180" caption="Congressman Pete Stark"][/caption]The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is playing hardball with medical cannabis providers in California and Colorado, and Congressman Pete Stark (D-CA) is moving to stop them. Using a provision of federal law adopted to... Read more
California Appellate Court Creates Contradictory Law on Federal Preemption of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Paul Marini | October 05, 2011 The California Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District issued an opinion yesterday in Pack v. City of Long Beach, a case involving a medical marijuana dispensary ordinance adopted last year by the Long Beach City Council. The court... Read more