San Francisco, CA Mar 22, 2007 -- A decade after Californians approved the medical use of marijuana, the state's battle with the federal government over the use of marijuana still is being fought hard, with contradictory results.

In the [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 22, 2007 -- The controversy over medical marijuana is obscuring a related trend, say federal and state anti-drug officials -- the end of California's hippie pot-growing era.

"Of the [>>>]

Desert Hot Springs, CA Mar 21, 2007 Medical marijuana will have to wait at least another year in Desert Hot Springs. The City Council voted 5-0 late Tuesday night to extend a 45 day moratorium for another year.

When the [>>>]

Providence, RI Mar 22, 2007 -- They came out in force two years ago to plead with the General Assembly to legalize marijuana for medical purposes, and they won the battle temporarily.

The patients [>>>]

Queen Anne, WA Mar 22, 2007 -- By passing Initiative 692 in 1998, Washington state voters approved the medical use of marijuana. The initiative allowed for patients suffering from a number of debilitating diseases such as cancer to have a 60-day supply of the drug as long as they had written approval from their physicians.

However, there [>>>]

Salinas, CA Mar 22, 2007 -- When City Council-member Jyl Lutes’ then-husband lost his appetite during a battle with bone cancer more than 20 years ago, Stanford doctors gave him an experimental prescription: a vile of tightly-rolled joints. The marijuana cigarettes, she recalls, had a stamp from the Department of Agriculture on them and the directions read, “smoke at the first sign of nausea.” Lutes says the pot helped ease the pain of his last days—he died at the age of 30.

“He had [>>>]

Springfield, MA Mar 22, 2007 -- Angel Raich, a California mother of two, has an inoperable brain tumor and other serious ailments so painful that she needs drugs every two or three hours.

Her doctor [>>>]

Burnsville, MN Mar 21, 2007 -- As a family practitioner with more than 20 years of experience, I have treated numerous patients who have told me that marijuana was effective in combating their symptoms. This has been particularly true of patients suffering from peripheral neuropathy, an excruciatingly painful condition for which there is currently no FDA-approved treatment.

Now a [>>>]

In memory of our good friend and activist in arms,
Essie Morman,
who passed away recently.

R.I.P.

click photos for larger image

Conquest By Cannabinoids
A U.S. Army Pipe Dream

Oakland, CA Mar 21, 2007 -- The U.S. Army, in a search for "non-lethal incapacitating agents," tested cannabis-based drugs on GI volunteers throughout the 1960s according to James Ketchum, MD, the psychiatrist who led the classified research program at Edgewood Arsenal in Maryland. Ketchum retired as a colonel in 1976 and now lives in Santa Rosa. He has written a memoir, "Chemical Warfare: Secrets Almost Forgotten," in which he describes experiments conducted at Edgewood and staunchly defends the Army's ethical standards. In a talk to the Society of Cannabis Clinicians March 9 in Los Angeles, Ketchum recounted the Army's experiments with cannabinoid drugs.

Ketchum was [>>>]

St Paul, MN Mar 20, 2007 -- A bill to allow the medical use of marijuana cleared one of its major hurdles late Monday, passing a House public safety committee where law enforcement officials made their strongest appeal yet to defeat the measure.

The bill [>>>]

Huntsville, TX Mar 20, 2007 -- An African-American man who was given a life sentence when he tested positive for marijuana in violation of his parole has been freed after serving 17 years in prison.

Tyrone Brown [>>>]

New York, NY Mar 20, 2007 -- One of America's central targets in its failed drug war has been marijuana. Some Americans might not realize that mere possession of a small bag of marijuana can result in imprisonment, since our marijuana laws are enforced mainly according to the color of our skin, the size of our bank account, or the zip code where we reside. However, under our "imprison-first, think later" policies, more than 734,000 Americans were arrested on marijuana charges in 2002 , and more than 5 million Americans have been arrested for marijuana offenses in the past decade; nearly 90% of which were for simple possession for personal use, not sale.

We lock [>>>]

Pittsburgh, PA Mar 19, 2007 -- Allen St. Pierre [Executive Director, NORML, Washington, DC]: "[The recent Ninth Circuit ruling in Raich v Gonzales (part II)] is troubling on a few different levels. One, from a lay person’s point of view, it appears that the court has ruled that the supremacy of the federal government's law making abilities trumps individual's freedoms, liberties and abilities to engage in medical self-preservation.

Second, the [>>>]

Salem, OR Mar 15, 2007 -- Employers could fire medical-marijuana users who fail drug tests under a bill passed Wednesday by the Oregon Senate.

If it [>>>]

Olympia, WA Mar 15, 2007 -- Weeks after a grower startled lawmakers by unveiling half a dozen pot seedlings in the middle of a legislative hearing, the Senate approved a bill Wednesday revamping the rules on medical marijuana.

"This bill [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 15, 2007 -- The federal government's five-year effort to throw one of the nation's most prominent advocates of marijuana in prison appears to be all but dead after a judge ruled that prosecutors had vindictively piled on charges against the Oakland man after he successfully appealed his pot-growing convictions.

U.S. District [>>>]

Oakland, CA Mar 14, 2007 -- A federal appeals court ruled today that an Oakland woman who says she smokes marijuana to help her deal with a brain tumor and other maladies has no right to claim medical necessity to avoid possible prosecution under federal drug laws.

Angel Raich [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 14, 2007 -- Federal District Court Judge Charles Breyer ruled today that author and medical marijuana activist Edward Rosenthal was vindictively prosecuted, and dismissed charges of tax evasion and money laundering. The remaining marijuana charges against Rosenthal are virtually identical to those pursued against him in his prior 2003 trial. With an admission in court by the U.S. Attorney that it would not seek additional punishment beyond the one-day sentence Rosenthal was given after being convicted at his first trial, the prosecution has little reason to proceed with the case.

"We are [>>>]

Baltimore, MD Mar 14, 2007 -- Before her arrest three years ago, the first thing Leslie Miller did when she woke up each morning was reach for her bong and take four or five tokes of marijuana.

She wasn't [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Mar 14, 2007 -- State would join 11 others allowing patients to use drug

Albuquerque AIDS [>>>]

Sonora, CA Mar 14, 2007 -- Supervisor Teri Murrsion had the task of casting the deciding vote on whether to implement the state's medical marijuana identification card program in Tuolumne County.

It is [>>>]

Palm Springs, CA Mar 13, 2007 -- A new medical marijuana dispensary has opened in Palm Springs at the location of the recently closed Collective Apothecary of Palm Springs, or CAPS.

Employees at [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Mar 13, 2007 -- A bill to legalize the medical use of marijuana has passed the House.

The 36-31 [>>>]

Burton, MI Mar 13, 2007 -- Since she began smoking marijuana, breast cancer survivor Barbara Hoos, 54, has gained pain relief from debilitating tendinitis and back problems.

But she's [>>>]

London, England Mar 13, 2007 -- The number of illegal cannabis farms found by police in the UK has trebled in the last two years, according to a drugs charity.

But how [>>>]

Sonora, CA Mar 13, 2007 -- The state's medical marijuana identification care program will be on today's Tuolumne County's Board of Supervisors' agenda at 10:30am at the County Administration Center.

Aaron Smith [>>>]

Hartford, CT Mar 13, 2007 -- The question over whether to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes is back before state legislators.

The question [>>>]

Tel Aviv, Israel Mar 13, 2007 -- A new bill presented to Knesset on Monday would allow for a greater amount of growing, cultivation, and manufacture of marijuana plants for medicinal purposes.

The initiator [>>>]

San Diego, CA Mar 12, 2007 -- San Diego County officials said last week that they have filed an appeal to continue their efforts to overturn California's voter-approved medical marijuana law ---- but judges could take months, a year, or longer to issue a ruling.

Meanwhile, medical [>>>]

Sacramento, CA Mar 12, 2007 -- NORML is pleased to announce that Assembly Bill 684, an act to enact statewide regulations on the cultivation of industrial hemp as an agricultural commodity, has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Public Safety. If approved, this measure will to allow state-licensed farmers to cultivate hemp as an economic product. (Read the full text of the bill here: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/07-
08/bill/asm/ab_06510700/ab_684_bill_20070221_introduced.html

Last year [>>>]

Ft. Wayne, IN Mar 12, 2007 -- Republican U.S. Rep. Mark Souder recently took to the airwaves to defend one of the Bush administration’s sacred cows: the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign.

If you’ve [>>>]

Santa Cruz, CA Mar 12, 20007 -- Like Capt. Renault in the movie classic "Casablanca," we were shocked — shocked! — to discover that some proprietors of medical marijuana clinics have pulled down millions of dollars, even as "nonprofit" clinics.

We're also [>>>]

Columbia, MO Mar 11, 2007 -- The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and Students for Sensible Drug Policy held their 2007 state conference at the MU Arts and Science building Friday and Saturday.

About 35 [>>>]

Burbank, CA Mar 10, 2007 -- The City of Burbank reluctantly dismissed its case against Peter Keyes, a 38 year old, Medical Marijuana Patient and Activist who had been ordered to return for trial on March 7, 2006 at Burbank Superior Court to answer to charges of possession of less than 1 ounce of Marijuana.

Last January [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Mar 10, 2007 -- Federal agents trailed Sparky Rose as he drove a Porsche Carrera convertible to his medical marijuana clinic.

For the [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Mar 10, 2007 -- Gov. Bill Richardson said Friday that he has begun meeting with lawmakers in an effort to resurrect a medical-marijuana bill, which the House narrowly defeated Thursday night.

"I think [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Mar 9, 2007 -- It's with a heavy heart that I must tell you that on Thursday night, our medical marijuana bill, SB 238, failed to pass the New Mexico House of Representatives. During a three hour debate, unfriendly amendments were voted down with excellent margins. The first vote on the bill, however, failed by a vote of 33 to 33. Incredibly, one of our biggest supporters rushed into the House chamber and missed this vote by only one or two seconds. The House members then voted to reconsider the vote because that member was missing.

That's when [>>>]

Salt Lake City, UT Mar 9, 2007 -- The odor of burning marijuana didn't justify a search of a trailer without a warrant, the Utah Supreme Court said Friday.

Police officers [>>>]

Adelanto, CA Mar 10, 2007 -- In a special meeting City Council members voted to impose a 45-day moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries.

The moratorium [>>>]

Lakeport, CA Mar 8, 2007 -- The Lakeport City Council held a public hearing on Tuesday to provide residents the opportunity to voice their opinions on a new marijuana ordinance introduced last month to the council.

The ordinance [>>>]

Ridgecrest, CA MAr 10, 2007 -- The Ridgecrest City Council, at its Wednesday meeting, introduced an ordinance that would prohibit the issuance of business licenses to businesses that would violate local, state or federal law. The proposed ordinance also states that issuance of business license does not allow the conduct or the continuance of any illegal business or of a legal business in an illegal manner.

The council [>>>]

Annapolis, MD Mar 9, 2007 -- The first thing Leslie Miller does when she wakes up each morning is reach for her bong and take four or five tokes of marijuana.

She isn't [>>>]

San Diego, CA Mar 10, 2007 -- Some California teens are giving a new meaning to "high" school.

Students are [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 9, 2007 -- This morning Friday March 9th, 2007 the San Francisco Health Department issued it’s first two provisional Medical Cannabis Dispensary permits. Congratulations are in order for both HopeNet & Good fellows mcd’s. Hopefully there will be many others to follow very soon.

For more [>>>]

San Diego, CA Mar 9, 2007 -- A man badly burned in the Cedar Fire is spearheading a class-action lawsuit over medical marijuana.

The federal [>>>]

Van Nuys, CA Mar 9, 2007 -- Forty protests turned out in response to this afternoon's raid at T.H.C. in Van Nuys. We are sad to report that eleven people inside were arrested on state charges of transporting cannabis and maintaining a house for providing cannabis (H&S 11360 & 11366.5, respectively). Los Angeles Police Officers on the scene said this was part of an ongoing investigation and the search and arrest warrants came from a state judge in Van Nuys. Officers also report that DEA agents were present, but none were observed by protesters.

As always [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Mar 9, 2007 -- A proposal to legalize the medical use of marijuana failed Thursday in the House, dashing hopes of advocates who had picked up the support of Gov. Bill Richardson for the measure.

The Senate [>>>]

Concord, NH Mar 8, 2007 -- Laws protecting seriously ill patients from arrest for using medical marijuana with their doctor's recommendation enjoy broad support among New Hampshire voters, a Becker Institute poll revealed today.

Sixty-eight percent [>>>]

Spokane, WA Mar 8, 2007 -- They started filing into a Spokane hotel meeting room not long after 8 a.m. Wednesday, clutching folders stuffed with paperwork.

A young [>>>]

A Day in the Life of a Medical Marijuana POW

Dublin CA Mar 7, 2007 -- After dozing off for the first time, the midnight count starts. Guards with heavy boots stomp by, wielding flashlights and shining them into your eyes to count bodies. Imagine dozing off again, then waking frantically at one a.m. to the loudest buzz that it makes your ears ring as everyone yells fire. Over one hundred groggy, sleepy women stumble down the stairs, side by side.

Every night [>>>]

Fresno, CA Mar 7, 2007 -- Appearing in federal court in a wheelchair yesterday, former Bakersfield dispensary owner Joseph Fortt was sentenced to 21 months in jail.

It was [>>>]

West Hollywood, CA Mar 6, 2007 -- The Drug Enforcement Administration served a search warrant Tuesday at a marijuana facility in West Hollywood that was one of several facilities previously raided by the federal agency.

Sarah Pullen [>>>]

Porterville, CA Mar 7, 2007 -- While the Porterville City Council has directed staff to prepare guidelines for medical marijuana distributors, federal law may have to change before dispensaries can set up shop in Porterville.

City Attorney [>>>]

Pomona, CA Mar 7, 2007 -- - The operator of a medical marijuana dispensary said he will continue to help his clients even though the City Council opted this week to close down his operation.

Council members [>>>]

Denver, CO Mar 6, 2007 -- A recent CBS4 Investigation into Colorado's medical marijuana law gained national attention in the New York Times as the newspaper examined how the Colorado rules provide no protocols for how a patient should get the pot. There are other problems with the law that appear to allow for abuse.

Voters approved [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 3, 2007 -- federal judge has asked the United States attorney here to submit all trial preparation memorandums in the case against a leading advocate of medical marijuana so that the court can determine if the government has been pursuing a “vindictive prosecution.”

The judge [>>>]

Oakland, CA Mar 3, 2007 -- The journal Neurology on Feb. 13 published an article by UCSF's Donald I. Abrams, MD, and colleagues establishing that smoked cannabis relieves neuropathic pain (an intense tingling or burning sensation usually occurring in the feet). Abrams et al conducted a study at San Francisco General Hospital with 50 patients whose neuropathy was HIV-related. (Neuropathic pain can also result from diabetes, trauma, and other causes.) Another type of pain was induced by applying capsaicin to a patch of each patient's skin.

The study [>>>]

Madison, WI Mar 3, 2007 -- People who are busted in Dane County for having less than 25 grams of marijuana - a little less than an ounce of pot, or the equivalent of about 20 to 25 joints - will no longer face criminal prosecution, but they could still pay some hefty fines.

Citing a [>>>]

Oakland, CA Mar 3, 2007 -- The owner and several employees of a business that produced marijuana-laced foods and drinks for medical marijuana clubs were sentenced to federal prison terms Friday.

Senior U.S. [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Mar 2, 2007 -- Patients and loved ones turned out on short notice to protest two simultaneous DEA raids in the San Fernando Valley. Two employees of H.I.P. In Sherman Oaks are still being detained by federal agents tonight, but no arrests were made at H.I.P. In Woodland Hills. This is the second time these two collectives have been raided by the DEA in less than thirty days!

Americans for [>>>]

Honolulu, HI Mar 2, 2007 -- A new study has found legalizing marijuana in Hawaii would save ten million dollars spent each year on law enforcement efforts.

The study [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Mar 2, 2007 -- It has been confirmed that the DEA is currently raiding at least two medical cannabis dispensaries in Sherman Oaks and Woodland Hills. If you are in the area and care about safe access, we encourage you to go there and join others in protest. If you have signs, bring them.

Here are [>>>]

Sacramento, CA Mar 1, 2007 -- On the heels of public outcries over a state plan to increase the fee charged to patients for medical marijuana identification cards, Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) today announced that the Department of Health Services has agreed to reduce the fee increase to $66 for the state portion of the ID card fee, which is down from the previously announced $142.

"As county [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 1, 2007 -- -- Author and medical marijuana activist Ed Rosenthal will call for the dismissal of his case, based on vindictive prosecution, at a hearing this Friday in federal court. This hearing, on several motions to dismiss, centers on the re-indictment of Rosenthal after his 2003 conviction was overturned in April 2006 by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Additional motions that will also be heard are based on prosecutorial misconduct, selective prosecution, unreasonable delay, and grand jury misconduct.

Rosenthal’s prosecution [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Mar 1, 2007 -- Concerned about the recently announced skyrocketing cost for a state medical cannabis patient identification card, Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) is urging the California Department of Health Services to reconsider the fee hike.

"I am [>>>]

Montpelior, VT Mar 1, 2007 -- A bill that would improve Vermont's medical marijuana law passed in an initial Senate vote today, clearing the way for a final Senate vote expected Thursday.

If passed [>>>]

Woodland, CA Mar 1, 2007 --Within a few months, Yolo County medical marijuana patients will be eligible for ID cards that some say could save them a lot of legal hassles.

In a [>>>]

Ceres, CA Mar 1, 2007 -- By the end of March, it will be permanently illegal for medical marijuana dispensaries from opening shop in Ceres.

On Monday [>>>]

Flint, MI Feb 28, 2007 -- Voters in the city gave approval to a measure legalizing the use of medical marijuana.

The proposal [>>>]

Feb 28, 2007 -- Using marijuana-like chemicals in combination with an existing drug has the potential to improve the treatment of Parkinson's disease, according to a new study.

Researchers said [>>>]

Salem, OR Feb 28, 2007 -- Medical marijuana advocates asked lawmakers to enact a bill that would prohibit employers from firing them because of their choice of medication.

"The bottom [>>>]

Oakland, CA Feb 28, 2007 -- It's about to become more expensive to show who is eligible for medical marijuana in Alameda County.

On Tuesday [>>>]

Porterville, CA Feb 28, 2007 -- The Porterville City Council will accept the public's input on medical marijuana dispensaries at a public hearing set next week.

While the [>>>]

Chicago, IL Feb 28, 2007 - Medical marijuana has had a lot of successes. Eleven states have legalized the therapeutic use of cannabis for people whose doctors think they can benefit from it. The Supreme Court has upheld the right of physicians to recommend pot to their patients. A 1999 report by the federal government's Institute of Medicine concluded, "Scientific data indicate the potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation."

But elsewhere [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 27, 2007 -- Pretrial motions hearing at 2pm, Friday, March 2nd, before Judge Charles Breyer in U.S. District Court, 450 Golden Gate, San Francisco, CA. In October 2006, superseding indictments were filed against medical marijuana author and cultivator Ed Rosenthal and Rick Watts (though his felony charges were later dismissed).

In addition [>>>]

Salem, Or Feb 26, 2007 -- The political stakes might not be as high as for school funding or tax increases, but two Democratic senators are jousting over workers' right to smoke medicinal dope.

Last Monday [>>>]

Fort Collins, CO Feb 25, 2007 -- Defense attorneys in what is being called a “test case” for the caregiver provision of Colorado’s medical marijuana law are asking the District Attorney’s office to remove itself from the case.

On Monday [>>>]

Denver, CO Feb 25, 2007 -- Police are still searching for a suspect in the murder of marijuana advocate Ken Gorman. He was shot to death at his Denver home Feb. 17 in what police think was a robbery.

Gorman grew

Chicago, IL Feb 24, 2007 -- Medical marijuana has had a lot of successes. Eleven states have legalized the therapeutic use of cannabis for people whose doctors think they can benefit from it. The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the right of physicians to recommend pot to their patients. A 1999 report by the federal government's Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded, "Scientific data indicate the potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation."

But elsewhere [>>>]

Medical marijuana ID program struggling
Steep costs, privacy fears deter many users

San Andreas, CA  Feb 24, 2007 -- - California's medical marijuana identification card program is sick.

The California [>>>]

San Luis Obispo, CA Feb 24, 2007 -- The San Luis Obispo Department of Public Health will temporarily stop issuing medical marijuana identification cards beginning Wednesday until the county works out details of a state fee increase of almost an elevenfold increase.

State law [>>>]

Santa Clarita, CA Feb 24, 2007 -- Over the past few weeks, when the clock would strike 4:20 p.m., Santa Clarita City Councilman Frank Ferry said he would get pretty busy.

The time [>>>]

Oakland, CA Feb 24, 2007 -- "Guru of Ganja" Ed Rosenthal is bringing in another celebrity of the marijuana movement to help him raise funds for his upcoming federal trial.

Tommy Chong [>>>]

Flint, MI Feb 23, 2007 -- Next Tuesday Flint voters will decide whether to legalize the use of medical marijuana in the city.

While it [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Feb 21, 2007 -- California’s medical marijuana patient I.D. program has struggled over the past three years, with low enrollment forcing the program to operate at a loss. But thanks to an impending 200 percent increase in card price, Palm Spring patients are now rushing to apply for I.D.s before it’s too late.

Since word [>>>]

Santa Monica, CA Feb 22, 2007 -- Nathan Hamilton, 23, and his business partner and friend, Logan Aries, 20, are trying to open what would be the first nonprofit medical marijuana dispensary in Santa Monica, at the corner of Main and Pacific Streets.

Hamilton went [>>>]

Mexico City D.F. Feb 22, 2007 -- The grifters, drifters, hustlers, down and outers, and ne'er do well denizens who inhabit the seedy hotels that line the run-down side streets of the old quarter or "Centro Historico" of this megalopolis, are wearing frowns these days. Not only is Carlos Slim, the richest man in Latin America, buying up hundreds of old buildings and raising the rents all around them but now freshman president Felipe Calderon has declared war on Mexico's drug cartels and marijuana is in short supply at the bottom rung of the business.

"Mota (marijuana) [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb. 22, 2007 -- Frustrated by government policy and inaction, a group of advocates for medical marijuana sued two federal health agencies on Wednesday over the assertion that smoking it has no medical benefit.

The group [>>>]

St Paul, MN Feb 22, 2007 -- Legalization of medicinal marijuana use, once a dubious political proposal, has gathered bipartisan momentum this session, and was passed last Wednesday by the Health, Housing and Family Safety committee, the first of many committee hearings to come.

A bill [>>>]

Lassen County, CA Feb. 21, 2007 -- “To not act on this and to not approve (a medical marijuana) ID card program would be a violation of state law,” Dennis Hines told the Lassen County Board of Supervisors last week.

Marijuana possession [>>>]

Oakland, CA Feb 21, 2007 -- Armed with a new study that showed smoking marijuana eased pain in some HIV patients, medical marijuana advocates sued the federal government Wednesday over its claim that pot has no accepted medical benefits.

The lawsuit [>>>]

San Rafael, CA Feb 20, 2007 -- On March 1st, the Marin County Board of Supervisors (BOS) will suspend the Medical Marijuana State Card Program in Marin until the price controversy is settled. The Marin County BOS are following the lead of San Francisco BOS in protesting the medical marijuiana state card price hike. In the meantime, patients will suffer.

Police enforcement [>>>]

Albany, CA Feb 21, 2007 -- The Albany City Council has given initial approval to an ordinance that would allow the establishment of a medical marijuana dispensary in the city.

The council [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Feb 20, 2007 -- -- A medical marijuana dispensary in Hacienda Heights will close this spring because it is located within 1,000 feet of a middle school, Supervisor Don Knabe's office announced Tuesday.

The dispensary [>>>]

Bennington, VT Feb 21, 2007 -- A new medical marijuana bill is close to reaching the Senate floor after it unanimously passed in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee Tuesday.

Headed to [>>>]

San Andreas, CA Feb 20, 2007 -- Medical marijuana patients in Calaveras County can thank local officials for saving them a little extra money this year.

Tuesday the [>>>]

Carson City, NV Feb 20, 2007 -- Nevada parents who grow a single marijuana plant in their home where children live could be subject to a prison term of up to 15 years, according to a bill that was debated Monday at the Nevada Legislature.

Senate Bill [>>>]

San Mateo, CA Feb 20, 2007 -- State fee hikes due to a shortfall of clients for California’s medical marijuana identification cards is trickling down to local programs, including San Mateo County which plans to nearly quadruple the cost by next month.

At its [>>>]

Denver, Co Feb 20, 2007 -- While Denver police hunt for a motive in the deadly shooting of medical-marijuana provider Ken Gorman, his brother and marijuana activists said the business of providing the drug to sick people isn't the safest line of work.

"I've heard [>>>]

Sacramento, CA Feb 19, 2007 -- Two California lawmakers have launched a new campaign to legalize hemp. It's a challenge to federal drug laws from two men on opposite sides of the political spectrum. But they have a common goal -- to help the state's struggling farmers.

Charles Meyer [>>>]

Denver, CO Feb 19, 2007 -- A Denver man well-known in Colorado's medical marijuana community was shot and killed Saturday night after his house was broken into.

Ken Gorman [>>>]

Merced, CA Feb 18, 2007 -- Merced County is still more than two months away from issuing identification cards for medical marijuana users -- a service that county officials said would be up and running by now.

In addition [>>>]

Eugene, OR Feb 16, 2007 -- As a registered cannabis-using patient in Oregon, I enjoy the benefit of one of the best medical marijuana programs in the country. If I actually could get access to my medicine in a safe, consistent manner - at a local dispensary, for instance - it would be perfect.

I am [>>>]

St. Paul, MN Feb 17, 2007 -- A bill to legalize medical marijuana use and possession for seriously ill or terminally ill patients zipped through a Senate health committee on a voice vote.

The bill [>>>]

Oakland, CA Feb 16, 2007 -- Oakland's cannabis dispensaries are not a problem for police and have been generating significant employment and revenue, according to a report to the city administrator by administrative hearing officer Barbara Killey.

The report [>>>]

Santa Monica, CA Feb 16, 2007 -- The City Council wants more information on opening Santa Monica to pot clubs, which for a decade have proliferated in progressive cities across the state.

Heard at [>>>]

Norwich, CN Feb 15, 2007 -- Connecticut House Bill HB 6715: An Act Concerning the Palliative Use of Marijuana decriminalizes marijuana as a therapy "to alleviate a qualifying patient's symptoms of...debilitating medical conditions (such as) cancer, glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity, epilepsy, cachexia or wasting syndrome."

The passage [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Feb 15, 2007 -- During the last few weeks of January, masked federal drug agents rampaged through the Los Angeles area’s medical marijuana community, busting 11 licensed marijuana dispensaries, detaining 20 people, and seizing 5,700 pounds of marijuana. At issue is more than just the fact that pot is illegal under federal law; only 11 of the over 100 dispensaries in the county were targeted, leading to speculation that much more clarity is needed on the regulations and ID card systems which govern them.

California voters [>>>]

Lakeport, CA Feb 14, 2007 -- Faced with a state mandate that would raise the cost of a medical marijuana ID card by as much as 185 percent, the Lake County Board of Supervisors considered pulling out of the state run program Tuesday.

County Health [>>>]

Charleston, SC Feb 14, 2007 -- Should patients with cancer or similar diseases be allowed to legally use marijuana to ease their pain? That issue has made its way into the chambers of the General Assembly.

Senator Bill [>>>]

Austin, TX Feb 15, 2007 -- Austin Democrat Eliott Naishtat today filed a proposal in the House that would make it easier for those who use marijuana to treat medical conditions to defend themselves in court.

The proposal [>>>]

Santa Cruz, CA Feb 15, 2007 --A new voter-approved law that forces Santa Cruz police to essentially ignore marijuana crimes is being challenged by city officials, who say a portion of the ordinance violates the city constitution.

The City [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Feb 15, 2007 -- An overwhelming majority of New Mexicans support the idea of allowing people with serious medical conditions to smoke marijuana to ease symptoms, according to a poll commissioned by a drug-reform group lobbying for a medical marijuana bill in the Legislature.

The poll [>>>]

Tracy, CA Feb 15, 2007 -- The tale of the second medical marijuana dispensary to open in Tracy — and in San Joaquin County for that matter — came to a quiet close over the weekend, with the same amount of fanfare as when it opened.

Even though [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 14, 2007 -- Medical cannabis patients and activists rallied at San Francisco General Hospital today to protest the increase in state fees for medical cannabis ID cards.

Sponsored by [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 14, 2007 -- On January 31, 2007, the Drug Policy Alliance filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief highlighting the scientific underpinnings for the medical use of marijuana to treat symptoms related to HIV/AIDS. The brief supports a motion for return of property in the case of Ben Goldstein, an AIDS patient in San Francisco who uses marijuana for medical purposes.

In December [>>>]

Feb 13, 2007 -- The Drug Policy Alliance is working with Americans for Safe Access (ASA), NORML, the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), and Safe Access Now (SAN) to oppose a proposed fee increase for California's statewide medical marijuana ID card program. The program is designed to protect patients by allowing them to easily demonstrate that they possess marijuana legally if they are stopped by state or local law enforcement.

The increase [>>>]

DEA Judge Recommends End to Government Obstruction of Medical Marijuana Research
Historic Step Toward Nation's First Government-Approved Marijuana Production Facility

Washington, DC Feb 13, 2007 -- MAPS, the ACLU, and a broad array of medical and public policy groups nationwide commended today's official recommendation by Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner that University of Massachusetts- Amherst Professor Lyle Craker be permitted to grow research-grade marijuana for use in privately-funded government-approved studies that aim to develop the marijuana plant into a legal, prescription medicine. Judge Bittner ruled that it is in the public interest to end the federal government's monopoly, which it has maintained for over six decades, on the supply of marijuana that can be used in FDA-approved research.

"This ruling [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 13, 2007 -- My name is Nathaniel D. Archer, and I reside in San Francisco, Ca. I am registered with the State of California as a Medical Cannabis patient. I recently had all of my equipment and garden confiscated by the County of San Diego and was charged with cultivation. I was incarcerated despite the fact that I have documentation to support my patient status.

I have [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 13, 2007 -- A state decision to increase the cost of medical marijuana ID cards from $13 a year to $142 has prompted a San Francisco supervisor to call for the city to issue its own cards at a lower cost.

The idea [>>>]

Washington DC Feb 13, 2007 -- Concluding that there is an inadequate supply of marijuana for medical research, an administrative law judge has recommended to the Drug Enforcement Administration that it grant a Massachusetts professor's application to grow the drug in bulk.

The judge's [>>>]

Tracy, CA Feb 13, 2007 -- The tale of the second medical marijuana dispensary to open in Tracy -- and San Joaquin County for that matter -- came to a quiet close over the weekend, with the same amount of fanfare as when it opened.

Even though [>>>]

Lafayette, CO Feb 13, 2007 -- A Boulder criminal-defense lawyer who has been serving as an associate municipal court judge in Lafayette for eight years has resigned to protest the city's tough new penalties for marijuana possession.

Leonard Frieling [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 12, 2007 -- Doctors at San Francisco General Hospital reported today that HIV-infected patients suffering from a painful nerve condition in their hands or feet obtained substantial relief by smoking small amounts of marijuana in a carefully constructed study funded by the State of California.

Although [>>>]

Santa Cruz, CA Feb 12, 2007 -- More than two months after Measure K took effect, Santa Cruz police say nothing has changed in their day-to-day operations as a result of the new law that made adult marijuana crimes the lowest law enforcement priority in the city.

Marijuana arrests [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Feb 11, 2007 -- Do you medicate? I do.

I'm not [>>>]

Washington DC Feb 9, 2007 -- Debunking hysterical coverage of marijuana is just too easy. For example, this front-page piece from USA Today was headlined “Caution: Marijuana May Not Be Lesser Evil.”

But it [>>>]

Desert Hot Springs, CA Feb 10, 2007 -- Medical marijuana is creating controversy all over the Valley. This week, it was front and center in Desert Hot Springs, all because of a new business called "Organic Solutions of the Desert." NewsChannel 3 has an exclusive look inside.

The Desert [>>>]

In response [>>>]

Union City, CA Feb 10, 2007 -- Schools, safety, serenity, self-enclosed castles — these are the qualities that traditionally draw people out to carefully planned suburbs.

But homeowners [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Feb 10, 2007 -- With little fanfare until this month, Los Angeles County has quietly become the country’s capital of medical marijuana.

In the [>>>]

Washington DC Feb 10, 2007 -- American taxpayers are now spending more than a billion dollars per year to incarcerate its citizens for pot. That's according to statistics recently released by the U.S. Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics.

According to [>>>]

St Paul, MN Feb 10, 2007 -- Rep. Steve Sviggum wants to make it clear — he’s not trying to turn Minnesota into Amsterdam.

But after [>>>]

Washington, DC Feb 9, 2007 -- On January 28, 2007 in the Minneapolis Star Tribune story "Industrial hemp producer? Plan raises feds' suspicions," Tom Riley of the White House Office on National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) was quoted as saying:

"You have [>>>]

Santa Cruz, CA Feb 9, 2007 -- Medical marijuana advocates hope the state Supreme Court will set rules that protect and broaden the role of caregivers who grow and distribute marijuana for the sick.

This week [>>>]

They're my  [>>>]

Colorado Springs, CO Feb 8, 2007 -- James and Lisa Masters were preparing to take their daughters fishing on the morning of Aug. 2, 2006, when two social workers and two police officers knocked on their door.

"We were [>>>]

Larimer County, CO Feb 8, 2007 -- Brian Vicente was about halfway through schooling a roomful of defense lawyers on how to represent medical marijuana patients, when "there was a ruckus of some sort,'" says Vicente. "After the talk, [one of the attorneys] said, 'There was a prosecutor in here spying and we had to kick him out.'"

Vicente, the [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Feb 8, 2007 -- The New Mexico Senate approved the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act (SB 238) on Wednesday, February 7, 34 to 7. If the bill becomes law, it will allow qualified patients suffering from certain illnesses, such as cancer, HIV/AIDS and epilepsy, to use medical cannabis for relief of their symptoms.

With momentum [>>>]

Whitefish, MT Feb 8, 2007 -- A Polson man who claimed protection under the state's Medical Marijuana Act after he was caught smoking marijuana at a downtown Whitefish bar recently pleaded guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia.

Luke Venters [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 7, 2007 -- A veteran who said she had Gulf War Syndrome sat next to a woman who complained of damaged disks in her back; an HIV-positive man talked to a woman with a seizure disorder. Potent smoke swirled around them and drifted up to blur the fluorescent lights.

It was [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Feb 7, 2007 -- A proposal to legalize the medical use of marijuana is headed for a vote by the full Senate, which has endorsed it in the past.

Supporters of [>>>]

Palo Alto, CA Feb 7, 2007 -- Marijuana-like chemicals in the brain may point to a treatment for the debilitating condition of Parkinson’s disease. In a study to be published in the Feb. 8 issue of Nature, researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine report that endocannabinoids, naturally occurring chemicals found in the brain that are similar to the active compounds in marijuana and hashish, helped trigger a dramatic improvement in mice with a condition similar to Parkinson’s.

“This study  [>>>]

San Luis Obispo, CA Feb 7, 2007 -- The Board of Supervisors gave its final approval Tuesday to allow medical marijuana dispensaries in the county’s unincorporated inland areas.

Dispensaries cannot [>>>]

Providence, RI Feb 7, 2007 -- Since the implementation of the Medical Marijuana Act last spring, Rhonda O'Donnell, a 44-year-old former registered nurse with multiple sclerosis, has used marijuana to alleviate her pain without fear of breaking the law.

O'Donnell, the [hempevolution.org
]

Bismarck, ND Feb 7, 2007 -- North Dakota officials have issued the nation's first licenses to grow industrial hemp, though they do not guarantee that farmers will actually be able to grow the crop.

Farmers Dave [>>>]

Desert Hot Springs, CA Feb 7, 2007 -- A heated debate in Desert Hot Springs Tuesday night and it ended with the city council voting no to any new medical marijuana dispensaries.

The council [>>>]

Whittier, CA Feb 5, 2007 -- Some arrived wearing hippie clothes and facial piercings; some wore suits; others were dressed in jeans and sweat shirts.

The diverse [>>>]

Whittier, CA Feb 5, 2007 -- Some arrived wearing hippie clothes and facial piercings, some wore suits, others were dressed in jeans and sweatshirts.

The diverse [>>>]

Palm Springs, CA Feb 5, 2007 -- The number of Coachella Valley medical marijuana users applying to Riverside County for patient identification cards has jumped dramatically following the announcement that the cost of the card will double in July.

The card [>>>]

Marijuana card fees going up

Eureka, CA Feb 5, 2007 -- The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors will on Tuesday consider voting to pass on a significant increase in the cost of obtaining a medical marijuana card by making it a part of its fee schedule.

On Dec. [>>>]

Manchester, NH Feb 4, 2007 -- TWO WEEKS AGO, U.S. drug agents launched raids on 11 medical-marijuana centers in Los Angeles County. The U.S. attorney's office says they violated the laws against cultivation and distribution of marijuana.

Whatever happened [>>>]

Osnabrook, ND Feb 4, 2007 -- David Monson arrived at church the picture of rural conservative respectability, dressed in a suit and accompanied by his 79-year-old mother. Tall, neatly trimmed, attentive to neighbors as he escorted his mother to a pew, he is all you might expect and more: farmer, rural school superintendent, president of his Lutheran congregation, member of the Eagles, assistant Republican leader in the state House of Representatives.

He also [>>>]

As Missoula County officials work to revise a recent initiative that deprioritizes adult marijuana offenses, proponents of the measure are decrying the efforts as overzealous.

The countywide [>>>]

Genesee County, MI Feb 2, 2007 -- A big effort is under way right now in the city of Flint to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. Five cities in Michigan already have medical marijuana ordinances on their books.

On Feb. 27 [>>>]

Spokane, WA Feb 3, 2007 -- Sharon Tracy "may have been exactly the kind of patient the voters of this state had in mind when they enacted the medical marijuana initiative, I-692."

So said [>>>]

Amador County, CA Feb 02, 2007 -- When it comes to current drug laws, perhaps none are more schizophrenic than the ones surrounding the issue of medical marijuana. Legal in some states - including California - outlawed in others and still very much illegal at the federal level, small counties like Amador often serve as ground zero in the battle over conflicting drug policies.

"Technically, people [>>>]

Santa Cruz, CA Feb 1, 2007 -- Business is brisk at Greenway Compassion Inc. The pot shop has a steady stream of customers and few of the problems some neighbors anticipated before the store opened a year and a half ago.

The medical [>>>]

Santa Fe, NM Feb 2, 2007 -- Yet again, a medical marijuana bill has sailed through a Senate committee, creating a sense of hope for those who want New Mexico to become the 12th state to allow patients to use the mind-altering herb for the relief of pain and nausea under doctor supervision.

An estimated [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Feb 1, 2007 -- On a sunny Saturday morning last summer, the air inside the Church Street Compassion Center was thick with the scent of sweet, skunky medicine. The place felt like a neighborhood rec center. A couple of regulars were sitting on the soft, worn couches in the corner, watching a World Cup soccer match on a big-screen TV while taking an occasional puff on a joint. A friendly dog named “Danger” roamed the premises. Hardwood floors and wainscoting gave the place a touch of shabby elegance; its high ceiling, painted a vivid shade of yellow, provided a blast of hippy-dippy optimism.

Every 10 [>>>]

Dublin, CA Jan 31, 2007 -- Stephanie Landa is, at last in the federal wing of the Dublin prison complex. She was kept in general population for almost a month, in the Santa Rita County Jail, where the conditions were so deplorable it's amazing she's still alive.

She has a new address:

FCI DUBLIN
SATELLITE CAMP
Prisoner Stephanie Landa
Prisoner # 09247-800
5675 8TH ST DUBLIN, CA 94568

The phone number for the jail is:
Phone: 925-833-7500
Fax: 925-833-7599

Please everyone, now that she is in Federal prison, we can visit her all day during visiting hours, as long as we have been cleared by the jail. Write to her and ask her to send you the visitors form. At the very least, please drop her a card. Mail means the world to her, it's the only thing that brightens her day. You can also order magazine subscriptions for her, and send books, as long as they come directly from the bookstore or mail order places like Amazon.com.

Santa Rosa, CA Jan 31, 2007 -- Sonoma County supervisors will allow medical marijuana clubs to locate in urban areas of the unincorporated county, overriding the objections of its top law enforcement officer.

The unanimous [>>>]

Helena, MT Jan 31, 2007 -- A plan to expand the state's 2004 medical marijuana law was shelved in committee Tuesday.

Supporters of [>>>]

Tracy, CA Jan 31, 2007 -- An arbitrator has ordered a medical marijuana dispensary that opened more than two months ago to close by Feb. 9.

Jeanne Schechter [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Jan 30, 2007 -- Supervisor Mirkarimi has stepped forward again to help medical cannabis patients. However, the guidance of San Francisco city attorney Dennis Herrera has caused problems with patient access and choice of medical cannabis cards. With the upcoming March price increase in state medical cannabis cards from $13 to $142, Mirkarimi has introduced a resolution to help patients who are concerned about the affordability and confidentiality the San Francisco city card afforded patients that the state card doesn't.

The card [>>>]

St. Paul, MN Jan 30, 2007 -- Minnesota senators introduced a measure Monday to allow the chronically ill and dying to use marijuana without breaking state law.

The proposal [>>>]

Helena, MT Jan 29, 2007 -- The state’s 2004 medical marijuana law needs to be changed to let patients grow more plants and posses more marijuana, a key supporter says.

The current [>>>]

Glen Cove, CA Jan 26, 2007 -- A Glen Cove home where two men were shot to death last week contained hydroponics equipment and other material commonly used for growing marijuana, the Times-Herald learned Thursday.

During a [>>>]

Montpelior, VT Jan 26, 2007 -- A bill that would significantly expand Vermont's two-year-old medical marijuana program passed its first legislative hurdle last Friday as members of the state Senate Judiciary Committee voted 4-1 to advance it. The bill, S. 7, has now been referred to the Senate Health and Welfare Committee.

Under Vermont's [>>>]

Seattle, WA Jan 25, 2007 -- A medical marijuana patient from California who lost her case before the state Supreme Court last fall was sentenced Thursday to 60 days home confinement, after her lawyers argued that she was too sick to spend time in jail.

Sharon Tracy [>>>]

Claremont, CA Jan 25, 2007 -- Last Friday, the city of Claremont served an injunction order on the medical marijuana dispensary in an effort to force it to cease business operations. At the same time, the city continues to fine Darrell Kruse, the owner of the dispensary, $500 a day for operating his business without a city-issued license. The fines began last Tuesday and have increased incrementally in price each day, eventually capping at $500.

When Mr. [>>>]

Seattle, WA Jan 25, 2007 -- The benefits of medicinal marijuana have long been clear to those who suffer from chronic illness, and with a physician's consent, patients have had legal access to the drug for therapeutic purposes in Washington state since 1998. Too bad the feds don't recognize that.

The blind [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Jan 24, 2007 -- A Los Angeles City Council committee has approved a one-year moratorium on the issuance of permits for new medical marijuana dispensaries.

Councilman Dennis [>>>]

San Francisco, CA Jan 23, 2007 -- Please contact Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and ask her to reschedule marijuana.

"...We are [>>>]

Spokane, WA Jan 23, 2007 -- Back in 1998 Washington voters passed an initiative giving people who suffer from certain types of diseases the right to use and possess small amounts of marijuana.

But now [>>>]

Los Angeles, CA Jan 22, 2007 -- With all this national attention surrounding the recent DEA raids on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, LAist found it the perfect time to get the news from the horse's mouth, so we sat down with a Medical Marijuana card-holder who has visited some of the shops that the DEA shut down. Hopefully we can answer some of the questions surrounding the rumors, the hype, and the DEA:

How does [>>>]

Pittsburg, CA Jan 11, 2007 Rex Farrance was a popular senior editor at PC World magazine in San Francisco, a physical-fitness buff and a family man known for his enthusiasm for life and his sensitivity to others, friends say.

But according [>>>]

San Francisco, CA January 5, 2007 -- An elderly woman began a 41-month jail sentence in federal prison yesterday after turning herself in to federal authorities.

Stephanie Landa [>>>]