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local and national features
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Mar 09 2010
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Santa Cruz City Council Votes to Ban Additional Medical Marijuana Dispensaries |
On Tuesday, March 9th, the Santa Cruz City Council voted 6-0 to support a recommendation from the city staff which bans the opening of an additional medical marijuana dispensary in Santa Cruz. This was the first reading of the vote and there will be a second vote in two weeks to finalize the ruling.
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Feb 10 2010
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Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Shut Down in Fresno |
On Monday, February 9, police arrested Rick Morse, the owner of Med Mar, the last medical marijuana dispensary in the City of Fresno. Morse was arrested for violating a court order which closed about one dozen dispensaries in January.
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Jan 24 2010
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WAMM Remains Vigilant While Settling Case Against Feds |
The Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM), a collective providing cannabis under California's 1996 Compassionate Use Act (Prop. 215), along with the city and county of Santa Cruz, have reached a settlement in their unprecedented lawsuit against the federal government. WAMM's case was prompted by the US Drug Enforcement Administration's raid of their medicinal garden in Davenport on September 5, 2002, in which armed agents terrorized residents and patients, and seized more than 160 cannabis plants.
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Jan 06 2010
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Miami's 12th Annual Medical Marijuana Benefit Concert at Tobacco Road - Jan 16 |
Miami's 12th Annual Medical Marijuana Benefit Concert at Tobacco Road - Jan 16
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Jan 06 2010
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New Medical Marijuana Dispensary Ban Likely at Santa Cruz City Council Meeting |
The Santa Cruz Planning Commission passed 5-2 a new medical marijuana dispensary ban recommendation in mid-November, essentially rubber-stamping the staff's proposal. It mirrors the 'Reefer Madness' hysteria of other cities, eager to demonize and limit marijuana sales.
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Dec 29 2009
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Facebook Removes Cannabis Culture Page and a Marijuana Proponent's Account |
For reasons unknown, Cannabis Culture Magazine's Facebook page has been disabled by the popular social networking site. The page, which had over 25,000 fans, disappeared on December 23, 2009. According to Cheryl Shuman, Executive Director of Beverly Hills NORML 90210, her Facebook account was removed the same day.
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Oct 07 2009
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Canadian Marc Emery Becomes a Political Prisoner of the USA |
Canadian authorities, acting at the behest of U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency officials, arrested seed distributor, activist and magazine publisher Marc Emery, often referred to as the "Prince of Pot", on July 29th, 2005 on charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana seeds, conspiracy to distribute marijuana and conspiracy to engage in money laundering. His arrest was politically motivated, based on drug legalization efforts. Emery and supporters spent years fighting extradition, however he surrendered into the custody of the British Columbia Supreme Court on September 28th, 2009 and is awaiting extradition to a US federal prison.
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Oct 06 2009
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WAMM Collective Wins Prestigious Award, Survives Wildfire |
The Santa Cruz, CA collective Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) won a major award in August from The Society for the Study of Social Problems, a national organization of sociologists. The SSSP's "Social Action" award and a check for $1,000 are given each year to a not-for-profit organization which embodies and enacts the social justice goals of the SSSP.
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Sep 19 2009
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Medical Marijuana, Hemp and Music Festival on September 26th |
WAMMfest 09 will take place on Saturday, September 26th from noon to 5pm at San Lorenzo Park in Santa Cruz. WAMMfest is an annual festival organized by the Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) to thank the community and public officials for all the support and encouragement over the years, especially since the DEA raid of WAMM's collective garden and arrest of Valerie and Mike Corral in 2002.
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Sep 13 2009
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'Beat False Marijuana Charges' Project Begins |
Beat False Marijuana Charges (BFMC) is a port of call for anyone arrested on drug charges or whose urine or hair tested positive for marijuana. Our research and investigations have confirmed that the overwhelming majority of drug prosecutions and convictions in this country are based on nonspecific, unvalidated drug tests which give false positives and/or subjective, ipse dixit testimonies from arresting police officers. Such use of these tests and testimonies is in violation of three Supreme Court rulings, particularly, Jackson v Virginia, and scientific principles. We have found that challenging a pending drug prosecution vis-à-vis the drug tests and testimonies can lead to a directed order of dismissal or an acquittal if the case goes to trial. We have also determined that urine and hair analyses are capable of rendering many false positives.
We are offering free assessments for anyone arrested on drug charges regarding whether they could successfully challenge their pending prosecutions or trials. We are offering the same free assessment for urine tests and hair analyses.
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Aug 12 2009
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Hemp Seizure in Capitol Underscores Confusion Over Cannabis |
HEMP INDUSTRY SEEKS 'BEER SUMMIT' WITH CAPITOL POLICE
Vote Hemp legislative assistant Ben Droz was shocked when Capitol Police seized his samples of industrial hemp fiber that he needed for a scheduled presentation to congressional staffers. Police refused to release the fiber after the search, while saying they knew it had no drug value and was “just hemp.” The group of officers decided they needed to confiscate all the hemp seeds because no food was allowed, but the hemp fiber was also seized even though it is not food.
Mr. Droz explained to police that the items were being used to illustrate the environmental properties of hemp.
Vote Hemp legislative assistant Ben Droz was shocked when Capitol Police seized his samples of industrial hemp fiber that he needed for a scheduled presentation to congressional staffers. Police refused to release the fiber after the search, while saying they knew it had no drug value and was “just hemp.” The group of officers decided they needed to confiscate all the hemp seeds because no food was allowed, but the hemp fiber was also seized even though it is not food.
Mr. Droz explained to police that the items were being used to illustrate the environmental properties of hemp.
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Jul 26 2009
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The Drug War Comes to Eastern Fresno County |
A major operation to confiscate marijuana in eastern Fresno County is currently underway. Save Our Sierra (SOS) is, according to Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims, targeting growers who are affiliated with Mexican drug cartels. These growers, again according to Mims, are destroying public lands with their drug operations. When questioned, Mims would not name one Mexican drug cartel involved or say how many of them were active in growing marijuana in Fresno County. Skeptics think operation SOS is more about justifying bloated law enforcement budgets by scaring people into thinking that an environmental calamity is being perpetrated by violent Mexican drug cartels.
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Jun 24 2009
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Prohibition on New Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Passed by Santa Cruz City Council |
On June 23rd, the Santa Cruz City Council passed a 45-day moratorium on new medical marijuana dispensaries in the city limits. Councilmembers said they needed the moratorium because they claimed there was a flood of daily inquiries to the city's Planning Department about opening medical marijuana centers. The are two pending applications for dispensaries on the Westside of Santa Cruz.
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May 08 2009
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Action Alert! Help Pass the Medical Marijuana Bill in the Illinois Senate! |
Champaign County Health Care Consumers (CCHCC) is once more asking you to take action to help Illinois join the 13 other states that currently allow the seriously and terminally ill to use medically prescribed marijuana to alleviate their pain and suffering when other forms of medication fail. Suffering patients have already waited for years and cannot afford further delay.
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Apr 09 2009
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Our House is on Fire, Part 4: U.S. Drug Policy has Gone to Pot |
The time seems ripe to change America’s attitudes towards the criminalization of drugs, and the behemoth prison system which grows from current drug policy and feeds on society. The failed war on drugs has created a 1200% increase in drug incarceration rates since 1980 (from 41,000 people incarcerated to over 500,000), and has disproportionately hurt African Americans. Further, a significant percentage of those who are locked up have no history of violence or high-level drug activity.