THE STATE
State appellate court hears cannabis-ban arguments
Justices for the 4th District Court of Appeal heard arguments Sept. 23 in a case that could validate the ability of California cities to ban cannabis clubs.
The medical pot group Qualified Patients Association wants the court to overturn a lower-court ruling dismissing their lawsuit against the city of Anaheim for its July 2007 ban on dispensaries. Medical cannabis advocacy groups, including Americans for Safe Access, warn that a ruling against the patients group could greatly embolden cities considering their own bans against collectives and dispensaries.
Numerous Southern California municipalities have filed briefs in support of Anaheim, including Costa Mesa, Cypress, Newport Beach and Westminster. At least two 4th District justices indicated during the hearing that they were uncomfortable with the lower court’s ruling.
The appellate court could make a decision as early as December.
Former state senate leader endorses cannabis initiative
Former state senate president pro tempore and Oakland mayoral candidate Don Perata has endorsed a ballot initiative that would legalize and tax cannabis in California.
Perata, who left the state senate last year, announced his support of the Tax and Regulate Cannabis Act at a Sept. 25 press conference. The initiative, conceived and financed by Oaksterdam University, is in the signature-gathering stage to qualify for the November 2010 ballot.
The former senator said he decided to endorse the initiative in part because of the recent overwhelming passage by Oakland voters of a measure taxing medical cannabis in the city.
“It’s pretty well proven that medical marijuana has not unraveled society as some feared,” Perata was quoted saying in a San Francisco Chronicle article.
Claremont ban on dispensaries upheld
The Los Angeles-based 2nd District Court of Appeal has upheld a lower-court judge’s moratorium on cannabis clubs in the city of Claremont.
The Sept. 23 ruling means that Claremont can continue to forbid collectives and dispensaries from opening within its borders until the city finishes studying how to legally implement permits for the operations. The justices stated in their decision that the moratorium did not amount to a permanent ban, and that cannabis may be permitted in Claremont under future zoning regulations.
Other California cities can now cite the ruling as case law.
San Bernardino City Council prohibits cannabis clubs
The city of San Bernardino has joined dozens of other California cities—as well as San Bernardino County—in prohibiting cannabis clubs.
Citing a city staff report that claims cannabis dispensaries increase noise, traffic and crime, the council voted Sept. 21 to impose a moratorium on such operations. The city has twice before passed temporary moratoriums on cannabis clubs, in 2007 and 2008. San Bernardino County also has a ban in place on pot clubs in unincorporated areas, despite having lost its bid to the U.S. Supreme Court challenging California’s medical marijuana program.
More than 100 California cities have passed temporary or permanent moratoriums against cannabis clubs.
San Diego study shows pot prevents alcohol damage
Researchers at UC San Diego have released a study showing evidence that marijuana is safer than alcohol—and may even protect the brain from damage caused by excessive drinking.
The study, published in September by the journal Neurotoxicology and Teratology, focused on students aged 16-19. The students were divided into three groups: binge drinkers, binge drinkers who also smoked cannabis and a control group of students who had little to no experience with alcohol or drugs.
Researchers found that binge drinkers (defined as boys consuming five or more drinks in one sitting and four or more drinks by girls) who also smoked cannabis demonstrably experienced less brain damage than those who consumed alcohol only.
The scientists noted that similar results were found in earlier studies using animal test subjects.
THE NATION
Three Iowa State football players reinstated after cannabis arrests
Three Iowa State football players were quickly reinstated to their team after being charged with possessing cannabis.
The players—starting cornerback Kennard Banks, linebacker Kevin Hamlin and defensive end Cleyon Laing—were arrested Sept. 22 after a small amount of marijuana and marijuana seeds were discovered in their off-campus apartment in Ames, Iowa. They were charged with misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance.
Immediately suspended from the Iowa State team, the three were reinstated two days later by athletics department officials. They still face sanctions under the university’s drug-testing policy and the school’s student judicial system.
News flash: Bringing weed to court is a bad idea
Sheriff’s deputies arrested a 21-year-old woman found trying to enter the St. Luice County Courthouse in Ft. Pierce, Fla., with marijuana in her purse.
Deputies running Chantel Marissa Johnson’s purse through a scanning device Sept. 22 at a court security checkpoint noticed it contained a knife, scissors and a padlock. That prompted them to empty her purse—and discover a small amount of what was later confirmed to be cannabis.
Johnson was immediately arrested and charged with possession of less than 20 grams of pot. She was released on $500 bail.
Utah rock formation gets smokin‘ name
A recently discovered sandstone formation in a remote section of southern Utah was named the “420 Arch” for its resemblance to a man smoking a pot pipe.
Stan Wagon, a professor of mathematics at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., stumbled upon the unusual rock formation while hiking through the region with a group of others. He contacted the Natural Arch and Bridge Society in Glade Park, Colo., and was told the Utah arch was previously unrecorded. Asked by a reporter for Macalester College’s student newspaper why he chose to christen the formation the 420 Arch, Wagon said the name was a natural.
“Uh, I don’t know if it’s obvious to you, but it looks like a rather young Macalester student, with a little cap, smoking a little pot pipe,” he said. “It’s the first thing it looked like to us, anyway.”
THE WORLD
Mexico decriminalizes small amounts of pot
Reeling from incessant violence by warring cartels, Mexico’s legislature has decriminalized small amounts of cannabis, cocaine, heroin and other drugs.
The new law, enacted in late August, allows Mexicans to carry up to five grams of marijuana, half a gram of cocaine, and small amounts of LSD, heroin and methamphetamine. The move is aimed at allowing police to focus resources on battling the country’s entrenched drug cartels.
The legislation includes a provision for citizens to obtain medical treatment if caught with small amounts of drugs. Such treatment becomes mandatory for citizens caught with drugs a third time.
Argentina decriminalizes cannabis for private use
Argentina’s Supreme Court has declared it unconstitutional to punish adults caught possessing or using cannabis.
The August ruling applies only to pot possession or use that doesn’t endanger the safety of others. Justices stated that public officials needed to focus their efforts on combating more serious narcotics trafficking while treating drug use as a health issue.
Venezuela declares war on pot-friendly Family Guy
Venezuelan officials, hopping mad over a marijuana-laced episode of the Fox animated show Family Guy, have warned cable television companies that they’ll be fined if they continue to air the program.
Justice Minister Tarek El Aissami insists the offending episode—in which the show’s characters launch a cannabis-legalization campaign—is part of a continuing U.S. plot to undermine the South American nation’s drug-fighting efforts. Of particular worry to the minister is a song on the episode called “A Bag of Weed,” in which the character Stewie sings, “All we need is a bag of weed to keep us worry-free.”
El Aissami said cable networks would be fined by Venezuela’s telecommunications overseer if they air the series. The Associated Press notes that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is seeking to impose new regulations on cable TV, including forcing providers to air Chavez’s speeches.
