Chaos in San Diego's Medical Marijuana Community (tags)
A report on conflicts within San Diego's medical marijuana community between the grass-roots Americans for Safe Access (ASA) and the dispensaries' trade group, Patients' Care Association (PCA) — and conflicts within the PCA between locals and an out-of-town organizer they accuse of trying to take over.
Finally a 10th Amendment lawsuit on medical marijuana!!!! (tags)
Medical marijuana advocates sue prosecutors over crackdown
Obama’s Justice Department Declares War on Medical Pot (tags)
The federal government recently escalated its war against medical marijuana. In San Diego and other southern California counties, instead of targeting medical marijuana dispensaries themselves, they are threatening the dispensaries' landlords with having their properties seized if they continue to rent to the dispensaries. They are also threatening publications like "Kush" and "Nug" aimed at the market for medical marijuana. This is yet another about-face for the Obama administration from its former assurances that they would leave medical marijuana dispensaries alone if they complied with state law.
San Diego Hammers Down on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Despite Public Support (tags)
Despite overwhelming public input asking for a looser ordinance that would allow medical marijuana dispensaries to locate in commercial areas throughout San Diego and remain open while they pursued permits, the San Diego City Council voted 5-2 on Monday, March 26 for an ordinance that will close down all dispensaries for at least a year and force them to locate only in industrial zones — inconveniently far from the patients they serve. Even most of the Councilmembers who voted for the ordinance, which was tweaked at the last minute to make it slightly less restrictive, made it clear that they regard medical marijuana patients and the institutions that serve them as a detriment, not an asset, to the city.
Protests Continue in San Luis Obispo (tags)
Medical cannabis activists in the San Luis Obispo area are coordinating rallies this month in support of patients and providers facing charges there. On the first two Thursdays of the month, Feb 3 and Feb 10, activists will be passing out informational flyers at the San Luis Obispo Farmers Market. Several of those arrested will appear in court on Feb 9 and 10, and another has a pre-trial hearing on Feb 14.
Obama's Medical Marijuana Rhetoric Better Than His Actions (tags)
Despite the much-ballyhooed announcements from the Obama administration that they're going to stop prosecuting medical marijuana patients and providers as long as they abide by the laws of their states, little has changed, attorney Gerald Singleton and activist Dion Markgraaf told Activist San Diego at a meeting April 20. Patients and providers are still being raided, and the Justice Department disappointed medical marijuana advocates by recommending a five-year prison sentence for former Morro Bay dispensary operator Charles Lynch despite the request by the judge in the case for some legal ground to be more lenient.
S.D. Cracks Down on Medical Pot as Feds Loosen Up (tags)
Don Duncan, California statewide director of the national medical-marijuana advocacy group Americans for Safe Access (ASA), came to San Diego February 10 to tell local members that the outlook for medical marijuana is good. He pointed to a policy statement from a spokesperson for President Obama that said the federal government will stop using its police power to interfere with state medical marijuana laws. But that was cold comfort to many of the people in the room, especially those targeted by a flurry of raids in San Diego in the first week of February.
Audience Packs Library for Medical Marijuana Film (tags)
For many of the 300 people who packed the San Diego Public Library screening of "Waiting to Inhale," Jed Riffe's film on the medical marijuana issue, it's not just a movie but something they're living. The film begins with a raid on a medical marijuana growers' collective, and at least two members of the audience talked about having gone through similar raids from San Diego County law enforcement just days earlier. The audience was highly partisan but the film itself was surprisingly fair-minded and even-handed in its approach to the issue.
DEA raids in Los Angeles again! (tags)
It has been confirmed that the DEA is currently raiding at least two medical cannabis dispensaries in Sherman Oaks and Woodland Hills.
Grand Opening, WEHO Cannabis Assoc (tags)
12-14-2004 - grand opening of a MM club in WeHo.
Hempseed Pancake Brunch Announced in Support of Osburns (tags)
A Hempseed Pancake Brunch and Festival will be held in support of medical marijuana defendants Lynn and Judy Osburn on Sunday, October 5 from noon to 6 PM at the Topanga Community Club. Come one, come all!
Day of Direct Action Against the DEA (tags)
Thursday, June 6th, there will be demonstrations at DEA offices throughout the nation, letting the DEA know that we will not stand by as they attempt to deny patients' rights to medical marijuana. In L.A. County specifically, activists will be present at the DEA office located at 255 E. Temple Street in Los Angeles. The protests begin at noon.