Kharla Vezzetti

SACRAMENTO, June 1 – The California Senate roundly rejected Mark Leno’s bill SB 1506 to reduce penalties for simple possession of narcotics and dangerous drugs from a felony to a misdemeanor, by a vote of 11-24. The bill would also have eliminated felony penalties for hashish/concentrated cannabis.

“With California’s prisons overflowing with violent criminals, it’s a sorry state of affairs when our lawmakers won’t adopt commonsense crime-reduction measures,” remarked Cal NORML director Dale Gieringer. “The legislature should be ashamed of kowtowing to law enforcement interests with a vested interest in wasting taxpayer dollars on imprisoning victimless drug users.”…

May 31st – The California Assembly approved the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Control Act, AB 2312 by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, by a vote of 41-30.

The bill would clarify the legality of dispensaries and other medical cannabis business by establishing clear, statewide rules for the industry under a new state Board of Medical Cannabis Enforcement (individual rights of patients and caregivers under Prop. 215 would not be affected).

Medical cannabis advocates, including California NORML, support the bill on the grounds that it would provide the kind of clear, legal framework necessary to protect patient access against federal raids.…

May 25 – Tom Ammiano’s bill to establish a state medical marijuana regulation system cleared a major hurdle today by passing the Assembly Appropriations Committee.  The bill now goes to the Assembly floor for a vote.  CAL NORML urges Californians to call on their Assembly members to support AB 2312.

The bill was helped by a massive lobbying day on Monday, when 300 activists from across the state visited every assembly and senate office in Sacramento. It was also helped by CalNORML director Dale Gieringer’s rebuttal of the appropriations committee report.…

WASHINGTON DC, May 9th. California’s congressional delegation voted 34-18 in favor of House Resolution 4326, to cut off federal funding for DOJ raids on medical marijuana. Special thanks to CA Republicans Dana Rohrabacher (Huntington Beach) and Tom McClintock
(Granite Bay) plus Democrat Sam Farr (Monterey) for co-sponsoring the measure.

Although the measure failed the full house by a vote of 163-262, it picked up substantially more Republican support than the last time around in 2007, when a similar measure was defeated 165-262 in a much more Democratic Congress.…

May 2, 2012 – A new zero-tolerance DUI bill has been introduced to the California legislature by veteran drug warriors state Sen. Lou Correa (D-Santa Ana) and Sam Blakeslee (R – SLO). The bill, SB 50, would make it a crime for a person to have a controlled substance in his or her blood while driving a vehicle. (SB 50 was originally introduced as a political reform bill, but was gutted and amended to become a DUID bill on April 16th).…

April 30 – The California Assembly has approved a bill by Assemblyman Wes Chesbro (D-Eureka) to impose additional civil penalties for cultivating marijuana on public lands, parks and forests.

In addition to assessing civil penalties of $10K-$40K on violators, the bill would authorize a member of the California Highway Patrol or the sheriff or a deputy sheriff to stop a vehicle transporting agricultural irrigation supplies, as defined, that are in plain view within the boundaries of a state park, state forest, or federal forest, or on timberland, and inspect the bills of lading, shipping, or delivery papers,

The bill, AB 2284, has been approved 13-0 by the Committee on Water, Parks and Wildlife.…

April 30 – A very bad court opinion that disallows MMJ sales by collectives has been published by the Second Appellate District, Division Two in Los Angeles: Trutanich v Joseph #B232248. The decision plays havoc with established law recognizing the legality of sales by medical cannabis collectives.

The court ruled that Jeffrey Joseph, owner of the Organica collective, could not legally sell MMJ because he was not a primary caregiver. Hardly ever can collectives legally qualify as primary
caregivers for their members according to the state Supreme Court’s Mentch decision.…

Many thanks to everyone who turned out to make our 4/20 protest of the federal medical marijuana raids at Obama’s campaign headquarters in Oaksterdam a success. Not only did we make our views known colorfully and emphatically, but a sympathetic Obama campaign staffer cordially agreed to convey a message  written by Oaksterdam U Chancellor Dale Sky Jones from us to the President.  We are all awaiting the reply. As usual, our demonstration received enthusiastic support from passing onlookers and motorists.
 
The event was covered by KPFA, the Oakland Tribune, KTVU, Reuters, and others;  ironically, Phil Smith’s eyewitness coverage below was published in the Hawai’i News Daily (below). …

April 20, 2012 – California NORML is happy to report that Assemblywoman Norma Torres has amended her DUI bill AB 2552 to drop objectionable new criminal penalties for driving with residues of marijuana or illicit drugs. The bill originally proposed treating drivers found with traces of marijuana or other drugs in their system as per se DUI, an idea strongly opposed by NORML as unjustified, inequitable, and costly.

Instead, the new bill will simply divide the existing DUI statute into separate sections so as to distinguish between DUI arrests for alcohol, drugs, and drugs+alcohol.…

The California Research Bureau has released a report on pesticides and medical marijuana. The report’s major finding is that the state’s regulatory jurisdiction is unclear due to uncertainty over the legal status of medical marijuana under current law.

The report was commissioned by Assembly member Linda Halderman, M.D. (R-Clovis/Fresno). Halderman has introduced a bill, AB1975, to “state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would require the Department of Pesticide Regulation to develop guidelines to enforce state pesticide regulations on medical marijuana cultivation.”…