Los Angeles Marijuana Dispensaries

November 20, 2016

Civil Forfeiture Still a Risk Under Arcane Federal Marijuana Laws

Regardless of what the marijuana laws are in individual states, those who cultivate, process, store, package and distribute marijuana remain at risk for criminal penalties and civil forfeiture so long as federal statutes outlaw the drug. police

Case-in-point: In January, officials with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, alongside police officers from the San Diego Police Department, raided Med-West Distribution. This was a legal medical marijuana business that carved its niche refining cannabis oil for use in vaporizer pen devices. Officers decked out in helmets, tactical vests and heavily armed barged in, pointed guns at workers, handcuffed those inside and scoured the property for valuables. They seized a safe with $325,000 in cash. Officers high-fived one another as they left. Subsequent to that, in June, local police served to seizure warrants on the business’s cash as well as on the owner’s own family. The department pilfered nearly $100,000 from the family’s personal savings and checking accounts – funds that are totally unrelated to Med-West. Their two teen daughters lost their entire college savings – about $11,300.

The owner today says he is baffled. He was operating a marijuana business legally in compliance with state laws and local regulations. Neither the owner nor his wife has been charged with any crime. None of his employees, several of whom were arrested, were indicted in connection with that raid. And yet, the police department has refused the family’s repeated requests to return their money. Further, prosecutors have yet – more than 10 months after the fact – to file a civil forfeiture action against their bank accounts. Continue reading

November 16, 2016

Study: Medical Marijuana Laws Linked to More Older Worker Participation

By Cannabis Law Group

We know that statewide medical marijuana legalization has been associated with numerous positive health outcomes. One of those was recently detailed in a new study just published by the Bureau of Economic Research.

The results, which stem from two decades of data, show in states where medical marijuana is legal and readily available, Americans over 50 have greater workforce participation. Is this link causative? The study participants offered compelling evidence to suggest just that.

Researchers with Johns Hopkins School of Public Health (Baltimore) and Temple University (Maryland) found that the health improvements experienced by both older men and women revealed increased participation in the labor market. In states with pro-marijuana laws there was a 9.4 percent increase in the probability of employment for Americans over the age of 50. There was also an increase in hours worked – 4.6 to 4.9 percent – in the number of weekly hours worked. Continue reading

September 11, 2016

Lack of Diversity in Medical Marijuana Licenses Raises Concern

By Cannabis Law Group

A lack of diversity in medical marijuana licensing has raised concerns in Maryland, specifically by a number of black state lawmakers – most recently including Gov. Larry Hogan (R) and Attorney General Brian E. Frosh (D). marijuana1

Simultaneously, the Washington Post reports that there have been calls by the head of the legislative black caucus to prohibit elected officials from participating in the industry. Officials who backed the measure are questioning a fellow politician who also supported the legislation – and then later was welcomed aboard a company seeking a license to cultivate and distribute the drug. Del. Cheryl Glenn says the failure of Del. Dan Morhaim to make his dual roles clear. Both Glenn and Morhaim are Democrats from Baltimore.

These issues combined have proven impediments in a legalization process that has been marked with numerous missteps and delays since Maryland voters approved medical marijuana three years ago. Now, the state is clearing 15 companies for cultivation of the drug and another 15 companies for marijuana processing. None of those 30 companies are owned or operated by an African American – despite the fact that one-third of the population in Maryland is black. Continue reading

August 30, 2016

Report: Marijuana Industry Intellectual Property Disputes Increasing

By Cannabis Law Group

Intellectual property protections – like trademarks or innovations on creative marketing – is one of the many federal benefits afforded to legitimate businesses. Unfortunately, L.A. marijuana dispensaries have long been shut out from these sort of protections precisely because they haven’t been treated as if their operation is in fact legitimate. worldwidebrand

Thankfully, that is starting to change as states pass reforms that bolster the position of marijuana dispensaries – medicinal and recreational – in our communities.

The effect that is having on the marijuana industry is being explored in the Winter 2016 issue of the Washington and Lee Law Review. The study, “Trademark Laundering, Useless Patents and Other IP Challenges for the Marijuana Industry,” delves into some of the intellectual property challenges the marijuana industry faces and how the industry is tackling those issues today. Because cannabis remains a Schedule I narcotic under federal law, despite progressive state-level reforms, those who grow and sell the drug or its derivatives have found themselves unable to secure banking services, saddled with onerous tax burdens, unable to count on the enforcement of contracts they sign and trouble finding good marijuana lawyers who are willing to take on the complex and ever-changing regulatory landscape. In all of this, intellectual property protection has been largely put on the back burner. Continue reading

August 18, 2016

Federal Appeals Court: Feds Can’t Prosecute Medical Marijuana Cases Absent State Law Violation

By Cannabis Law Group

In a major victory for those facing prosecution under federal marijuana laws, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled unanimously that the federal government cannot prosecute persons who grow and distribute medicinal marijuana so long as they are in compliance with state law. gavel21

The case, U.S. v. McIntosh, is a consolidated appeal involving 10 different cases of interlocutory appeals and petitions for writs of mandamus that arose from three district courts in two states (California and Washington). All defendants in these cases were facing federal charges for violation of the Controlled Substances Act. Each sought dismissal of their indictments or else alternatively to enjoin their cases on a Congressional appropriations rider that would bar the Department of Justice from spending taxpayer money to prevent states from implementing their medical marijuana laws. You may recall that in the last two years, Congress prohibited the federal government from spending money in a way that would block or thwart state medical marijuana laws.

It was the position of federal prosecutors that this ban didn’t undercut their right to go after those who cultivate and distribute the drug under federal law – even in states where marijuana was legal. But now, the 9th Circuit has clearly issued a response to that, which is a resounding: No. Continue reading

August 6, 2016

Survey: Republican Support for Marijuana Grows

By Cannabis Law Group

As contentious as politics have become these days, it seems Democrats and Republicans largely agree at least on one thing: Legal marijuana.

It used to be that Republicans, particularly those that leaned more conservative, were staunchly opposed to legalizing marijuana in any capacity, even for medicinal purposes. But those attitudes are clearly changing, as evidenced by a recent poll conducted by YouGov.com.

The poll measured attitudes toward the legalization of marijuana and then compared the answers given by gender, age, race, family income, U.S. Census region and political party, in mid-July 2016. It also asked respondents about their beliefs regarding whether marijuana use is a gateway to other drugs, whether government marijuana enforcement efforts cost more than they are worth and whether the federal government should abandon enforcement of marijuana drug laws in states where the plant is legal. Continue reading

July 2, 2016

New Yorkers Priced Out of Medicinal Marijuana?

By Cannabis Law Group

The cost of living in New York has always been sky-high – at least 68 percent higher than the rest of the country. It has the least affordable housing the country and prices for every-day products are typically twice the national average. Money in hand

Apparently, medical marijuana is no exception.

A recent report by the Drug Policy Alliance, the first in-depth look at New York’s medical marijuana program, found that caregivers face huge hurdles in accessing medical marijuana – not the least of which has been the cost.

June 23, 2016

Colorado’s Teen Marijuana Use Lower After Legalization

By Cannabis Law Group

One of the main talking points of those opposed to the legalization of marijuana is that it will spur the inevitable increase of teen marijuana use. We all have an interest in keeping the drug out of reach of youth when it’s not used as medicine, so it’s always been a particularly compelling argument. teenager

But now, the latest research from Colorado – one of the first states to legalize the drug for recreational purposes – is that teen marijuana use has actually DROPPED since the drug became more widely available to the over-21 crowd.

A survey of Colorado high school students regarding their marijuana consumption was part of the biannual poll conducted by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. What’s more, the percentage of high school students who used marijuana in Colorado was actually lower than the national average among their peers. Continue reading

March 14, 2016

Small California Town Looks to Marijuana to “Make It Rain”

By Cannabis Law Group

There are a variety of old movies and plays featuring farming towns that haven’t seen rain in very long time and are looking for any way they can to turn things around. This is where the concept of the term “Rainmaker” was derived: People were desperate to believe that someone could literally make it rain, allowing crops to grow and people to sustain their livelihoods and lives.

For one small town in Southern California that has seen better times, residents are looking for a different kind of rainmaker. They are hoping medical marijuana cultivation will be the answer to their problems so the town can see “boom times” once again. That’s to a recent news feature from Newsweek.
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February 28, 2016

Cancer Patient Claims Illegal Medical Marijuana Healed Him

By Cannabis Law Group

According to a recent news feature from ABC News, a 56-year-old patient was dying from a rare form of cancer in his bile duct. He now says illegal marijuana healed him.

His doctor told him he needed to have what is known as a “Whipple Procedure.”

This procedure, formally known as a pancreaticoduodenectomy is a very serious surgery requiring the physician operate on multiple organs in a patient’s digestive system, including the pancreas and duodenum. The patient’s bile duct and gallbladder are also commonly removed as part of this intensive procedure. Up to half of the patient’s stomach is removed.
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