Marijuana Lawyer

February 9, 2017

Medical Marijuana in Schools? Washington is Weighing It.

Lawmakers in Washington state are weighing a bill that would give parents of children prescribed medical marijuana the right to administer that medicine to their child at school. House Bill 1060 , which was filed Jan. 4th and from there referred to the Committee of Education, would also give parents the right to administer the medication on buses or at school-sponsored events. school

This would be a major victory for parents of children grappling with conditions that require medical marijuana. Some of these children have been diagnosed with conditions like autism and epilepsy, and marijuana has helped to reduce their symptoms, focus and possibly even participate in a class as any typical child would.

But of course, allowing children to use marijuana as medicine has long been a subject of controversy. It has grown increasingly accepted as there have been a number of anecdotal success stories, as well as studies that suggest children with autism, cancer, epilepsy and other conditions may have a better quality of life if they have access to marijuana therapy. In a lot of cases, it only requires a tiny amount of cannabis oil given over the duration of the day to have a substantial impact on the lives and futures of these children. Continue reading

January 30, 2017

California Weighs Marijuana Billboard Ban

By Cannabis Law Group

Lawmakers in California are considering a measure that would prohibit the display of marijuana on state billboards along stretches of highway.

As it now stands, there are a number of billboards that promote a variety of substances, from liquor to prescription medications – and yes, marijuana. But the marijuana industry is the only one being targeted by this effort.

According to the Sacramento Bee, Assembly Bill 64 would result in an amendment to the recently-passed Proposition 64, the state’s recreational marijuana bill, by implementing tighter restrictions for advertising of marijuana and related products. Proposition 64 allows anyone over the age of 21 to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and it also creates a framework for sales of recreational weed that will go into effect the first of 2018. The measure also prohibited advertisements of recreational marijuana along the interstate highways that cross the border into California. However, what it did not do was ban advertising of marijuana on any interstate or state highway. That’s what Assembly Bill 64 would do. Continue reading

January 27, 2017

Players Ask NFL to Reconsider Rules on Marijuana

By Cannabis Law Group

Marijuana is now legal in 28 states as medicine and six states (including California) for recreational purposes. And yet, many workers are finding their employers unwilling to ease their previous rules on drug-free workplaces. It’s understandable that most employers don’t want their workers medicated or high on-the-job. However, some are still imposing arcane rules regarding off-the-clock use. It appears the athletes employed by the National Football League are no different.

These individuals arguably have a lot more clout than most of us, but even they have been largely unsuccessful in their efforts to compel their employer to relax on their marijuana rules. Marijuana remains on the league’s banned substances list. Still, an increasing number of players are asking the league to change that.

Calls were again renewed with the recent arrest of Green Bay Packers cornerback Sam Shields for misdemeanor marijuana possession. The criminal complaint alleges investigators launched an inquiry into a suspicious package that was making its way through U.S. Mail. It was suspected the package may be related to drug activity. Authorities reportedly followed it to Shields’ address, where he opened the door holding what appeared to be a blunt. Investigators observed a strong smell of marijuana coming from the home. Shields allowed investigators inside, and reportedly showed them several other marijuana and related items in a cupboard, including a jar of the plant and pot-laced muffins and candies. Continue reading

January 23, 2017

Investors Eye Marijuana Stocks

By Cannabis Law Group

It’s being called the “green rush.” Amid a series of pro-marijuana reforms set in motion by the November election, investors are scrambling to buy up stock in a variety of cannabis companies, which are part of an industry expected to cross the $25 billion threshold by 2021. brief case

Of course, not everyone is going to win out big in this, but there will be firms who succeed. Those that do will not take for granted sound legal advice needed to navigate an uncertain statutory landscape. Yes, there are state laws that now allow for both medicinal and recreational pot, but there are tight regulatory frameworks within those. Beyond that, while the federal Justice Department backed off its crackdown on marijuana dispensaries as of 2013, the drug remains a Schedule I narcotic, and the new U.S. attorney general is no fan of marijuana reform.

Still, investors see opportunity, particularly when they may not personally be directly involved in the actual cultivation, processing and distribution of the drug. Landlords and property owners may still be at risk, but they also stand to make substantial profits. Continue reading

January 17, 2017

Marijuana Software Companies Seek to Cash In

By Cannabis Law Group

California was the first state in the U.S. to legalize marijuana as medicine, and currently has the largest legal market for marijuana in the nation. However, it does not yet have a system in place for the government to track the drug. This is standard protocol for other types of pharmaceuticals and other states with legal marijuana have adopted similar protocols. computer

For example, in Colorado, there is a system in place called the Radio-Frequency Identification, which uses microchips to follow plants from the time they are grown to the dispensary and sale. It is noted whether the plant is processed into an oil or edible or whether it is distributed as medicine. Having this type of a system ensures plants are legally grown and sold according to the law.

Beginning in February, a number of software companies will begin submitting proposals to the state, vying to be chosen as the company tapped to track California marijuana. Continue reading

January 16, 2017

Media and Marijuana: DEA Blames Media for Difficulty Enforcing Pot Laws

By Cannabis Law Group

Every year, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration conducts a survey of the country’s law enforcement departments to determine which drugs are of top concern in local communities. What they found in 2016 was that heroin was far and away the drug that created the greatest worry. Marijuana, meanwhile, was generally of negligible concern. Less than 5 percent of all police agencies indicated cannabis was their biggest concern, which was down 1 percent from 2015. marijuana buds

Marijuana remains illegal for all reasons per federal law, which the DEA staunchly defended over the summer. The agency spent a full 22 pages of its Drug Threat Assessment report on marijuana. Compare this to the 16 pages it spent going over the risk of prescription painkillers, which claims 14,000 lives annually. Many of the pages on marijuana wove through the state-level differences in law for medicinal and recreational pot, as well as some of the legalization trends of the U.S. For anyone who has been following the changing landscape of marijuana laws in California, none of this is really new information.

However, one of the more interesting claims made by the DEA in that report is that media attention on marijuana-related issues has made it tougher to enforce existing marijuana laws and to prosecute those who violate these statutes. The agency also seems to be blaming “the media” for providing the public with information that is not accurate on the effects and legality of using marijuana. Continue reading

January 14, 2017

Marijuana Patient Struggles to Gain Child Custody

By Cannabis Law Group

Medical marijuana has been legal in California since 1996. One would think the social stigma, not to mention the legal entanglements, endured by medical marijuana patients by now would have lifted. But as a heartbreaking story out of Orange County reveals, this still isn’t so. father

The story, chronicled in The Orange County Register, details the ordeal of a new father fighting for custody of his infant son, currently in foster care, because the courts refused to grant him custody due to his status as a medical marijuana patient.

The 31-year-old reportedly did not find out about his son until the day a woman he’d dated nine moths earlier contacted him from a hospital bed to tell him she was giving birth. He drove to the hospital the following day and met his son. A social worker told him the baby’s mother would not be allowed to leave with the child. He immediately started to petition for custody of the boy. In order to do so, however, he had to take a drug test. Prior to undergoing the test, he revealed to the social worker that he used marijuana with a doctor’s prescription to treat for pain he suffered due to a car accident years earlier. The test results were inconclusive. However, his admission of his status as a medical marijuana patient was enough, the court held, to deny his request to bring his son home with him. Continue reading

December 22, 2016

Mom Charged, Loses Custody, For Treating Ill Daughter With Marijuana

By Cannabis Law Group

A woman in Idaho has lost custody of her children as she faces criminal charges for treating her 3-year-old daughter with a marijuana-infused smoothie to treat her sudden onslaught of seizures. child hand

The 23-year-old woman explained later that the marijuana treatment was her last course of action. She has entered a not guilty plea to the misdemeanor charge of causing injury to a minor, who was already taking medicine to treat her bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Starting in October, the girl started to suffer from acute and repeated seizures. At the time, the girl was going through withdrawals from Risperdal, an antipsychotic medication, and her systems were growing increasingly worse. Her mother made her a smoothie with marijuana to help ease her symptoms and help her calm down – and it worked. According to the Times-News, the girls seizures dissipated within just a half hour.

This might have been the end of it, but later that day, the girl had a doctor’s appointment. A blood test indicated she had marijuana in her system. Doctors are mandated reporters and the positive drug test was reported to the state health and social services department. The mother was arrested and charged with the misdemeanor and the state agency removed custody of her children, who are now with her former husband. She now has only supervised visitation rights. Continue reading

December 14, 2016

Please, Mr. Postman: Don’t Steal the Cannabis

By Cannabis Law Group

A recent audit of the U.S. Postal Service indicates there are few safeguards to prevent against internal theft of packages containing marijuana. box

The U.S. Postal Service employs some 500,000 people nationally, and most do their job with expedience and integrity – often despite having to deal with the public in their less-than-likable moments. Still, an investigation was launched by the service’s inspector general’s office after several reports of theft of so-called “pot mail” surfaced.

It’s important to point out here: The U.S. Postal Service controls the general mail and that is overseen by the federal government. Even though California, Colorado, Washington state and others have approved medicinal and recreational marijuana laws, it is illegal to mail these items via the postal service. Doing so could lead to a felony charge. Even private carriers, such as FedEx, refuse to ship items that would otherwise be banned for transportation under federal, state or local laws, rules or regulations. What’s more, these private carriers have the option of calling police to report if there is a package suspected to contain marijuana. Private courier services might be less discerning in the kinds of packages they deliver, but marijuana delivery – even in states where recreational marijuana is allowed – is usually still illegal unless it’s done on the site of a licensed marijuana dealer. Continue reading

December 6, 2016

Study: Marijuana May Benefit Addicts, Mental Illness

By Cannabis Law Group

Increasingly, marijuana research is proving to us the many ways in which this drug can be a benefit to those struggling with various medical ailments. happy

As legal access to marijuana has expanded in recent years, with 28 states now allowing medicinal marijuana and more than a handful allowing recreational use, there are still questions (at least where the federal government is concerned) about whether the drug has legitimate medicinal benefits. Although study of the drug has been impeded by harsh marijuana laws, it’s this same lack of research that has been cited by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its hesitancy to recommend marijuana be rescheduled from a Schedule I narcotic (meaning it has no recognized medical purpose).

Marijuana is prescribed for a variety of physical illnesses and conditions, from cancer to arthritis. It contains more than 100 compounds, which are known as cannabinoids, that we know have some type of effect on the human biological system. In addition to physical troubles, marijuana has also been recommended by some doctors for help in easing certain mental conditions – namely, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Now, a new study, published in the journal Clinical Psychology Review, suggests additional evidence exists that marijuana can help people dealing with mental illness. Continue reading