The Stoner Army

Tri-City Times, 26 May 2010 - TRI-CITY AREA - Officials are taking steps to ensure adequate oversight of any medical marijuana dispensaries wishing to open within their jurisdictions. Local municipalities have been on the defense since the recent opening of a medical marijuana dispensary in downtown Dryden.

The Fort Morgan Times, 26 May 2010 - The Board of Morgan County Commissioners extended its moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries and growing areas until July 2011 on a 2-1 vote Tuesday. This moratorium was extended to give the county some time to adapt to new laws recently passed by the Colorado legislature, said Planning Administrator Barbara Gorrell during a hearing on the issue after Tuesday's regular board meeting.

The Voice, 26 May 2010 - In an action comparable to other communities Memphis City Council members recently introduced an ordinance that could serve to restrict the development of medicinal marijuana-related businesses through reliance on federal laws that prohibit same. Council members proposed to add an amendment that would read, "No person or business shall engage in any activity, operation or business that is in violation of any local, state or federal statute, law, ordinance or regulation."

San Diego Union Tribune, 26 May 2010 - San Diego city and county code enforcers have ordered more than a dozen medical marijuana dispensaries to close their doors in the past few months, even as local elected leaders are working on ordinances that would provide a clear set of rules for the dispensaries to run legitimately. City officials said the crackdown is prompted by a recent spike in community complaints lodged against 117 marijuana storefronts.

Pueblo Chieftain, 26 May 2010 - Councilwoman's request for a city vote is denied. A majority of City Council brushed off a request Monday night to let city voters decide whether or not to allow medical marijuana dispensaries in the city, choosing instead to start looking at licensing regulations in July.

Record Searchlight, 26 May 2010 - RED BLUFF - Tehama County officials granted a permit Tuesday for a Memorial Day weekend hemp festival -- with 17 conditions attached. The event had generated a stir in the community, spurring an update of the county's event ordinance. Tehama County and Red Bluff have seen an array of legal and cultural clashes over medical marijuana in the past year.

The Tribune, 26 May 2010 - Los Osos Woman Says She Had Right to Medical Marijuana Deputies Destroyed A Los Osos woman has received $20,000 from the county after her medical marijuana was improperly destroyed by the Sheriff's Department, her attorney said Tuesday.

The Fresno Bee, 26 May 2010 - The owner of a Tower District medical-marijuana clinic is the subject of an escalating battle between a sheriff and a judge who both say they have the legal right to decide whether he stays in jail. Fresno County Superior Court Judge Donald R. Franson on Tuesday sent Rick Morse -- who has been jailed and released twice so far -- back to jail a third time with a warning to the sheriff that Morse must stay behind bars until his 15-day sentence is up.

Vancouver Sun, 25 May 2010 - British common law has long held "the house of everyone is to him as his castle and fortress" and the B.C. Court of Appeal says that principle still holds. Stamping out marijuana grow operations might be a laudable societal goal, but in a unanimous ruling the court said constitutional protections against unreasonable search and seizure must nevertheless be respected.

Helena Independent Record, 25 May 2010 - A prominent Ravalli County Republican lawmaker wants to overturn Montana's 2004 voter-passed law that legalized medical marijuana, saying the current scheme controlling prescription pot is fatally flawed. Sen. Jim Shockley, R-Victor, on Monday requested a bill to be drafted for the 2011 Legislature to repeal the marijuana law. Shockley said he believes marijuana has medical benefits and should remain legal, only in a much more controlled way.

Lassen County Times, 25 May 2010 - May 25, 2010 -- County officials and the operators of three medical marijuana cooperatives in Lassen County just don't see eye to eye. Imagine that. While the county asserts local zoning regulations do not allow medical marijuana cooperatives in Lassen County, the cooperative operators maintain their activities are legal under California state law and the county lacks the authority to restrict their activities.

Langley Advance, 25 May 2010 - A new ruling will require warrants before electrical inspectors can search for pot. To get the Public Safety Inspection Teams (PSIT) back up and running, Langley Township will have to jump through a few extra hoops.

The Durango Herald, 25 May 2010 - State Legislation Adds Authority La Plata County's quest to enact its own regulations for medical marijuana production and sales has been both clarified and complicated by the Colorado Legislature.

Victoria Times-Colonist, 25 May 2010 - Marijuana activist Marc Emery pleaded guilty yesterday in a Seattle courtroom to conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, and must now wait three months in a Washington jail to be sentenced. Canada's self-proclaimed prince of pot was extradited to the U.S. two weeks ago.

Vancouver Sun, 25 May 2010 - Vancouver's Prince of Pot Marc Emery pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Seattle Monday to conspiracy to manufacture marijuana. As part of a plea bargain, Emery, 52, must serve five years in prison for selling marijuana seeds to U.S. customers through his business, Marc Emery Direct.

Denver Daily News, 25 May 2010 - Aurora City Council To Ask Voters, Denver City Council In No Rush While some Colorado municipalities are wasting no time in trying to ban medical marijuana dispensaries from operating within city limits, Denver is in no hurry to follow suit, according to several Denver City Council members interviewed yesterday.

San Francisco Chronicle, 25 May 2010 - Fifteen U.S. representatives, including seven from California, are urging the Treasury Department to say it won't "target or pursue" national banks that do business with medical marijuana distributors operating legally under state laws. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, the lawmakers said, "dispensary operators are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain accounts with financial institutions."

Denver Post, 24 May 2010 - Even before Gov. Bill Ritter has signed into law new rules for Colorado's medical-marijuana industry, the next moves in the ongoing chess match of cannabis regulation and adaptation are already taking shape. Last week, a team of attorneys who specialize in medical-marijuana cases met with several dozen potential plaintiffs in preparing a lawsuit to challenge the rules as unconstitutionally restrictive.

Aurora Sentinel, 24 May 2010 - AURORA | Voters will likely be asked in November whether Aurora will open its doors to medical marijuana dispensaries for the first time since the constitutional amendment was passed in 2000. Most of the Aurora City Council members agreed Friday at their spring workshop that the item should be placed on the November ballot and the city's moratorium on dispensaries should be extended to July 2011.

The Aspen Times, 24 May 2010 - Ordinance Institutes Six-month Prohibition On New Dispensaries GLENWOOD SPRINGS -- The Glenwood Springs City Council approved, by a 4-3 vote Thursday on first reading, a moratorium restricting any new medical marijuana dispensaries from opening up in town.