PENCIL METHOD Medical Marijuana News Magazine

Emanuel: Decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:59:57 +0000

Mayor Rahm Emanuel is throwing his formidable support behind a plan to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana. If the City Council goes along, Chicago cops will be free to issue a ticket with a fine ranging from $100 to $500. The tickets would apply to people caught with 15 grams of pot [...]

IRS seizes bank accounts of Sacramento medical marijuana provider

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:55:13 +0000

The Internal Revenue Service has seized bank accounts it says took in more than $870,000 in cumulative deposits in recent months, part of a federal probe into alleged money laundering involving a Sacramento marijuana dispensary. Agents of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the IRS presented search warrants earlier this week on the El Camino [...]

Agents arrest six in California medical marijuana chain

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:49:15 +0000

(Reuters) – Six people associated with a chain of medical marijuana shops in southern California were arrested on Thursday as federal authorities continued efforts to rein in commercial trade in the drug. California voters in 1996 made the state the first in the nation to allow medical marijuana, but the possession or sale of cannabis [...]

Marijuana and the U.S. Attorney

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:45:30 +0000

[A] drug which takes away grief and passion and brings a forgetfulness of all ills. ~ Homer, The Iliad Two events took place in June that suggested a primer on how medical marijuana laws are working in Colorado might be appropriate. The first was an appellate court decision that the state Supreme Court declined to [...]

Pure ecstasy can be ‘safe’ if consumed responsibly: B.C. health officer

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:39:40 +0000

VANCOUVER — B.C.’s top health official says taking pure ecstasy can be “safe” when consumed responsibly by adults, despite warnings by police in Alberta and British Columbia about the dangers of the street drug after a rash of deaths. Dr. Perry Kendall asserts the risks of MDMA — the pure substance originally synonymous with ecstasy [...]

Strange reason for newborns’ positive pot test found

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:36:18 +0000

Certain soaps used to wash babies shortly after birth may cause the baby to test positive for marijuana on some newborn screening tests, a new study suggests. In the study, urine samples that contained minute amounts of any of five baby soaps — Johnson & Johnson’s Head-to-Toe Baby Wash, J&J Bedtime Bath, CVS Night-Time Baby [...]

Feds Move To Silence Platshorn, Derail The Silver Tour

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 23:19:06 +0000

Federal Officer Threatens To Return The Black Tuna To Prison Robert Platshorn became the longest serving marijuana prisoner in United States history, doing almost 30 years in federal prison for importing Colombian pot in the 1970s. When he got out four years ago, Platshorn — a weed warrior through and through — didn’t take the [...]

Rhode Island Decriminalizes Possession of Marijuana

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 20:38:47 +0000

Gov. Chafee Signs Bill Making Rhode Island the 15th State to Remove Criminal Penalties for Small Amounts of Marijuana. (PROVIDENCE, RI) – Today, Gov. Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island signed legislation that will reduce the penalty for possession of marijuana to a $150 civil fine for most offenses. Last week, the Rhode Island General Assembly [...]

U.S. targets landlords in fight against medical pot

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 20:36:09 +0000

ST. LOUIS, June 12 (Thomson Reuters Accelus) – Federal prosecutors are targeting medical marijuana shops in California, seeking forfeiture of the properties in which they do business. The authorities are pressuring landlords to shut down the shops or face possible loss of the real estate through the unconventional and low-key use of a civil statute [...]

Is Legalizing Weed Obama’s Secret Weapon?

PENCIL METHOD News Reporter — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 20:32:06 +0000

In 2004 George W. Bush’s re-election campaign worked to put anti-gay marriage ballot initiatives up for vote in several swing states in order to turn out more hard-core conservatives to the polls. This year the question is whether marijuana legalization measures will turn out young voters for Obama. Bush’s plan to use gay marriage bans [...]