Cannabis, pot, weed, reefer, marijuana -- whatever you call it, if it’s mentioned in the pages of the Los Angeles Times and its sister papers, we’ve added it to our rolling collection of cannabis-related content.
Have questions about what’s legal and what’s what? Here’s a consumer’s guide to pot.
And here’s our Weed 101, with a THC calculator, a pot tax calculator and information about California pot shops.
Forget stars’ homes. These tours visit pot growers and bong makers
In Napa and Sonoma, tour bus operators ferry oenophiles between tasting rooms and vineyards. In Hollywood and environs, they shepherd the starstruck past the homes of the rich and famous.
Now they’re giving customers a mind-expanding look at one of Los Angeles’ burgeoning industries: pot.
Since recreational use of marijuana became legal a year ago, a pot tourism business has emerged, taking visitors behind the scenes of California’s estimated $7-billion cannabis industry.
Plans for a state-backed pot bank aren’t feasible, a study says
Hopes that California might create a public bank to serve the state’s legal marijuana industry are nothing but a pipe dream, the authors of a new feasibility study told state officials Thursday.
“In the end we were not able to find any approach to doing this that makes any sense whatsoever,” said William Roetzheim, founder and chief executive of Level 4 Ventures, the consulting firm hired to carry out the study for the State Treasurer’s Cannabis Banking Working Group.
California voters approved Proposition 64 in 2016 to legalize growing, possessing and selling marijuana for recreational use. But since cannabis remains illegal under federal law, most banks— which are federally chartered and insured by the FDIC — refuse to hold weed money.
Santa Cruz marijuana company fined $50,000 for explosion that badly burned employee
A Santa Cruz-based marijuana manufacturing company is being fined more than $50,000 by state regulators for safety violations after an employee was severely burned in a propane explosion, officials have announced.
An employee at Future2 Labs Health Services was working alone inside a 128-square-foot portable storage container in Watsonville on June 19, extracting oil from cannabis leaves with propane, when a spark ignited the tank and it exploded. The worker was hospitalized with severe burns, according to the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
“The process of using a highly flammable gas to extract oil from cannabis leaves is dangerous,” Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum said Thursday in a prepared statement.
FDA casts shadow on hemp win, calling CBD products illegal
The hemp industry still has work ahead to win legal status for hemp-derived cannabidiol, or CBD oil, as an ingredient in food or dietary supplements despite the big farm bill President Trump signed this week designating hemp as an agricultural crop.
CBD oils have become increasingly popular in lotions, tinctures and foods, but their legal status has been murky and the Food and Drug Administration has sent warning letters to some companies making health claims for CBD.
In a statement following Thursday’s bill signing in Washington, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb restated his agency’s stance that CBD is a drug ingredient and therefore illegal to add to food or health products without approval from his agency.
One year of legal pot sales and California doesn’t have the bustling industry it expected. Here’s why
When Californians voted in 2016 to allow the sale of recreational marijuana, advocates of the move envisioned thousands of pot shops and cannabis farms obtaining state licenses, making the drug easily available to all adults within a short drive.
But as the first year of licensed sales comes to a close, California’s legal market hasn’t performed as state officials and the cannabis industry had hoped. Retailers and growers say they’ve been stunted by complex regulations, high taxes and decisions by most cities to ban cannabis shops. At the same time, many residents are going to city halls and courts to fight pot businesses they see as nuisances, and police chiefs are raising concerns about crime triggered by the marijuana trade.
Gov.-elect Gavin Newsom, who played a large role in the legalization of cannabis, will inherit the numerous challenges when he takes office in January as legislators hope to send him a raft of bills next year to provide banking for the pot industry, ease the tax burden on retailers and crack down on sales to minors.
Hemp is about to be legal under the 2018 farm bill. You can’t get high from it — but you can wear it
Hemp — a close relative of marijuana that can be used to make textiles and other products — has long been classified as a Schedule I drug by the federal government. That’s set to change.
President Trump is soon expected to sign a farm bill that includes a section that legalizes the commercial cultivation of hemp nationwide.
The bill, years in the making, comes as public support for cannabis legalization has increased over the years, offering a cover of sorts to politicians who see the potential for boosting state tax revenue.
Students sent home after Marysville middle schooler brings pot brownies for class to eat
Several students at a middle school in Marysville, Calif., were sent home this week after eating marijuana-laced brownies, officials said.
Staff at Anna McKenney Intermediate School called police Wednesday morning after learning that a 13-year-old girl had passed out the brownies to her classmates, said Marysville Police Sgt. Jason Garringer.
Nine students were sent home, Garringer said, but no one who ate the brownies showed obvious signs of being under the influence.
Mistletoke, luxe vape cases and other gift suggestions for the cannabis enthusiast on your nice list
Now that some form of cannabis use is legal in 33 U.S. states and the District of Columbia and California’s era of legal adult-use weed is almost a year old (though it remains illegal under federal law), it’s easier than ever to find a little something special for the cannabis consumer on your nice list. Below are a few items that — with the exception of the first item which is available in L.A. only — are legal, widely available and, if ordered soon, can still be under the tree in the U.S. by Christmas Day.
For those who want to do good while feeling good — and score a little holiday decor at the same time — L.A.-based Zoma Cannabis is prepared to send some lucky L.A. residents a limited-edition floral-meets-cannabis Mistletoke arrangement that intertwines sprigs of mistletoe with three trimmed buds (roughly five grams total) of its Santa Cruz-grown True OG and/or Gelato strain cannabis flower all tied up in a big red Santa-worthy bow. No purchase is necessary, but recipients are highly encouraged to make a donation to the charity reforestation group One Tree Planted to aid in the recovery efforts from the 2017 and 2018 California fires. Zoma will match donations dollar for dollar. Each dollar donated means one tree gets planted, and that means the green you donate for its green means a greener Golden State moving forward.
Zoma is set to deliver the decor right to your door if you live in L.A., are over the age of 21 and are one of the first 50 folks to fire off an email to info@zomacannabis.com with the word “Mistletoke” in the subject line. Supplies willing, orders placed as late as Dec. 20 will arrive in time to make your Christmas very merry indeed.
An Idyllwild ‘bud and breakfast’ and a San Francisco grande dame are the only California hotels to make Fodor’s list of world’s 100 best
Two hotels that couldn’t be more different — a self-described “bud and breakfast” in Idyllwild and a Gilded Age grande dame in San Francisco — made 2019’s “Fodor’s Finest: The 100 Most Incredible Hotels in the World.”
The recently released list is divided by regions of the world. Hicksville Pines, a motel in the mountain town of Idyllwild, about 37 miles east of Hemet, was one of 15 in the U.S. that was selected for its “immaculate and wildly creative” digs.
You can choose your favorite themed room among 10 A-frame cabins, such as one that honors the old “Twin Peaks” TV show (the Great Northern room, $250 to $300) or the Dolly Parton room ($125 to $175). There’s also a 420 Room for marijuana users 21 and older. Info: Hicksville Pines, 23481 California 243, Idyllwild
3 marijuana businesses win OK in Costa Mesa as another is put on hold
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission this week approved three new marijuana facilities but postponed a decision on a fourth due to the absence of one commissioner, whose vote likely will decide the fate of the business.
After two commissioners expressed support and two expressed opposition for Triiad’s proposal for a marijuana distribution facility, the panel voted 3-1 on Monday night, with Commissioner Jeffrey Harlan absent, to hold a special meeting Monday to reexamine the matter. Commissioner Carla Navarro Woods dissented.
The proposed location at 3525 Hyland Ave., Suite 265, is in Hyland Plaza, north of South Coast Collection in an area identified under city law as permissible for marijuana uses.
Marlboro cigarette maker places a $2.4-billion bet on marijuana
Altria Group Inc., one of the world’s biggest tobacco companies, is diving into the cannabis market with a $2.4 billion buy-in.
The Marlboro cigarette maker is taking a 45% stake in Cronos Group Inc., the Canadian medical and recreational marijuana provider said Friday.
Altria will pay an additional $1.4 billion for warrants that, if exercised, would give Altria a 55% ownership stake in the Toronto company.
Utah voters approved medical marijuana in November. State lawmakers just passed big changes to the ballot measure
Lawmakers in Utah passed sweeping changes Monday to a voter-approved medical marijuana ballot measure under a planned compromise that secured the support of the influential Mormon Church but sparked a backlash from pot advocates.
Supporters of the compromise cheered the vote, saying it would help suffering patients while creating safeguards against broader recreational use.
“I believe this agreement was a landmark day for our state, and we are helping people,” said outgoing Republican House Speaker Greg Hughes, who sponsored the legislation and helped bring together the players for talks.
Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy, two others arrested on drug charges after heist at pot warehouse
The Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy pulled up to the pot-filled warehouse just after three in the morning.
He held up an official-looking document to a guard, who promptly unlocked a gate. The deputy and two other men, each of them armed and dressed in sheriff’s jackets, got out.
After locking the guard and two other employees in the back of the deputy’s SUV, the men went to work lugging bags of marijuana from the warehouse.
Cannary West dispensary to host Higher Standards pop-up shop Saturday through Feb. 28
Following its successful (and still running) pop-up space inside the Pottery dispensary in L.A.’s Mid-City, purveyor of luxury-level cannabis accoutrements Higher Standards has announced plans to take up temporary residence inside the Cannary West dispensary in the Rancho Park neighborhood just in time for the holidays.
On track to pop-up on Saturday (with a 20% opening day discount) and run through the end of February, it’ll serve up a similar curated mix of high-end smoking tools and accessories from brands like Marley Naturals, Grav Labs, Dr. Dabber and Puffco (makers of the futuristic-looking Peak dab rig) as well as home goods for the discerning head by Jonathan Adler, Malin+Goetz and Forestry Wool.
Higher Standards X Cannary West
Where: 2435 Military Ave., Los Angeles. Entry is restricted to those 21 and older.
Hours: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays from Saturday through Feb. 28.
Info: cannarywest.com, higherstandards.com
‘I fell off the way.’ A charismatic pastor-turned-marijuana smuggler heads to prison
On Easter Sunday 2007, Pastor John Lee Bishop drew about 15,000 worshipers to a sports arena in Portland, Ore.
With a flair for showmanship, Bishop — a jeans-clad minister sporting a youthful, moppish haircut — relished building buzz around his Living Hope Church, based in Vancouver, Wash., on the north bank of the Columbia River.
One time, it was bringing a Bengal tiger onstage. Another, according to an account in the Columbian newspaper, it was advertising a sermon series with the word “sex” prominently facing a busy street.
For all your weed needs, there’s now a pot superstore in Las Vegas
The employee in the red shirt counseled the two men on what — or what not — to buy.
“Now, if you start thinking dolphins are talking to you, that might be too much,” she explained. The two young men nodded slowly. One stroked his beard. Neither had ever talked to dolphins before. Or even yelled at them on Sundays when they play against the New England Patriots.
Above them, the continuous light show on the ceiling was like an electric lava lamp — orbs expanding and dividing in an endless trip. Then it was gone and replaced by flowers and a Saturn-like planet floating in the sky.
4 more marijuana permit applications await Costa Mesa Planning Commission review
The recent parade of permit applications from marijuana manufacturing and distribution businesses looking to open in Costa Mesa will continue next week, when the city Planning Commission is scheduled to review four more.
All the requests on Monday’s agenda are for conditional use permits, which are among several approvals required to open a cannabis company in the city.
Here is the latest lineup of applicants:
With Jeff Sessions out at the Justice Dept., the marijuana movement exhales
He described marijuana as a “very real danger” and has said its effects are “only slightly less awful” than those of heroin. Once, during a drug hearing when he was a Senator, he said he wanted to send a clear message: “Good people don’t smoke marijuana.”
So when Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions was ousted recently, a collective sigh of relief rose up from proponents of legalized pot — activists, politicians, investors — who felt targeted by the nation’s top law enforcement officer.
Sessions’s departure has translated into spiking stocks for cannabis companies and a reset of sorts for the legalization movement which, since 2012, has seen nearly a dozen states pass recreational pot measures.
This is what a cannabis executive’s party pad looks like
Don’t expect to find bongs, water pipes and empty packets of Funyuns at the Los Angeles-area home of Will Htun.
When we asked to look inside the home of the CEO of cannabis brand Sherbinskis, we found a sleek and minimal space where he could host chef-catered, cannabis-paired dinners on the rooftop and take meetings in a high-ceilinged front room.
Htun, 34, moved into the 2,700-square-foot townhouse in July 2016, after he and brand founder Mario Sherbinski, who is based in San Francisco, decided it would make an ideal live/work space. With its three en-suite bedrooms, Htun opens up the home to associates in town for business instead of housing them in a serviced apartment.
First recreational pot shops in Eastern U.S. to open in Massachusetts
Two marijuana stores in Massachusetts have been given the green light to begin selling to recreational customers, making them the first commercial pot shops in the eastern United States.
Both stores, one located in Northampton and the other in Leicester, said they would open Tuesday morning after the Cannabis Control Commission, the state’s marijuana regulatory agency, on Friday authorized them to begin operations.
The announcement ended a long wait for commercial sales to begin in Massachusetts. The state’s voters legalized the use of recreational marijuana by adults 21 and older in 2016, but it’s taken more than two years for state legislators and regulators to reach the point where the first stores can finally open.
Here’s what’s behind Mexico’s radical move toward legalizing marijuana during its war on drugs
Mexico may soon legalize marijuana, a radical shift for a country whose prohibition on narcotics has been at the heart of its long and violent war against drug traffickers.
Legislation submitted to Congress last week by the party of leftist President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador would regulate cannabis, allowing it to be grown, sold and consumed for recreational use.
Proponents of legalization say it would reduce bloodshed in Mexico by weakening drug cartels and freeing up police officers and prosecutors to focus on more serious crimes. But the proposal has critics, including the Catholic Church, which holds significant sway in Mexican politics. A poll in Mexico last year showed a majority of respondents opposed legalizing marijuana.
Curious about all the CBD-infused products you see?
Some chew it, or place a few drops under the tongue or let it soak in through the skin. There are numerous ways to consume cannabidiol — better known as CBD. It’s touted for its therapeutic effects, but, unlike its better-known cousin THC, does not get you high.
Hemp-derived CBD is increasingly in the limelight these days, at natural products stores and even fashion boutiques, catering to widening demand from consumers who find it helps them with pain, anxiety and insomnia.
Despite California’s marijuana-friendly laws, however, the state announced earlier this year it is waiting for the federal government to rule on the use of CBD oils and products before giving the green light to sales. Critics, meanwhile, have been asking for clarity, to help consumers who want options.
6 cannabis cookbooks with recipes from basic to gourmet
As cannabis is legalized — although it remains illegal under federal law —and goes mainstream in California and other states, the cookbook industry has churned into high gear with books on what ways to use jazz cabbage beyond the bong. What to look for? A lot depends on your level of expertise — not just in the kitchen but with cannabis itself. If you’ve been making batches of pot brownies and want to expand your repertoire to, say, French macarons, there are cookbooks to help you out. Many books have lengthy introductions that outline the specifics of cooking with cannabis, so find one that fits with what you know — or don’t know.
“Bong Appetit: Mastering the Art of Cooking With Weed” by the editors of Munchies (Ten Speed Press, $30)
This book, based on the Munchies and Viceland television series “Bong Appétit,” was published in October by Ten Speed Press. (This is in itself notable, as Ten Speed is one of the best cookbook publishers around, and continues the legitimate trajectory of the cannabis cooking genre.) The book has a comprehensive introduction that includes topics such as dosing, techniques, methods of decarboxylation and infusion, cannabis pairing tips, questions to ask your dispensary, tips on equipment and more. The recipes are sourced from the Munchies test kitchen and from many well-known chefs, whose recipes are recalibrated to add cannabis. Thus: Korean fried chicken from Deuki Hong of San Francisco’s Sunday Bird; fried soft-shell crab with shishito pepper mole from Daniela Soto-Innes of Cosme and Atla; and (my favorite) Joan Nathan’s preserved lemons. The Munchies test kitchen also has some fun ones, including herb focaccia with, well, herb; and confit octopus, in which a whole octopus is poached in cannabis-infused olive oil. If that sounds too aspirational, there are instructions for making an apple bong — a hollowed-out apple filled with weed-infused mezcal — at the end of the drinks chapter.
Sativa or indica? CBD or THC? What to know before cooking with cannabis
Don’t know the difference between MSG and THC? Here’s a guide to the terminology you’ll encounter.
Cannabis sativa and cannabis indica are two of the three species of cannabis. (The third species, cannabis ruderalis, is less attractive due to its smaller stature and low concentration of THC.)
Sativa is a warm-weather species characterized by tall plants and thin leaves. The plant takes 10 to 15 weeks to mature and is known for a cerebral, energetic and invigorating high that’s particularly suited for daytime use. Medically, it can be used to help people with depression and chronic pain.
California pot tax revenue improves but is still short of projections
The amount of money collected by the state from taxes on cannabis grown and sold legally in California continues to increase but is still falling short of budget estimates, according to figures released Wednesday.
Tax revenue reported from the cannabis industry totaled $93.1 million for the three months ending Sept. 30, according to the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration. That is an increase from the $80.2 million collected during the second quarter of the year.
If revenue continues to grow by the same 16% per quarter, pot taxes will bring in $471 million during the fiscal year that began July 1, while the budget approved by the governor and Legislature estimates the taxes would bring in $630 million during the fiscal year.
Eaze launches (nearly) nationwide delivery of hemp-derived CBD products
Eaze, the San Francisco-based technology platform that’s been coordinating dispensary-to-consumer home deliveries of cannabis in Los Angeles since April, has expanded its reach — for CBD-containing products, that is — to most of the United States. (CBD, a.k.a cannabidiol, is a cannabis compound said to have anti-inflammatory and anti-anxiety properties but none of the “high” associated with THC. These claims have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.)
Through the just-launched Eaze Wellness website, consumers over the age of 21 in 41 states and the District of Columbia can order a range of hemp-derived CBD tinctures, tablets, balms, bath bombs, patches, vape pens and pet products for delivery within four to six days. (Shipping is free for orders $50 and up; otherwise, it’ll cost you $5.)
Much like its in-state marijuana-delivery service, which coordinates deliveries with local dispensaries, Eaze isn’t doing the shipping itself, but rather working with a third-party partner to get goods from brands such as Plant People, Cannuka, BeTrū Wellness and Vital Leaf from point A to point B.
Although the laws surrounding the legality of CBD are murky at best (a loophole in federal law has been widely interpreted as making CBD derived from hemp grown for research purposes legal), one point B that Eaze Wellness won’t be coordinating shipping to is its home state of California. (The company cites state regulations as the reason.)
Yes, California, where cannabis — even the kind that gets you high — has been legal under state law since the beginning of the year.
Additional information is available at www.eazewellness.com.
What THC-infused edibles are most popular? Fruit-flavored gummies and chocolate-covered coffee beans for starters
Nearly a year in to the state-legal cannabis scene, there’s no shortage of THC-infused items on the market for 21-and-older consumers, from sachets of herbal tea and cans of citrus-flavored soda to honey mustard pretzels, with analysts and dispensary owners seeing it as a growing side of the business.
“Since recreational use was legalized in January, edibles have seen a 20%-30% hike in sales,” said Nick Danias, managing partner of the Pottery and Cannary West dispensaries in Los Angeles, who added that edibles have proved particularly popular with new cannabis users who might be reluctant to start experimenting by smoking cannabis flower.
“Edibles companies have been able to offer consumers ‘micro dosing’ that allows for a controlled amount of THC to be ingested,” he said. (State law requires that edibles be portioned or scored into servings that contain no more than 10 milligrams of THC per piece and no more than 100 milligrams of THC per package.)
5 more marijuana permit applications await Costa Mesa Planning Commission
The torrent of applications from marijuana manufacturing and distribution facilities looking to open in Costa Mesa continues Thursday, when city planning commissioners will review five more during a special meeting.
Should the commission grant all the requested conditional use permits, it would bring the total number of marijuana facilities with such approvals to 22 — including nine in the past month.
The applications up for review this time are:
Two shot and killed in Koreatown marijuana dispensary
Two people were shot and killed early Monday morning after gunfire erupted inside a Koreatown marijuana dispensary, authorities said.
Officers responded to reports of a shooting in the 400 block of Western Avenue in Koreatown around 4:20 a.m. Monday, according to a statement issued by the Los Angeles Police Department. There, they found a “locked and sealed” marijuana dispensary, according to the statement.
A female employee told police she and several customers were inside the dispensary when they heard gunshots in the waiting room. They fled through the back of the building, and when officers gained entry, they found two people who were pronounced dead at the scene.
Party of Mexico’s president-elect wants to legalize marijuana
The party of Mexico’s president-elect submitted legislation Thursday that would legalize marijuana possession, public use, growing and sales.
Sen. Olga Sanchez Cordero presented the measure, saying that everyone should have “the right to carry up to 30 grams [1 ounce] of cannabis.” People could carry more than an ounce if they obtained a permit to do so under the proposal.
“From the point of view of negative effects, there is no reason why marijuana should not be legal, if alcohol and tobacco are,” according to the bill.
Want to grow your own marijuana? This class will show you how
California law lets anyone over 21 grow up to six marijuana plants in their yard or home, as long as the plants are not accessible to the public. (Check your City Hall for any additional local rules.)
Unsure how to start? Check out Fig Earth Supply’s two-hour workshops, “Cannabis Cultivation for the Home Grower,” on Nov. 10 or Nov. 17, taught by professional cannabis growers.
Attendees must be at least 21. No plants or seeds will be sold. Workshops cost $95 and start at 5 p.m. at 3577 N. Figueroa St., Los Angeles. More info: figearthsupply.com
What’s that smell? Survey asks Venice Beach denizens if they’re vexed by odor of marijuana
They descended on free-wheeling Venice Beach with clipboards and questions in hand. Their goal: to gauge humanity’s tolerance for the smell and sight of public pot smoking.
Akbar Karriem considered them ridiculous.
“Everybody be smoking,” Karriem said as he sat on the boardwalk and lit a marijuana pipe. “It’s part of the culture here. It’s like a religion.”
Las Vegas’ newest and biggest pot shop aims to entertain
Prepare to be entertained at Las Vegas’ newest and biggest cannabis store a mile west of the Strip. Planet 13 combines light shows and fog-making fountains to wow visitors at the shop, which sells recreational pot, cannabis extracts and cannabis-infused products.
The idea is to meld a cannabis shop with an entertainment complex.
Visitors, who must be at least 21, can change the colors of 13 giant LED-lighted lotus flowers blooming on the roof of the building.
CBD-infused products are being sold everywhere in California — but are they legal?
Greg and Gary Avetisyan make no secret of it: They proudly sell all manner of products infused with CBD, from essential oils to bath bombs to fruity tea-like beverages that promise calming relief in a frantic world.
CBD, short for cannabidiol, is a molecule derived from cannabis. But unlike its chemical cousin THC, it won’t get you high. What it might do, according to some research, is alleviate anxiety, seizures, chronic pain and dozens of other ailments.
The Avetisyan brothers’ belief in the alleged benefits of the extract is so steadfast that they opened California’s first CBD-only store, Topikal, in Tarzana last year and opened a second along the Venice Beach boardwalk in April.
Review: Documentary ‘Weed the People’ looks at cannabis and pediatric cancer
An urgent cry for help, “Weed the People” explores the effects of cannabis on pediatric cancer, as well as the establishment’s disinterest in researching its efficacy. With the lack of scientific studies available, Abby Epstein’s moving documentary primarily devotes its time to five children and their families who are trying to survive using the alternative treatment.
“Weed the People” doesn’t ease into its multi-story narrative, wasting no time in sharing the stories of these kids with cancer. With parents desperate for their children to feel better, they turn to medical marijuana to ease the pain, as well as directly addressing the cancer cells.
Without studies and lack of nationwide legalization, there is little regulation in the industry. Enter Mara Gordon, a former process engineer who brings precision and rigor to her medical cannabis company, offering the families hope for healing.
Denver verdict on pot odor and property values could discourage homeowners from filing RICO lawsuits
A Colorado jury likely threw cold water on future legal challenges against cannabis companies by homeowners who consider filing racketeering lawsuits alleging that proximity to pot operations hurts their property values, analysts and industry lawyers said Thursday.
A federal jury in Denver on Wednesday rejected claims involving the odor from a pot farm made in a case that was closely watched by the marijuana industry.
It was the first such lawsuit to reach a jury. Three others are pending in California, Massachusetts and Oregon.
Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office makes its largest seizure of illegal marijuana plants
An estimated 400,000 marijuana plants were destroyed by Santa Barbara County sheriff’s investigators this week in what authorities are calling the county’s largest seizure of pot plants at one site.
The plants were hidden among farmland in Santa Maria and discovered by sheriff’s investigators on Monday, the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
The crop belonged to a resident who, authorities said, had applied for a temporary state cannabis license using false information and did not have a valid cannabis license. Investigators found the 400,000 plants in various levels of maturity and tapped state Department of Fish and Wildlife personnel to help in the case.
Is Rohrabacher trying to lose Republican voters by caving on marijuana policy?
To the editor: I was disappointed to read in a column on voters trying to flip an Orange County congressional district that Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) wants to weaken federal laws against marijuana.
Recently-approved state laws legalizing marijuana have not been beneficial. In Colorado, following the legalization of recreational marijuana, the number of traffic fatalities involving marijuana-impaired drivers more than doubled. Surveys have found a majority of marijuana users in Colorado do not believe driving high is dangerous, leading some to get behind the wheel impaired.
As a retired law enforcement officer who has had the opportunity to work with people impacted by drug addiction, and as a lifelong Republican, I feel Rohrabacher is making a mistake.
Berner’s Melrose birthday bash celebrates a new dispensary — and a collaboration with the G Pen Gio
On Saturday morning, the lines were stretching around the corner and down the block outside the bright blue Beverly Grove storefront with the word Cookies above the door. The enthusiastic members of the crowd weren’t queued up for baked goods, though. They were waiting to get into a new cannabis dispensary — and to help celebrate the birthday of its founding partner, Bay Area rapper and entrepreneur Berner (born Gilbert Millam Jr.).
Minimalist, awash in natural light and appointed in the brand’s blue and white color scheme and emblazoned with the cookie-with-a-bite-missing logo, it marks the second Cookies dispensary in Los Angeles County; the first, Cookies Los Angeles, is located in Maywood. Like that one, it’s stocked with a wide variety of cannabis flower, oils, edibles and the like, with a particular emphasis on the proprietary strains from the Cookie Family collective (the growers who originated the strain formerly known as Girl Scout Cookies as well as other dessert-named strains such as Gelato and Sunset Sherbet).
It also stocks three different Cookies-logoed colors (blue, white and black) of the new G Pen Gio ($29.95), a vaporizer pen that uses cannabis concentrate cartridges for a super-simple, draw-activated plug-and-puff experience. The Cookies G Pen Gio from Grenco Science x Berner collaboration officially launched at the Saturday Berner bash, and includes Gio cannabis-oil cartridges filled with Gelato, London Poundcake, Sunset Sherbet or Snowman strains ($60 for 500 mg, which Tim Patenaude, Grenco’s vice president of marketing, says marks the first time those Cookie strains have been commercially available as concentrates.
(Gio pod cartridges are now available at 500 dispensaries across 12 states, according to Patenaude, including MedMen, BARC and the Pottery locally, as well as through the Eaze delivery service.)
Patenaude says the partnership with Berner has its roots in Grenco’s 2014 partnership with another rapper — Wiz Khalifa (“Wiz Khalifa’s weed guy was Berner,” Patenaude said, “and that’s how we first met him.”). He calls Berner “the most important person in cannabis today,” citing not only Berner and his partners’ wildly successful strains, but the rapper/entrepreneur’s brand-building abilities outside of the cannabis space. “His Cookies clothing label is sold in every Zumiez in every mall in America,” Patenaude said.
In a chat with the Los Angeles Times’ Rolling Paper, Berner said that the Cookies SF streetwear label he launched out of his garage less than a decade ago saw $12.8 million in revenue in 2017 and that he’s aiming to open a store next door to the dispensary — hopefully in time for the Black Friday shopping season. (There’s currently a single flagship store in San Francisco.)
He also said the dispensary opening bash was a good way to usher in his 35th year on the planet. “Man, I couldn’t be happier,” he said. “We’re turning [over] customers left and right, there’s no holdup anywhere, everyone is super-juiced and there was a line down the block and wrapped around [the corner] at 6 a.m. You can’t ask for anything else.”
Cookies Melrose, 8360 Melrose Ave. (at North Kings Road), Los Angeles. Additional information on the G Pen Gio (including local availability) is at gpen.com.
2 Chainz wants to put a THC tiger in your tank with his new cannabis brand Gas
Rolling into the Friday launch party for his new cannabis brand Gas, the first thing Grammy-winning rapper 2 Chainz did was brandish a joint in one hand and a smartphone in the other to record the rows of boldly packaged cannabis flower and pre-rolled joints in a video to share with his 5.7 million Instagram followers. The second thing he did was stand back and take in the moment.
“I can’t believe it, that’s why I was over here just trying to take it all in,” 2 Chainz said about seeing all the green, yellow and black plastic pouches filled with marijuana, and a jerrycan converted into a display tray overflowing with green buds. “I’ve been told for over a year that we were doing this line, so now I’m just trying to live in the moment. I don’t do that a lot.”
The launch party took place at the Mid-Wilshire offices of Green Street Agency, a cannabis-focused branding and licensing company that is one of the rapper’s two Southern California partners in the venture. The other is L.A.-based Mazel Management Group (owners of the Westside Station dispensary in Van Nuys). Before joining the throng of well-wishers, industry friends and employees dressed in logo-emblazoned overalls, 2 Chainz (born Tauheed Epps), chatted with the Los Angeles Times’ Rolling Paper about his new project, how cannabis branding is like music and what took so long for the project to come to fruition. (Hint: There was lots of taste-testing).
The Rolling Paper: Where does the name of your line — Gas — come from and what does it mean?
2 Chainz: It’s Atlanta lingo that we use that basically signifies that this is a stronger type of flower — a stronger cannabis. I’ve been saying it since I came into the rap game and I’ve used it in a few verses of a few songs. At first people were like: “What do you mean by [the line] “gas in the ashtray?” After it caught on and basically went mainstream, I figured why veer off from what got me here? So we started a legal line of cannabis called Gas.
TRP: I’ve heard that you were pretty picky in the development process.
2C: It took months and months and about 30 different kinds of [cannabis] flower. I think I was looking for that first impression — that first pull — how it made me feel. Were there fireworks or no fireworks? What kind of memory did it create? That’s what I was looking for.
TRP: The three different types of flower you’re launching with don’t have names but numbers — 87, 89 and 93 — are those supposed to be kind of like octane ratings but for marijuana?
2C: That’s a great way of describing it. The 87, for example [a Petrol OG hybrid, with a THC content of 14%] is for functioning throughout the day, [and for] people who are on the go [or] at work and can’t get that whole indica sleepy feeling during the middle of the day. I think 87 will be sufficient. The 89 [a Sour Gas hybrid, 17% THC] is for when people go out for cocktails after work, when they want to get ready for the wind-down — it signifies the medium [strength]. And the 93 [an indica called God’s Fuel No. 2 with a THC level of 20%] I’d definitely say is the strongest. That’s for night-night.
TRP: How did the fuel theme and octane ratings and all that evolve from the name?
2C: I approached this the way I do in my music — which was come up with the concept and follow all the way through with it. So, when you have Gas, you have to have the gas cans and the imagery that actually represents the gas pumps and things that tie in to the brand itself. I think that gives it legs — gives it a little more substance and sustainability. And I used these colors because I knew they would be very catching and appealing to the eye and I know that I will kind of have to muscle my way in as far as getting where I need to be on [dispensary] shelves these days. I figure I could be on the back of the shelf and you could still see this green, this yellow and this black packaging.
Gas prices range from $12 to $14 (for 1-gram pre-rolled joints) and $36 to $48 for 3.5 gram packages of flower. Currently available at Westside Station, 7022 Valjean Ave., Van Nuys.
A chemical found in liverwort has surprising similarities to the THC in marijuana
It’s an “amazing plant” that produces “hypnotic effects,” according to online testimonials. Some people who have ingested it or inhaled its smoke say it gave them a mild, marijuana-like high.
Now scientists have weighed in. In experiments with more than 100 mice, they found that chemicals in the liverwort plant produced four of the same key effects as THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.
An hour after being injected with the experimental chemicals, the mice entered a trance-like state, lost some of their ability to move, became less responsive to pain and experienced a drop in body temperature, according to a study published this week in the journal Science Advances.
Hours-long standoff at Tarzana weed dispensary ends after police learn building is empty
The police standoff lasted more than six hours, shutting down a busy six-lane stretch of Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana for most of the evening.
An armed robbery suspect, authorities said, had barricaded himself inside an illegal marijuana dispensary in a strip mall in the 18300 block of Ventura Boulevard. He was believed to be one of four suspects and was thought to have a female hostage.
But when officers searched the building after 8:20 p.m., there was no one inside, said Officer Mike Lopez, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department.
State officials decline to drop plan to allow home deliveries of pot in California cities that ban marijuana stores
Despite objections from cities and police chiefs, state officials on Friday declined to drop a proposal allowing marijuana firms to deliver to homes everywhere in California, including in areas that have banned pot shops.
The proposed rule, which was made public in July, was opposed by the League of California Cities, which represents the state’s 482 municipalities, and the California Police Chiefs Assn., which said it would jeopardize public safety.
But the state Bureau of Cannabis Control announced Friday that it is moving forward with the proposed rule after a series of public hearings and after weighing hundreds of comments from residents and interested parties.
San Diego plans to crack down on marijuana ads, especially billboards
San Diego officials say they plan to crack down on marijuana advertising, particularly the billboard ads that have become increasingly common with recreational use of the drug now legal in California.
Legislation proposed by City Councilman Chris Cate aims to keep marijuana billboard ads out of areas where young people congregate and to prevent illegal marijuana businesses from advertising anywhere.
The proposal, which would go beyond relatively new state laws that govern marijuana advertising, will be included in a series of city code updates that Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s staff plans to present to the City Council next year.
Drinking before a flight is common. Now some fliers are turning to pot before takeoff
Commercial flights can be so stressful — cramped seats, delays, turbulence, loud seatmates — that more than 60% of travelers in a recent survey said they down a drink or two before heading to the airport.
But the survey by a drug treatment organization found that nearly as many fliers are now turning to marijuana to relax before getting on a plane.
The online survey of 1,137 people who have flown in the past year was taken by Florida-based Delphi Behavioral Health Group. It found that nearly 30% of respondents said they had smoked marijuana and another 25% had consumed pot-infused snacks before arriving at an airport.
Marijuana issues dominate Costa Mesa Planning Commission agenda
Cannabis-related companies will be front and center in Costa Mesa again Monday, when city planning commissioners will consider four applications for proposed marijuana manufacturing and distribution facilities.
Should the Planning Commission OK all the requests, it would bring the number of marijuana businesses with city-approved conditional use permits to 17.
First up will be Aureus LLC, which is looking to open in a 5,556-square-foot industrial space at 3505 Cadillac Ave., Building A. The company proposes to manufacture cannabis concentrates, particularly oils intended for use in vaporizer cartridges, according to city planning documents.
Canada is now the world’s largest legal marijuana marketplace
Ian Power was among the first to buy legal recreational marijuana in Canada but he has no plans to smoke it. He plans to frame it.
Canada became the largest country with a legal national marijuana marketplace as sales began early Wednesday in Newfoundland. Power was first in line at a store in St. John’s, Newfoundland.
“I am going to frame it and hang it on my wall. I’m not even going to smoke it. I’m just going to save it forever,” Power said.
Bloom Farms doubles its meal donations on Oct. 16 in observance of World Food Day
In recognition of the United Nations’ designation of Oct. 16 as World Food Day 2018, Oakland-based cannabis company Bloom Farms is doubling its usual meal-donation-per-sale for purchase made through the Eaze delivery service (which is doing its part by offering a day-long 20% discount on all Bloom Farms products) as well as participating dispensaries statewide (including Buds & Roses, Urban Treez and Green Dot locally).
The company says that since 2014 it has donated about 1.4 million meals to food banks statewide through its one-for-one program, with a goal of donating 5 million meals. World Harvest Food Bank in Los Angeles and the San Diego Food Bank are among the SoCal beneficiaries of the Bloom Farm donations.
Although the double-down on meal donations lasts only one day, Bloom Farms has a couple of slightly less time-sensitive promotions to raise awareness and drive donations in furtherance of the U.N.’s mission of a zero-hunger world by 2030.
One is a partnership with vaporizer maker Pax — which has pledged $10,000 to fund meal donations — that includes a free Pax Era vape pen (custom-engraved on-site) with the purchase of two Bloom Farms Pax pods at special dispensary events throughout the month, the second is an exclusive, October-only Pineapple Single Origin vape cartridge that, after the purchase of any two Bloom Farms products — can be purchased for just a penny.
Additional information — and a calendar of dispensary events and demonstrations — can be found at getbloomfarms.com/events.
Screened at U.S. border, Canadians who are honest about using marijuana could be banned from the U.S.
Bill Powers flipped through the sworn statement he gave to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the printed pages taking him back to that August afternoon — back to the border checkpoint into Washington state where agents asked if he had ever smoked marijuana.
Yes, he answered, not initially thinking much of the question. The 57-year-old Canadian has a license for medical marijuana, and pot had been legal in Washington for six years. Like that, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents turned him away with an extreme decree: He had been banned from the United States.
“It’s absolutely out of control. Here I am being honest with the United States and I get the boot,” Powers said on a recent afternoon as he stood in his driveway in this farming town an hour east of Vancouver. “I have a license … yet they’re turning people away for pot? It makes not a single bit of sense.”
Newport mayor says he wants to sell his boat factory site, not grow marijuana on it
Despite having local and state approvals to cultivate or distribute medical marijuana on the site of his boat factory in San Bernardino County, Newport Beach Mayor Marshall “Duffy” Duffield says he isn’t a pot farmer. Rather, he says, he sought the entitlements to make the property more attractive to buyers so he can move his factory to Utah.
Duffield said in a statement emailed to the Daily Pilot on Sunday that he split his 4.7-acre property in Adelanto into thirds and sought a cannabis distribution permit from the California Bureau of Cannabis Control to take advantage of increased property values that followed Adelanto’s passage of a medicinal cultivation ordinance in 2015 and creation of a “cultivation zone” in 2016 that later expanded to include the factory site.
“As a property owner, I am trying to maximize the value to sell the land, not grow pot,” Duffield said. “I am actively manufacturing electric boats at the plant and there is no room to be growing pot.”
NHL: Legal pot in Canada won’t affect league policy
Now a handful of years into retirement from more than a decade of junior and pro hockey, former enforcer Riley Cote is a proponent of cannabis and its oils as an alternative to more addictive drugs commonly used by athletes to play through pain. Marijuana can be detected in a person’s system for more than 30 days, is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency without a specific therapeutic use exemption and is illegal in much of the United States.
Canada on Wednesday will become the largest country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana. That means it will be available under the law in seven more NHL cities (it’s been legal to adults in Denver since 2012). The move is a step forward for those who, like Cote, believe marijuana has been stigmatized and should be accepted as a form of treatment.
“It was so tainted for a long time,” Ottawa Senators forward Matt Duchene said. “And now people are starting to learn a little bit more about it and there is definitely some positive uses to different elements of it.”
Costa Mesa council to review marijuana permit decision
Costa Mesa’s review process for marijuana-related businesses will enter uncharted territory Tuesday when the City Council takes a second look at an earlier decision to award a required permit.
So far, what’s separated this particular application by Pivot Naturals LLC from the dozen other marijuana manufacturing and distribution facilities that previously sailed through City Hall isn’t so much the question of whether the business should be allowed to open, but when.
City planning commissioners decided last month to grant the business a conditional use permit to operate within a 5,283-square-foot industrial space in Suite 101 at 3595 Cadillac Ave. However, they added a new wrinkle by restricting hours to 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
Business linked to Newport mayor paid councilman to help create marijuana facility in Inland Empire, records show
A business linked to Newport Beach Mayor Marshall “Duffy” Duffield paid his City Council colleague Scott Peotter to help convert part of Duffield’s boat manufacturing facility in San Bernardino County to a medical marijuana cultivation or distribution hub, records show.
Peotter made at least $10,000 from DC Developments, a Duffield-associated company, according to Peotter’s state-required statement of economic interest forms.
A string of corporations that financially tie the two together appears to answer a question — has Peotter ever worked for Duffield? — that has dogged them for weeks as they seek reelection in November.
Following California, pot legalization campaigns across the U.S. aim to throw out old convictions
Rob Jenkins tried for four years to find a job, scouring the internet for anything that seemed at all appealing — a maintenance position at a Chevron refinery, a counselor for foster kids, a clerk at Hertz.
Some employers seemed interested, until they found out about his 2008 misdemeanor conviction for growing marijuana.
“I was stuck,” recalled the 37-year-old college graduate. “No job opportunities were coming in.”
Canada is about to legalize marijuana. How did that happen? Justin Trudeau, for starters
Politicians herald it as transformative. Residents offer resounding support in the polls. Investors see billions of dollars on the horizon.
When Canada legalizes marijuana on Oct. 17, it will join Uruguay as the only countries to allow recreational cannabis nationwide. The South American country became the first in 2013.
The effort, years in the making, is unlike the piecemeal approaches to marijuana legalization that have been passed in the United States and the Netherlands. For pot proponents around the world, Canada’s implementation of legal marijuana is being closely watched.
Can you carry marijuana in LAX? Yes, but it’s more complicated than that
LAX wants you to know this about the marijuana you may be taking with you on your trip: What’s legal on the street is also legal in the terminals.
Up to a point.
Travelers can carry the legal amount of marijuana in California — up to 28.5 grams— through the airport areas that are under city supervision, that is up to pre-security checkpoints.
Don’t you dare light up at Las Vegas’ new cannabis museum
Inhale — we mean through your nose — in the new marijuana museum in Las Vegas. You won’t smell a thing, even though recreational pot is legal in Nevada.
Signs in the elevators at Neonopolis, the downtown entertainment, dining and retail center that’s home to the “immersive” Cannabition museum, make it clear that consumption in public is still against the law.
Just steps away, a colorful mural covering the museum’s exterior depicts the changing attitudes toward marijuana, from the scare tactics of the 1930s to strict law enforcement in the ’80s to growing tolerance today. That history is depicted in greater detail once you’re inside.
Costa Mesa Planning Commission awards permit to 13th marijuana business
A 13th marijuana manufacturing and distribution facility took a step closer to opening in Costa Mesa after the city Planning Commission decided Monday to grant it a required permit.
The 3-2 vote, with Chairman Stephan Andranian and Vice Chairman Byron de Arakal opposed, awards a conditional use permit to Pivot Naturals LLC to operate in an existing 5,283-square-foot industrial space in Suite 101 at 3595 Cadillac Ave.
Pivot Naturals intends to process cannabis oils into a powder for use in a variety of products, including tablets, food and beverages.
Kindergartner can take cannabis drug to school, judge says
A kindergartner can keep bringing a cannabis-based drug used for emergency treatment of a rare form of epilepsy to her public school, a judge ruled Friday.
The Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported that a judge sided with the family of 5-year-old Brooke Adams.
The Rincon Valley Union School District in Santa Rosa sought to ban the ointment from school grounds because it contains the active ingredient in marijuana.
Glendale police seize hundreds of marijuana plants after reportedly discovering elaborate grow operation
What started as a routine wellness check by Glendale police officers on Monday led to the alleged discovery of an illegal marijuana grow operation and the seizure of more than 600 plants.
Officers with the Glendale Police Department were in the 100 block of Wonderview Drive at around 12:40 a.m. after receiving a call about a person yelling for help from one of the homes in the neighborhood.
After speaking with the home’s occupant, 38-year-old Rui Yun Guan, officers entered the residence and discovered it had been converted into an elaborate marijuana grow operation, according to Tahnee Lightfoot, a spokeswoman for the department.
Tilray’s wild ride shows how hyped pot stocks are catching up to the crypto craze
Tilray Inc. investors could probably use a bit of the company’s products right now.
The Canadian maker of medicinal cannabis extracts finished a whipsaw session Wednesday with its share price 38% higher. But Tilray was up as much as 94% earlier in the day, peaking at $300. Fifty-three minutes and four trading halts later, it was in negative territory. The closing flourish that added $63 to the share price — it finished up $59.08 to $214.06 — took just six minutes.
“It left a sea of bodies, both longs and shorts, behind in its wake,” said Dave Lutz, managing director at JonesTrading.
Marijuana industry fights ‘stoner,’ ‘pot’ and other words that stigmatizes people
There’s a badge on her uniform, possibly a gun on her hip, and her arms are spread a little, suggesting she’s ready for anything.
You might think that you’re looking at a police officer walking a beat.
But what you’ve seen on billboards and, more recently, the internet is an effort by MedMen Enterprises of Culver City to remind you that marijuana users come from all walks of life. They can be cops, nurses, teachers, scientists, construction foremen and grandmothers.
Police arrest eight people after searching illegal cannabis store in San Fernando Valley
Los Angeles police arrested eight people at an illegal cannabis store in the San Fernando Valley after serving a search warrant, officials said Wednesday.
About 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Mission Area Narcotics Unit searched a cannabis retail shop in the 15400 block of Devonshire Street and confiscated several items of evidence and contraband, police said in a news release.
The store was operating without proper permits and was considered a nuisance location, authorities said.
More than 2 million U.S. middle and high school students have vaped marijuana, study finds
Electronic cigarettes are the most popular tobacco product among U.S. teens, but tobacco isn’t the only thing they’re vaping. A new report from researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that more than 2 million middle and high school students have used an e-cigarette to vape marijuana.
That figure is based on survey results from the 2016 National Youth Tobacco Survey, which polls a representative sample of American students in grades 6 through 12. Among the questions the 20,675 participants were asked in 2016 was, “Have you ever used an e-cigarette device with a substance besides nicotine?”
One of the possible answers was this: “Yes, I have used an e-cigarette device with marijuana, THC or hash oil, or THC wax.” (THC, short for tetrahydrocannabinol, is the mind-altering chemical that produces marijuana’s high.)
Police chiefs warn of increased crime if California allows pot deliveries statewide
The prospect of vans loaded with pot delivering to homes in quiet Morgan Hill makes Police Chief David Swing uneasy.
Like most cities in the state, the upscale San Jose suburb has banned pot shops. But now, as California considers a proposal to allow marijuana businesses to send home-delivery vans into communities where retail stores are prohibited, Swing and others in law enforcement say they are preparing for the worst.
“This will make it easier and more lucrative to rob a delivery person than a liquor store,” said Swing, who is president of the California Police Chiefs Assn. He notes drivers would be allowed to carry up to $10,000 in cash. “Robberies are the tip of the iceberg. They can lead to other crimes, including aggravated assaults and homicides.”
Tesla erupts in chaos after senior executives leave and Elon Musk tokes up
The turmoil at Tesla Inc. reached a fever pitch Friday, as news emerged that two senior executives will leave Elon Musk’s electric-car maker a matter of hours after he smoked marijuana during an hours-long interview with a comedian.
Chief Accounting Officer Dave Morton gave notice Tuesday that he was resigning less than a month into the job, according to a filing. Tesla’s stock plunged, then extended declines after Gabrielle Toledano, the head of human resources who’s been on a leave of absence, told Bloomberg News that she won’t rejoin the company.
Morton, a former chief financial officer for computer-drive maker Seagate Technology Plc, joined Tesla the day before Chief Executive Musk tweeted that he was considering buying out some investors at $420 a share and taking the company private. Musk abandoned that take-private effort 17 days later, and in the process drew a subpoena from the Securities and Exchange Commission and a series of lawsuits alleging market manipulation.
Elon Musk smokes a blunt live on YouTube with podcaster Joe Rogan
Elon Musk apparently smoked dope with comedian and podcaster Joe Rogan live on YouTube late Thursday night, then giggled about turning Mars into “a big Jamaica.”
“I mean, it’s legal, right?” Musk said, accepting a lit blunt from Rogan in the Los Angeles studio, where “The Joe Rogan Experience” is webcast live. Rogan told Musk he’d rolled marijuana in tobacco leaves. Musk took a single deep toke.
If the pair were joking about what they were smoking, they didn’t say so.
L.A. launches crackdown on unlicensed marijuana businesses; more than 500 people are charged
A police crackdown on local unlicensed marijuana businesses has ended with misdemeanor charges against more than 500 people in Los Angeles, the city attorney’s office said.
In 120 criminal cases filed since May, City Atty. Mike Feuer has charged 515 people in connection with 105 illegal marijuana businesses, grow sites, extraction labs and delivery companies located throughout the city, his office announced Friday.
All of the defendants were charged with unlicensed commercial cannabis activity within the city, which carries a potential sentence of six months in jail and $1,000 in fines. Local judges have been hearing the cases since May with arraignments scheduled through the end of October, Feuer’s office said.
Vegas’ salute to the cannabis culture: a 24-foot-long, fully functional bong
There are two flights of stairs curling around the head-turning glass bong, all 24 feet of it. There also will be an elevator to ferry people from the ground floor — where the pipe’s 100-gallon reservoir sits — to the mouthpiece high above.
It weighs more than 800 pounds and the bowl can pack a quarter of a pound of marijuana. It has elements in the glass that will make it glow — greenish mostly — while bathing in black light. Jason Harris, the artist who made it, said it’s his artistic opus to the cannabis culture.
“I make giant bongs,” he said. “They are my voice to make noise in the world.”
12th marijuana business wins permit approval in Costa Mesa
Costa Mesa planning commissioners Monday evening gave their blessing to another local marijuana manufacturing and distribution facility, bringing the total number of approvals to 12.
On a 4-0 vote — with Chairman Stephan Andranian absent — the commission awarded a conditional use permit to Pure Labs Inc., which is looking to open in a 2,025-square-foot space in Unit M-103 at 3505 Cadillac Ave.
The decision is final unless appealed to the City Council within seven days.
Former L.A. mayor Villaraigosa joins board of local cannabis firm MedMen
Former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is joining the board of publicly traded cannabis company MedMen, marking his return to the business world following a resounding defeat in June’s Democratic gubernatorial primary.
MedMen, a Culver City company that operates high-end cannabis shops in California, Nevada and New York and has aggressive expansion plans, announced Villaraigosa’s appointment Wednesday morning. Villaraigosa adds political and governmental experience to a board made up of branding, entertainment and accounting executives.
Other recent additions to the company’s board include Stacey Hallerman, a former executive at the conglomerate that owns luxury brands Montblanc and Cartier, and Jay Brown, the chief executive of of RocNation, the entertainment company co-founded by Shawn “Jay Z” Carter.
Newport man accused of operating illegal marijuana dispensary in Costa Mesa
A Newport Beach man is accused of operating an illegal marijuana dispensary in Costa Mesa, according to authorities.
Omid Delkash, 47, was charged Monday with four misdemeanor counts of unlawful transportation, sale and furnishing of marijuana. He pleaded not guilty and is in custody at Orange County Jail, records show. He is scheduled to appear in court Friday for a pretrial hearing.
Costa Mesa law prohibits the retail sale of marijuana or marijuana products anywhere in the city.
California lawmakers want the state to collect data on drivers under the influence of pot
After she was injured in a car accident allegedly caused by a driver impaired by pot, state Controller Betty Yee is backing a bill approved Monday by the Legislature that aims to begin addressing the problem of drugged driving on California roads.
The measure sent to Gov. Jerry Brown would require the California Highway Patrol to report on how many motorists stopped for impaired driving are allegedly under the influence of marijuana.
“It’s what other states have done — like Colorado and Washington — to at least start collecting state-level data,” Yee said. “They just want to understand the extent of cannabis-impaired driving.”
Marijuana use is rising among pregnant patients. Not so fast, doctors warn
Marijuana may be losing its image as a dangerous drug, but mounting research suggests women should steer clear of it if they are pregnant or breastfeeding, according to new recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The advice comes as more than half of the states, including California, have legalized marijuana for medical or recreational use. Growing acceptance of the drug has made it seem harmless, or even beneficial. As a result, doctors fret that more and more babies are being exposed to the drug.
The march toward legalization has outpaced scientific research about marijuana’s health effects. Because it is a Schedule 1 drug — one with potential for abuse and no approved medical use — studies have been limited by federal law.
Mormon Church ramps up opposition to medical marijuana effort in Utah, speaking out publicly
The Mormon Church has played a quiet role in the fight against an effort to legalize medical marijuana in Utah, releasing measured statements and helping to bankroll lawsuits.
But on Thursday, leaders of the powerful Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints came out from behind the scenes.
“We are deeply concerned by the history of other states that have allowed medical and recreational use of this drug … and have experienced serious consequences to the health of its citizens,” Elder Jack N. Gerard, flanked by politicians, medical professionals and other church leaders, said at a news conference at the state Capitol.
California lawmakers move to help expunge pot-related convictions
With recreational marijuana legalized by the state’s voters, Californians with past convictions for cannabis-related offenses would get state help in expunging their records under a bill sent by lawmakers to the governor on Wednesday.
Proposition 64, which state voters approved in 2016, legalized the sale and use of marijuana for recreational use and permitted those with past convictions for the activity to petition the courts to clear their records.
But state Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) told his colleagues Wednesday that the process is complicated, and many with pot convictions do not know about the opportunity.
By next year, you can buy medical marijuana in Hawaii, but you’ll still have to jump through some hoops
Out-of-state medical marijuana users next year will be able to buy cannabis products at dispensaries in Hawaii. The only hitches: Visitors will need to apply online and pay $45 (plus a $4.50 processing fee) for a temporary Hawaii medical marijuana card that’s valid for 60 days.
“We’ve been fielding a lot of calls daily about reciprocity,” said George Bullock, director of the Cure Oahu marijuana dispensary in Waikiki. “We really look forward to being able to serve them in the future.”
The Hawaii Department of Health plans to allow medical marijuana cardholders from other states to make purchases at dispensaries on Oahu, Maui and Kauai. But state officials are not using the word “reciprocity” because those out-of-state cards won’t work.
Teen sold weed from her bedroom, with her parents as suppliers, Merced County officials say
A teenage girl who sold marijuana out of her bedroom was using her gun-toting parents as her suppliers, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office said.
On Friday, deputies served a search warrant on the home of Jose Reyes Martinez, 44, and his wife in Delhi, Calif., where they found 80 pounds of packaged marijuana and a dozen large plants along with two firearms, officials said on Facebook.
The packaged weed was found in the master bedroom closet alongside a loaded AK-47, deputies said. A makeshift greenhouse in the backyard held a dozen large plants, authorities said.
Newport Beach sues to halt what city calls a marijuana dispensary at Church of the Holy Grail
Newport Beach officials are asking an Orange County Superior Court judge to block an operation that identifies itself as a church but the city says is a marijuana dispensary violating local law.
Brick-and-mortar marijuana dispensaries are prohibited in Newport Beach under municipal code. Cultivation, processing, distribution and delivery of cannabis have been banned in the city since 2016.
A civil lawsuit Newport filed June 25 seeks an injunction to forbid the organization known as Church of the Holy Grail from operating at 2072 Bristol St. It isn’t clear how long it has been operating, though the lawsuit states the location has been running without a business license since at least Jan. 24.
Proposal to create state-chartered banks for California marijuana industry fails to advance
California lawmakers on Thursday shelved a proposal to allow the state to license private banks to handle the billions of dollars expected to be generated by the state’s legal marijuana industry amid questions about the plan’s feasibility.
Voters approved Proposition 64 in 2016 to legalize growing, possessing and selling marijuana for recreational use, but newly licensed pot shops and farms say they cannot put their money in federally chartered banks because cannabis remains illegal under federal law.
Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Los Angeles) proposed that the state could license special privately financed banks that would issue checks to the businesses to pay rent and state and local taxes and fees, and to compensate vendors for goods and services provided to their businesses.
Parent of Corona beer bets $3.8 billion on U.S. love of marijuana
Constellation Brands Inc., which for seven decades has made its money off beer, wine and whiskey, sees its future in a marijuana leaf.
In the biggest (legal) marijuana deal, the Victor, N.Y., beverage company will spend about $3.8 billion to boost its stake in Canadian grower Canopy Growth Corp., betting legalization will gain traction around the world and especially in the United States.
“This is rocket fuel,” Canopy Chief Executive Bruce Linton said on the company’s earnings call Wednesday. “We’re going to be way more global.”
Marijuana is not really legal in California if residents don’t have a reasonable way to buy it
California law allows adults to buy marijuana. It allows licensed businesses to deliver marijuana to customers, and it says specifically that cities and counties cannot prevent delivery services from traveling on public roads. Yet even though cities can’t stop deliveries traveling through their jurisdiction, many cities currently ban deliveries to their jurisdiction.
That means that unlike deliveries of virtually every other legal, adult-use product — including alcohol and cigarettes, which can be ordered over the internet in California — marijuana deliveries are barred.
The practical effect is that residents in some places have little to no access to legal medical or recreational cannabis products because of local regulations — which seems contrary to the intent of Proposition 64. Roughly half of Californians live in cities or counties that prohibit marijuana stores and delivery services form opening in their jurisdictions. An analysis by the Sacramento Bee earlier this year found residents in 40% of the state had to drive 60 miles or more to find a licensed dispensary to buy legal marijuana — medical or recreational.
California cities oppose plan to allow pot delivery in areas where sales are banned
California cities on Monday objected to a state proposal that would allow marijuana delivery to homes in areas where storefront pot sales have been banned locally.
The changes, which are being considered by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control, “will undermine a city’s ability to effectively regulate cannabis at the local level,” Charles Harvey, a legislative representative for the League of California Cities, said in a letter to the bureau.
The cities group, which represents the state’s 482 municipalities, supports other changes to clarify the rules of Proposition 64, which was approved by voters in 2016 and allows the growing and sale of marijuana for recreational use.
Cypress Hill’s B-Real set to open a Sylmar dispensary, as Cannary West takes flight Saturday
Rapper and marijuana entrepreneur Louis Freese, better known as Cypress Hill frontman B-Real, plans to celebrate the grand opening of his flagship dispensary in Sylmar with a day-long bash next Wednesday.
Called Dr. Greenthumb’s – a name music fans will recognize as the title of a 1998 Cypress Hill song – the Foothill Boulevard dispensary will be heavy on strains from B-Real’s Insane brand of cannabis as well his Phuncky Feel Tips product line (glass tips designed to fit the business end of a hand-rolled joint). It will also serve as the home base for the rapper’s online BReal.TV network.
According to today’s announcement, the Wednesday event will be open to the public (though you’ll need to be at least 21 — or 18 with a medical marijuana card) and feature a line-up of BRealTV’s DJs as well as “a slew of surprise guests [making] appearances throughout the day.” A second Dr. Greenthumb’s is expected to open in Cathedral City later this year.
Dr. Greenthumb’s grand-opening party, Aug. 15 from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., 12751 Foothill Blvd., Sylmar (just west of the 210 freeway between Arroyo and Vaughn streets).
Cannary West
In other dispensary-opening news, a rebooted and relocated Cannary West (this version by the folks behind the stylish, upscale Venice Blvd. dispensary the Pottery), officially opens its doors Saturday.
Although parts of the space in the Rancho Park neighborhood are still under construction, it’s only because plans include adding sustainable on-site cultivation (a process also underway at the Pottery), it does already have one of Los Angeles real estate’s most enviable features – a dedicated off-street parking lot for customers around back.
To mark the grand opening, the first 200 customers who spend $30 or more after the dispensary opens for business at 10 a.m. will receive a little something special for their efforts.
Cannary West, grand opening, Aug. 11 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., 2435 Military Avenue, Los Angeles (just south of Pico and two blocks east of Sepulveda).
High Times rolls out new online video network
Los Angeles-based cannabis media brand High Times, which launched as a print magazine in 1974, has added a streaming video service to its offerings.
Announced Thursday, the ad-supported web channel High Times TV is both a showcase for the brand’s own content (behind-the-scenes videos from its Cannabis Cup events, for example, and how-to videos for ganja guacamole) as well as a platform for an assortment of independent cannabis-content creators like the Stoner Mom (a Colorado mother with a family of six who focuses on living a “responsible cannabis lifestyle”), StrainCentral (a strain review site founded by Joshua Young) and That High Couple (Hollywood-based couple Alice and Clark who chronicle their THC-infused life via social media).
While High Times’ newest venture is hardly a unique move- there isn’t a legacy media brand out there that isn’t trying to capitalize on streaming video — it could end up being a lifeline for the independents in the stoner space who have seen their traditional social media channels (particularly YouTube) threatened, restricted or suspended in a cannabis-content crackdown that began earlier this year.
High Times TV is now available as an app on Android, Roku and Apple TV as well as online at tv.hightimes.com.
Newport Beach lawsuit seeks to ban marijuana business that operated in residential neighborhoods
Newport Beach officials are asking an Orange County Superior Court judge to block a marijuana business from operating in two homes in violation of city law.
A civil lawsuit filed May 4 seeks an injunction to forbid the business — known as OC Healing House, Bud Man OC and Bud Man Newport Beach — from operating at a home on Drakes Bay Drive in Corona del Mar and a home on Promontory Drive in Newport’s Promontory Point community.
The city attorney’s office says the business was using the homes for marijuana delivery and distribution. The lawsuit calls the business a “public nuisance.”
‘Marijuana is a gift from God.’ A battle over pot pits the Mormon Church against an unlikely group: other Mormons
Brian Stoll faced a dilemma as his wedding day approached. For more than a year, he had been smoking marijuana to treat severe back pain, but to remain in good standing with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and get married in the temple, he had to stop using pot.
Since marijuana was illegal under Utah law, church leaders told him, it was forbidden. Stoll turned to an opioid painkiller and has continued using it since his marriage three years ago, despite unpleasant side effects and its inability to match the soothing qualities of marijuana.
“This was devastating ... I had to choose between my health and my fiancee,” Stoll said recently. “It seemed asinine that if I lived in another state, I wouldn’t have to make such a difficult decision.”
Roommates were unaware of drug lab operation in Glendale home, police say
Authorities arrested a man on Friday suspected of operating an illegal butane honey-oil lab out of a Glendale home.
John Kelly, 52, was taken into custody after the Glendale Police Department received a tip about the suspected manufacturing operation in the 1400 block of Randall Street. The information was derived from an ongoing narcotics investigation, according to Sgt. Dan Suttles, a spokesman for the department.
Butane honey oil is a type of concentrated cannabis product made when marijuana is soaked in butane in order to extract the plant’s essential oils. The process can lead to explosions if the butane gas builds up in an enclosed area and ignites from a spark.
Rams guard Jamon Brown says marijuana is reason for suspension
Rams starting right guard Jamon Brown, suspended for the first two games of the season for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, said Thursday that the suspension stemmed from a 2017 incident in Kentucky that involved marijuana.
Brown still worked with the first-team offense Thursday as the Rams held their first training camp practice at UC Irvine.
Brown, a fourth-year pro from Louisville, said that before last season he was pulled over for speeding and that police found marijuana in the car.
Democrats still haven’t figured out that legal weed is a winning issue
Every Democratic U.S. senator rumored to be considering a 2020 presidential run supports marijuana legalization. So do 77% of Democratic voters. The party’s 2016 national platform backs states’ rights on cannabis and calls for a “reasoned pathway for future legalization.”
So why is the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee — the entity charged with winning back control of the U.S. House — attacking a Republican congressman over his support for marijuana reform? And why is it citing a right-wing magazine to make the case?
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Costa Mesa) has a “cult-like fixation on marijuana,” said a National Review article excerpt the Democratic committee highlighted in a tweet posted Monday. The party organ said the GOP congressman’s cannabis advocacy is one reason “why [Democratic nominee] @HarleyRouda needs your help flipping this seat...from #RedToBlue.”
They worked at Apple, Amazon and Lyft. Now they’re working to get you stoned
For much of her career, Natasha Pecor followed a path well-worn by tech workers. She built her reputation with her first employer in the industry, earning the title head of platform at Yelp. Then she jumped to one of the giants, Amazon, where she worked as a product manager.
Most recently she parlayed that experience into a leadership role at a smaller start-up — a common move among techies willing to take a risk for a new challenge and perhaps a big payday.
But this start-up wasn’t exactly a tech company.
Fountain Valley man sentenced to life in prison in kidnapping and torture of marijuana dispensary owner
A Fountain Valley man was sentenced Friday to spend the rest of his life behind bars for kidnapping a medical marijuana dispensary owner and his roommate in 2012 and torturing the dispensary owner as part of a plot to extort money.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Gregg Prickett gave Kyle Shirakawa Handley, 39, the maximum sentence of life in state prison. A Superior Court jury in January swiftly found Handley guilty of of kidnapping, aggravated mayhem and torture, all felonies.
Prosecutors contended that Handley, a marijuana grower who supplied the victim’s dispensary, and three other defendants kidnapped the man and his female roommate from their 25th Street home on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach on Oct. 2, 2012.
We won’t know more about marijuana’s health benefits until feds stop labeling it a Schedule I drug
To the editor: I was shocked by how little research seemed to inform the article, “With marijuana legal, California flooded with dubious health claims about the drug.”
First, because marijuana remains a federal Schedule I drug, research is severely restricted. However, there has been extensive research done in Europe and Israel. This research has shown multiple health benefits for those who take cannabidiol, or CBD, and a combination of CBD and THC, the main psychoactive ingredient of marijuana.
In fact, Dr. Sanjay Gupta did a show on CNN about the benefits of CBD, with specific focus on how it helped children with seizure disorders. Dr. Allan Frankel of Santa Monica, who was interviewed on that show, has done substantial research in Israel on marijuana.
With marijuana legal, California flooded with dubious health claims about the drug
Spend a few minutes surfing Twitter and you’re likely to encounter a startling claim that comes without proof:
Cannabis cures cancer.
The online world is awash with such posts, startling scientists and physicians who are urging weed’s proselytizers to tap the brakes.
Gov. Jerry Brown appoints members to new cannabis permit appeals panel
Six months after California began licensing growing and selling marijuana, Gov. Jerry Brown on July 3 appointed the first members of a new Cannabis Control Appeals Panel to consider objections from those denied permits or those facing penalties for violating regulations.
The governor gets to name three of the five members of the panel and appointed county prosecutor Sabrina D. Ashjian of Fresno, college lecturer Diandra Bremond of Los Angeles, and a staff attorney for the governor, Adrian Carpenter of Plumas Lake.
The other two appointments will be made by the Senate Rules Committee and the speaker of the Assembly.
Federal law? State law? Which takes precedence when you want to travel with cannabis?
You can’t take it with you. Actually, you can. But it’s not a good idea when you’re traveling, especially for the risk-averse.
We speak, of course, of cannabis; its use was approved by 57% of California voters in November 2016. Proposition 64, known as the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, allows the recreational use of marijuana in the Golden State; medical marijuana had been legal for about a decade before that.
Legal, it should be noted, in California. Not legal according to federal law, although President Trump has signaled his willingness to support legislation that, according to an L.A. Times article, would “end the federal ban on marijuana.”
Newport Beach church accused of operating illegal marijuana dispensary
Newport Beach officials are asking an Orange County Superior Court judge to block an operation that identifies itself as a church, but that the city says is a marijuana dispensary violating local law.
Brick-and-mortar marijuana dispensaries are prohibited in Newport Beach under municipal code. Cultivation, processing, distribution and delivery of cannabis have been banned in the city since 2016.
A civil lawsuit that Newport Beach filed June 25 seeks an injunction to forbid the organization known as Church of the Holy Grail from operating at 2072 Bristol St. It isn’t clear how long it has been operating, though the lawsuit states the location has been running without a business license since at least Jan. 24.
Newport Beach sues to halt what city calls a marijuana dispensary at Church of the Holy Grail
Newport Beach officials are asking an Orange County Superior Court judge to block an operation that identifies itself as a church but the city says is a marijuana dispensary violating local law.
Brick-and-mortar marijuana dispensaries are prohibited in Newport Beach under municipal code. Cultivation, processing, distribution and delivery of cannabis have been banned in the city since 2016.
A civil lawsuit Newport filed June 25 seeks an injunction to forbid the organization known as Church of the Holy Grail from operating at 2072 Bristol St. It isn’t clear how long it has been operating, though the lawsuit states the location has been running without a business license since at least Jan. 24.
MedMen co-founder Andrew Modlin hashes out deal for modern home in WeHo
Andrew Modlin, co-founder of cannabis company MedMen, has paid $3.895 million for a contemporary-style home in West Hollywood, records show.
The modern two-story sits a few blocks away from one of MedMen’s flagship L.A. dispensaries, which opened earlier this year after recreational weed was legalized in January.
Within 4,075 square feet of interiors marked by clean lines and indoor-outdoor living spaces, there are four bedrooms, five bathrooms and a spacious open floor plan. Walls of glass brighten the common spaces, which include a pair of dining areas and a kitchen with a butcher-block island.
Burbank to consider placing sales tax measure on November ballot
Burbank officials may turn to residents in November to see if they would support a sales tax that could pull the city out of its financial hole.
The City Council unanimously voted during a meeting on Tuesday to direct staff to draft ordinances to place a three-quarter-cent sales tax on the upcoming November ballot, as well as develop a civilian committee to oversee the use of the funds generated, should voters support the initiative.
Cindy Giraldo, the city’s financial services director, told council members that city staff members think going with a general-purpose sales tax would be the most effective way to address Burbank’s recurring deficit, which is expected to reach $9.5 million during the 2022-23 fiscal year.
High pot prices bring buzz kill in California six months after marijuana legalization
Talk about a buzz kill.
California is marking the six-month anniversary of legalized recreational marijuana sales with consumers and the cannabis industry complaining about everything from steep prices to high taxes to a scarcity of licensed pot shops.
Although they’ve known about the deadline for months, many marijuana companies have been slow to submit their products to laboratories to see whether they meet state-imposed quality standards that go into effect Sunday.
California pot retailers say state rules could force them to destroy millions of dollars’ worth of product
Starting Sunday, all marijuana sold in California by state-licensed firms will be required to undergo new testing for quality and toxins, but retailers warn they’ll face financial hardship because they will have to destroy tens of millions of dollars’ worth of untested product still on their shelves.
The United Cannabis Business Assn. led 128 cannabis businesses and advocacy groups in petitioning Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday to indefinitely extend the period for selling marijuana products that do not meet the new testing standards to avoid forcing some licensed firms out of business.
“This really is the destruction of the whole supply chain,” said Jerred Kiloh, president of the assocication, which represents 76 pot retailers in Los Angeles and Orange counties.
Cheech Marin’s Chicano art museum given $9.7 million from state of California
Just months after California legalized recreational marijuana the state is giving stoner comedian Cheech Marin’s Chicano art museum $9.7 million.
It must be kismet.
The money was rolled up in the $139-billion California budget for 2018-19 that Gov. Jerry Brown signed Wednesday.
High Gear: Test-driving Otto, the joint-rolling robot
An occasional look at the ever-growing collection of tools and accouterments catering to the cannabis consumer in Southern California.
Meet your newest party guest.
Otto is a new gadget — and the first from Culver City-based Banana Bros. — that promises to make a perfectly rolled joint as easy as pressing a button. And, since it was introduced earlier this month, it’s proved popular at the Mid-City dispensary where it’s part of a summer-long pop-up shop focusing on gear for the discerning cannabis user.
Public bank that would boost pot shops, affordable housing could go before L.A. voters this fall
The Los Angeles City Council is preparing to ask voters if they want to create a publicly owned bank, something no city or state in the United States has done in nearly a century.
Council members voted Tuesday to start the process of putting a measure on the Nov. 6 ballot that would allow for the creation of such a bank by amending the city charter.
The measure must receive final approval by July 3 in order to make the fall ballot.
‘Boundaries’ director Shana Feste has a message for male critics about her dogs, dad and pot movie
Making a movie that’s based on some of the most intimate, vulnerable and contemptible moments of your life is an ambitious undertaking — even more so if its cast includes your own dog.
Loretta, the endlessly friendly 8-year-old terrier mix of writer-director Shana Feste, initially wasn’t supposed to appear in “Boundaries,” the Sony Pictures Classics dramedy in which Vera Farmiga plays a single mother on a cathartic road trip with her troublesome father (Christopher Plummer), her troubled son (Lewis MacDougall) and a motley crew of rescued animals. When the scene needed another stray dog for the on-screen journey, Loretta seized the supporting role.
“Every time I’d yell action, she’d run to me because she heard my voice!” laughed Feste, who also has another dog, three cats and three kids at home. “I either had to whisper or have my first [assistant director] call ‘action,’ because it was just too distracting.”
U.S. health officials approve first marijuana-based prescription drug
U.S. health regulators have approved the first prescription drug made from marijuana, a milestone that could spur more research into a drug that remains illegal under federal law.
The Food and Drug Administration approved the medication from GW Pharmaceuticals on Monday to treat two rare forms of childhood epilepsy.
The strawberry-flavored syrup is a purified form of a chemical in the cannabis plant — but not the one that gets users high. It’s not yet clear why the ingredient, known as CBD, reduces seizures in some people.
Next step for L.A. public bank: Ask the voters for permission
The fate of a nascent effort to create a bank owned by the city of Los Angeles could be decided by voters this fall.
The City Council on Tuesday will vote on whether to start the process of placing a measure on the November ballot, asking voters to let the city create a “purely commercial enterprise”— something prohibited by L.A.’s charter.
If voters approved such a charter amendment, it would remove one of a handful of hurdles standing in the way of a city-owned bank, something city officials have been studying for nearly a year since Council President Herb Wesson raised the idea ahead of the Jan. 1 legalization of recreational marijuana sales.
Weasel-like species is threatened with extinction, and pot growers are part of the problem, report says
A cat-sized, weasel-like animal whose habitat in forests along California’s northern coast is under threat from marijuana cultivation should receive endangered species status, state fish and wildlife officials said.
The Humboldt marten — a relative of minks and otters — faces the risk of extinction after decades of trapping and forest clearing, according to a report released Thursday by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife that recommends the animal be listed under the state’s Endangered Species Act.
Trapping is no longer allowed in California, but the marten’s habitat in California is threatened by wildfires, logging, road construction, pot grows and climate change, the report says.
Full vending machines. Pot on the pillow. What some California hotels are doing to attract marijuana smokers
A few months after California legalized recreational use of marijuana, the Desert Hot Springs Inn in the Coachella Valley began advertising itself as cannabis friendly — a place where guests can smoke by the pool or heat up a vaporizer in the rooms.
What surprised innkeeper John Thatcher was not only that business improved by as much as 50% but that most of his pot-smoking guests were upper-income baby boomers.
“It was not your basement stoner crowd,” he said.
A drug lab in Lake Elsinore exploded in November. The ex-cop behind it was just sentenced 5 years in prison
A former Los Angeles police officer who was running a hash oil lab out of a house in Lake Elsinore was sentenced Monday to five years in prison, officials said.
Authorities began investigating Joseph Jay Spadafore, 64, after an explosion at the makeshift lab revealed that he’d been extracting tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, from marijuana plants using butane, a highly flammable gas, in a volatile process to make hash oil, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
Neighbors reported the explosion just before midnight on Nov. 3, and firefighters found the garage engulfed in flames. Spadafore — who was an LAPD officer from 1976 to 1991 — was the only one living there, though the homeowner thought the place had been rented to someone else, officials said.
San Diego bans marijuana from new urban gardens
San Diego took the precautionary move on Tuesday of prohibiting growing of marijuana in the dozens of urban gardens expected to soon sprout up across the city under a new property tax incentive approved in January.
The incentive aims to transform some of the city’s roughly 2,000 blighted properties into colorful gardens where local residents will grow and harvest fruits and vegetables on individual plots of land.
But the legislation approved in January failed to stipulate that marijuana can’t be among the crops grown in the new urban gardens, so the City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to add that prohibition.
Canada becomes second country to legalize pot nationwide
Canada’s Senate gave final passage Tuesday to the federal government’s bill to legalize cannabis, though Canadians will have to wait at least a couple of months to legally buy marijuana as their country becomes the second in the world to make pot legal nationwide.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government had hoped to make pot legal by July 1, but the government has said provincial and territorial governments will need eight to 12 weeks following Senate passage and royal assent to prepare for retail sales. Trudeau’s government is expected to decide a date that would legalize it in early or mid-September.
“It’s been too easy for our kids to get marijuana — and for criminals to reap the profits. Today, we change that. Our plan to legalize & regulate marijuana just passed the Senate,” Trudeau tweeted.
Keep marijuana ads a football field (or two) away from your kids
The legalization of recreational marijuana use in California has set off an advertising boom on billboards across the state. The gigantic ads try to persuade us — and our offspring — that we can easily get “chill vibes,” say “goodbye stress” or “get rid of pesky hangovers.” The proposed cure-all, of course, is marijuana.
Since recreational marijuana became legal as of the first of the year, advertising for the drug has gotten out ahead of regulations that could restrict where and how teens are exposed to such promotional displays. But a new Los Angeles City ordinance scheduled to go into effect next month is aimed at protecting minors from exposure to marijuana ads.
The ordinance focuses on outdoor advertising, and it mirrors established tobacco-advertising guidelines. It will prohibit a billboard promoting marijuana within 700 feet — more than twice the length of a football field — of obvious places children might be. This includes daycare and youth centers, schools, public parks, libraries and playgrounds. It will also restrict smaller outdoor signage, limiting a cannabis retail business to one on-site sign — no portable signs or sandwich boards.
Thank you, Jeff Sessions, for inadvertently kickstarting Congress’ effort to legalize marijuana
Good job, Jeff Sessions! It seems the attorney general’s misguided attempts to revive the unpopular and unjust federal war on marijuana may be having the exact opposite effect — prompting a new bipartisan effort in Congress to allow states to legalize cannabis.
Last week Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) introduced a bill that would essentially end the federal prohibition in states that have chosen to permit medical or recreational marijuana under their own laws. In an unexpected boost for the bill, President Trump said he probably would support it.
The States Act, as it is known, would amend the Controlled Substances Act so that it would no longer be a crime for people to buy or sell marijuana, as long as they were following state laws. It also would extend the right to legalize marijuana to U.S. territories, federally recognized tribes and to Washington, D.C. — where voters passed an initiative to allow adult recreational use of marijuana but Congress has blocked the district from permitting its sale.
New B2B cannabis trade show, Hall of Flowers, set to blossom in Santa Rosa Sept. 17-18
A new business-to-business trade show that focuses on the premium end of the cannabis market is set to debut at the Santa Rosa Fairgrounds in mid-September.
Organizers of the event, called Hall of Flowers, include Rama Mayo and Josh Shelton – co-founders of L.A.-based cannabis marketing and branding firm Green Street Agency – and Dani Diamantstein, a veteran of the fashion-focused Project and Liberty Fairs trade shows (he used to be the chief operating officer of the former and currently serves in that role at the latter).
“After years of strategizing together, we have finally partnered with the best lifestyle trade show creators in the game,” Mayo said in a recent announcement of the event. “I’m beyond excited to see the top flower, concentrate, edible, topical & accessory brands exhibit on this level.”
Much like the twice-yearly Las Vegas apparel trade shows, the goal of the invite-only event is to get participating brands in front of buyers and members of the media. The difference here, though, is that the buyers are looking for products to stock the Golden State’s growing network of dispensaries. (In the announcement, Diamantstein set the ambitious goal of “bringing over 80% of California’s dispensaries to the first show.”)
Predictably, the confirmed exhibitor list to date is heavy on Green Street clients and includes AbsoluteXtracts, Apothecanna, Banana Bros., CannaCraft, Canndescent, Care By Design, Gas Cannabis Co., IC Collective, Hemper, Jungle Boys, Kiva Confections, Mary’s Medicinals, Pluto Pearls, Satori Chocolates, SHO Products, Timeless Vapes and Trees By Game.
The June 7 announcement didn’t provide too many specifics on what the event would look like or what programming would take place. It noted that the event would include “art, culture, music and technology” and that Gary Vaynerchuk – the digital savvy investor who took a 50% stake in Green Street earlier this year – would be delivering a keynote speech on the first day of the two-day event.
Unlike many of the high-profile cannabis events that have blossomed around the state in the era of adult-use legal weed (the cannabis industry prefers “adult-use” to “recreational”; both terms refer to the legal use of THC-containing products by those 21 and older), Hall of Flowers is a private, invite-only event. That means prospective attendees must submit a request for credentials via www.hallofflowers.com or email the organizers at info@hallofflowers.com.
Hall of Flowers, Sept. 17-18, Santa Rosa Fairgrounds, 1350 Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa.
Higher Standards pop-up brings luxury glass and a touch of class to the Pottery dispensary through Aug. 31
A temporary retail space inside the Pottery dispensary in L.A.’s Mid-City makes shopping for smoking accouterments — water pipes, dabbing rigs, trays and the like — feel a whole lot more like you’re browsing a Robertson Boulevard boutique and a whole lot less less like you’re dashing furtively into a mini-mall smoke shop.
Higher Standards, an elevated take on the traditional head shop that opened a Chelsea Market flagship in New York late last year, marks its first foray into the SoCal bricks-and-mortar market with the pop-up partnership.
Its presence inside the brightly lit 2,800-square-foot dispensary consists of several long, blond wood and white, powder-coated-aluminum tables, each stacked with an assortment of high-end marijuana-related merchandise, including vaporizers by Pax and Storz & Bickel, Higher Standards’ own line of sturdy, U.S.-made glass water pipes and pipe-cleaning supplies presented in minimalist black and white packaging.
10th marijuana business wins a permit in Costa Mesa
With a unanimous vote by the Planning Commission on Monday night, Leaf Concepts LLC became the 10th marijuana-related business to obtain a conditional use permit to operate in Costa Mesa.
The medical marijuana manufacturing facility still needs a medical marijuana business permit and a business license from the city before it can open.
The Planning Commission’s decision is final unless appealed to the City Council within seven days.
Budget dispute hinders state crackdown on illicit marijuana market in California
A dispute between the governor and lawmakers over how to pay for a crackdown on the illicit marijuana market in California has resulted in the $14 million for the effort being left out of a proposed budget, officials said.
Last month, Gov. Jerry Brown proposed the funding to create five teams in the state attorney general’s office to investigate California’s black market for marijuana. The proposal was made after businesses with state licenses warned that they are at a competitive disadvantage against illicit growers and sellers.
However, a budget plan negotiated between legislators and the governor did not include the funding. The Legislature will vote on the plan this week.
Trump says he is likely to support ending federal ban on marijuana
President Trump said he likely will support a congressional effort to end the federal ban on marijuana, a major step that would reshape the pot industry and end the threat of a Justice Department crackdown.
Trump’s remarks put him sharply at odds with Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions on the issue. The bill in question, pushed by a bipartisan coalition, would allow states to go forward with legalization unencumbered by threats of federal prosecution.
Trump made his comments to a gaggle of reporters Friday morning just before he boarded a helicopter on his way to the G-7 summit in Canada. His remarks came the day after the bipartisan group of lawmakers proposed their measure.
Man suspected in deadly street racing crash had conviction for smuggling marijuana across border
A man suspected in a deadly street racing crash that killed two young brothers two weeks ago was deported in 2012 after he was caught smuggling 44 packages of marijuana across the U.S. border from Mexico, court records show.
Josue Leyva-Gallegos, 30, was headed to Perris through the Otay Mesa Port of Entry with a valid U.S. permanent resident card in May 2012 when he was sent for further inspection by a computer-generated referral, according to a probable cause statement filed in federal court.
An X-ray of his car showed anomalies in the gas tank. Authorities requested a drug-sniffing dog, which alerted to the gas cap opening. In the gas tank, a Customs and Border Protection officer found roughly 94 pounds of marijuana. Leyva-Gallegos later told authorities he had been hired to smuggle marijuana into the country for $800.
City attorney launches crackdown on illegal pot shops in Los Angeles
This year, California became the latest state to allow the farming and selling of marijuana for recreational use, opening doors to one of the largest markets in the world and marking a milestone for the cannabis industry.
But with every high comes a low.
As a limited number of licensed shops have tried to keep up with demand, illegal dispensaries have continued to do business, undercutting those playing by the rules.
Newport Beach lawsuit seeks to ban marijuana business that operated in residential neighborhoods
Newport Beach officials are asking an Orange County Superior Court judge to block a marijuana business from operating in two homes in violation of city law.
A civil lawsuit filed May 4 seeks an injunction to forbid the business — known as OC Healing House, Bud Man OC and Bud Man Newport Beach — from operating at 2 Drakes Bay Drive in Corona del Mar and 335 Promontory Drive in Newport’s Promontory Point community.
The city attorney’s office says the business was using the homes for marijuana delivery and distribution. The lawsuit calls the business a “public nuisance.”
A pair of pot-pipe pop-ups aim to elevate the cannabis accessory shopping experience
As California heads into its sixth month — and first summer — of legal adult-use cannabis sales, purveyors of high-end smoking gear are trying to tap into the local luxury-level marijuana-smoking crowd with temporary retail spaces offering pricey pipes, trays, storage containers and the like, one set for a three-month run at a mid-city dispensary starting this Saturday, and a second one making a three-day stand downtown the following weekend.
First to open its doors will be the Higher Standards X the Pottery pop-up shop, a partnership between the New York-based elevated smoke shop Higher Standards (which has its flagship in Chelsea Market) and the Pottery dispensary on Venice Boulevard. Set to open on June 2 and run through August, it will offer a curated selection of products from Pax, Storz & Bickel, Malin + Goetz and Jonathan Adler as well as Higher Standards’ own line of minimalist borosilicate glass water pipes and branded cleaning kits. It is also expected to stock the Banana Bros.’ soon-to-be-released joint-rolling machine Otto.
On June 8, another pop-up aimed at the sophisticated cannabis enthusiast, Pipe Dream LA, is scheduled to open inside the Wittmore boutique in downtown L.A.’s Arts District for a three-day run. Open during the store’s regular business hours through June 10, the collaboration between artist /gallerist Astrelle Johnquest and wardrobe stylist Michael Cioffoletti will be stocking stylish pipes and accessories by a range of makers including Miwak Junior, Ben Medansky and Eunbi (all L.A.-based brands), as well as Stonedware (a Portland, Ore., maker of blocky geometric pipes) and New York based Love and Destroy.
Prosecutors step up targeting of illegal pot farms in California
Top federal and state prosecutors in California raised alarms Tuesday over the growing problem of illegal marijuana farms — including many tied to Mexico-based drug cartels — in remote public forests and parks.
They promised a stepped-up effort to shut them down.
“We are going to do everything in our power to get after this problem as vigorously and as strongly as we possibly can,” U.S. Atty. McGregor W. Scott told gathered law enforcement officials and reporters at the federal courthouse in Sacramento on Tuesday.
Proposal to reduce California pot taxes shelved
California lawmakers on Friday shelved a proposal to reduce the cannabis tax rates in an effort to help licensed businesses compete with the black market.
The sidelining of the proposal came a week after a report found pot tax revenue is far below projections.
The bill, AB 3157, would have reduced the state excise tax on cannabis from 15% to 11% and suspended a cultivation tax that charges $148 per pound.
L.A. pot retailer MedMen has 12 shops, a $1.6-billion valuation and, coming soon, Canadian stock
They used to be drug dealers. Then they became dispensaries. Now we have cannabis retailers that “seek to replicate the Apple store model” and give customers “a comfortable, informative and nonthreatening environment.”
That’s how Culver City firm MedMen describes its pot shops in documents submitted as part of the company’s most audacious plan yet: to become the nation’s most valuable public cannabis company, worth more than $1 billion.
It’s a move that, perhaps even more than MedMen’s sleek stores on Santa Monica Boulevard and New York’s Fifth Avenue, illustrates how quickly cannabis is entering the mainstream — and how the nascent industry has captured investors’ attention even as it remains relegated to the fringes of the financial world.
California lawmakers seek to waive taxes for medical marijuana given to indigent patients
Last year, a Santa Cruz medical marijuana group headed by Valerie Leveroni Corral gave away $230,000 worth of cannabis to low-income residents with medical problems including HIV/AIDS and cancer.
However, California’s new pot legalization rules that took effect Jan. 1 now require her to pay taxes on such donations. If she made the same level of charitable contributions of cannabis this year, her tax would be up to $85,000. “It’s just too costly,” said Corral, director of the Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana, which has been shut down for the last five months.
On Thursday, state lawmakers announced a new bill to exempt compassionate care programs from paying state cannabis taxes when they are providing free medical pot to financially disadvantaged people living with serious health conditions.
A lot less pot is being sold in California than initially estimated, analyst says
With tax revenue from legal pot sales in California falling short of projections, a financial analysis firm estimated Tuesday that total sales this year will be $1.9 billion, significantly less than the $3.8 billion the company expected.
The firm, New Frontier Data, also had estimated that total sales in California would reach $6.7 billion by 2025, but the group now says it is more likely the industry will generate $4.72 billion by then.
Most cities in California have refused to allow pot businesses, and there are tough rules for those who want state licenses to grow, distribute and sell marijuana. Both are to blame for the lower-than-projected sales, according to Giadha Aguirre De Carcer, chief executive of New Frontier Data.
Chamber of Commerce lunch turns spotlight on Costa Mesa’s cannabis industry
In talking with the assorted cannabis-related vendors stationed in Costa Mesa’s Avenue of the Arts hotel Wednesday, two things became clear:
1. They were thankful to the Costa Mesa Chamber of Commerce for hosting an educational luncheon to spotlight one of the city’s newest industries.
2. Such an event would have been almost unthinkable in the not-too-distant past.
Gary Vaynerchuk acquires 50% stake in cannabis-focused branding and marketing agency Green Street
Green Street, an L.A.-based marketing and branding agency focusing on the cannabis space, has sold a 50% stake in its burgeoning business to high-profile investor Gary Vaynerchuk, the company announced Tuesday.
Founded by Rama Mayo and Joshua Shelton in late 2012, Green Street has helped celebrity clients including 2 Chainz, the Game and Broken Lizard (the comedy team behind the “Super Troopers” films) forge weed-related partnerships. In the last two years, the agency has also created a first-of-its-kind cannabis brand showroom in the penthouse of Miracle Mile’s historic Art Deco Wilshire Tower building and recruited a cadre of other like-minded brands to join them in a cannabis-business incubator environment.
(With that building in the process of being sold, Green Street is cloning its concept in a seven-story building under development in downtown L.A.)
Vaynerchuk is an investor who has earned a reputation for his savvy start-up investments (the list of companies he’s backed in their early days include household names such as Twitter, Facebook, Venmo, Resy and Uber). He’s also the brains behind the wine e-commerce platform Wine Library and chief executive of digital agency VaynerMedia.
Tuesday’s announcement did not specify the terms of the investment beyond noting it was a 50% stake, that the agreement was reached “earlier this year” and self-evaluating Green Street at “$28 million pre-money.”
San Francisco will use new technology to automatically reduce marijuana convictions under Prop. 64: ‘It’s about leveling the playing field’
When recreational marijuana use was legalized in California, it presented an opportunity to reduce or expunge convictions for possession crimes that made it harder for some people to get ahead in life.
La Ligne, Malin+Goetz celebrate their ‘High Notes’ collaboration with a high-profile pot party
It was a high time at the No Name restaurant on Fairfax Avenue Thursday night, complete with cups full of THC-infused Chex-style trail mix on the bar, Beboe’s slim, gold vaporizers tucked into wine glasses at each place setting and herbaceous candles emblazoned with the word “cannabis” flickering like freshly lighted joints across the moss-covered dinner tables.
The event was ostensibly to celebrate the “High Notes” collaboration that packages a Malin+Goetz Cannabis candle and a La Ligne ringer tee with the words “Sticky Icky” embroidered in green over the left breast. But because that had actually rolled out to retail back on the 4/20 weed holiday, the evening appeared to be as much about the two New York-based brands celebrating California’s new legal weed scene as the limited-edition joint effort itself.
“I actually think it’s weird that this kind of thing isn’t happening more — that people aren’t having dinners that are centered around smoking weed,” La Ligne co-founder Molly Howard said at the May 10 dinner. “Why is it normal that you have a bar at your fashion party but you don’t have weed?”
Brown proposes funding for investigators to crack down on California’s illicit marijuana market
Gov. Jerry Brown proposed Friday to create five teams in the state attorney general’s office to investigate California’s black market for marijuana after firms that received state licenses complained they are being undercut by the illicit growers and sellers.
Brown allocated $14 million to “target illegal cannabis activity with an emphasis on complex, large-scale financial and tax evasion investigations,” the governor’s office said in a statement.
The teams also will focus on “reducing environmental and other crimes associated with the illegal cannabis market.”
Echo Park Craft Fair adds a CBD lounge to the mix
For the canna-curious, there will be a selection of artisanal beauty and wellness products infused with cannabis available to learn about and sample at this weekend’s annual Echo Park Craft Fair. The surge in interest in cannabis products has led to the unveiling of a special lounge for those age 21 and older at one end of the shopping and craft fair’s location, Mack Sennett Studios.
Representatives from brands such as DankGals (CBD and floral bath soaks), Kana Skincare (lavender and CBD sleep masks) and Khus & Khus (botanical CBD face and body serums) will be on hand to answer questions about how to use the products and what to expect from them.
Federal agents search Adelanto mayor’s home, City Hall amid corruption probe
Adelanto Mayor Rich Kerr had a plan to cure the long-struggling city’s deep financial woes. He would make the desert town, with its vast stretches of cheap land, into the Silicon Valley of marijuana.
Since 2015, under Kerr’s leadership, officials have worked diligently to attract the cannabis industry. The efforts drew national attention and led to a land rush as entrepreneurs sought to take advantage of Adelanto’s welcoming posture.
But the San Bernardino County city and its cannabis industry have also drawn the attention of federal investigators.
Marijuana tax cut could be in jeopardy as revenue lags behind budget projections
Money collected through California’s marijuana taxes may fall short of the $175 million budgeted for the first six months of this year. The less-than-expected haul could force the Legislature to shelve a bill that would reduce the excise tax on pot from 15% to 11%, state officials warned Tuesday.
For the first three months of the year, the state collected $34 million in state excise taxes on cannabis. If the trend continues, revenue will be less than half of what was anticipated for the first six months, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
“We’re not seeing the numbers” expected, said Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Campbell), chairman of the Assembly Business and Professions Committee. Tax revenue, he added, is “woefully below the projections.”
BCC issues first-ever temporary event license to High Times for this weekend’s Cannabis Cup in Sacramento
California’s Bureau of Cannabis Control announced via its Twitter account Wednesday that it had issued its first temporary cannabis event license to the High Times Cannabis Cup Central Valley, set to take place Friday and Saturday at the Cal Expo fairgrounds in Sacramento. Sacramento’s City Council has also signed off on the event.
Later in the day, organizer High Times Media issued a news release touting the upcoming event as a historic first, describing it as “the first public event in the nation where marijuana can be bought, sold, and consumed in accordance with state laws.” We haven’t independently verified that claim, but even so, this weekend’s Cannabis Cup does feel like a watershed moment for the legal weed movement — especially given that it’s taking place in the capital of the Golden State.
In addition to celebrating all things cannabis (think exhibitors, seminars and culinary experiences for starters) the 2018 Cannabis Cup Central Valley has an impressive slate of music on tap with performances by Lauryn Hill, Lil Wayne, Ludacris, Cypress Hill, Rick Ross, Gucci Mane and Rich the Kid.
Tickets for the event (open to those 21 and older) range from $66.07 for a one-day general admission ticket (that not-so-round number includes service fees) to $467.90 for a two-day super-VIP ticket. Tickets and additional information are available at https://www.cannabiscup.com/sacramento/
Feinstein shifts her stance and supports law to prevent federal crackdown on marijuana in California
Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Tuesday she “strongly supports” a federal law that would keep the government from interfering in states like California that legalize marijuana use.
Long an opponent of legalized marijuana, Feinstein told the Sacramento Bee that her stance on cannabis shifted through conversations with constituents, particularly those with young children who benefited from its medical use.
“Federal law enforcement agents should not arrest Californians who are adhering to California law,” Feinstein said.
Zimbabwe legalizes marijuana for medicinal, scientific uses
Zimbabwe has legalized the production of marijuana for medicinal and scientific purposes, making it the rare African country to turn the drug into a source of revenue.
A government notice issued by the health minister says individuals and corporations can apply for licenses to grow marijuana, whose production and possession previously had incurred up to 12 years in prison.
Recreational use remains illegal.
California pot shops about to be on the hook for steep state fees, background checks
California sought to jump-start its marijuana industry in January by giving businesses temporary, 120-day permits that briefly waived big fees and other costly requirements, but that grace period is ending and many say the expense and red tape of getting a regular license is a headache.
Some pot shops face fees of $73,000 before they can get a regular annual license from the state Bureau of Cannabis Control. Costly upgrades to security and product testing also kick in soon, and sellers and growers will have to pass a background check that could disqualify anyone with serious criminal records.
Although the grace period technically ends Tuesday for those who received temporary licenses Jan. 1, the state bureau is allowing businesses that apply for annual licenses to continue operating with 90-day extensions while their applications are being processed.
Marijuana growers, manufacturers have yet to get the green light from L.A.
Months after California legalized the marijuana business, pot growers and manufacturers lament that they are still locked out of the legal industry in Los Angeles.
More than 100 shops have already gotten city approval in Los Angeles, but not the companies that have historically furnished them with cannabis, which were supposed to be second in line under a complex set of city regulations passed in December.
L.A. had originally planned to finish processing their applications by April but has not even started accepting that paperwork. As 4/20 rolled around Friday — the informal holiday for pot enthusiasts — there was no official word on when that would happen.
Trump administration abandons crackdown on legal marijuana
The Trump administration is abandoning a Justice Department threat to crack down on recreational marijuana in states where it is legal, a move that could enable cannabis businesses in California and other states that have legalized pot to operate without fear of federal raids and prosecution.
President Trump personally directed the abrupt retreat, which came at the behest of Republican Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado. White House officials confirmed the policy shift Friday. Trump did not inform Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions in advance of the change in policy, an almost unheard of undermining of a Cabinet official.
Gardner was incensed in January when the Justice Department announced that it was rescinding an Obama-era policy that directed federal prosecutors not to target marijuana businesses that operate legally under state law. The senator had blocked Justice Department nominees in retaliation.
Weed 101: What you need to know about recreational pot
This semester, the Los Angeles Times graphics department teamed up with the advanced programming class at the USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Students produced these stories, which required reporting, storytelling, design and development, and were guided and advised by Times reporters.
A simple guide to pot, THC and how much is too much
Where are California’s pot shops? And what were some of them before?
Will you pay more for weed than your friends? It may depend on your city’s taxes.
Kikoko’s line of cannabis-infused herbal teas offers a more genteel way to get lit
For the cannabis enthusiast who prefers their lungs to be a natural color, and isn’t that keen on the calories that come with sweet-treat edibles, Emeryville, Calif., company Kikoko, which started distribution in Southern California at the end of last year, might have the answer: cannabis-infused herbal tea.
Formulated in low doses that range from 3 milligrams to 10 milligrams of THC per sachet (a 1-gram joint, by comparison, has roughly 10 times that), it’s no harder to prepare than boiling water (and if you can’t boil water, you might want to rethink the whole getting high thing), and with flavors such as chamomile and lemon myrtle (Tranquili-tea, 3 mg per serving) and hibiscus cardamom rose (Sensuali-tea, 7 mg), it’s a straight up tasty cup of tea.
Kikoko is the brainchild of Jennifer Chapin and Amanda Jones, who share the title of “co-teaEO.” They created the company in 2015 after a mutual friend couldn’t find the right product to alleviate pain, stimulate appetite and quell the nausea she felt while battling cancer.
Sen. Charles Schumer introduces measure to decriminalize marijuana
The Senate’s top Democrat announced Friday that he is introducing legislation to decriminalize marijuana, the first time that a leader of either party in Congress has endorsed a rollback of one of the country’s oldest drug laws.
Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) in a statement called the move “simply the right thing to do.”
“The time has come to decriminalize marijuana,” Schumer said. “My thinking — as well as the general population’s views — on the issue has evolved, and so I believe there’s no better time than the present to get this done. It’s simply the right thing to do.”
A vegan taco chef on the joys of cooking high, and the best food to make while you’re stoned
When chef Raul Medina gets the munchies, he’s ready to cook. The Santa Ana chef is behind a vegan taco pop-up in Oakland, Los Angeles and Orange County called Taqueria la Venganza. He’s also a stoner chef.
Medina recently competed on the Go90 web show “High Cuisine,” in which chefs are tasked with cooking a dish while high. Spoiler alert: His longtime use of marijuana served him well.
Happy 4/20! Celebrate with homemade canna-butter
Happy 4/20. Have you planned your munchies yet?
Now that California has officially entered the land of legal pot, it’s high time we know what to do with it. And while smoking is a time-honored tradition, what about those of us who prefer to nibble our way to bliss? Because butter is the foundation of so many good things in the kitchen, it’s time to learn how to make pot butter, also known as canna-butter.
Recently, I spoke with Jeff Danzer, a.k.a. JeffThe420Chef. Known as the “Julia Child of weed,” Danzer is the author of “The 420 Gourmet: The Elevated Art of Cannabis Cuisine,” a comprehensive guide to cannabis, complete with recipes that go way beyond cookies and brownies, and begins with the foundations of cannabis-infused butter and oil.
Cannabis in California: A consumer’s guide
The recreational use of marijuana became legal in California on Jan. 1. The state is now home to the country’s largest legal pot market.
But it’s still possible for cannabis customers to run afoul of state and local laws, which dictate where and how weed can be purchased and consumed.
Here are some tips on avoiding that.
Some California cities want Amsterdam-style pot lounges, push limits of marijuana legalization
West Hollywood likes to party.
For decades, it has embraced its gay and lesbian bars and the rock ’n’ roll debauchery of the Sunset Strip. It runs a free nightlife trolley called The PickUp, with a jar of free condoms by the door.
Now, it’s embracing a different type of social scene: pot lounges.
The great California cannabis experiment lurches forward
If you find yourself driving in Venice in the next little while, you may notice that the illuminated “Venice” sign at Pacific and Windward avenues that functions as a gateway to the famous boardwalk has sprouted neon cannabis leaves.
The sign, which changes seasonally (red and green bulbs at Christmas, a heart on Valentine’s Day, flag-colored bulbs on the Fourth of July) will honor a relatively new holiday: 4/20, which evolved from a Bay Area high school ritual to the most important day of the year for cannabis lovers.
To coincide with this “holiday,” a technology company with San Francisco roots held an open house this week at its new Venice office, just steps from the sign.
Lyft and ‘Super Troopers 2’ team up for 4/20 PSA and promo
The cast of “Super Troopers 2” has teamed up with Lyft to encourage those observing the unofficial weed holiday of 4/20 not to get behind the wheel if they’ve gotten behind the business end of a joint.
In a PSA posted to YouTube on April 12, Jay Chandrasekhar, in character as Vermont state trooper Arcot “Thorny” Ramathorn (with castmates Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter and Erik Stolhanske goofing around in the background) addresses the camera.
“The Super Troopers are back,” he says, “and meow that we’ve heard potheads are entitled to smoke freely, we take our jobs more seriously than ever. So, this 4/20, if you’re trying to get higher than a fruit bat, don’t drive. Call a Lyft ride instead.”
To that end, Team Super Troopers has pledged $20,000 in $4.20 discounts to defray the cost of taking a Lyft in the Los Angeles area from April 20 to April 21 (which works out to helping get 4,761 carloads of stoners from point A to point THC) by downloading the promo code RIDEMEOW.
To sweeten the deal, passengers who make use of the discount may find a surprise waiting for them in the backseat of their ride — limited-edition Super Troopers collectibles, including a “Safety Guide to Riding High,” stickers and buttons. (What were you expecting, a liter o’ cola?)
There is something in it for the troopers too (besides encouraging safe cannabis consumption): The long-awaited sequel to their 2001 cult classic movie about the mayhem and misadventures of a quintet of Vermont state troopers hits theaters on … you guessed it: 4/20.
Weed bank proposal passes first legislative hurdle in California
California would license special banks to handle billions of dollars generated by the legal marijuana market under legislation buoyed by recent comments from the Trump administration and given initial approval by state lawmakers Wednesday.
The measure gained momentum just days after President Trump indicated that his administration would not crack down on recreational marijuana in states that have voted to make it legal. Selling and growing marijuana for recreational use was legalized by California voters under a state licensing system that began Jan. 1.
Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), who introduced the bill, said the president’s policy shift makes it more likely that state-chartered banks would be used by the burgeoning cannabis market, which is projected to grow to $7 billion annually by 2020 in California.
California warns legal pot sellers not to participate in unlicensed 4/20 events
The state issued a warning Tuesday that businesses holding licenses to sell marijuana could face penalties if they participate in unlicensed temporary events away from their stores, including on April 20, which has become an annual celebration for counterculture groups.
The warning was issued ahead of 4/20 by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control. Since Jan. 1, the bureau has issued more than 700 state licenses to sell marijuana for medical or recreational use.
The bureau has issued 47 temporary event licenses to groups that are limited to holding the marijuana celebrations on county fairgrounds that have authorized such events with city approval.
Some Republican lawmakers, once critical of marijuana, now think highly of it. Here’s why
States that have passed laws legalizing recreational marijuana in recent years appear to have found some new, unexpected supporters: Republican politicians.
Since voters began to pass recreational marijuana measures in 2012, the pro-pot movement has seen swift support from many Democrats, with Republicans often pushing back against legalization. Those expressing concern or opposition have cited, among other things, the potential for pot to be a gateway drug, and they have regularly sided with law enforcement, which has established a unified front against recreational marijuana.
But a recent mix of public opinion, an influx in tax revenue and questions surrounding states’ rights has in part led to a shift in rhetoric and legislative proposals.
Former House Speaker John Boehner to promote legalizing marijuana
Former House Speaker John A. Boehner said Wednesday he has had a change of heart on marijuana and will promote its nationwide legalization as a way to help veterans and the nation’s deadly opioid crisis.
The Ohio Republican, an avid cigarette smoker, has joined the advisory board of Acreage Holdings, a multistate cannabis company. The company also announced that former Massachusetts Gov. William Weld had joined its advisory board.
Weld, a Republican as governor, ran in the 2016 presidential election on the Libertarian Party ticket that was headed by legal-pot advocate Gary Johnson.
Two more medical marijuana businesses receive permits to make products in Costa Mesa
Costa Mesa planning commissioners gave the thumbs-up to two proposed medical marijuana facilities Monday — pushing the number of commission-approved businesses so far to nine.
On a pair of 3-0 votes, with Vice Chairman Byron de Arakal and Commissioner Isabell Kerins absent, the commission granted required conditional use permits to Yummi Karma LLC and The Healing Plant.
Yummi Karma proposes to operate within a 2,650-square-foot facility at 3505 Cadillac Ave., Unit O-101, while The Healing Plant is eyeing a 22,173-square-foot building at 1685 Toronto Way.
Lawmakers retreat from ‘zero tolerance’ policy for young motorists who use pot
Faced with opposition from drug legalization advocates, California lawmakers backed away Tuesday from a proposal to adopt a “zero tolerance” policy on motorists under age 21 who drive after using marijuana.
A bill by state Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) originally proposed a one-year suspension of driver’s licenses for minors caught for the first time driving with measurable amounts of marijuana in their system. Hill had said the state should have the same “zero tolerance” policy for cannabis that it has for those under 21 who drive under the influence of alcohol.
High Times buys Green Rush Daily
Los Angeles based High Times Media announced Thursday that it has acquired Green Rush Daily, a 2 1/2-year-old online publication that calls itself “the voice of the cannabis revolution.” Terms of the acquisition were not released beyond stating that Green Rush Daily would continue to operate as a standalone publication based in New York City.
Founded in New York in 1974, High Times magazine, with its glossy close-up photos of marijuana plants, growing tips and tales of outlaw culture, became the de facto weed bible for generations of pot smokers. In recent years, the brand has moved beyond publishing and used its authority in the cannabis space to build a budding live event business that includes business summits, music festivals and a “Cannabis Cup” series that’s part trade show and part weed-strain competition (think chili cook-off — but with bowls of green instead of bowls of red).
In October 2016, with California voters’ approval of legal recreational use of cannabis on the horizon, the company moved west and took up residence in the Art Deco Wilshire Tower building alongside a cluster of cannabis-focused businesses. In mid-2017, L.A.-based investment group Oreva Capital bought controlling interest in the company and announced plans to become a publicly listed company on NASDAQ. (Thursday’s announcement noted that High Times has filed paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Comission to that end and hopes to have that process completed before the end of June.)
According to the announcement, Green Rush Daily boasts some 9.5 million page views a month from more than 4 million unique users. As of Sept. 30, High Times reported a monthly print circulation of 186,350 and roughly 5.25 million monthly unique views to its website.
Bassnectar and Ludacris to headline Chalice Festival — celebrating music, art and cannabis — on July 13-15
Chalice Festival, an annual SoCal celebration of music, art and cannabis, has announced that Bassnectar and Ludacris are among the acts headlining this year’s event, which is scheduled to take place July 13 through 15 at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds in Victorville, Calif.
Bassnectar (the stage name of DJ and record producer Lorin Ashton) and Chris “Ludacris” Bridges will be part of a musical lineup that is slated to include Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, PharcydeSizzla and Curren$y. Also on tap: large-scale art installations, graffiti artists and a host of notable names in the glass-blowing business, including DWreck, Mothership, JD Maplesden, Mr. Gray and JAG X SALT. (For those unfamiliar with the aforementioned brands, they all specialize in crafting glass pipes that are as much works of art as they are smoking accessories.)
Chalice 2018, which marks the festival’s fifth year, will differ from past years in one very big way, according to organizers: Attendees will be able to purchase and consume cannabis on site, thanks to changes in California’s adult-use laws that went into effect in January. (This means festival-goers must be at least 21 years old.)
Ticket prices range from $105 for a single-day pass to $325 for a three-day VIP pass. Tickets and more information are available at https://www.chalicecalifornia.com
Chalice 2018, July 13 to 15 at the San Bernardino County Fairgrounds, 14800 Seventh St., Victorville, Calif.
Recreational marijuana sales are brisk, problems are few in San Diego 3 months into legalization
Three months after recreational marijuana went on sale in California, San Diego retailers say business has been brisk and the customer base diverse, including older people who use a private shuttle bus to reach one dispensary.
“There’s been a change in the culture,” said Will Senn, who operates two Urbn Leaf marijuana stores in San Diego and is about to open a third.
“Cannabis is becoming more accepted. Now that adult-use marijuana is legal, people are giving it a try. The average age of our customers has gone from about 40 to about 50.”
The Standard hotel adds Lord Jones’ hemp-derived CBD products to its minibar mix
Boutique hotel group Standard International is adding two hemp-derived, CBD-infused products to the items available in its minibars starting next week, one is a body lotion and the other is a box of gourmet gumdrops — both from L.A.-based luxury cannabis brand Lord Jones.
CBD (cannabidiol), is a compound that’s found in cannabis and is prized for its pain-relieving, mood-stabilizing properties but does not produce the same psychoactive effects as the better-known compound THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). The items will be start being stocked in guest-room minibars at the Standard in Hollywood and the Standard in downtown L.A. as of April 10, according to Standard’s representatives, and roll out to in-room minibars at three other properties (two in New York City and one in Miami) shortly thereafter.
Being part of the minibar mix is just one part of an ongoing partnership between the hotels’ parent company Standard International and Lord Jones (which we first told you about in November), that will eventually include an onsite dispensary at the hotel’s West Hollywood location that will be Lord Jones’ first retail flagship.
Here’s why pot sellers are paying prime rents for warehouse and storefront space
Growing up in Minnesota, Stephanie Smith dreamed of being a golf pro. Instead, the mother of five who lives in Pacific Palisades has ended up in the unlikeliest of trades.
She claims to be one of the largest marijuana-industry landlords in the state in a business that is growing chaotically as cities begin to allow recreational pot sales after passage of Proposition 64 two years ago.
And though it has been plenty lucrative for her, the murky legal status of the cannabis industry has led to a police search of her home and to some unflattering news coverage — including a headline that painted her as a drug lord.
California pot czar Lori Ajax tapped as keynote speaker of Palm Springs Cannabis Film Festival & Summit
The Palm Springs Cultural Center has organized a three-day, cannabis-themed series of events including panel discussions, yoga classes and film screenings scheduled for April 19-21.
The aim of the inaugural Palm Springs Cannabis Film Festival & Summit, according to organizers, is to “take on the debate [over cannabis] with a progressive attitude towards eroding stereotypes and clichés to discover the life-enhancing potential of this remarkable yet controversial plant.”
To that end, festival directors Giacomina Marie and Paul Palodichuk have put together a program that offers something for everyone on the stoner spectrum from the casual enthusiast/film buff (screenings of films such as “The Emperor of Hemp” and “Mary Janes: The Women of Weed”) to the traveler or entrepreneur (tourism seminars and business-focused panel discussions on insurance and municipal regulations in the Coachella Valley).
California’s John Chiang joins state treasurers seeking meeting with Trump administration over banking for pot industry
Four state treasurers including California’s John Chiang requested Thursday that U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions meet with them to find a way to allow banks to handle money from the marijuana industry in states that have authorized cannabis sales.
“This is not just a blue state phenomenon but includes purple and red states in every corner of our country,” they wrote in a letter to Sessions. “A majority of Americans now live in states where they have decided to legalize cannabis.”
Sen. Mitch McConnell wants hemp removed from controlled substance list
The U.S. Senate’s top leader wants to bring hemp production back into the mainstream by removing it from the list of controlled substances.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday that he would introduce legislation to legalize hemp as an agricultural commodity.
The Republican made the announcement in his home state of Kentucky, which has been at the forefront of hemp’s comeback.
Broccoli magazine founder talks retro inspiration, creative storytelling and cat-run dispensaries
You can hardly hurl a vape pen these days without hitting a marijuana-focused magazine, but what about one that’s created by and for 25- to 40-year-old female cannabis enthusiasts — and has the look and feel of a high-end shelter magazine?
That’s a rare creature, like unicorn rare. But there’s at least one out there (we’re talking magazines here, not unicorns). This one is called Broccoli, a new title that debuted in November 2017 with weed ikebana on the cover and stories about Mexican candle-making, cannabis-based alternatives to medicine and artist/activist nun Corita Kent on the pages in between.
With issue No. 2 of the thrice-yearly magazine dropping now (more on how to get your hands on a copy below), we hopped on the phone with 34-year-old Portland, Ore.-based founder, creative director and Editor-in-Chief Anja Charbonneau to talk Broc. Here are a few excerpts from that conversation.
Costa Mesa Planning Commission approves medical marijuana business permits, denies request for sober-living home
Following a month-long delay, the latest medical marijuana business proposed for Costa Mesa cleared a major hurdle Monday when the Planning Commission awarded two necessary permits.
The commission voted unanimously to grant conditional use permits for Se7enLeaf LLC to operate manufacturing and distribution facilities in two units, M101 and L3, totaling almost 6,700 square feet at 3505 Cadillac Ave.
Se7enLeaf is the seventh business to win commission approval under Measure X — a voter-approved initiative allowing firms that research, test, process and manufacture some medical marijuana products to open in a specified area north of South Coast Drive and west of Harbor Boulevard.
Cannabis company sells California town it envisioned as a marijuana resort, but pipe dream isn’t dead
Could plans to turn an old California ghost town into a marijuana mecca be going up in smoke?
Cannabis technology company American Green Inc., which bought Nipton for $5 million last year, has sold it to another company in a deal worth $7.7 million, acknowledging that it struggled to raise the money needed to remake the old desert mining town on the Nevada border about 60 miles south of Las Vegas into a pot paradise.
“Buying and building towns is very cash intensive. Up until now, the cost of attracting capital has been very expensive for our company,” Phoenix-based American Green said in a statement this month.
Sober living and medical marijuana applications await Costa Mesa Planning Commission
Plans for two proposed medical marijuana businesses and a permit request for a local sober-living home are among the items Costa Mesa planning commissioners will review during their meeting Monday.
Up first are proposals from Se7enLeaf LLC to open two medical marijuana manufacturing and distribution facilities — one a 2,299-square-foot operation in Unit M101 at 3505 Cadillac Ave. and the other a 4,360-square-foot space in Unit L3 at the same property.
Commissioners originally reviewed the applications in February but delayed making a final decision after raising concerns about products potentially being transferred from one location to the other.
Costa Mesa moves toward allowing recreational marijuana businesses
Costa Mesa City Council members voted unanimously Tuesday night, with little discussion, to advance a code amendment that would allow development, manufacturing, research and testing of recreational marijuana products in the same area of the city where medical marijuana businesses are already permitted.
Like their medicinal counterparts, recreational marijuana businesses would be restricted to the area north of South Coast Drive and west of Harbor Boulevard. They also would be subject to the same permitting process and restrictions.
Measure X — an initiative passed by local voters in 2016 — requires operators to obtain a business license, a marijuana business permit and a conditional use permit before they can set up shop in town.
Weedmaps to state regulator: Work with us, not against us
An Irvine-based website known as the Craigslist of pot for linking consumers with marijuana providers is pushing back against allegations that it is violating state law, arguing that it’s a technology company and not a marijuana business.
Last week, the state Bureau of Cannabis Control said it had sent 900 warning letters to marijuana shops suspected of operating without state licenses since Jan. 1 and recently sent a cease-and-desist notice to the marijuana-location service Weedmaps.com, warning it to stop advertising sellers that lack a permit or face civil or criminal penalties. It was the state’s first action against a marijuana advertiser.
The website responded Monday, stating that, as a service site like Google, Craigslist or Yelp, it was not subject to the same laws as its advertisers. But it also struck a conciliatory tone.
For police, catching stoned drivers isn’t so easy
The man San Diego Police Officer John Perdue pulled over in the Hillcrest neighborhood late last year did not hesitate to admit the smell wafting from his car was marijuana.
After the driver said he not only smoked pot recently but did it on a regular basis, Perdue ran him through several field sobriety tests. The man passed them all without a stumble.
In the case of a drunk driver, a breathalyzer could have confirmed whether a person was impaired by alcohol. But there isn’t such a device for marijuana.
How to try edible cannabis without feeling like you’re going to die
One evening late last year I was on my computer at home when I heard a woman yelling. Well, not just yelling. More like screaming bloody murder.
I ran outside and discovered the noise was coming from the house next door. I bounded in and found my neighbor in her bedroom, alternately curled on her bed, then sitting up screaming. Her dogs were cowering.
She had bitten off a chunk of a cannabis-infused caramel that contained a total of 100 milligrams of THC. She had probably consumed between 10 milligrams and 15 milligrams. A standard dose for experienced users is around 10 milligrams, but as a cannabis expert friend of mine says, “Your mileage may vary.”
Sandro Paris rolls out a high-end capsule collection that pays homage to Bob Marley
Paris-based trendy-casual brand Sandro, which has a long history of mining the music world for its capsule collections — think David Bowie, the Stone Roses, Nirvana, Sonic Youth, New Order and Joy Division — has licensed the name and likeness of reggae legend Bob Marley for a quartet of spring and summer 2018 men’s pieces. This new collection, which dropped Wednesday, is just in time for music festival season.
Pieces include a green, yellow and red-striped cotton T-shirt with Marley’s name in black flocking above the late musician’s likeness ($100); a black T-shirt with his name in white flocking above a similar illustration ($100); and a white linen tee ($130) screen-printed with “Exodus — Bob Marley & the Wailers” — a reference to the group’s 1977 album (and, as Marley fans will no doubt notice immediately, it’s in the same typeface as the words appear on the album’s cover).
Rounding out the range is a black cotton hoodie ($220) with flocked “Tuff Gong” lettering on the front and back along with the Marley illustration. (Tuff Gong was the record label founded in 1970 by Bob Marley & the Wailers and long associated with Marley’s music.)
California lawmakers want to lower taxes on pot to help new legal industry compete with black market
Alarmed that California’s fledgling legal marijuana industry is being undercut by the black market, a group of lawmakers proposed Thursday to reduce state taxes for three years on growing and selling cannabis to allow licensed sellers to get on their feet.
With many California license holders claiming they can’t compete because of high state and local taxes, the new legislation would cut the state excise tax from 15% to 11% and suspend a cultivation tax that charges $148 per pound.
“Criminals do not pay business taxes, ensure consumers are 21 and over, obtain licenses or follow product safety regulations,” said Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale), one of five legislators pushing the bill. “We need to give legal businesses some temporary tax relief so they do not continue to be undercut by the black market.”
Sixth medical marijuana business gets OK in Costa Mesa
The Costa Mesa Planning Commission gave the green light to another medical marijuana manufacturing and distribution facility Monday night.
Commissioners voted unanimously to grant a conditional use permit for Nature’s Market, which plans to open in an existing 24,379-square-foot industrial building at 1675 Toronto Way.
It is the sixth medical marijuana facility the commission has approved for the area of the city where businesses that research, test, process and manufacture such products are allowed under Measure X, an initiative approved by local voters in 2016. The area is north of South Coast Drive and west of Harbor Boulevard.
California’s pot regulator warns 900 marijuana shops that they must stop operating without a state license
California’s pot regulation agency has sent 900 warning letters to marijuana shops suspected of operating without state licenses.
Lori Ajax, the chief of the state Bureau of Cannabis Control, also sent a cease-and-desist notice to the marijuana-location service Weedmaps, telling it to stop advertising sellers that lack a permit, officials said Wednesday.
Ajax, the first person to hold her post, notified Weedmaps that a new state law that took effect Jan. 1 requires all marijuana sellers to have state licenses and all advertisements to contain the state license number.
‘We can’t let this pass us by’: Here’s how a Native American tribe in Oregon sees hope with marijuana
A weathered marquee near the center of this small Native American reservation perched on the high desert plateaus of central Oregon reads “Every Day Is Another Chance,” offering a sense of optimism that can be hard to find among anybody who lives here.
The once-bustling lumber mill that sliced and shipped Douglas fir throughout the Pacific Northwest closed two years ago when the machines got too old and expensive to replace. The tribe tried a casino, but it was located half an hour from the highway, and nobody came.
Now they’ve opened another one, but meanwhile, nearly a quarter of those living on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs reservation are unemployed. To Carina Miller, a member of the tribal council, it’s time for the tribe to wade outside its comfort zone, to go beyond the traditional native economies of bingo, gambling and hydropower.
A rural county legalized marijuana farms. It took their tax money — then voted to ban them
Dennis Mills peered over his shoulder at the green hills below, where marijuana farms dotted the Calaveras County landscape.
“There’s another one!” he told the pilot with a laugh. The Cessna doubled back so Mills, a county supervisor, could steal a second look at a slope where trees had recently been removed.
From above, Mills said, it’s impossible to tell which cannabis cultivation sites are legal. But it didn’t matter to him. Every single one has to go.
Marijuana growers poured into this county known for gold mines and Mark Twain’s short story “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County,” hoping for a green rush after recreational cannabis was legalized in 2016. That pot boom ended abruptly when the Calaveras County Board of Supervisors voted to ban all commercial cultivation last month.
Leaving Las Vegas? Check your bags, grab your boarding pass and dump that pot
Check your bags, dump the weed.
McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas is now offering travelers a chance to dispose of any marijuana they might have on them before hopping onto a flight. So-called “amnesty boxes” have been installed at the airport and soon will be located at smaller airports in North Las Vegas and Henderson — 20 dope boxes in all.
More than half are already in place at various passenger drop-off sites and airport car rental sites.
Bags of marijuana and loaded handguns found during Glendale traffic stop, police say
A 19-year-old Lawndale man was arrested Saturday after police said he was found with multiple bags of marijuana and two loaded handguns during a traffic stop in Glendale.
Jose Sanchez was arrested on suspicion of possessing marijuana for sale and possessing the two weapons, according to Tahnee Lightfoot, a spokeswoman for the Glendale Police Department.
She said Sanchez was initially pulled over near the intersection of Verdugo Road and Mountain Street around 2 a.m. after an officer noticed his vehicle had illegally tinted windows.
No cannabis events or sales at O.C. fairgrounds, board rules
The Orange County Fair Board adopted a final policy Thursday banning cannabis-related events and the sale of cannabis products or drug paraphernalia at the Costa Mesa fairgrounds.
After a brief discussion, board members voted 5 to 0 to approve the regulations, which they had backed in concept last month. Vice Chairman Robert Ruiz and board members Ashleigh Aitken, Gerardo Mouet and Newton Pham were absent from Thursday’s meeting.
Along with barring cannabis-related events, the policy prohibits other events at the OC Fair & Event Center from “including cannabis products or activities, cannabis-related products or activities or drug paraphernalia.”
The VA’s anti-marijuana hysteria doesn’t help veterans with PTSD
To the editor: The federal government ought to respect the wishes and sacrifices of our military veterans. (“Should veterans be allowed to use medical marijuana for post-combat stress? The Trump administration says no,” Feb. 9)
Many people who have post-trauamatic stress disorder cannot find effective treatment. Research into the benefits and risks of cannabis is a legitimate project for veterans, just as currently funded research into ketamine, an abusable substance, is a legitimate project to help in certain cases of depression.
Alcohol is legal, and it is a cellular poison with addictive properties that causes immense damage to entire communities when abused. Tobacco is legal, and it can cause cancer in smokers and in innocent people nearby.
Berkeley declares itself a sanctuary city for recreational cannabis — and it may be the first to do so
Berkeley has always prided itself as a pot-friendly place.
But now, the left-leaning city wants to make it more official.
The Berkeley City Council voted unanimously to declare the city a sanctuary for recreational marijuana, a move that may be the first of its kind.
L.A. has issued over 100 pot licenses, and revenues are beating expectations
The city of Los Angeles has issued a total of 101 temporary authorizations to marijuana businesses since the drug became legal for recreational sales in the beginning of January, a Los Angeles City Council committee was told Friday.
Cat Packer, head of the city’s Department of Cannabis Regulation, also told the Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee that her office has so far taken in far more revenue than was anticipated.
“Originally the department was given a budget of $1.3 million, and to date we have collected over $2.2 million in licensing fees, and we have around about $800,000 in outstanding invoices, so it is likely that our revenue projections through June will be $3.5 million,” Packer said.
California drivers under 21 could lose license for year if caught on the road under the influence of marijuana
California motorists under the age of 21 would lose their driver’s license for a year if caught driving with marijuana in their system under new legislation, though the state still is developing methods of measuring the drug in the body and determining a standard for impairment.
State Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) said he proposed the law so that the state would have the same “zero tolerance” policy for pot that it has for those under 21 who drive under the influence of alcohol.
“This bill will save lives by making it illegal for drivers under age 21 to drive under the influence of marijuana, just like current law for alcohol,” Hill said in a statement.
Medical pot for animals? One California lawmaker wants to open the door
Californians have been able to use marijuana as medicine for two decades, and soon their sick pets may also be able to take advantage of cannabis’ health benefits.
State Assemblyman Ash Kalra (D-San Jose) has introduced a bill that would require the Veterinary Medical Board to establish guidelines for licensed veterinarians to discuss the use of cannabis for animals.
“It is critical for the protection of our beloved pets that knowledgeable veterinarians be allowed to discuss the safe use and medicinal value of cannabis products already available to California consumers,” Kalra said.
California special needs students would be allowed to use medical marijuana in school under new legislation
California minors with special needs or severe disabilities who rely on marijuana for medical purposes would be allowed to use the drug at their school under legislation introduced last week by state Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo).
The measure would allow a parent or guardian to administer the drug in the form of oil, capsules, tinctures, liquids or topical creams on school campuses where the practice has been approved by the county board of education, Hill said.
L.A. County supervisors seek plan to clear and reduce marijuana convictions
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion Tuesday to develop a plan to help make it easier for people to reduce or clear minor pot convictions.
Proposition 64, which state voters approved in 2016, not only legalized recreational marijuana use but also allowed people with certain pot-related convictions to have their records expunged.
The county district attorney’s office estimates there have been 40,000 felony convictions involving pot-related offenses since 1993. It is unclear how many of those people are eligible for relief or how many have petitioned for it.
A public bank for pot entrepreneurs? How about the rest of us?
More than 100 years since the only surviving public bank was established in North Dakota, the nation’s largest state has begun exploring the option. California Treasurer John Chiang — a gubernatorial candidate — and Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra told reporters last week that they would study how to establish a state-owned bank to service the hundreds of marijuana-related businesses that have had difficulty securing reliable financial services because of federal anti-drug laws.
This would be a tremendous step forward and also a tremendous missed opportunity.
The burgeoning legal marijuana industry cannot rely on traditional financial services. Because marijuana remains a Schedule I drug at the federal level, banks with federal charters or access to the Federal Reserve’s payment system technically violate the law when they process transactions with proceeds from pot sales.
Drivers who get stoned on 4/20 are just as dangerous as drivers who get drunk on Super Bowl Sunday
Here’s a pro tip from a couple of doctors: Be sure to make special plans on April 20.
That date, of course, is the unofficial holiday devoted to celebrating all things marijuana. (You might know it better as “4/20.”)
The two physicians — John Staples of the University of British Columbia and Donald Redelmeier of the University of Toronto — aren’t asking that you honor marijuana’s medicinal properties by experiencing them directly. Rather, they’re warning you to be on alert for others who do — and then get behind the wheel while they’re still under the influence.
For the legal cannabis trade, some new wrinkles: Older users
Even before California legalized recreational marijuana Jan. 1, pot was enjoying a gray renaissance.
From 2006 to 2013, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported a 250% rise in marijuana use by Americans 65 and older. It is still a small share, climbing from 0.4% to 1.4% of that population, but local dispensaries see plenty of silver-haired shoppers.
“This is probably the most interested — and wariest — group,” said Lincoln Fish, chief executive of cannabis company Outco, noting that the average customer at his Outliers Collective in El Cajon is over 58 years old.
Should veterans be allowed to use medical marijuana for post-combat stress? The Trump administration says no
Frustrated with traditional therapies for chronic pain and post-combat stress disorders, a growing number of military veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are turning to medical marijuana for their treatment, a move that has put them at sharp odds with the Trump administration.
The White House has resisted calls from Democrats in Congress, pro-reform activists and even the American Legion, the nation’s largest wartime veterans service organization, to support research into whether marijuana can help veterans, apparently fearing that any move by the Department of Veterans Affairs to study its effectiveness will be another step toward nationwide legalization.
The VA thus become the latest flash point in the national debate over marijuana legalization, pitting proponents of greater study or medical use against an administration that has tried to halt or roll back a steady movement toward greater tolerance of marijuana.
Will drugged driving be a problem now that pot’s legal in California? This lawmaker wants the state to find out
With recreational marijuana sales now legal in California, one lawmaker wants to find out whether drugged driving is going to be a significant problem.
Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Arcadia) has introduced a bill that would require all local law enforcement agencies to file annual reports with the state Department of Motor Vehicles detailing the number of arrests made for driving under the influence and the number of those arrests in which pot was suspected to be the substance causing impairment.
“Currently, the state has no uniform mechanism in place to evaluate cannabis drugged-driving arrests as a result of legalization,” Chau said.
This year it’s legal (in California) to give your sweetheart cannabis-infused chocolate
Step off See’s Candies and move over Russell Stover. Now that adult-use cannabis is legal in the Golden State, this Valentine’s Day presents a gift-giving alternative to those with a pot-loving beloved: luxury-level edibles that combine chocolate and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the chemical compound in marijuana that gets you high).
Below are four of the high-end brands that have not only caught our eye and piqued our palate, but are packaged so exquisitely that they’re worth tracking down — at a state-licensed dispensary — for your Valentine. (If you’re new to the legal weed game, it’s worth checking out a website called WeedMaps.com, which has a very accurate, frequently updated list of what’s in stock at participating dispensaries.)
Before that, though, there are a couple of key things to keep in mind if you — or your beloved — aren’t an experienced consumer of cannabis-containing edibles.
Marijuana is now legal in California. Continuing to punish prior offenders is cruel and unnecessary
Marijuana is now legal under California law, but hundreds of thousands of Californians have criminal records for possessing or selling the drug when it was still banned. Those records can make it harder for people to get a job, obtain a loan, go to college, rent an apartment or otherwise become productive members of their community — even if their marijuana arrest happened decades ago.
Proposition 64 not only allowed the sale and adult use of marijuana going forward, subject to state and local regulation, it applied the law retroactively and created a process for people to have certain pot convictions reduced or expunged entirely from their records. Yet few people — about 4,900 — have filed for expungements in the first year. Perhaps they don’t know that this relief is available. Perhaps it’s too expensive or intimidating; the process requires hiring a lawyer, filing a petition and going to court.
Some prosecutors in California aren’t waiting for petitions. They are proactively reviewing marijuana cases handled by their offices and doing the work to reduce or erase the convictions. In San Diego County, the district attorney and public defender have already reduced the records of 700 people, and have identified 4,000 more marijuana convictions dating back to the early 2000s that may qualify for relief.
California lawmaker wants to ease restrictions on legal weed at special events
A California lawmaker wants the state to relax its policies prohibiting organizers of festivals and other special events in California from allowing marijuana sales and use unless the event is at a county fairground.
Assemblyman Bill Quirk (D-Hayward) said Monday that he introduced a bill on behalf of the city of Oakland, which wants marijuana sales to be allowed at its annual Art and Soul Festival this summer.
“These events support local economies and small businesses,” Quirk said in a statement.
Compton gave the world ‘The Chronic’ — but rejects marijuana sales despite legalization
Of the many cultural touchstones born on the streets of Compton, one of the most lasting is “The Chronic.”
Dr. Dre’s classic 1992 album brought the nickname for high-grade cannabis into the mainstream, and, to the disdain of many Compton residents, cemented the city as the home of West Coast gangsta rap. It also gave marijuana one of its biggest pop culture endorsements since Bob Marley appeared on an album cover smoking a joint.
But if you’re looking to buy the chronic legally, don’t come to Compton.
San Francisco will wipe out thousands of marijuana convictions dating to 1975
San Francisco will retroactively apply California’s new marijuana legalization laws to prior convictions, expunging or reducing misdemeanors and felonies dating to 1975, the district attorney’s office announced Wednesday.
Nearly 5,000 felony marijuana convictions will be reviewed, recalled and resentenced, and more than 3,000 misdemeanors that were sentenced prior to Proposition 64’s passage will be dismissed and sealed, Dist. Atty. George Gascón said. The move will clear people’s records of crimes that can be barriers to employment and housing.
San Francisco’s move could be the beginning of a larger movement to address old pot convictions, though it’s still far from clear how many other counties will follow the famously liberal city’s lead.
Seed to sale: This is the future of pot production
Now that California has legalized recreational marijuana, seed-to-sale tracking will become a vital component of regulating the industry. Video by Jessica Q. Chen / Los Angeles Times
Dennis Peron, activist who helped legalize medical pot in California, dies at 72
Dennis Peron, an activist who was among the first people to argue for the benefits of marijuana for AIDS patients and helped legalize medical pot in California, died Saturday at 72.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Peron died in a hospital in the city.
Peron was a driving force behind a San Francisco ordinance allowing medical marijuana — a move that later aided the 1996 passage of Proposition 215 that legalized medical use in the entire state.
He argued for the benefits of medicinal marijuana for AIDS patients as the health crisis overtook San Francisco. The Chronicle said the epidemic took his partner, Jonathan West, in 1990.
State treasurer, attorney general team up to explore creating California pot bank
California’s state treasurer and attorney general will study whether the state should create its own publicly owned bank to serve the state’s now-legal cannabis industry.
On a conference call Tuesday, State Treasurer John Chiang, a candidate for governor, said his office will look into costs, regulation and other operational issues the state would need to consider before creating such a bank — an entity that would be one of just two in the nation.
Chiang said the office of Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra also will perform a study looking at legal issues surrounding the creation of a public bank.
California marijuana sellers already fear supply bottlenecks, shortages
Like many pot shops in California, the Urbn Leaf in San Diego bulked up its inventory before legal sales began on Jan. 1, stockpiling enough marijuana to last for months because no one knew what the era of legal pot would bring.
The shop, along with others involved in the state’s fledgling cannabis economy, are now concerned that too few operators have been licensed to support a pot pipeline of state-approved growers, distributors and retailers.
In some cases, they say, bottlenecks have already slowed the supply chain from fields to storefronts.
I’m ready to get stoned again like I did 40 years ago
Long ago, I was one of the privileged, unsupervised, suburban teenagers who had infinite access to marijuana and unlimited opportunities to smoke it. Someone, somewhere grew it, harvested it and shipped it our way, and closer to home, someone sold it and someone bought it, but all I knew was that it was everywhere: at school, at parties, at the bus stop.
If an adult asked, we lied about smoking, of course, but we weren’t asked often. It was probably inconceivable to our parents that nice kids like us would do anything that wacky. Outside of the occasional art or philosophy teacher, we didn’t expect adults to understand, and we viewed their naivete with condescension. We were sure our thoughts, our very existence, were deeper and more profound than their pointless lives of chores and obligations.
Some of us continued smoking weed into adulthood, but most of us left it behind, along with our tie-dye and free time. We had more interesting things to think about, it made us feel worse rather than better and it was illegal.
With U.S. competition hurting its marijuana business, Mexico warms a little to legalization
For decades, marijuana flowed in one direction across the U.S.-Mexico border: north.
These days, drug enforcement agents regularly seize specialty strains of retail-quality cannabis grown in the United States being smuggled south.
Widespread legalization in the U.S. is killing Mexico’s marijuana business, and cartel leaders know it. They are increasingly abandoning the crop that was once was their bread and butter and looking elsewhere for profits, producing and exporting drugs including heroin and fentanyl and banking on extortion schemes and fuel theft.
California proposal could be a fix for banks reluctant to handle cash from pot shops
Just weeks after California began licensing marijuana sales, a state lawmaker on Thursday proposed legislation to allow financial institutions to handle money from cannabis businesses.
Because marijuana remains an illegal drug under federal law, federally insured and regulated banks have refused to conduct transactions with firms profiting from the drug.
That has state officials worried about robberies and other crimes as hundreds of state-licensed marijuana business are forced to conduct many transactions, such as paying taxes, with large amounts of cash.
Marijuana entrepreneur killed in fiery Lamborghini crash was drunk, autopsy finds
The founder of a San Diego County hemp products empire who died in a fiery Lamborghini crash in November had a blood-alcohol content that was more than twice the legal limit, an autopsy has found.
Michael Llamas, 33, was speeding north on Harbor Drive in downtown San Diego when he lost control and veered off the road near Broadway about 2 a.m. on Nov. 5. The 2016 Lamborghini he was driving struck a palm tree, then burst into flames.
Llamas died before he could be taken to a hospital.
Small California pot farms sue state over rules allowing multiacre cultivation
A group of small marijuana farms in California has filed a lawsuit challenging new state rules that allow growers to obtain multiple licenses to put together cultivation operations of more than one acre.
The California Growers Assn. requested a temporary restraining order Tuesday in Sacramento Superior Court, just weeks after the state began issuing licenses to grow, distribute and sell marijuana for medical and recreational uses.
The lawsuit says the rules adopted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture are in conflict with the voter-approved Proposition 64, which it said “ensures the nonmedical marijuana industry in California will be built around small and medium sized businesses.”
Compton voters reject marijuana sales in city
Compton voters Tuesday soundly rejected two competing proposals for regulating cannabis businesses in the city, where marijuana dispensaries and other pot-related operations are now banned.
The city’s proposal, known as Measure C, would have allowed marijuana sales while imposing a 10% business tax and banning commercial cultivation of marijuana. It was rejected 76% to 23%. The competing initiative, Measure I, included many of the same provisions as Measure C, but called for a 5% business tax and would have allowed indoor marijuana-cultivation businesses. It was rejected 77% to 23%.
The defeat of both measures means the city’s existing ban on marijuana businesses will remain in place.
Laguna Beach ‘church’ was really an illegal marijuana dispensary, police allege
Laguna Beach police this month shut down what they allege was a marijuana dispensary posing as a church, the department said Monday.
Officers seized more than 20 pounds of marijuana and more than $3,000 in cash, according to police Sgt. Jim Cota.
Officers responded to Divine Church of Gardens at 910 Glenneyre St. at about 4:40 p.m. Jan. 12 after a passerby reported a potent marijuana smell emanating from the property and people leaving with white bags, Cota said.
The first state-licensed adult-use cannabis dispensaries are now open in the city of Los Angeles
California’s Bureau of Cannabis Control has issued its first two adult-use temporary retailer licenses within Los Angeles city limits — both of them to MedMen, bringing that dispensary’s total number of fully licensed medical / recreational shops to five (other doors include West Hollywood, Venice and Orange County).
According to the BCC’s cannabis license database (yes, it’s a thing — and a fascinating one at that), Cyon Corporation Inc. at 110 Robertson Blvd. and Advanced Patients’ Collective at 735 Broadway in downtown L.A. were granted state licenses to operate as both medicinal and adult-use retailers of cannabis on January 19.
MedMen spokesman Daniel Yi confirmed to The Times that both locations were MedMen shops and that both began adult-use sales on Saturday following the Jan. 19 issuance of the licenses.
MedMen’s Orange County location opened its doors to adult-use (i.e. non-medical) sales on Jan. 1, with West Hollywood following the next day. Saturday also marked the first day of adult-use sales at MedMen’s Venice shop, which was also granted its temporary state license on Jan. 19.
According to the BCC’s database, as of this writing those are the only two pot shops in Los Angeles proper that have been issued licenses. Expect that to change — and sooner rather than later — since the city of Los Angeles Department of Cannabis Regulation’s list of legal businesses has a list of 65 additional entities that have been granted temporary approval to sell medicinal or adult-use cannabis and cannabis products, the first step in getting a state license. (Because of to the state’s dual-licensing requirement, obtaining a license, permit or other authorization from a local jurisdiction is a prerequisite to being issued one at the state level.)
Cheech Marin is cool with pot and America’s ‘middle,’ but don’t get him started on Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions
It’s raining across the Pacific Palisades and Cheech Marin is riffing on wine connoisseurs, gangsters, Kim Jong Un’s bottle-cap haircut, the Ku Klux Klan and the man he calls “Mr. Peanut,” better known as Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions, who has been an annoyance to the comedian’s happy, chilled quest to smoke dope without fear of federal agents storming in.
Marin, in truth, is not too worried about that prospect. Marijuana is legal in California, and much of the country backs its recreational use. But the federal government classifies it as a criminal narcotic, and Sessions has threatened a crackdown on growers and dispensers. Marin has been bitter toward Republican attorneys general since 2003, when his longtime partner Tommy Chong was sentenced to jail for selling bongs over the internet.
Former U.S. Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft “sent him to prison for nine months,” Marin said. “Tommy was the smallest seller, but he was the No. 1 face, and they needed a face for their campaign.”
State panel to examine taxes on California’s newly licensed marijuana industry
A citizens panel that is helping to set rules for the marijuana industry in California has agreed to examine the impact of taxes that some growers and sellers have complained are too high.
The state Cannabis Advisory Committee, after lengthy debate, also decided Thursday to create a subcommittee to look into how legalized marijuana affects public health and young people.
Three weeks after the state began permitting medical and recreational marijuana firms, some 710 licenses have been issued by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control for distribution and sale, and 2,036 other applications are pending.
Maywood officials celebrate revenue potential as recreational pot shop opens
Outside of Maywood’s first recreational marijuana dispensary, people stood in a long line that snaked along the building and into a parking lot, where it found the perfect prescription for a raging case of the munchies.
Free tacos.
The taco truck was just part of the fanfare to celebrate the opening Tuesday of Cookies Los Angeles — and the dawn of legal recreational pot use in the small city in southeast L.A. County.
State attorneys general want Congress to give banks the go-ahead to work with marijuana companies
California’s top law enforcement official and his counterparts in 18 states and territories say Congress must act to end the banking industry’s prohibition on serving the marijuana industry, calling the current state of affairs a public safety threat and a hindrance for law enforcement.
In a letter sent Tuesday to leaders of the House and Senate, California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra and other state attorneys general urged Congress to pass legislation that would provide legal protection for banks that accept deposits from state-licensed cannabis businesses.
Most banks, even in states where the drug is legal, won’t offer accounts to marijuana-related businesses for fear of running afoul of federal regulators or law enforcement officials. That leaves the fast-growing marijuana industry largely reliant on cash.
California cannabis sellers want respect: Less ‘Cheech and Chong’ more three-piece suits
He was dressed in a three-piece suit. So Chris Coggan nearly went unnoticed when he dropped by a San Diego City Council member’s office last year to do some lobbying on marijuana laws.
“An aide came to reception and asked, ‘Where’s the pot guy?’” said Coggan, co-founder of Therapy Tonics and Provisions, a La Jolla cannabis drink company.
“He seemed to be looking for someone in a tie-dyed shirt with a joint stuck behind his ear.”
VA clears the air on talking to patients about marijuana use
“Don’t ask, don’t tell” is how many veterans have approached healthcare conversations about marijuana use with the doctors they see from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Worried that owning up to using the drug could jeopardize their VA benefits, even if they’re participating in a medical marijuana program approved by their state, veterans have often kept mum. That may be changing under a new directive from the Veterans Health Administration urging vets and their physicians to open up on the subject.
The new guidance directs VA clinical staff and pharmacists to discuss with veterans how their use of medical marijuana could interact with other medications or aspects of their care, including treatment for pain management or post-traumatic stress disorder.
The directive leaves in place a key prohibition: VA providers are still not permitted to refer veterans to state-approved medical marijuana programs, since the drug is illegal under federal law, with no accepted medical use.
Study: Legal marijuana could generate more than $132 billion in federal tax revenue and 1 million jobs
Legalizing marijuana nationwide would create at least $132 billion in tax revenue and more than a million new jobs across the United States in the next decade, according to a new study.
New Frontier Data, a data analytics firm focused on the cannabis industry, forecasts that if legalized on the federal level, the marijuana industry could create an entirely new tax revenue stream for the government, generating millions of dollars in sales tax and payroll deductions.
“When there are budget deficits and the like, everybody wants to know where is there an additional revenue stream, and one of the most logical places is to go after cannabis and cannabis taxes,” said Beau Whitney, a senior economist at New Frontier Data.
Long Beach and San Leandro mayors join others to challenge Trump administration on marijuana enforcement
The mayors of 10 cities including Seattle, Long Beach and San Leandro have signed a letter urging U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions to reconsider his decision to roll back a federal policy that gave low priority to prosecution of marijuana offenses in states that legalized the use of the drug.
“Reversing course now is a misguided legal overreach and an attack on cities where legal, safe, and high regulated recreational sale and use occurs, and on the majority of states where the voters have made their voices heard loud and clear on this issue,” the letter said.
Instead, the federal government should focus on combating the opioid epidemic, according to the letter by mayors including Jenny A. Durkan of Seattle; Michael B. Hancock of Denver; Bill de Blasio of New York; Jim Kenney of Philadelphia; Ted Wheeler of Portland, Ore.; Robert Garcia of Long Beach; and Pauline Cutter of San Leandro.
Rat poison from marijuana farms is harming federally threatened northern spotted owls, study finds
The northern spotted owl has had many adversaries.
Three decades ago it was loggers, whose forays into the remote forests of the Pacific Northwest threatened the shy creatures, which have zero tolerance for the clatter of development.
Then it was the more aggressive and adaptable barred owls, which began moving into protected northern spotted owl habitats, forcing the federally threatened species to colonize less productive foraging grounds elsewhere.
In Vermont, lawmakers lead the way on legalizing recreational pot
A total of eight states have legalized marijuana for recreational use. That left-leaning Vermont is poised to join them is hardly a surprise.
But unlike the other states, which all legalized pot through ballot measures, Vermont lawmakers are taking the lead.
On Wednesday, the state Legislature became the first in the United States to approve a bill legalizing recreational marijuana. Republican Gov. Phil Scott has indicated he will soon sign the measure into law.
In Vermont, lawmakers lead the way on legalizing recreational pot
Eight states have legalized marijuana for recreational use. That left-leaning Vermont is poised to join them is hardly a surprise.
But unlike the other states, which all legalized pot through ballot measures, Vermont lawmakers are taking the lead.
On Wednesday, the state Legislature became the first in the United States to approve a bill legalizing recreational marijuana. Republican Gov. Phil Scott has indicated he will soon sign the measure into law.
[Note: This is an updated version of the story posted to The Rolling Paper blog earlier Wednesday morning.]
California could see a $643-million marijuana tax haul in first full year of legalization, Gov. Jerry Brown says
Gov. Jerry Brown estimated Wednesday that the state will receive $643 million from excise taxes on marijuana during the first full year of legalization in California, much more than the cost to the state of issuing licenses and enforcing new rules.
Brown’s estimates are contained in the budget he proposed for the fiscal year beginning July 1, and fall short of some past state projections that legalized cannabis could eventually bring $1 billion annually to the state’s coffers. This year, with only six months of taxing, the budget estimates $175 million in pot taxes.
“The amount and timing of revenues generated from the new taxes are uncertain and will depend on various factors including local regulations, and cannabis price and consumption changes in a legal environment,” Brown’s budget says.
Planning to try pot for the first time now that its recreational use is legal in California? Let us know
California’s historic law permitting the retail sale of recreational marijuana took effect New Year’s Day. Voters chose in 2016 to legalize recreational pot — creating the largest such legal market in the country. Now, we want to hear from you. We’re looking to speak to marijuana novices. Do you plan on smoking marijuana – or buying edibles – for the first time now that it’s legal for adult recreational use?
Send an email to sarah.parvini@latimes.com or respond via the online form at the link below.
Stoner and non-stoner Californians can unite in resisting Jeff Sessions
Keyboard confessional: I’ve never smoked marijuana in my life. I don’t care for kush. I hate its smell. Edibles scare me. I can’t tell the difference between THC and TBS. The one time pals offered me a joint, I declined and drank Cactus Cooler instead.
But I support the right for any adult to light up. I voted to legalize marijuana in California, as the majority of residents did, because the drug war is a disaster that destroys too many lives and wastes billions of dollars. Legalizing is great for our image as Progressive Paradise, and my only regret is that we let Colorado do it first. You know what Colorado also beat us on? Craft beer. Let us never lose again to a state with the weirdest airport in the world.
Recreational dispensaries finally opened last week, which provoked the wrath of U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions. “Good people don’t smoke marijuana,” he once said. I wish he’d repeat that in front of my butcher friend, who survived Stage 4 colon cancer and regained his appetite with the help of some fat blunts.
Ex-Sacramento Kings player Brad Miller’s new game is marijuana
At 7 feet tall, Brad Miller’s adult life has been spent towering above most other. Now he’s working on a different way to get high.
The former Sacramento Kings center’s new company, CHC California City, broke ground Friday on its cannabis manufacturing facility in eastern Kern County.
The plant will put out 38 different cannabis products including edibles, water-soluble THC and vaporizer cartridges under the name Mountain Chief Products, California City Chamber of Commerce announced in a news release. Miller is the principal in CHC California City but will leave day-to-day operational oversight to deputy Ricky Mauch.
California lawmaker wants to make it easier to clear marijuana convictions from criminal records
Proposition 64, approved by California voters in 2016 to legalize recreational pot use, allows people to petition the courts to have past convictions for marijuana offenses expunged from their records. But the process can be difficult and expensive, according to supporters of pot legalization.
In response, Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) on Tuesday proposed legislation that would make it easier to have criminal convictions removed from the records of marijuana users, potentially opening more doors to employment and housing.
Rather than require people to petition the courts for a determination, Assembly Bill 1793 would require criminal convictions for marijuana-related offenses to be automatically expunged, placing the burden on the courts, Bonta said.
High or Dry? California legal pot to test supply pipeline
Most Californians with an urge to smoke a joint will enter the state’s legal marijuana marketplace through a single doorway — at a retail shop.
But out of view of those day-to-day sales, the state is ushering in a sprawling, untested system to move pot from place to place that will also serve as a collection point for taxes, a gateway for testing and a packaging center for the plant’s fragrant buds.
The so-called marijuana distributor is a kind of skeleton connecting the state’s emerging industry of growers, sellers and manufacturers. It’s envisioned as a vast back office where the grunt work of keeping track of cannabis and getting it from farms to store shelves will take place.
Vermont, New Jersey, Michigan? Here are some of the states looking to legalize marijuana in 2018
The marijuana movement is charging ahead.
To date eight states — California, Colorado and Nevada to name a few — have legalized weed for recreational use since 2012. And the trend continues.
This year, several states all across the country are looking to legalize and, in turn, rake in millions of dollars in tax revenue.
Even with the Trump administration’s announcement last week that it would scrap an Obama-era policy offering legal shelter for state-sanctioned marijuana sales, organizers and lawmakers are forging forward with legalization efforts.
Here are some of those states:
Vermont
This month the state is poised to make history, becoming the first to legalize marijuana through a legislative measure and not a state-approved ballot initiative.
Overrated/Underrated: Snoop Dogg’s ‘Munchie Meals’ are coming
UNDERRATED
Michael Stuhlbarg in ‘Call Me by Your Name’: How is a presumptive Oscar contender underrated? It’s no secret that what Hollywood deems significant seldom carries much weight across the bulk of the country, which is a shame for a movie playing in relatively few theaters. And while the film’s romance between Armie Hammer and Timothée Chalamet also deserves its many accolades, Stulhbarg’s portrayal of Chalamet’s father may be most deserving of a wider audience, particularly with consoling words to his son that arrive with such beauty and breathtaking care that Frank Ocean called him his “new dad.”
Intakt Records: Having recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, this small but determined Swiss record label is coming off a landmark year of inventive jazz and improvised music that from top to bottom has featured boundary-pushing artists. In addition to some terrific 2017 releases by a trio led by saxophonist Chris Speed, a duo of saxophonist David Murray with pianist Aki Takase and a knotty group called Borderlands Trio that features pianist Kris Davis, the label has functioned as an eclectic barometer of new, free directions in music on these shores and theirs — no passport required.
Marijuana sales begin in San Francisco
Marijuana dispensaries in San Francisco have begun selling recreational pot for the first time, joining many other cities in California.
A marijuana edible and a cup of coffee? That soon could happen in this Colorado city
It’s a common dilemma for cannabis customers in Colorado: Where to light up?
Because state law bans public consumption of any kind — no puffing a joint in the park or bringing your own pot-infused granola bar to a restaurant for dessert — locals are restricted to their homes. And tourists, who also are barred from using marijuana in rental cars or hotel rooms, face a buy-it-don’t-use-it paradox.
But that soon could change. Denver officials last month accepted an application from a coffee shop that plans to allow social marijuana use — the first of its kind in the country.
Medical marijuana seen at risk following move by Sessions
When Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions green-lighted federal prosecutions of marijuana lawbreakers, the vast majority of U.S. states that allow some form of medical marijuana were unexpectedly placed at risk of a crackdown and are warily watching developments.
Forty-six states — including Sessions’ home state of Alabama — have legalized some form of medical marijuana in recent years, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Eight of those states also allow recreational marijuana.
Among the guidance that Sessions rescinded was the so-called Ogden Memorandum of 2009 that instructed federal prosecutors not to pursue cases against medical marijuana patients and distributors who complied with state laws.
Prosecutors in pot-friendly states will decide on crackdown
Whether to crack down on marijuana in states where it is legal is a decision that will now rest with those states’ top federal prosecutors, many of whom are deeply rooted in their communities and may be reluctant to pursue cannabis businesses or their customers.
When he rescinded the Justice Department‘s previous guidance on marijuana, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions left the issue to a mix of prosecutors who were appointed by President Trump‘s administration and others who are holdovers from the Obama years.
Legal experts do not expect a flood of new cases, and people familiar with the job of U.S. attorney say prosecutors could decide against using already limited resources to seek criminal charges against cannabis companies that abide by state regulations or their customers.
Pot industry frets, then shrugs off Sessions’ new policy
Last week’s announcement that the U.S. Justice Department was ditching its hands-off approach to states that have legalized marijuana initially sent some in the industry into a tailspin, just days after California’s $7-billion recreational weed market opened for business.
But for long-term pot purveyors accustomed to changing regulatory winds, the decision was just another bump in a long and winding road to proving their business legitimacy.
Many in the industry said they’re keeping a wait-and-see attitude because the effect of Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions’ announcement depends on whether federal prosecutors crack down on marijuana businesses operating legally under state laws. Sessions provided no details other than saying individual U.S. attorneys are authorized to prosecute marijuana operators as they choose.
Your grandmother wants to grow marijuana in her backyard. She needs this book.
If you’ve spent most of your life buying slippers or perfumed powder for your grandmother, here’s a chance to finally make amends. Buy her a copy of “What’s Wrong With My Marijuana Plant?” a new and very helpful guide to growing healthy cannabis.
The book has gained a following among the gray-haired set, according to authors David Deardorff, 75, and Kathryn Wadsworth, 67, who are longtime writers (kathrynanddavid.com) and master gardeners.
They began teaching cannabis cultivation classes this year in their small town of Port Townsend, Wash.
So far, attendees have “all [been] baby boomer women,” Deardorff said, describing them as “grannies growing dope at home, almost entirely for medical reasons.”
The authors are strong advocates of growing your own, in particular because today’s marijuana offerings are a lot more diverse than the THC-heavy bud that boomers bought to get high in the ’60s. Many new strains focus on the nonpsychoactive CBD (cannabidiol) compounds of cannabis, to keep you alert or help you sleep or just relieve pain, Deardorff said. But of course there’s still plenty of the THC variety to get you very, very stoned.
Trump’s Republicans love states’ rights. So why the backlash on legalizing marijuana?
To the editor: President Trump and the Republican Party want states to have more power with less federal government interference — but only as long as the states favor fewer regulations on polluting industries, the banking industry and land-use issues. (“Trump administration targets recreational pot, placing thousands of marijuana businesses in California at risk,” Jan. 4)
Yet they want greater federal enforcement when states want to create regulations for cleaner air and water, marijuana sales and distribution, marriage equality and discrimination in the workplace. They want to build a wall to try to keep out immigrants, but they would rather not enforce regulations on private companies, some of which hire undocumented workers.
I guess it boils down to fewer regulations for corporations and environmental pollution and greater regulations when it comes to individual moral matters.
Prosecutors in pot-friendly states will decide on crackdown
Whether to crack down on marijuana in states where it is legal is a decision that will now rest with those states’ top federal prosecutors, many of whom are deeply rooted in their communities and may be reluctant to pursue cannabis businesses or their customers.
When he rescinded the Justice Department‘s previous guidance on marijuana, Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions left the issue to a mix of prosecutors who were appointed by President Trump’s administration and others who are holdovers from the Obama years.
Legal experts do not expect a flood of new cases, and people familiar with the job of U.S. attorney say prosecutors could decide against using already limited resources to seek criminal charges against cannabis companies that abide by state regulations or their customers.
Becerra vows to fight pot crackdown: ‘They have tripped over themselves and given us opportunities to legally stop them’
California Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said Thursday that if a new federal policy results in prosecutors charging marijuana growers and sellers licensed by the state, he would not rule out intervening in court on behalf of the state-sanctioned business.
“You take a look at everywhere you can to protect your people and your interests,” Becerra said in an interview with The Times.
He said that he may also collaborate with attorneys general in other states that have legalized marijuana sales to fight any federal enforcement effort.
Despite helping hand from L.A., drug offenders would face obstacles in cannabis industry
As California’s legal cannabis industry heats up, officials in Los Angeles and other cities say they want to make sure early players in the pot business who were selling it when it was still illegal aren’t pushed out of the market.
In Los Angeles and Oakland, city cannabis rules provide for so-called social-equity programs, which provide a leg up to marijuana business license applicants who either have been convicted of a marijuana crime or live in neighborhoods disproportionately affected by marijuana arrests.
But many of the entrepreneurs who might benefit from those programs would face a huge obstacle: Most banks won’t open accounts for marijuana businesses, and the few institutions that are willing to do so are likely to refuse to serve businesses whose owners or managers have criminal records, even if those records are for selling marijuana.
California’s pot world sees ‘reefer madness’ in Sessions’ assault on legal marijuana
For the steady stream of customers waiting to see a “budtender” Thursday at a Santa Ana pot store, U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions’ broadside against recreational pot was more a bummer than a buzzkill.
People were annoyed — but not terribly surprised that California, once again, would be going to battle in the cultural wars with the Trump administration.
“This is an attempt to take us back to the ’50s, where you’re a criminal if you use,” said Craig Burns, 66, who came up from Laguna Beach to buy pot at 420 Central dispensary. “But now, even somebody who follows their state’s law is a criminal. It’s going backwards.”
Trump administration’s crackdown on pot sales could push banks out of cannabis industry
Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions’ decision Thursday to scrap an Obama-era policy that offered legal shelter for state-sanctioned marijuana sales may not necessarily lead to a wave of federal drug busts. But it could crimp California’s budding pot industry in another way: by cutting its already-tenuous access to the financial system.
Most banks and credit unions won’t accept deposits from marijuana businesses, but the few that do have been relying on federal guidelines that state how they can accept deposits from those companies. Although those guidelines remain in effect for now, many expect they will have to change because they were underpinned by one of the policies just rescinded — a 2013 document known as the Cole memo.
Without that memo, and with the possibility of changes to the guidelines, some banks and credit unions that were considering working with cannabis companies will probably back down from those plans, said Joshua Schneiderman, a partner in the Los Angeles office of law firm Snell & Wilmer.
Man guilty in kidnap, torture plot against Orange County pot dispensary owner
The kidnappers plotted for months. They used disguises and a rented van, burner phones and surveillance cameras.
The target: a gregarious 28-year-old marijuana dispensary owner who lived a block from the ocean in Newport Beach.
The myth: He had $1 million in cash buried in the Mojave Desert that, faced with enough pain, he would lead them to.
Legal marijuana at last — 52 years after smoking his first joint
To the editor: I smoked my first joint in 1965, on the night I went to a theater in Orange County shortly after the release of the film “The Pawnbroker.” (“For marijuana users, it’s high times as California makes recreational use legal,” Jan. 2)
I remember sitting in my friend’s car out in the street, sucking up marijuana smoke for the first time in my life before we went inside. It gave me an easy, relaxed high — absolutely nothing like I thought it was going to be.
“Hell, there is nothing wrong with this stuff,” I told myself. “I am sure it will get legalized in a year or two.”
Recreational marijuana: You can’t smoke it in your car. You can’t smoke it in a bar.
Legal sales of recreational marijuana may have begun Monday, but don’t expect big changes in the workplace or in public.
Michelle Lee Flores, partner at national law firm Cozen O’Connor who specializes in labor and employment law, said that while employees may think the new law could give them a pass, that’s not necessarily the case.
“I think there are a lot of employees that think that now it’s a get out of jail free card or ‘Now I have a right and therefore you cannot hinder that in any way’ and that’s just not true,” she said. “You have a right to buy alcohol, but we all understand we don’t come to work drunk.”
Trump administration to target legal pot
Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions is rescinding the longstanding federal policy permitting states to legalize recreational pot, placing thousands of marijuana businesses in California and other states operating legally under state law at risk to federal raids and seizures.
The Justice Department move plunges California’s fledgling recreational pot market into further uncertainty, and was met with a stinging bipartisan backlash from lawmakers in states where marijuana is sold to any adult who wants to buy it.
Whether federal prosecutors have the resources, or even the interest, in undermining the national movement toward more permissive cannabis regulation remains to be seen.
Despite helping hand from L.A., drug offenders would face obstacles in cannabis industry
As California’s legal cannabis industry heats up, officials in Los Angeles and other cities say they want to make sure early players in the pot business who were selling it when it was still illegal aren’t pushed out of the market.
In Los Angeles and Oakland, city cannabis rules provide for so-called social-equity programs, which provide a leg up to marijuana business license applicants who have either been convicted of a marijuana crime or who live in neighborhoods disproportionately affected by marijuana arrests.
But many of the entrepreneurs who might benefit from those programs would face a huge obstacle: Most banks won’t open accounts for marijuana businesses, and the few institutions that are willing to do so are likely to refuse to serve businesses whose owners or managers have criminal records, even if those records are for selling marijuana.
Recreational marijuana sales bring long lines to a West Hollywood dispensary
On the first day of recreational marijuana sales in West Hollywood, the mood was celebratory and the line was long.
A crowd of about 80 people stood outside MedMen’s Santa Monica Boulevard location on Tuesday, willing to wait as long as 45 minutes for their chance to buy marijuana from a retail storefront without a prescription.
“I’m glad I got to experience the feeling, the moment” of purchasing marijuana from a store, as opposed to acquiring it “other ways,” said shopper Sandra Jimenez, a Connecticut resident visiting Los Angeles for the holidays.
More episodes of Netflix cannabis comedy ‘Disjointed’ will be ready to harvest Jan. 12
Netflix’s pot-focused Kathy Bates workplace comedy, “Disjointed,” which launched with 10 episodes on the streaming video service last summer, is back with a second batch set to start streaming on Jan. 12, the company announced Tuesday.
Tuesday, probably not coincidentally, also marked the second day of legal adult-use (i.e. nonmedical) marijuana sales in the Golden State.
To promote the series’ August launch, Netflix partnered with Alternative Herbal Health Services in West Hollywood to temporarily turn it into Ruth’s Alternative Caring — the SoCal dispensary that’s the setting for the show — for a weekend, and, in a clever bit of marketing genius, offered cannabis strains with names inspired by “Disjointed” and other Netflix shows (Banana Stand Kush — a reference to “Arrested Development” — was among the more memorable).
At that time, the novelty glass jars of marijuana could only be purchased by holders of medical marijuana cards. No word yet if Netflix plans to promote the upcoming episodes (which the company is referring to as “Part 2” as opposed to “Season 2”) in a similar fashion, but with the new legal landscape of adult-use sales, it seems like an obvious approach.
Stay tuned and, if we catch wind of a promotional pop-up pot shop (try saying that five times fast), we’ll make sure it’s posted here for the readers of the Rolling Paper.
“Disjointed,” Part 2 starts streaming Jan. 12 on Netflix.
Wrecked and retching: Obscure vomiting illness linked to long-term pot use
For 17 years, Chalfonte LeNee Queen suffered periodic episodes of violent retching and abdominal pain that would knock her off her feet for days, sometimes leaving her writhing on the floor in pain.
“I’ve screamed out for death,” said Queen, 48, who lives in San Diego. “I’ve cried out for my mom who’s been dead for 20 years, mentally not realizing she can’t come to me.”
Queen lost a modeling job after being mistaken for an alcoholic. She racked up tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills, and her nausea interrupted her sex life. Toward the end of her illness, Queen, who stands 5-foot-9, weighed in at a frail 109 pounds.
Recreational marijuana is legal. But smoking in public and driving stoned are not, LAPD warns
As Los Angeles moves toward allowing the sale of recreational marijuana, joining cities across the state in the newly legal enterprise, police here offered a stern word of caution.
Yes, recreational pot will be legal to sell (and buy, and consume, and cultivate). But there are limits. And the Los Angeles Police Department will help enforce them.
“Let me be clear,” Assistant Chief Michel Moore said Tuesday. “The use of marijuana needs to be done in a responsible manner that’s consistent with the law.”
California will regret legalizing marijuana if its experience is anything like Colorado’s
To the editor: The commercial interests driving the rapid legalization of marijuana in California call to mind the playbook of Big Tobacco. (“For marijuana users, it’s high times as California makes recreational use legal,” Jan. 2)
Decades passed and millions of lives were harmed before the adverse impact of cigarettes was acknowledged. During that time, Big Tobacco stifled government investigation of tobacco’s potential harm while manipulating their product’s addictive properties and marketing to children.
Since the liberalization of marijuana laws in Colorado, more people use marijuana than ever before, and many have or will become addicted. Use of healthcare resources for marijuana-associated illnesses has also increased here.
State pot bureau ready to enforce California’s new marijuana laws as license applications flood in
The state has issued 104 licenses for retail stores to sell marijuana for recreational use in California, and 239 other applications for those permits are pending, officials said Tuesday.
An official with the state Bureau of Cannabis Control added that the agency is prepared to begin taking enforcement action against pot shops that are not properly licensed.
“The bureau’s enforcement team is ready to respond to any complaints it receives and start doing compliance checks and site visits at any time,” said Alex Traverso, a spokesman for the bureau.
For marijuana users, it’s high times as California makes recreational use legal
“Groove on! Groove on!” blared from speakers outside a gray warehouse in Santa Ana. Inside, a line of 60 people snaked through the shop, waiting to be helped by a budtender.
“We were bombarded!” said Robert Taft Jr., founder of the marijuana dispensary 420 Central.
When the shop opened at 7 a.m. Monday — Day 1 of legal recreational pot sales in California — a handful of people had already lined up. Within two hours, more than 100 customers, some still nursing holiday hangovers, had made purchases. As they walked out, Taft shouted, “Enjoy your new freedom!”
Recreational pot sales roll out in California, with celebratory ‘blunts’ and big crowds
Legal sale of recreational marijuana began in California on Monday with fanfare, celebratory ‘blunts’ and some anxiety.
Companies began selling pot in a relatively small number of businesses Monday, with more expected to join in the coming days and weeks.
The state has issued dozens of permits for retailers to begin recreational sales this week, expanding a market that is expected to grow to $7 billion annually by 2020. Several of those retailers are in West Hollywood, but they won’t open until Tuesday at the city’s request. That makes Santa Ana’s licensed stores the closest option for Angelenos who want to buy recreational marijuana on New Year’s Day. Buyers could also trek to San Diego or the Palm Springs area to purchase pot.
Buying pot on New Year’s Day? Santa Ana is L.A.’s closest option
Looking to buy cannabis on New Year’s Day without a medical marijuana card? Head to Santa Ana.
Seven cannabis dispensaries there will be able to start selling pot to California adults Monday morning — and they’ll be the only such shops open for business in the Greater Los Angeles area.
Permits for those shops were issued over the weekend as state and local officials, and cannabis business owners, sprint toward the opening of California’s legal cannabis market.
With clock ticking down to legalization, marijuana becomes a suburban affair
All that’s left of the onions at the Wheeler Farms shed here is the smell. The only crop around it is the field of discarded shopping bags flagged to the thorns of desert weeds.
For cannabis power couple Lisa and Bob Selan, though, this drive-by plot of high desert in suburban Antelope Valley could be a cornerstone of Los Angeles’ medical marijuana market, which is days from expanding to include any adult who wants to take off the edge.
The Selans, whose clients include the largest cannabis dispensary organization in Los Angeles, hope to convert more than 45 acres of land into cannabis campuses, akin to movie studio lots, where pot entrepreneurs large and small can grow cannabis and convert it into medical products.
California pot shops prepare for their first day of legal recreational marijuana sales
Pot dispensaries in Southern California were scrambling Sunday to prepare for their first day of legal recreational marijuana sales, with a historic state law permitting such businesses set to take effect New Year’s Day.
“We are excited. We just got our state license on Saturday … so immediately there was extra energy in everyone’s step,” said Robert Taft Jr., founder of the medical marijuana dispensary 420 Central in Santa Ana. “Being part of history is an amazing thing.”
Taft said he brought in five new cash registers and hired six additional “budtenders” in preparation for the new law. He also doubled his inventory and consulted with his attorneys daily to ensure his store was in full compliance.
Big crowds in San Diego as legal recreational marijuana sales begin in California
And you thought Starbucks got crowded.
Before dawn Monday, lines began to form outside of many of San Diego’s licensed marijuana stores and they soon snaked partway around buildings on the first day of legal recreational cannabis sales in California.
Everyone from older people in leisure suits to a young man in pajamas got in line, where some waited upward of an hour to buy such things as pre-rolled joints, topical creams and foods infused with marijuana.
A ‘monumental moment’ for fully legal marijuana in California
Will Senn has been waiting his whole life for this. Californians can now go to the store and buy marijuana, and his shop is opening its doors at 7 a.m. on New Year’s Day.
Senn’s Urbn Leaf in San Diego was among the first to get a state-issued license to sell pot for medical and recreational uses. He hired 15 more workers to accommodate what he expects to be a crush of new customers to flood into his shop, which had previously specialized in cannabis for medicinal purposes.
“This is what a lot of activists in the industry have been working for since the 1990s when Dennis Peron opened his first marijuana shop for AIDS patients in San Francisco,” said Senn, 32. “It’s a monumental moment and we are ecstatic to be a part of it.”
Nipton, Calif., owned by a marijuana-growing company, hopes to become a top pot destination
The tiny town of Nipton, Calif., owned by a company that legally grows and sells marijuana, wants cannabis fans to know they’re welcome to come and party — provided they bring their own weed.
Nipton, a former mining town with a population of 20, sits in the far eastern part of San Bernardino County near the Nevada border, about 10 miles off the 15 Freeway.
The entire town was purchased in 2017 by American Green, a publicly traded company that cultivates and sells marijuana. Recreational marijuana became legal in California on Jan. 1.
From weed to wages, the new year ushers in new laws affecting consumers
Hundreds of new California laws took effect Monday with the beginning of the new year. For consumers, some are real standouts.
Let’s take a look, shall we?
Legal weed: The arrival of legal recreational marijuana is possibly the biggest change affecting the Golden State this year. Adults age 21 and older can buy pot from licensed dispensaries between the hours of 6 in the morning and 10 at night.
California moves into its marijuana future on Jan. 1. Some readers are not eager to make the leap
Starting on Jan. 1, marijuana — a Schedule I substance, meaning the federal government officially recognizes it as among the most dangerous drugs in existence — will be legal to grow and sell in California to recreational users.
The effort to decriminalize marijuana in California has been underway for decades, as the state became the first in the country to legalize medical cannabis, in 1996. In the years prior to Proposition 64 in 2016, letters to the editor on whether to legalize marijuana have generally been split between readers on the pro and con sides, with the more impassioned opinions coming from writers who favored decriminalization.
Now, with more sweeping state legalization just two days away, our letter writers are expressing mostly trepidation about what’s to come in California.
Federal agents can still seize marijuana at California checkpoints despite legalization
California legalizes marijuana for recreational use Monday, but that won’t stop federal agents from seizing the drug — even in tiny amounts — on busy freeways and backcountry highways.
Marijuana possession still will be prohibited at eight Border Patrol checkpoints in California, a reminder that state and federal laws collide when it comes to pot. The U.S. government classifies marijuana as a controlled substance, like heroin and LSD.
“Prior to Jan. 1, it’s going to be the same after Jan. 1, because nothing changed on our end,” said Ryan Yamasaki, an assistant chief of the Border Patrol’s San Diego sector. “If you’re a federal law enforcement agency, you uphold federal laws.”
Pot legalization could spell end to California’s medical marijuana industry
When Elias Zaldivar was an 18-year-old college freshman and decided he was in the market for marijuana, he knew just how to get it, and it didn’t involve canvassing the corridors of his campus in search of that stoned-out dude who sold pot from his dorm room. Instead, he went straight to a doctor.
On a busy Hollywood street, Zaldivar quickly located a clinic specializing in medicinal pot referrals. He video-conferenced with a doctor from the waiting room and, following their 10-minute chat, a receptionist handed him an official-looking letter with an embossed gold seal that allowed him to buy medical marijuana at any California dispensary.
Zaldivar, now a 21-year-old mixed martial arts coach, has renewed his medical marijuana recommendation each year since, always using the same health claim. He still chuckles while recalling what he explained to the doctor to get that first prescription: “I told him I had anxiety.”
CHP arrests marijuana delivery workers, sparking debate over laws
The confusing rollout of marijuana regulations in California has been underscored in Mendocino County, where local authorities licensed a company to deliver pot only to have state police arrest two employees who were trying to do just that with nearly a ton of weed.
The workers for Old Kai Distribution were transporting the marijuana from a farm when they were pulled over Friday afternoon by a California Highway Patrol officer on Highway 101 near Ukiah, according to Joe Rogoway, an attorney for the company. They were driving an unmarked van and were stopped for a traffic violation.
The workers showed the officer the company’s county license and a manifest for the marijuana, but the officer insisted it was illegal, called for backup and arrested the men.
Study of California women finds 1 in 14 used pot during pregnancy
Prenatal exposure to pot has become increasingly common in California since the state legalized medical marijuana in 1996, according to a new study.
Pot use by women during the first two months of pregnancy increased by about 7.5% per year between 2009 and 2016, researchers reported this week in the Journal of the American Medical Assn. By the end of that period, about 1 in 14 women were using some form of marijuana after they had conceived.
Those numbers are based on medical records of nearly 280,000 pregnant women in northern California who were part of the Kaiser Permanente health system. The women were asked about their recent pot use during a prenatal exam about eight weeks into their pregnancies. Doctors also had patients take a cannabis toxicology test during their first trimester.
California’s top marijuana regulator talks about what to expect Jan. 1, when legal pot market opens
California’s legal pot market opens for business on Jan. 1. The day will be a milestone, but what exactly will happen then and, especially, in the weeks and months to come is unclear.
Lori Ajax, the state’s top pot regulator, has been at the center of the effort to establish rules for a legal pot economy valued at $7 billion.
Here are her thoughts on what to expect:
Move over pot brownies: California prepares for marijuana in wine, trail mixes, tacos and other edibles
The sauvignon blanc boasts brassy, citrus notes, but with one whiff, it’s apparent this is no normal Sonoma County wine. It’s infused with THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that provides the high.
Move over, pot brownies. The world’s largest legal recreational marijuana market kicks off Monday in California, and the trendsetting state is set to ignite the cannabis culinary scene.
Chefs and investors have been teaming up to offer an eye-boggling array of cannabis-infused food and beverages, weed-pairing supper clubs and other extravagant pot-to-plate events in preparation for legalization come Jan. 1.
Labor unions see organizing California marijuana workers as a way to grow
Unions have caught a whiff of a rare opportunity to organize a whole new set of workers as recreational marijuana becomes legal in California.
The United Farm Workers, Teamsters and United Food and Commercial Workers are looking to unionize the tens of thousands of potential workers involved in the legal weed game, from planters to rollers to sellers. The move could provide a boost to organized labor’s lagging membership — if infighting doesn’t get in the way.
The United Farm Workers, co-founded by iconic labor leader Cesar Chavez, says that organizing an industry rooted in agriculture is a natural fit, and that growers could label their products with the union’s logo as a marketing strategy.
The lack of health research into marijuana makes it hard to tell people whether it is safe
In advance of the legalization of recreational marijuana sales on Jan. 1, there have been lots of debates over the details of the cannabis business. How many feet should pot shops be from schools or daycare centers? How many acres may a marijuana farmer cultivate? Who should be eligible for a license to sell and who shouldn’t?
But there’s been much less discussion over an equally important question raised by the end of prohibition in California: What is the right public health message to send to adults who can now legally buy and use marijuana? Voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 64 last year and polls continue to show broad support for legalization. But just because marijuana is legal doesn’t mean it is risk-free.
With just days to go, public health agencies are scrambling to put together education campaigns before Jan. 1. But experts in the field say they face a big problem: There simply isn’t enough research into the impact of adult marijuana use to offer a lot of proven and practical health guidance.
First rule of California pot legalization: Don’t smoke in public
California’s legal pot market opens for business on Jan. 1. The day will be a milestone, but what exactly will happen then and, especially, in the weeks and months to come is unclear.
Lori Ajax is the state’s top pot regulator and has been at the center of the effort to establish rules for a legal pot economy valued at $7 billion.
Here are her thoughts on what to expect:
Elderly couple’s festive explanation for having 60 pounds of marijuana: ‘Christmas presents’
The elderly couple caught driving through rural Nebraska with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of marijuana in their vehicle? They were simply spreading holiday cheer, they told authorities.
Patrick Jiron, 80, and Barbara Jiron, 83, were pulled over Tuesday during a traffic stop by deputies with the York County Sheriff’s Department, who made a shocking discovery: The Jirons had 60 pounds of high-grade pot in their pickup truck, authorities said.
The couple, from northern California, told authorities they were en route to Vermont, and that “the marijuana was for Christmas presents,” Sheriff’s Lt. Paul Vrbka told the York News-Times.
‘Godfather of Grass’ pleads guilty to drug charge
The “Godfather of Grass” — who generated an internet following for his exploits during his run from the law — is facing prison time after admitting his involvement in a marijuana operation in rural Kentucky nearly a decade ago.
John Robert “Johnny” Boone pleaded guilty in federal court in Louisville to a single count. He’s accused of conspiring to possess, grow and distribute more than 1,000 marijuana plants at an operation near Springfield, Ky., U.S. Atty. Russell M. Coleman said this week. Boone watered and fertilized the plants on a farm near his home, prosecutors said.
Boone’s roots in the marijuana business are reputed to run deep. Decades ago, prosecutors said he led a multistate marijuana operation known as the “Cornbread Mafia.”
Raring to buy recreational pot in Los Angeles? Not so fast
California is on the brink of legalizing the sale of recreational pot, with the first round of state licenses for marijuana businesses kicking into effect in January.
But Los Angeles pot shops won’t be able to immediately start selling marijuana for recreational use on New Year’s Day, city officials cautioned Friday.
“We are starting a process. This is something that is not going to happen overnight,” said Cat Packer, who heads L.A.’s Department of Cannabis Regulation.
California’s former top cop forms marijuana distribution firm in new age of legalization
Former California Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer is going from enforcing laws against marijuana to legally distributing the drug under the state’s new rules that allow the sale and possession of pot for recreational use.
With state-licensed sales of marijuana starting Jan. 1, Lockyer has co-founded a firm, C4 Distro, that will distribute packaged marijuana concentrates and edibles to stores in Los Angeles.
He says California’s new regulated system has a chance to be a model for the rest of the country.
Marijuana businesses are awash with cash. California wants to help get that money into banks
One of the biggest problems facing California cannabis businesses, regulators and law enforcement officials once recreational marijuana sales become legal on Jan. 1 is what to do about all the cash that is expected to change hands.
With marijuana still illegal under federal law, most marijuana businesses can’t open bank accounts or accept credit card transactions — financial services companies refuse to serve them for fear being penalized by federal regulators for handling money from drug sales. That means marijuana transactions are typically done in cash.
It’s not unusual for existing medical marijuana business owners to pay their state and local taxes with duffel bags full of money. Once recreational sales begin, experts estimate marijuana will be a multibillion-dollar business, and California’s cannabis industry will be swimming in cash.
Can pot blunt the opioid epidemic? We don’t know because the federal government blocks research.
An epidemic of opioid abuse is ravaging the United States and, as we look for ways to respond to it, some see cannabis as part of the solution, while others see it as part of the problem. This is just one area in which unbiased scientific research is necessary, but outdated federal legislation, having concluded almost 50 years ago that there is no medical value to cannabis, is blocking all meaningful efforts to understand the real benefits and risks of the plant.
There are critical open questions about cannabis, and without research conducted under rigorous scientific standards, we will not find answers. If you think these questions don’t really matter in daily life, let’s look at three scenarios.
Your friend is one of the 1,125,000 people in California who use medical cannabis. Before going to bed, he drinks a cannabis tea because it helps him go to sleep. The morning after, he feels well rested and doesn’t experience any aftereffects. But one day, as he is driving to work, the police stop him for a random blood THC test (this type of test is already in use in Colorado and may be adopted in California). Your friend turns out to be THC positive and loses his driver’s license, even though there is no correlation between blood THC levels and intoxication. The same person can have detectable blood THC levels and be perfectly functional, or have undetectable levels and be impaired. We need research to develop objective, unbiased ways of measuring cannabis intoxication, or innocent people will end up paying for a crime they did not commit.
Recreational cannabis is about to go on sale in California. But it could be hard to find
These are anxious days in the mellow world of marijuana.
California is dealing with chaos and comic opera as it prepares to become the latest and largest state to sell recreational cannabis, a cash crop potentially worth billions.
Regulators have only recently chosen which companies will be able to sell the drug when adult-use weed debuts in licensed stores on January 1st, from San Diego to Eureka.
Lawmakers, pot growers say California’s marijuana cultivation rules favor big corporate farms
California’s new rules allowing marijuana cultivation favor large corporate farms despite a promise in Proposition 64 that small growers would be protected, according to a group of state lawmakers and marijuana industry leaders who called Monday for the policy to be changed.
The California Department of Food and Agriculture issued emergency rules last month that allow for small and medium-sized farms of up to a quarter acre and one acre, respectively, to get licenses for the first five years. That five-year head start for small farms was promised in Proposition 64, the initiative approved last year by voters that legalized growing and selling marijuana for recreational use.
Individuals and businesses can get only one license for a medium-sized farm, but the new rules do not set a limit on how many small-farm licenses can be obtained by one person or business.
California considers ‘green banking’ as it transitions to fully legal pot
California has a possible solution to the problem of banks being unwilling to handle money from the state’s multibillion-dollar legal marijuana industry, one that officials say would be the first system of its kind in the nation.
Talks are underway between the state, banks and federal regulators on a plan to allow banks to serve a marijuana market that is expected to grow to $7 billion annually by 2020 in California. Starting Jan. 1, it will be legal to grow and sell marijuana for recreational and medical uses.
State officials say without banks taking pot money, thousands of cannabis businesses will be storing and transporting billions of dollars in cash for paying employees, suppliers and state and local taxes, which could result in robberies and violence.
California’s new pot rules violate the promise to small farmers
During last year’s campaign for Proposition 64, which made recreational marijuana legal for adults under California law, proponents of the measure repeatedly argued that it would protect small marijuana farms and mom-and-pop cultivators, many of whom have operated illegally for decades.
That’s because the initiative barred the state from licensing any marijuana farm larger than one acre until 2023 — or at least that’s what voters were led to believe when they passed Proposition 64 overwhelmingly. Nevertheless, a state agency has quietly, mystifyingly issued a rule that could circumvent the proposition and open the new state market to Big Weed.
The five-year head start for small farmers was a concession specifically designed to win support — or at least quell some of the opposition — from growers in Northern California’s Emerald Triangle, who worried that well-funded corporate cannabis interests would crush them right out of the gate. The delay in Proposition 64 would give them time to get licensed under the new state regulatory regime and carve a toehold in the new legal marketplace for recreational pot.
Man sentenced to 21 years in prison for robbing marijuana dealers at Pelican Hill resort
An Anaheim man was sentenced Friday to 21 years in state prison for robbing marijuana dealers at gunpoint during two large drug deals at the Resort at Pelican Hill in Newport Coast in February and March.
An Orange County Superior Court jury in October found Thomas Lamarr Prince, 41, guilty of four counts of robbery.
One dealer told Newport Beach police that he met with a man named Jonathan — whom police later identified as Prince — in the parking lot of the Newport Coast Shopping Center on Feb. 18.
Cautious Texas is last big state to OK medical marijuana
When California rings in the new year with the sale of recreational pot for the first time, Texas will be tiptoeing into its own marijuana milestone: a medical cannabis program so restrictive that doubts swirl over who will even use it.
Texas is the last big state to allow some form of medical marijuana, albeit an oil extract so low in the psychoactive component, THC, that it couldn’t get a person high. Though it might seem that Texas policymakers have softened their attitude toward the drug, bringing them more in line with the U.S. population as a whole, they have not. A joint could still land you in jail in Texas, and the state’s embrace of medical marijuana comes with a heavy dose of caution.
Among the concerns are the license fees to grow marijuana in Texas — which are the highest in the United States, at nearly $500,000 — and that the program is rolling out with just eight participating doctors in a state of 27 million people. And, like other states, access is limited to a small pool of patients who have been diagnosed with intractable epilepsy and tried at least two other treatments first.
This Colorado city declined to allow recreational pot sales. Now it’s having second thoughts
At the two malls in town, you can buy key chains and Christmas ornaments shaped like marijuana leaves. Along a downtown shopping corridor, paintings of cannabis plants grace storefront windows.
Even Kmart stocks its shelves with T-shirts and mugs decorated with the signature green leaf and “Colorado est. 2012” — the year state voters decided to legalize recreational marijuana.
But that is the one pot product you can’t buy in Colorado Springs.
California begins licensing recreational marijuana sales next month. But most won’t see pot shops in their city anytime soon
California’s march to marijuana legalization hits its stride next month as the state begins issuing the first licenses for sales to recreational users. But most Californians won’t see pot shops springing up in their neighborhoods any time soon — and some may never see them in their communities.
To sell marijuana in California, retailers have to be licensed by the state, but they first must have the approval of the city or county where they plan to do business. Cities and counties can opt out of allowing commercial cannabis sales and most have — at least for now.
Last week, Los Angeles approved rules allowing retailers to sell recreational marijuana next month, joining other major cities that have done so, including San Francisco, San Diego, Oakland and San Jose. But recreational pot sales won’t be allowed in dozens more cities, including Riverside, Fresno, Bakersfield, Pasadena and Anaheim. In some cases, cities have decided to revisit the issue later in 2018 after they see how the new system works.
What wine to pair with Kosher Kush and other things to think about in the coming era of legal weed
If, sometime in the new year, a dinner guest arrives at your home and presents you with a hostess gift of cannabis flower — a jar of Kosher Kush indica to be specific — what bottle of wine might you serve it with? If you’d attended a recent wine and cannabis pairing dinner at Gracias Madre in West Hollywood, you might confidently uncork a Syrah or a Pinot Noir because those varietals have an earthy aroma that plays nicely with the terpene myrcene that’s dominant in that particular strain.
Under the tutelage of Jamie Evans (a.k.a. the Herb Somm, as in “sommelier”), guests sniffed their way around Strawberry Banana hybrid strains (that fit thematically with the fruity aroma of a Central Coast rosé). They also sniffed jars of THC Designs’ XJ-13 sativa to discover that the terpene limonene makes it appropriate to pair withan Outer Sounds Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough, New Zealand. (Though the cannabis was certainly being enthusiastically sniffed, it was not being consumed; that would run afoul of the host restaurant’s liquor license.)
The Dec. 5 media dinner was organized by San Francisco-based technology-meets-cannabis delivery platform Eaze, whose chief executive, Jim Patterson, called the run-up to legal adult-use (non-medical) sales of cannabis products in California, slated to begin in January, “a pretty historic moment.”
San Diego business is first in California to be issued license to sell marijuana for recreational use
A San Diego medical marijuana business is the first firm to be issued a license by the state of California to sell marijuana for recreational use, officials said Thursday.
Torrey Holistics received two of the first 20 licenses granted by the state Bureau of Cannabis Control this week to sell or distribute marijuana, although the licenses do not take effect until Jan. 1, according to bureau chief Lori Ajax.
An additional 180 firms have applied for licenses, which are still being processed.
California winery replaces alcohol with marijuana for a hangover-free high
Cannabis-infused wine sounds like the sort of thing that a person would expect to already exist. We already have marijuana-infused Nutella and weed-infused coffee pods, so certainly someone must have come up with marijuana wine. The problem is that it is illegal to add marijuana to alcohol, even where marijuana is legal. Now one award-winning California winery says it has created the first marijuana-infused wine by actually removing the alcohol from the wine so the end product is legal. As a bonus, the wine won’t cause hangovers.
Recreational marijuana will become legal in California in January, 2018, and Rebel Coast Winery will be ready for it. The winery is already accepting pre-orders on its new marijuana-infused Sauvignon Blanc, which is the first legal marijuana-infused wine, and which is expected to start shipping as it becomes legal to do so.
Rebel Coast co-founders Chip Forsythe and Alex Howe are not the first people to think of marijuana-infused wine.
Nova Scotia plans to sell marijuana in liquor stores
The Nova Scotian government is making moves to stock marijuana on liquor store shelves. According to CBC News, the province’s government-owned alcohol distributor, Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC), would be responsible for selling recreational marijuana in stores and online to patrons around the region once Canada legalizes weed - a move slated for the summer of 2018. Once NSLC outlets officially offer cannabis, existing dispensaries will be illegal.
The Canadian government has left it to the provinces to determine the specifics of legalization within their borders. In Nova Scotia, the legal age to purchase marijuana will be 19, which is also the legal drinking age. People will be allowed to have up to 30 grams for personal consumption. They will also be permitted to grow up to four plants per household.
Smoking, drinking and drug abuse decline among U.S. teens, who prefer pot and vaping, study finds
Drinking, smoking and drug abuse are on the decline among American teenagers, in some cases falling to the lowest levels seen in decades, according to the latest results from an annual nationwide survey.
About 1 in 3 middle and high school students surveyed in 2017 said they had used some kind of illicit drug sometime in their life. Two decades ago, that figure was 43%.
Likewise, 17% of students surveyed in 2017 said they smoked cigarettes at least once, and 26% said they had been drunk. In the 1990s, those figures reached highs of 58% and 46%, respectively.
California plans to send out licenses for pot sales this month — but they won’t be effective until Jan. 1
California officials said Wednesday they plan to use email before the new year to send out some licenses to sell marijuana to speed up the transition to a regulated market. The licenses will not go into effect until Jan. 1.
Proposition 64, which legalized the sale of marijuana for recreational use, required the state to begin issuing licenses by Jan. 1. Because that date is a state holiday, the bureau originally planned to begin sending them out on Jan. 2. That has changed.
At the country’s biggest cannabis county fair, legalization is met with a mixture of relief and fear
For the last 14 years, the Emerald Cup has been a raucous two-day celebration of a longstanding California outlaw culture. Over time, it has evolved from a festival in a muddy Mendocino field to a highly choreographed event, but its spirit remains intact.
Each December after the harvest, cannabis growers come down from the mountains of the Emerald Triangle to the Sonoma County Fairgrounds for a county fair-style judging of their wares.
Instead of cherry pies and blueberry jams, judges pick the best cannabis flowers, extracts, tinctures and edibles. A win at the Emerald Cup is an imprimatur of quality that can boost a business from anonymity to success. But growers do more than compete here; they come to see old friends and party, compare notes, learn about the latest in growing techniques and strains, and to buy equipment and seeds, the finest of which can cost $70 apiece.
Medical marijuana distribution facility gets permit in Costa Mesa
A medical marijuana distribution facility proposed for Costa Mesa cleared a major hurdle Monday night as the city Planning Commission granted a necessary permit.
Commissioners voted unanimously to award the conditional use permit to CMX Distribution, which plans to move into 4,722 square feet of existing industrial warehouse space at 3505 Cadillac Ave. — in a business complex just east of the Santa Ana River.
That decision is final unless appealed to the City Council within seven days. Even if the permit stands, CMX needs to secure a handful of final city approvals before opening its doors, according to city staff.
Coffee shop wants to be Denver’s first legal marijuana club
Colorado’s largest city is reviewing the first application from a business seeking to be among the nation’s first legal marijuana clubs, a step that comes more than a year after voters approved a bring-your-own pot measure.
Dan Rowland, a spokesman for the Denver department that regulates marijuana businesses, said the city received the application from the Coffee Joint on Friday.
Co-owners Rita Tsalyuk and Kirill Merkulov plan to charge a $5 entry fee if they’re approved for the license. Customers could use edible pot products or vaporizing pens inside, and the shop would sell food, host events and provide free coffee or tea, she said.
Denver voters approved the clubs in a 2016 ballot measure, but it took nine months for the city to start accepting applications. Advocates have complained that state restrictions preventing pot use at any business with a liquor license and the city’s own rules unfairly limited potential locations for the clubs.
Back off, Jeff Sessions. California and other states should be able to legalize and regulate pot on their own
California voters decided last year that the sale of recreational marijuana should be made legal, beginning on Jan. 1, 2018. But Proposition 64 left many of the details to local governments and state regulators. So the last several months have been a race against the calendar, as officials have sought to develop rules governing where, when and how businesses may grow, transport and sell marijuana to adults.
Last month, the state unveiled 276 pages of regulations for the new recreational pot marketplace. Among other things, the rules set hefty licensing fees, regulate how much THC will be allowed in edibles and other cannabis products, and require marijuana businesses to track their product from seed to sale.
While the state set many of the industry rules, cities and counties were left to decide whether they want to allow marijuana businesses to set up shop in their jurisdictions. San Diego passed its permitting rules in September. Sacramento, San Jose and San Francisco passed laws in recent weeks allowing recreational cannabis sales, and the Los Angeles City Council this week approved regulations for what will likely be the nation’s largest market for marijuana.
Costa Mesa commission to consider proposed medical marijuana distribution business
For the second time in as many meetings, Costa Mesa planning commissioners are set to consider plans to open a medical marijuana business in the city.
The proposed operation up for review Monday — called CMX Distribution — would occupy 4,722 square feet of existing industrial warehouse space at 3505 Cadillac Ave. The site is in a business complex just east of the Santa Ana River.
As its name suggests, CMX would be a distribution facility for medical cannabis products. It would include offices, an order preparation area, parking for delivery trucks and secured storage space.
California begins accepting permit applications for the sale of recreational marijuana
Just weeks before California begins issuing licenses to businesses to sell marijuana for recreational and medical use, the state on Friday began accepting applications electronically through a new online system.
The state Bureau of Cannabis Control is accepting applications for commercial marijuana licenses for retailers, distributors, micro-businesses, testing laboratories and cannabis events, according to Lori Ajax, chief of the bureau.
“Today’s launch of our online licensing system is the culmination of many months of hard work by our dedicated team,” Ajax said in a statement. “Now that applications are coming in, we can officially move one step closer to issuing California’s first state licenses for commercial cannabis activity.”
ClubM takes its holiday gift box to new heights by offering a $24,000 treasure chest full of cannabis products
ClubM, the San Diego company that rolled out a $1,000 box crammed with cannabis products and accessories in the run-up to last year’s holiday season, is taking things to a higher level this year — 24 times higher, to be precise — by offering a limited number of wooden trunks filled with $24,000 worth of items for the discerning cannabis connoisseur.
Being touted as “the world’s most expensive cannabis gift” (a big boast, and one not easily verifiable, so we’ll have to take their word for it), there are only five of the 24K MBoxes being offered between now and the end of 2017, with each one being personally delivered by the company’s co-founder, Chris Husong, to any California address.
That time frame means that purchasers will need a valid medical marijuana recommendation from a California-licensed physician (non-medical adult-use sales, legalized in November 2016, won’t begin in the state until early 2018), which can be arranged through the subscription delivery service’s website.
The contents of the trunk include a vaporizer encrusted with more than 200 Swarovski crystals, 10 hand-rolled, gold-foiled Cannagarz (a brand of cannabis cigars), a Royal Tips 24K gold blunt tip decorated with 420 diamonds and 3.5 ounces of premium flower from California brands such as THC Designs and Gold Seal and limited-edition strains with names like 24K and Glucci.
In addition, each box comes with a two-year subscription to the ClubM delivery service (a Birchbox-style service for the pot-smoking set), as well as a private VIP concierge line for recommendations and refills.
Additional information is available at joinclubm.com.
L.A. lawmakers back new regulations on marijuana industry
Los Angeles lawmakers backed a host of new regulations for the marijuana industry Wednesday, paving the way for the hotly anticipated business of recreational pot.
The unanimous vote was a landmark step for the biggest city in California as the state prepares to start issuing permits to grow, sell, test and distribute recreational marijuana. Despite a slew of concerns about the exact details of the plan, the Los Angeles City Council voted 12 to 0 for the regulations, which now go to the mayor for his approval.
The elaborate rules reflect a tug of war at City Hall over the hopes and fears for the soon-to-be-legalized industry. They have been a prime focus of Council President Herb Wesson, who said Wednesday that cities across the country will be looking to Los Angeles as an example.
Recreational marijuana sales start Jan. 1. Here’s how weed does, and doesn’t affect your health
The FDA cried fraud in October, accusing companies in Florida, Colorado and California of illegally selling marijuana-derived products that supposedly could prevent, treat or cure cancer.
The advertising claims were unsubstantiated, said the FDA, and the products hadn’t been submitted for approval.
It was a public shaming that also served as a timely buyer-beware message for California, where the sale of marijuana will be expanded from medical purposes to recreational use in January.
Lawmakers say California’s proposed marijuana rules will hurt small family farms
Two legislators called Tuesday for changes to regulations for growing marijuana in California to better protect small family farmers from being driven out of business by big corporate cultivators.
Initial proposals to cap licensed marijuana farms at one to four acres were discarded by the state Department of Food and Agriculture, which has since proposed new rules without any cap, according to a letter of complaint to the agency by State Sen. Mike McGuire (D-San Rafael) and Assemblyman Jim Wood (D-Healdsburg). McGuire and Wood support a one-acre cap.
L.A. lawmakers are close to setting ground rules for marijuana industry
Los Angeles lawmakers took another step Monday toward imposing regulations that would limit where and how marijuana businesses can operate as California legalizes the sale of recreational pot.
The elaborate regulations, which have been repeatedly tweaked at a string of city hearings, lay out the ground rules for what is expected to be one of the hottest marijuana markets in the country.
“You don’t have a lot of opportunities to make history — and that’s what we’re doing here,” City Council President Herb Wesson said as a committee of lawmakers backed the proposed rules.
Just in time for the holidays you can now buy a cannabis-covered Christmas wreath
A Mendocino-based cannabis brand has partnered with Los Angeles florist Amy Nicole Floral to create a limited-edition holiday arrangement that artfully wraps an ounce of marijuana bud into a stylish-looking wreath along with springs of eucalyptus, wheat and rosemary.
Retailing for $400 — and available only to holders of a valid medical marijuana recommendation (adult-use sales for non-patients won’t begin until January 2018) — the wreaths are being offered by Henry’s Original, which advises that “the cannabis can can easily be removed from the wreath without compromising its design.” (Which is good to know, since no one wants to be lit and a yuletide wreath-wrecker.)
According to brand representatives, the cannabis used in said wreaths is Manzanita, a proprietary farm strain with a lineage that’s part Chemdawg.
The wreaths can currently be ordered online through the Henry’s Original website for delivery (though, alas, not by a reindeer named Blitzen), and we’re told that the brand is working on partnerships with a few bricks-and-mortar dispensaries.
Smoked pot and want to enlist? Army issuing more waivers
Smoked pot? Want to join the U.S. Army? No problem.
As more states lessen or eliminate marijuana penalties, the Army is granting hundreds of waivers to enlist people who used the drug in their youth — as long as they realize they can’t do so again in the military.
The number of waivers granted by the active-duty Army for marijuana use jumped to more than 500 this year from 191 in 2016. Three years ago, no such waivers were granted. The big increase is just one way officials are dealing with orders to expand the Army’s size.
Free legal clinic assists those who want to reduce or expunge marijuana convictions
Tim Gee woke before dawn Saturday and donned a black three-piece suit with crimson tie. The Las Vegas resident then flew to Los Angeles, home to a past that still haunts him.
Got a criminal record? L.A. might help you get into the pot biz — or ban you
Los Angeles could soon help people who were jailed for marijuana crimes get into the newly legalized pot industry, in a push to address the uneven toll of the drug war on disadvantaged communities.
But it would also shut the door to people who have committed many other offenses — including violent crimes or selling other drugs besides marijuana — barring them from getting marijuana licenses for years after their convictions.
The hotly contested regulations, expected to go up for a vote Wednesday, reflect the dilemma over who should profit as an illegal industry gains legitimacy at City Hall: As marijuana becomes a booming business, should the people who were once jailed for it be treated as victims or as scofflaws?
And should the marijuana business be open to other convicts as Los Angeles tries to smooth the way for men and women coming out of prison?
LAPD captain probed for possible ties to marijuana warehouse
A Los Angeles police captain is on paid leave as the department investigates whether he is involved with an alleged marijuana warehouse in Sun Valley.
The warehouse came to the Los Angeles Police Department’s attention on Oct. 31 after someone called to report a burglary there.
Phillip A. Smith, a captain in the Rampart Division, told The Times on Thursday that he was the caller.
Fancy a cannabis leaf for the Christmas tree?
Some of you may be anticipating 2018 and the possibility (for adults) of buying recreational marijuana — legally. This gold leaf is newsworthy and, perhaps, tree-worthy. $15, D.L. Rhein, 3303 Motor Ave., Los Angeles, (310) 280-0474.
For a look at more sparkly, sophisticated, traditional and quirky accessories for the fir, click the link below.
Recreational marijuana could go on sale Jan. 5 in San Francisco
Recreational weed could be on sale in San Francisco as soon as Jan. 5 if the mayor quickly signs legislation approved by the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.
Supervisors adopted regulations Tuesday night favored by cannabis advocates, rejecting attempts to mandate a larger barrier between schools and pot shops.
The board also rejected provisions that would have allowed neighborhoods to limit the number of weed shops or ban them outright.
Medical marijuana extraction facility wins permit in Costa Mesa
A proposal to open the first medical marijuana extraction facility in Costa Mesa moved closer to reality Monday night as the city Planning Commission voted unanimously to grant a required permit.
With the conditional use permit in hand, officials with Shepard Investments Inc. can work to secure remaining city approvals necessary to open the facility at 3590 Cadillac Ave. in the northwest corner of the city.
The commission’s decision is final unless appealed to the City Council within seven days.
Proposal for medical marijuana extraction facility goes to Costa Mesa Planning Commission
A medical marijuana extraction facility could be a step closer Monday to opening in Costa Mesa.
The Planning Commission will review an application for a conditional use permit to open the facility in a 7,315-square-foot tenant space at 3590 Cadillac Ave.in the northwest area of the city.
The establishment would contain up to four rosin press machines, which use pressure and heat to wring oil from marijuana plants, according to the application from Shepard Investments Inc.
California has message for the state’s new legal pot industry: Pay your taxes
California’s shift to legal sales of marijuana for recreational use hits a milestone Monday when the state begins issuing tax permits to marijuana distributors.
State regulators estimate the California market could eventually generate $1 billion in taxes and fees annually. But the industry has resisted handing over its share of profits to the state treasury, and the pressure is on to reduce delinquencies and force scofflaws to pay up. Industry officials and state regulators say a proposed carrot-and-stick approach to taxes may lead to more compliance in the future.
The state is scheduled to begin licensing the growth, distribution, testing and sale of recreational pot starting Jan. 2, as approved by voters in November 2016. But medical marijuana sales have been legal and taxed since voters approved the Compassionate Use Act of 1996.
New rules with hefty fees set for growing and selling marijuana in California
California officials have proposed new rules for the growing, transporting and sale of marijuana when the state begins issuing licenses in January, and industry officials said the regulations and hefty fees are a mixed bag.
The regulations unveiled Thursday, which are subject to public hearings before they are finalized, do not limit the size of cannabis farms, but require every plant to be traced from farm to sale. Security will be required at farms, trucks and pot shops, and cannabis cannot be marketed toward minors.
The license application fee for sellers and others will be $1,000 annually, but there are additional license fees of $4,000 to $72,000 charged to retailers based on how much they sell.
Also, an additional fee for testing firms will range from $20,000 to $90,000, while an added charge for distribution licenses will go from $1,200 to $125,000 depending on the amount of product moved.
From pot edibles to farming techniques, California sets marijuana rules
California released long-awaited rules Thursday that will govern the state’s emerging legal marijuana industry, while potentially opening the way for larger-scale cultivation that some fear could strangle small-farm growers.
The thicket of emergency regulations will allow the state to begin issuing temporary licenses for growers, distributors and sellers on Jan. 1, when recreational sales become legal.
They provide a regulatory road map for business operations, from licensing fees to establishing guidelines for testing, growing and distribution of marijuana in what is projected to be a $7-billion economy, the nation’s largest.
As for infused munchies, “edible products cannot be shaped like a human, animal, insect, or fruit,” according to a summary of the rules.
Op-ed: California politicians in Washington need to defend the state’s pot laws from federal attack
California officials released regulations on Thursday laying the groundwork for how the cannabis legalization initiative will work. Even as businesses focus on preparing license applications, however, the state’s new marijuana regime unavoidably clashes with ongoing federal prohibition.
The Obama administration took a largely hands-off approach to cannabis after Colorado and Washington legalized it for recreational purposes in 2012. But while President Trump campaigned on respecting state laws, his pick of longtime legalization foe Jeff Sessions as U.S. attorney general instilled fear and uncertainty in the industry. Last year, Sessions said that “good people don’t smoke marijuana.” If the Department of Justice moves against California’s cannabis industry, can members of the state’s congressional delegation be counted on to stand up for their constituents?
Maybe. Maybe not.
The Standard Hollywood and cannabis brand Lord Jones plan to open an in-hotel boutique early next year
Boutique hotel group Standard International and cannabis-infused confection maker Lord Jones have announced a partnership that includes opening a retail shop in the lobby of the Standard Hollywood early next year.
There are also plans to create co-branded THC-derived products and expand to the hotel’s downtown Los Angeles location — and beyond — as regulations permit.
Robert Rosenheck, founder and chief executive of L.A.-based Lord Jones, said the 2-year-old brand’s first retail flagship will take up about 300 square feet facing Sunset Boulevard, just to the right of the hotel’s main entrance.
It will be stocked with the company’s full range of THC-derived edibles (gourmet gumdrops, caramels and chews) and topicals (some of which contain THC and others made with hemp-derived CBD), along with what he describes as “a very tightly curated assortment of best-in-class products — including smokable product” by other brands.
Orange County takes a step toward banning pot sales and distribution in unincorporated areas
The Orange County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to an ordinance banning marijuana sales, distribution and cultivation in unincorporated parts of the county.
Orange County Supervisor Shawn Nelson cast the lone dissenting vote. He argued the board was ignoring the will of California’s voters, who approved the decriminalization of marijuana last year with Proposition 64.
The new state law, which takes effect Jan. 1, allows for the recreational use of marijuana for residents 21 and older and the cultivation of up to six plants.
The Legislature approved a law this year allowing cities and counties to approve bans, preventing the issuing of licenses in those areas.
Some in San Francisco’s Chinese community fight recreational marijuana sales
San Francisco is having a surprisingly difficult time establishing regulations for the broad legal pot market, thanks in part to criticism from older Chinese immigrants who oppose marijuana use.
Divided San Francisco supervisors are scheduled to take up the issue at a board meeting Tuesday, where they may vote on a stopgap measure to allow the sale of recreational cannabis through existing medical marijuana outlets on Jan. 1 as they continue to figure out where to allow new stores.
The possibility of overly strict regulations has businesses fretting over access and some San Franciscans wondering what happened to the counter-culture, anti-Prohibition city they know and love. The smell of cannabis being smoked is not uncommon in certain neighborhoods and parks.
“Let’s be honest: Cannabis is effectively legal now, and the sky hasn’t fallen. A lot of the information people have been given is completely false,” said Supervisor Jeff Sheehy, who uses medical marijuana to mitigate pain from older HIV medications.
Fountain Valley affirms commercial marijuana ban
Recreational-marijuana-related businesses will be banned in Fountain Valley, the City Council affirmed Tuesday.
The council voted 4-0 without discussion to approve the final reading of an ordinance to ban all commercial marijuana activity such as shops and delivery services, plus outdoor cultivation. Councilman Mark McCurdy was absent.
When the council passed its first reading of the ordinance in October, the city’s attorney suggested seeing how other cities that allow commercialization manage the industry, and raised the possibility of lifting the ban later.
California voters last year passed Proposition 64, legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults. But the law allows local control. Cities have until the end of this year to preemptively ban marijuana-related commercial activity. The state will begin issuing business licenses for shops and other commercial endeavors Jan. 1.
California slapping high taxes on marijuana, causing sticker shock for some
California’s legal marijuana marketplace is coming with a kaleidoscope of new taxes and fees that could influence where it’s grown, how pot cookies and other munchies are produced and the price tag on just about everything.
Be ready for sticker shock.
RELATED: Will high taxes allow black market in pot to thrive?
On a retail level, it costs about $35 to buy a small bag of good quality medical marijuana in Los Angeles, enough to roll five or six joints.
But in 2018, when recreational sales take hold and additional taxes kick in, the cost of that same purchase in the new market is expected to increase at the retail counter to $50 or $60.
At the high end, that’s about a 70% jump.
Editorial: Can Los Angeles repair the damage done by the war on marijuana?
Make no mistake, the war on marijuana has not been colorblind. Despite national surveys showing that white people and black people use marijuana at approximately the same rates, blacks have over the years been nearly four times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites.
That disparity is as true in Los Angeles as it is elsewhere in the country. African Americans comprise less than 10% of the population in L.A. Yet between 2000 and 2017, blacks represented 40% of marijuana-related arrests. Latinos made up 44% of arrests. Whites made up only 16% of arrests, according to a city consultant’s analysis of Los Angeles Police Department data.
And even as Los Angeles and other cities allowed the growth of a quasi-legal, hugely profitable medical marijuana industry run mostly by white entrepreneurs, police arrests for marijuana possession and sales continued to target African Americans and Latinos overwhelmingly.
A drug arrest — especially if followed by a conviction — can have terrible consequences. Even after a person has completed his or her sentence, it remains harder to get a job, get into college, rent an apartment or get a loan. A drug conviction is a barrier to economic opportunity.
California treasurer wants the state to study a public bank option for pot businesses
California Treasurer John Chiang wants the state to consider creating a government-owned bank that could serve cannabis businesses, one of several recommendations aimed at helping bring those businesses into the financial mainstream.
The recommendations, the product of a year of meetings of a cannabis working group organized by Chiang’s office, suggest there may be ways for California to help cannabis businesses pay their taxes and open bank accounts. But they also illustrate that the relationship between banks and marijuana companies will remain tenuous unless federal laws are changed.
Indeed, along with looking into the creation of a public bank, another of the recommendations from Chiang’s group is to form a multistate group to lobby Congress to ease federal restrictions on cannabis.
“A definitive, bulletproof solution will remain elusive” without federal deregulation, Chiang said at a news conference Tuesday announcing the recommendations. “That is not an excuse for inaction.”
Some L.A. pot growers, manufacturers may get legal grace period ahead of licensing
Under a plan passed Tuesday by the City Council, Los Angeles could provide a grace period for some marijuana growers and manufacturers — allowing them to avoid prosecution and continue operating while they seek city licenses.
City lawyers are now tasked with drafting proposed regulations that lay out ground rules for businesses that grow, sell, process and distribute marijuana in Los Angeles before the ordinance comes back for another vote.
Council President Herb Wesson said that the package of proposed rules was “not totally complete” but that he wanted to kick off the process of drawing up the legal language for the complex regulations.
“We still have more than enough time to make adjustments,” Wesson said, trying to reassure council members who were uneasy about pressing ahead.
The sole lawmaker to vote against the move was Paul Krekorian, who said the council should make its decisions before turning to city lawyers to draft the proposed law. At a hearing that lasted for more than an hour, Krekorian and other council members raised a host of questions about the proposed regulations.
“This is our decision to make — not the city attorney,” Krekorian said.
Native American tribe opens huge cannabis store in downtown Las Vegas
Las Vegas’ newest retailer of recreational marijuana is also by far one of the biggest. Customers at the sprawling, 10,000-square-foot store are greeted by water walls and exposed wooden posts and beams that give the place an upscale feel.
Benny Tso, chairman of the tiny Las Vegas Paiute Tribe, said 300 to 500 customers have visited each day since the store’s Oct. 16 opening. He expects that number to rise significantly.
Roughly 15 to 20 of the 100 or so employees are Paiutes, a tribe in Nevada that has just 56 members. “It’s an economic driver for our tribe, to help our people,” Tso said.
Unlike bargain prices at some smoke shops — those selling tobacco, that is — on Native American reservations, prices at the NuWu Cannabis Marketplace in downtown Las Vegas are “competitive” with other sellers of marijuana.
How legalized pot can make up for the disastrous war on drugs
When recreational cannabis becomes legal in California on Jan. 2, part of the focus — in Los Angeles, at any rate — will be on “social equity.” That’s the term for a set of guidelines meant to spread legalization’s wealth to neighborhoods that have gotten the worst of the drug wars. According to draft legislation currently moving through the City Council, for every general license approved for a pot shop, one license must also be approved for social equity reasons.
I’m fully in favor of legalization — here, there and everywhere. I wouldn’t stop with marijuana, either. Across-the-board decriminalization would allow us to reframe addiction as a medical issue, and treat it as such. No more mandatory sentences, no more addicts in prison simply because of drug use. It would also undermine the black market, and raise tax revenues that could be channeled, in part — as Los Angeles plans to do with 20% of its marijuana taxes — into recovery and rehabilitation.
Traveling with pot doesn’t fly -- but weed ad trays at TSA checkpoint do
Every now and then, the culture experiences a watershed, a moment when we look up and say, “Wow, things really have changed.”
I know you think I am talking about sexual harassment, but I’m not. It’s far too early to say whether the torrent of revelations about sexually predatory men will shame them (and future generations) into changing how they behave.
I am talking about cannabis.
On New Year’s Day 2018, California enters a new era for legalization, which may hasten the end of decades of prohibition that have propelled a black market, ruined countless lives and obstructed research into what may be one of humanity’s most helpful therapeutic substances.
How do I know this moment of transformation is upon us?
Because Friday morning, I went through a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint at Ontario International Airport and saw it with my own eyes. A sticker that covered the bottom of the tray for my belongings said in huge block letters: “CANNABIS IS LEGAL.”
There was some fine print near the bottom: “Traveling with it is not. Leave it in California.”
High taxes on legal pot in California could mean black market will thrive
State and local taxes on marijuana could surpass 45% in some parts of California, jeopardizing efforts to bring all growers and sellers into a state-licensed market in January, according to the global credit ratings firm Fitch Ratings.
“High tax rates raise prices in legal markets, reinforcing the price advantage of black markets,” the firm said in a report Monday. “California’s black markets for cannabis were well established long before its voters legalized cannabis in November 2016 and are expected to dominate post-legalization production.”
David Stern calls for NBA changes of marijuana rules
Former NBA Commissioner David Stern believes medicinal marijuana use by players should be allowed, but the league says it won’t allow it for recreational use.
Stern was interviewed by former NBA player Al Harrington for the website Uninterrupted’s documentary “Concept of Cannabis.” Stern said he thought there was “universal agreement that marijuana for medical purposes should be completely legal.”
Adam Silver, who replaced Stern as commissioner in 2014, has said he is interested in studying more about the safety of medicinal marijuana. But Stern, who spent 30 years as commissioner, seemed ready to go a step further in his interview.
L.A. aims to help disadvantaged communities cash in on marijuana legalization
The war on drugs has taken a disproportionate toll on people who are poor, black or Latino, community activists have long lamented.
Now that marijuana is on the brink of legalization in California, Los Angeles leaders want to make sure that disadvantaged people can cash in.
L.A. has been crafting regulations to permit a wide range of marijuana businesses as the state prepares to legalize the sale of recreational pot. Under a proposal drafted by outside consultants and released recently, the city would provide extra help to some people seeking to run cannabis businesses, in an attempt to address the uneven effects of the drug war.
Man is convicted of robbing dealers of marijuana worth $130,000 at Pelican Hill resort
An Anaheim man was convicted Wednesday of robbing marijuana dealers at gunpoint during two large-scale drug deals at the Resort at Pelican Hill in Newport Coast in February and March.
An Orange County Superior Court jury found Thomas Lamarr Prince, 40, guilty of four counts of felony robbery, according to court records.
Prince is expected to be sentenced Dec. 15. He could face up to 25 years in state prison.
Fountain Valley moves to ban recreational marijuana businesses
The Fountain Valley City Council took a step Tuesday toward banning recreational marijuana-related businesses in town.
The council voted 4-0, with member Mark McCurdy abstaining, to approve the first reading of an ordinance to ban all commercial marijuana activity such as shops and delivery services, plus outdoor cultivation.
The council must affirm the ban with a second vote at a later meeting for it to take effect.
Editorial: Californians will soon be able to buy marijuana; they need legal places to smoke it
Adults in California 21 and older soon will be able to buy marijuana legally for recreational use. But where will they smoke it?
Under Proposition 64, approved by state voters last year, it will be legal to grow, buy and sell marijuana beginning in January. However, the ballot initiative included strict limits on where that marijuana could be consumed.
Not in public places, such as streets or in parks. Not in a car. Not in any space — such as a bar or office building — where tobacco smoking is already banned. Not on the premises of any business where tobacco or alcohol is sold. Landlords and property owners also can ban smoking in apartments and hotel rooms.
Basically, the only place, other than a private home, where one could legally smoke marijuana would be at a business licensed for on-site consumption, such as a marijuana lounge or an Amsterdam-like cafe. Proposition 64 gave local governments the option to permit or ban that sort of on-site consumption. But so far, many California cities, including Los Angeles, have no proposals to allow for such places.
Thinking about treating Rover with reefer? Read this first
Pot for pets is a big business — dispensaries across California offer a range of cannabis-derived products formulated for the four-legged members of your family — think capsules for cats, biscuits for dogs and tinctures, oils and ointments for both.
According to the products’ testimonial-filled websites and pamphlets, the pet-specific formulations can potentially relieve many of the same ailments for which humans consume cannabis, including pain, nausea, anxiety and seizures.
But though its effect on humans is fairly well understood, cannabis’ effects on those of the canine and feline persuasion haven’t been well studied — and that’s just one of the reasons veterinarians suggest that pet parents thinking about slipping kitty some kush should consider hitting the pause button.
“There is no research that shows any benefit,” said veterinarian Ken Pawlowski, immediate past president of the California Veterinary Medical Assn. and the organization’s point person on the issue. “We’re not saying that there aren’t any, [only] there is no research out there that demonstrates the benefits or, more importantly, what appropriate doses of what compounds might be indicated.”
It’s a cannabis Catch-22 for pot businesses in L.A.
Like countless Californians in the last few years, Roberta Koz Wilson and her brother Jeff Koz saw the coming revolution in cannabis and decided they wanted a piece of it.
Or in their case, a bite.
Using a recipe perfected by their mother, they created Dr. Norm’s Cookie Co., a Los Angeles-based edible cannabis company named after their father.
Its tasty psychoactive products are available in at least 70 Southern California dispensaries. At the moment, they are sold to patients who have a doctor’s recommendation for pot.
Come January, anyone over 21 will be able to imbibe them for pleasure. That is, if the Kozes are still in business.
Like so many other cannabis entrepreneurs, the Kozes are desperate to operate in the light, to be licensed and regulated, to pay their taxes. They are waiting for the city of Los Angeles to tell them how to do that.
Unfortunately, in the draft of cannabis rules that the Los Angeles City Council will be asked to vote on sometime in the next week or so, the Kozes — and the operators almost every other cannabis business except about a few dozen older dispensaries — will be required to shutter their enterprise until they receive an official city license. It’s a process that could take months.
Hundreds applied to be on California’s pot advisory committee. Here’s who got picked
With just three months left to draft new rules for marijuana sales in California, the state on Tuesday appointed a panel of industry members, health experts, law enforcement officials and union leaders to provide advice during the effort.
The 22-member Cannabis Advisory Committee will help the Bureau of Cannabis Control develop regulations on the cultivation, transport, testing and sale of medical and recreational marijuana, with state licenses scheduled to be issued starting Jan. 2.
“These individuals represent the diverse backgrounds of California and the cannabis industry and have the necessary experience to make the committee successful,” said Dean R. Grafilo, director of the state Department of Consumer Affairs. He said hundreds of people applied for the panel.
Members of the panel include Tamar Todd, policy manager and legal director for the Drug Policy Alliance, a group that has pressed for legalization; psychiatrist Timmen Cermak, who specializes in addiction issues; California Highway Patrol Capt. Helena Williams; and Jeff Ferro, director of Cannabis Workers Rising, an affiliate of the United Food and Commercial Workers union. Here’s the full list of committee members.
Where can you open a pot shop? L.A. is hammering out those rules
Los Angeles took another step Thursday to prepare for the legal selling of recreational marijuana, hammering out proposed rules on where pot shops and other cannabis companies can operate.
The Planning Commission voted unanimously to back proposed regulations that would limit marijuana retailers to most commercial and industrial zones and bar them from opening within 800 feet of schools, public parks, libraries, alcohol and drug rehabilitation programs and other pot shops.
The draft rules also set out which zones other kinds of cannabis businesses can operate in, including manufacturers, distributors and greenhouses where marijuana is grown. And they require marijuana companies to get both a state license and city approval to operate in L.A.
Cannabis industry groups were pleased to see the city taking steps to recognize marijuana businesses but argued that some of the zoning rules were too strict and would squeeze out local firms.
“If you do not add more land, you are dooming this industry,” said Sarah Armstrong, policy chair for the Southern California Coalition.
The trade group argued that the 800-foot radius would make it impossible for an adequate number of shops to open, resulting in long lines and overflow crowds that would become a nuisance for neighborhoods.
State law sets a default radius of 600 feet from such sensitive sites for marijuana shops, though it also includes some additional sites, such as child care centers, that L.A. is excluding in its draft regulations.
Industry groups also argued that L.A. should expand the zones where marijuana cultivation and manufacturing can occur. For instance, the Southern California Coalition said in a letter that some business activities, such as adding cannabis oil bought from another company to a brownie, were so benign they should be zoned the same way as bakeries.
29 states have legal pot. Jeff Sessions wants to stamp it out, and he’s closer than you think
The 85 words almost seemed an afterthought when Congress hurriedly crammed them into a massive budget bill late in the Obama administration, as if lawmakers wanted to acknowledge America’s outlook on marijuana had changed, but not make a big deal of it.
Almost three years later, a multibillion-dollar industry and the freedom of millions to openly partake in its products without fear of federal prosecution hinge on that obscure budget clause.
But now, Congress may throw it overboard amid pressure from an attorney general who views marijuana as a dangerous menace.
What has become known as the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment constitutes a single paragraph of federal law. It prohibits the Justice Department from spending even a cent to prosecute medical marijuana users and sellers operating legally under state laws. Since its passage, it has largely shut down efforts by federal prosecutors or drug enforcement officials to interfere with otherwise legal sales of marijuana in 29 states and the District of Columbia that have passed legalization measures.
California wildfires destroying pot farms just before legal sales begin in state
The Northern California wildfires this week have destroyed at least seven marijuana farms just months before the state begins licensing legal sales of cannabis, making it the “worst year on record” for loss of crops, an industry leader said Tuesday.
Many growers lost their homes and farms in the Redwood Complex fire in Mendocino County, the Atlas fire in Napa County and the Stubbs and Nuns fires in Sonoma County, said Hezekiah Allen, executive director of the California Growers Assn.
“The October 2017 firestorm is having an extremely severe impact on our communities,” Allen said. “It is the worst year on record, and the worst year I can remember, in terms of farms lost. We have been able to confirm seven farms lost, but we expect the number to be much higher as more information comes in.”
The loss is especially severe this year because many growers had spent their life savings getting local permits and preparing crops for state licensure and sales scheduled to begin Jan. 2, Allen said.
In addition, he said, marijuana growers do not qualify for crop insurance or federal emergency relief funds.
‘Legend of 420’ documents marijuana’s rise to legitimacy and may leave you with the munchies
Weed, pot, marijuana, mary jane, ganja, the devil’s lettuce, cannabis — whatever you call it, the wacky tobbacky’s come a long way from “Reefer Madness,” blooming into a massive industry and legitimate cultural phenomenon. The documentary “The Legend of 420” chronicles the current landscape of cannabis, from its medicinal uses to art to fine dining and beyond.
Directed by Peter Spirer, “The Legend of 420” has an enthusiastic, shaggy-dog sensibility, touting the many wonderful uses and benefits of cannabis, while occasionally touching down on the historically harsh, often racist enforcement of drug laws in the U.S., and the potential pitfalls for the federal legalization of recreational marijuana to be found in the Trump administration.
As the top pot-producing state in the nation, California could be on thin ice with the federal government
California produced at least 13.5 million pounds of marijuana last year — five times more than the 2.5 million pounds it consumed.
Where did all that extra pot go?
The answer, experts say, is that much of it ended up in other states — some where marijuana is still illegal.
As California prepares to allow cannabis sale for recreational use, that surplus has become a problem.
“If we want to avoid intervention from the federal government, we need to do everything we can to crack down on illegal activity and prevent cannabis from being exported out of state,” Assemblyman Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale) said.
The wide gap between production and consumption came to light in a recent study commissioned by the state Department of Food and Agriculture.
Think you might challenge that marijuana shop’s city license? L.A. might stand in your way
Los Angeles might restrict who can lodge appeals when marijuana businesses get city licenses, blocking challenges from people who do not live, work or own property nearby.
The controversial idea was tucked into draft rules that would lay the groundwork for what is widely expected to be one of the hottest marijuana markets in the country — a burgeoning industry that could pump more than $50 million in tax revenue into city coffers next year.
Under the proposed rules, which had been heavily shaped by the office of City Council President Herb Wesson, L.A. would allow appeals only from the business applicants themselves or “occupants, stakeholders, or property owners who reside or own property” within 500 feet.
Wesson staffers said that wording was meant to include people who live, work or own property within that 500-foot radius.
“It just didn’t make sense to me that somebody in San Pedro would appeal something on Crenshaw Boulevard in my district,” said Wesson, who represents areas including Mid-City, Koreatown and parts of South L.A.
In addition, some groups might try to appeal every cannabis business that was approved “because of the sensitivity of the issue,” Wesson said.
California is trying to educate people about marijuana before recreational sales start
Months before California allows the sale of marijuana for recreational use, the state has launched an education campaign about the drug, including highlighting the potential harms of cannabis for minors and pregnant women.
The state is scheduled to issue licenses starting Jan. 2 for growing and selling marijuana for recreational use, expanding a program that currently allows cannabis use for medical purposes.
In response, the California Department of Public Health has created a website to educate Californians about the drug and its impacts, including how to purchase and safely store cannabis.
L.A. is set to be a hot market for marijuana sales. But there might not be many places to smoke it
Los Angeles lawmakers are laying the groundwork for what is widely expected to be one of the hottest markets for marijuana in the country, one that could bring more than $50 million in taxes to city coffers next year.
The city is drafting rules to allow greenhouses that grow cannabis, industrial facilities that process it, and new shops that sell it for recreational use, not just medical need.
But anyone expecting L.A. to become the next Amsterdam may be disappointed: Officials have held back, so far, on welcoming cafes or lounges where customers could smoke or consume cannabis.
That has troubled some marijuana advocates and attorneys, who warn that even after California legalizes the sale of recreational pot, many tourists and renters could be left without a safe, legal place to use it in Los Angeles.
“It’s ridiculous that the city doesn’t consider that,” said attorney Bruce Margolin, executive director of the L.A. chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
In the age of Trump, how do you build a legal marijuana industry from the ground up?
Election night 2016 was such a shocker nationally that maybe you’ve forgotten that, oh yes, California voted to legalize recreational marijuana. And come January, if you’re at least 21, cannabis can be officially taxed and sold to you, just like, oh, the cheese doodles you’ll be wanting to eat after you light up. It is a massive undertaking, turning an illegal underground industry into a legal and legit one – a business that could put $50 million a year in tax money into the city’s purse.
Last month, Mayor Eric Garcetti chose Cat Packer to be executive director of the department of cannabis regulation. He, and the City Council and a cannabis commission, will be crafting the city’s rules and regulations for who can sell what where, and Packer’s office will be enforcing them. She was California coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, and she doesn’t underestimate the scale of this, everything from how sellers get licensed to whether to put bins at the airport for tourists to throw away their pot before they board a plane. As L.A. becomes the biggest pot-friendly city in the nation, the nitty-gritty of making it work here could be the making or breaking of cannabis deregulation nationwide.
This is a job that’s never existed before. How do you create a job like this from scratch?
The City Council has been working on developing rules and regulations and policy in this area for about a year now. We’re having conversations about how to make this right for Los Angeles, but I think this starts with having the right people at the table — community members, industry stakeholders, patients, consumers, community members who don’t want anything to do with cannabis.
San Diego legalizes marijuana cultivation and manufacturing, despite some concerns
San Diego will have a fully legal and regulated marijuana industry, including pot farms, factories making edibles and retail storefronts selling the drug to both medical and recreational customers.
In a 6-3 vote Monday, the City Council agreed to legalize local cultivation, manufacturing and testing of marijuana when new state laws take effect in January.
The council also voted earlier this year to allow legally approved medical marijuana dispensaries to expand their sales to recreational customers. The city has approved 17 such businesses, and 11 have begun operating.
The approval came despite strong objections from police Chief Shelley Zimmerman, who warned of significant threats to public safety that she said couldn’t be outweighed by new tax revenue from the highly profitable industry.
The council majority said, however, that creating a local supply chain for the city’s dispensaries would boost the economy, create jobs and improve the quality and safety of local marijuana by eliminating the need to truck it in from elsewhere.
They also said it would prevent a local “black market” of unregulated cultivators and manufacturers that would emerge if the city outlawed those activities.
Topless carwash raises cash for deputies wounded in gun battle at Rastafarian pot farm
The tops came off, and the wallets came out.
A Yuba County strip club, feeling particularly philanthropic, used its abundant assets — topless women — in a weekend carwash to raise money for two sheriff’s deputies who were injured in a shootout at a Rastafarian pot farm last month.
The shirtless carwash at City Limits Showgirls in Marysville on Saturday raised $2,560, the strip club wrote on Facebook. A long line of cars snaked outside the fundraiser, which was held in a tented parking lot.
The charity event was held for Yuba County deputies Phillip Bronson and Andrew Everhart, who were shot multiple times on Aug. 1 at a Rastafarian church’s marijuana farm in Oregon House, a small community northeast of Sacramento.
Pot delivery by drone? California cannabis czars put the kibosh on stoner pipe dream
If you imagined the skies of California would someday be buzzing with drones carrying tiny vials of pot or edibles for recreational marijuana users, think again, because that stoner fantasy was just a pipe dream.
California’s Bureau of Cannabis Control last week outlined its plans to ban pot delivery by drone, putting the kibosh on any business hoping to make a buck on the concept.
On Wednesday, the bureau released an initial study describing proposed emergency regulations for commercial cannabis businesses ahead of Jan. 1, when marijuana sales, with proper retail licensing, will be allowed for recreational use in California.
In its study — Commercial Cannabis Business Licensing Program Regulations — the bureau is clear: Marijuana must be transported in trailers or commercial vehicles.
Hmong pot growers in Siskiyou County seeking identity, profit — or both
The narcotics officer stood on a windswept ridge near the Oregon border and surveyed the fields cut into the hills below, a landscape resembling a lost piece of wine country.
The terraces of Siskiyou County, however, were planted in cannabis.
More than 1,500 Hmong farmers in the last two years have poured into this remote county, so vast it encompasses two western mountain ranges.
By the second growing season in 2016, satellite images showed nearly 1,000 parcels laden with dark green crops. Depending on whose yield estimates and black market prices you rely on, the Hmong’s Siskiyou County crop had a value as high as $1 billion.
Where it was bound for, the growers would not say.
Mouying Lee, a businessman whose name surfaces in every facet of the Siskiyou marijuana story, said with a deadpan delivery that his clansmen came here “for the feng shui” of the mountains. He pointed out that most of the landholders are elderly: Former factory workers and mechanics from Wisconsin. Old aunts and uncles.
Cannabis advertising takes to the skies
Voters in 26 states and the District of Columbia have adopted laws that legalize the use of marijuana in some form.
But so far Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air appears to be the first and only U.S.-based air carrier to accept advertising from a cannabis dispensary.
Allegiant Air’s in-flight magazine, Sunseeker, began this month to run an ad for Acres Cannabis, a marijuana dispensary and open-view kitchen where THC-infused candies and cookies are made and sold in a shop located a few blocks off of the Las Vegas strip.
Kevin Forde, a spokesman for the dispensary, said the ad reminds travelers flying to Las Vegas that the sale and use of recreational marijuana are legal in Nevada.
“It makes sense,” he said.
Pot went on sale to adults 21 years and older in Nevada on July 1, after voters approved the use of recreational cannabis in November 2016.
Forde said the dispensary is considering buying ads in other airline magazines. Industry experts say they have heard of no other airline that has accepted advertising from a cannabis business.
Don’t worry, Mom, it’s not a bong; it’s art
Call it high art.
A pop-up art gallery inside the Chateau Marmont hotel features a display of hand-blown, art-glass marijuana paraphernalia — and the price tags run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Grey Space Art, which will be at the hotel through Oct. 5, is the brainchild of a 22-year-old New Yorker named Benjamin Milstein, who said he amassed cash after investing in cannabis stock in 2013 two weeks before it became legal in Colorado. That sparked an interest in functional glass art in the form of bongs and pipes and prompted him to embark on a journey around the world — Japan, the Netherlands, Britain and Spain, among other places — to buy sculptural works.
In two years, Milstein collected more than 500 pieces by about 80 artists.
10 bills regulating pot in California are sidelined for the year as state bureau works to finalize its own rules
Ten bills aimed at regulating marijuana have been shelved by state lawmakers, giving California’s new Bureau of Cannabis Control time to finish its own rules before lawmakers pile on with additional restrictions.
Among the bills held by the Senate Appropriations Committee without comment were measures that would have further regulated where pot can be used, how marijuana is marketed and how products are trademarked. Another would require the state to produce a consumer guide.
The actions come as the Bureau of Cannabis Control is preparing to begin issuing licenses and regulations for the growth, transport and sale of marijuana for medical and recreational use starting Jan. 2.
Netflix promotes ‘Disjointed’ with show-inspired cannabis strains
To market its new pot-focused Kathy Bates workplace comedy “Disjointed,” Netflix took over a West Hollywood medical marijuana dispensary for the weekend where offerings included strains inspired by the streaming service’s shows including “Grace and Frankie,” “Orange Is the New Black” and “BoJack Horseman.”
The Netflix Collection features a dozen different dried cannabis flower options sold in wooden-stoppered glass jars. Strains include Banana Stand Kush ($65 for 3.5 grams), described as “[a] fruity indica perfect in a bowl, vaporizer, or big yellow joint,” which takes inspiration from “Arrested Development,” and a hybrid dubbed Rutherford B. Haze ($50), one of three strains inspired by “Disjointed” that’s described as “[a] moving tribute in cannabis to our 19th president, this sativa can help you begin your own personal reconstruction.”
To celebrate the release of the show, which started streaming on Netflix on Friday, the company partnered with Alternative Herbal Health Services to temporarily turn it into Ruth’s Alternative Caring — the SoCal dispensary that’s the setting for the show — for the weekend. (The pop-up pops down at 6 p.m. Sunday.) The West Hollywood dispensary wasn’t chosen at random. The woman in charge, Dina Browner (better known as “Dr. Dina” — a nickname bestowed upon her by Snoop Dogg) served as the show’s cannabis consultant. (“Some of the things you see on the show may — or may not — have actually happened here,” Browner told The Times on Saturday.)
MedMen goes big -- literally -- with a new 3,000-square-foot Santa Ana medical marijuana dispensary
There’s a new joint in town.
MedMen, one of the largest marijuana retailers in the country, opened its newest medical marijuana dispensary last month in Santa Ana, making its 3,000 square feet of retail space one of the largest dispensaries in the county.
The cannibis firm offers around 1,000 products, including concentrates, flour, edibles, canine/feline products and topicals.
“Our aim is to make this a true retail experience by being innovative and bringing in new products,” said Daniel Yi, 50, MedMen director of communications.
Lagunitas’ new SuperCritical Ale is brewed with cannabis terpenes -- but won’t get you high
Two California businesses — one a beloved national brand and the other an upstart in the state’s hottest sector — have teamed up for new product releases in two of the North Coast’s top industries: beer and cannabis.
Lagunitas Brewing Co. last week released its SuperCritical Ale, a hoppy beer that is brewed with terpenes, aromatic compounds of essential oils that are extracted from some plants, including cannabis and hops. The brew, available only in select California locations for a limited time, contains no THC, the chemical that triggers psychoactive effects.
Lagunitas, based in Petaluma, received the terpenes from Santa Rosa-based CannaCraft Inc., a cannabis-extract manufacturing facility that has made a name for itself in the newly legalized industry despite being raided by police last year.
In exchange, Lagunitas assisted CannaCraft in developing new vaping products for its AbsoluteXtracts line, which do contain THC. CannaCraft included terpenes that were derived from hops in the new products, with Lagunitas brewers providing guidance on obtaining a beer-like aroma for the high-inducing weed.
It should be available for sale in about five weeks, said Dennis Hunter, CannaCraft founder.
Review: Netflix’s new sitcom ‘Disjointed’ wants to be a stoner ‘Cheers’
Humans have been laughing at jokes about inebriation at least since Romans wrote comedy. Once it was drunks who were funny — Otis on “The Andy Griffith Show,” Foster Brooks, Dean Martin — but drunks just seem like alcoholics now. Marijuana, meanwhile, has moved in — pot jokes long ago entered the mainstream — and with “Disjointed,” it now has a whole sitcom of its own.
The series, premiering Friday on Netflix, was created by David Javerbaum (the wonderful Paul F. Tompkins puppet panel show “No, You Shut Up!”) and “Two and a Half Men” man Chuck Lorre, the co-creator of CBS’ “Mom,” a comedy about substance abuse and recovery. To some degree, this wants to be the stoner “Cheers” — James Burrows, who co-created that series, directed the “Disjointed” pilot.
There are “budtenders” here; a central workplace flirtation; and a coterie of comical regulars who want to go where they almost can remember their name. As on “Cheers,” the door to the street is on the left, the one to the office is on the right.
Huntington Beach City Council unanimously votes to ban recreational pot businesses
The Huntington Beach City Council unanimously approved a new zoning amendment Monday prohibiting the sale and distribution of non-medical marijuana by businesses.
The amendment also regulates the cultivation of recreational marijuana.
Some council members said allowing recreational marijuana sales and distribution may be viable in the future, but they would rather watch and analyze how other cities deal with implementing Proposition 64, which allows people 21 and older to use and cultivate non-medical marijuana. The proposition, approved by voters in November, has stipulations granting local governments the ability to ban recreational marijuana businesses and regulate cultivation.
Councilwoman Jill Hardy said other cities may glean some tax revenue from marijuana sales, but Huntington Beach should take the time to learn from others.
Cat Packer tapped to head L.A.’s Department of Cannabis Regulation
The Los Angeles City Council last week backed Mayor Eric Garcetti’s picks to oversee City Hall’s new Department of Cannabis Regulation, a vote that comes as officials prepare for legalization of recreational marijuana in California.
Cat Packer, the former California coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, will run the new city division. A five-member Cannabis Commission will provide input on cannabis rules.
The council voted 13 to 0 to hire Packer, with council members Paul Koretz and Curren Price absent from Wednesday’s meeting.
Looking back at an L.A. pot bust from 1948
The plants were believed to be just plain weeds. But they still had to be gathered up and burned.
A story in the Sept. 9, 1948, L.A. Times reported:
Marijuana valued at $20,000 went up in smoke yesterday -- but not puff by puff.
An even dozen “trees” of the narcotic weed, some as high as 10 feet, were burned by Lt. Ray Huber and other members of the Sheriff’s narcotic squad and Federal Agent George R. Davis.
Apparently growing wild, the stuff was gathered from two places–beside the fence of a slaughterhouse at Rush St. and Loma Ave., Rosemead, and in an alley behind 6800 Alameda St.
Lt. Huber disclosed that the narcotic squad’s attention was first called to the Rosemead marijuana patch two weeks ago. Since then, he said, there has been a “stake-out” there to nab anyone who attempted to harvest it. When no suspicious characters appeared, it was decided to destroy it under Federal supervision as required by law.
This post was originally published in the Aug. 22, 2012, Los Angeles Times.
Marijuana washes ashore in Laguna
More than two pounds of marijuana washed ashore at Irvine Cove Wednesday afternoon, Laguna Beach police said.
The cannabis was loose and in clumps and settled at the north end of the beach between rocks, sand and the tide line, Capt. Jason Kravetz wrote in an email.
The city’s Marine Safety officers reported the clumps washing ashore at 1 p.m., Kravetz said.
No change for Laguna’s marijuana laws
Laguna Beach will see little effect on its medical dispensary laws following Monday’s California Supreme Court ruling.
“Laguna Beach requires all businesses to comply with federal, state and local laws,” Laguna Beach City Manager John Pietig wrote in an email. “Medical marijuana dispensaries are prohibited under federal law so those businesses are not allowed in Laguna Beach.”
The state Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling gives cities the authority to prohibit storefront dispensaries under land use and zoning powers.