The Eagle-Tribune, Mar. 11, 2010 - But Not Enough Votes to Override Veto A bill to decriminalize possession of a quarter-ounce or less of marijuana won convincing support yesterday in the House with a 214-137 vote. But the tally is about 17 votes short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a veto promised by Gov. John Lynch. Rep. Frank Sapareto, R-Derry, who voted for the legislation, said the state's marijuana possession law is harsh enough. The penalty is a $2,000 fine and a year in jail. Furthermore, Sapareto said a conviction can close doors for young people, putting federal loans for college or military enlistment at risk. "It's ridiculous," he said.

Dallas Morning News, Mar. 11, 2010 - Taxpayers Foot the Bill for Unreasonable Drug Sentences It's usually not anyone's place in Dallas to tell Tyler jurors what to do or not to do in dealing with felons in their community. Smith County's law-enforcement officials are not accountable to outsiders on how they prosecute cases. But here's the big "but": In sending defendants off to state prison, every county pushes the incarceration cost onto the rest of us. It costs roughly $50 a day to house offenders in Texas prisons. And so it got our attention big time when a jury in Tyler sentenced a man to 35 years recently for possessing 4.6 ounces of marijuana, a sentence that tests our tolerance for prosecution of drug laws.

Summit Daily News, Mar. 08, 2010 - DENVER (AP) - Colorado lawmakers trying to regulate marijuana dispensaries are asking the U.S. attorney general to stop raids of medical marijuana operations. The group e-mailed the request to Eric Holder on Monday, following up on a letter sent last week. The lawmakers say the raids are discouraging dispensary operators and medical marijuana patients and growers from working with them on the proposed regulations. The letter was sent by Sens. Chris Romer and Nancy Spence and Reps. Tom Massey and Beth McCann.

USA Today, Mar. 09, 2010 - States' Moves Reflect 'New Era' of Acceptance LOS ANGELES -- James Gray once saw himself as a drug warrior, a former federal prosecutor and county judge who sent people to prison for dealing pot and other drug offenses. Gradually, though, he became convinced that the ban on marijuana was making it more accessible to young people, not less. "I ask kids all the time, and they'll tell you it is easier to get marijuana than a six-pack of beer because that is controlled by the government," he said, noting that drug dealers don't ask for IDs or honor minimum age requirements.

Detroit Free Press, Mar. 07, 2010 - LOS ANGELES - With a 13-year head start on Michigan, California's efforts to transform marijuana from illicit to prescription drug offers a clear lesson: It ain't easy. The conflict has flared in recent weeks with a new Los Angeles ordinance aimed at hundreds of marijuana dispensaries, many that operate more like drug dens than pharmacies. Michigan prohibits dispensaries under its 2008 voter-passed law, but communities are struggling with limits on the medical pot business. The Los Angeles ordinance would cap dispensaries in the city at 70 with 186 grandfathered in. All must follow tough rules such as observing a 1,000-foot buffer from churches and schools.

Joseph Casias, 29, has sinus cancer and an inoperable brain tumor. Despite his condition, he has dutifully gone to work every day for the last five years at a Walmart in Battle Creek, Michigan, where in 2008 he was named Associate of the Year. Casias is also a legal medical marijuana patient under Michigan state law. He [...]

Published: Mar 12, 2010 11:38 AM CST

For decades, advocates of marijuana policy reform have argued that a regulated and taxed marijuana market would generate revenue for government on the local, state and federal levels. There have even been studies projecting tax revenues from marijuana sales at $6.2 billion and even $31 billion annually. Occasionally – although far too rarely – we have [...]

Published: Mar 11, 2010 03:38 PM CST

Twenty-four-year-old American Ivory Williams—one of the fastest 100-meter sprinters in the world—will not be allowed to compete on the U.S. Team for this year’s World Indoor Championships. His offense? He tested positive for marijuana. Now Williams, who just last month ran the fastest 60 meters in the world, will be ineligible to compete for the next [...]

Published: Mar 11, 2010 01:58 PM CST

Talk about seeing the error of his ways. John J. Dilulio, Jr., the man who once co-authored a book with two former drug czars that described America’s drug war as “the most successful attack on a serious social problem in the last quarter-century,” has now reversed course, writing in the journal Democracy that it is “insane” [...]

Published: Mar 10, 2010 01:38 PM CST

In a fantastic example of how much the times have changed, the front-page, above-the-fold story in this morning’s USA Today, the “nation’s newspaper,” is about the “growing national movement” to reform marijuana laws. Quoting numerous voices from within the marijuana policy reform movement, including MPP’s Kurt Gardinier, the piece highlights the growing public support for ending [...]

Published: Mar 09, 2010 10:10 AM CST

Since 1965 over 20 million Americans have been arrested for a marijuana related charge, and that number grows by two about every minute. You heard me right. Someone in this country is arrested on a marijuana charge every 36 seconds–clearly marijuana prohibition isn’t working. But we can’t relent. We need to keep letting our government [...]

Published: Mar 04, 2010 03:16 PM CST

When U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced last year that the federal Department of Justice would no longer prosecute medical marijuana patients and providers complying with state law, reform advocates cheered it as the greatest victory in over a decade. The shift in federal policy was indeed a breakthrough for the medical marijuana movement, but did [...]

Published: Mar 03, 2010 02:58 PM CST