A panel set up to review Denver's marijuana policies has recommended that police refrain from busting adults who fire up during the Democratic National Convention.Of course, this conversation wouldn't even be happening if Denver police just listened to the people they serve. The citizens of Denver voted against petty marijuana enforcement not once, but twice, first legalizing possession of up to an ounce, and then calling on police to make marijuana enforcement the lowest priority. Is there anything confusing or ambiguous about that?
Police will have to deal with numerous security issues next week when thousands of people - ranging from protestors to delegates - descend on Denver, said Mason Tvert, leader of a group that sponsored a law mandating that marijuana be a low-enforcement priority.
"It is absolutely absurd for the police to be spending any of their time worrying about adults using a drug that is less harmful than alcohol," he said today.
Tvert, who also sits on the Marijuana Policy Review Panel, said he would deliver the recommendation to Mayor John Hickenlooper, Police Chief Gerald Whitman and Denver City Council president Jeanne Robb. [Denver Post]
Sacramento, CA -- A medical marijuana employment rights bill, which would protect hundreds of thousands of medical marijuana patients in California from employment discrimination, passed the State Senate today. AB2279 had already passed the State Assembly in May, which means the bill now heads to the Governor's desk. Advocates expect the bill to reach Schwarzenegger's desk in the next few weeks.
AB2279, introduced in February by Assemblymember Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and co-authored by Assemblymembers Patty Berg (D-Eureka), Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley) and Lori Saldaña (D-San Diego), reverses a January California Supreme Court decision in the case Ross v. RagingWire. Support for the bill has been widespread, coming from labor, business, and health groups at the local and national level. [Americans for Safe Access]
Dear friends:
Wow.
We just got some encouraging news from Massachusetts: 71% of Massachusetts residents support a landmark ballot initiative to decriminalize marijuana possession in the state, according to a new statewide poll from Boston's Suffolk University and the local NBC affiliate.
The initiative will be on Massachusetts' ballot this November 4. If it passes, it would remove the threat of arrest or jail for possessing an ounce or less of marijuana, replacing it with a $100 fine â which could be paid through the mail without lawyers or court appearances, just like a speeding ticket.
71% support eclipses what we've seen in all previous polling â support has generally remained in the 60% range â and so these newest numbers should be taken with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, these results clearly point to widespread support for marijuana law reform in Massachusetts and bode well for the initiative's chances this November.
Can you help capitalize on this unprecedented level of support? If you want the chance to help pass a historic marijuana policy, here's your chance.
Your help really matters, because victory is by no means assured. Powerful, well-financed organizations within the state â including the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association and the Massachusetts Family Institute â have publicly announced their plans to work against the initiative, and both are already marshalling their forces to prevent it from passing. So this encouraging poll is a double-edged sword: While it reveals the initiative to be enormously popular in Massachusetts, it will also motivate prohibitionist opponents to an even greater degree.
Would you please consider donating $10 or more to the campaign today, to help provide the resources to counter the coming attacks?
Thank you in advance for anything you can do to help the campaign capitalize on the groundswell of public support and fight back hard against those who want to continue jailing marijuana users.Â
Sincerely,
Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.