Author: News Room

By Evan Dawes I hadn’t seen David since I got sent down. He was waiting in the visitor’s room, looking like he was afraid he’d catch bad luck. We went through the preliminary how-you-beens, then I asked him if he’d brought me anything to smoke. He started. He reminded me of the many signs he’d driven by after passing the prison entrance that declared it a felony to bring alcohol, firearms or drugs onto the reservation. “And besides,” he said, “this is a prison. I mean, after all… uh, drugs? In the joint?” I figured I’d have to show him…

By Robert Sabbag Brown Gold Coffee, imported and packaged by the Andes Coffee Corporation of Palisades Park, New Jersey, is, as its label points out, “100% Colombian.” A unique blend of Medellin Excelso and the Armenia Excelso coffee beans, the label adds, it is “worth its taste in gold.” Cocaine, on the other hand, a blend of coca leaf alkaloids and neutral crystals, very often 100 percent Colombian, is worth approximately its exact weight in gold—and that is before it crosses the border. The mathematics of this coincidence appealed to Zachary Swan, who over his morning coffee was scanning the…

Nothing beats being in the flow of a kickass workout. Whether your feet are pounding the pavement, your arms pumping while lifting kettlebells, or your glutes firing while swimming across a pool, a great workout session will leave you feeling fantastic.  The problem for many, though, is finding the motivation to get started. When the moment comes to tie on your running shoes, waves of excuses can quell the best of intentions to get moving.  But for some people, weed may be the answer to overcoming workout apathy and enjoying exercise. While there’s long been an assumption that cannabis users…

A top Republican Wisconsin senator says his caucus is “getting pretty close” to supporting medical marijuana legalization, and he could foresee the GOP-controlled chamber advancing the reform as long as certain regulations were put in place. Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R) has long been skeptical of legalizing any form of cannabis use, but his latest comments to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel signal that the conservative legislature may finally be positioned to move on the issue this session. “Our caucus is getting pretty close on medical marijuana,” he said. “A lot of our members, who are maybe at a point…

Employers would be prohibited from discriminating against most job applicants for off-duty marijuana use or for testing positive for non-psychoactive THC metabolites under a new bill filed in the Washington State Senate. The legislation, which was pre-filed for the 2023 session late last month, is one of several cannabis reform proposals that will be taken up at a hearing of the Senate Labor & Commerce Committee next week. The employment bill sponsor, Sen. Karen Keiser (D), chairs that panel. The legislation says that the legalization of adult-use marijuana in the state in 2012 “created a disconnect between prospective employees’ legal…

Illinois marijuana sales reached a record high of more than $1.5 billion in 2022—and this past December marked the strongest sales month to date—officials announced on Friday. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) said that “2022 set adult use cannabis sales records in all categories it tracks.” That includes a yearly adult-use cannabis sales total of $1,552,324,820, which is 12 percent higher than the 2021 total of $1,379,088,278 and 131 percent higher than 2020, which saw $669,084,410 in sales. On a monthly basis, December 2022 set a new record. Adults spent $143,899,826 on 3,446,978 marijuana products that month.…

A Republican Missouri lawmaker says he plans to file a revised psychedelics bill to provide therapeutic access to psilocybin for people with serious mental health conditions in the coming days. Rep. Tony Lovasco (R) said his forthcoming legislation has been modified from the version he introduced last year, with input from a key committee. That earlier bill received a hearing in the House Health and Mental Health Policy Committee last March, but it did not advance. In an interview with KMOX radio that aired on Thursday, Lovasco said he didn’t end up pre-filing the bill for the 2023 session because…

“I do feel like there’s a consensus building to do something that’s public-health focused, but also a little bit of an increased role in the justice system.” By Joseph O’Sullivan, Crosscut Should the legal system treat drug possession as a crime? How can society compel people with serious substance-use disorders to get treatment? And how do elected officials handle those questions? It’s been nearly two years since the state Supreme Court’s February 2021 ruling, known as the Blake decision, struck down Washington’s felony drug possession law. The ruling essentially invalidated decades’ worth of criminal convictions, as well as their legal…

Tens of millions of cannabis consumers will enjoy broadening civil rights and access to weed, thanks to a collection of new laws and regulations taking effect this week and beyond in at least 11 US states.Voters, regulators, and lawmakers across the US enacted laws, rules, and executive orders that take effect this week from sea to shining sea. Here’s the state-by-state rundown of weed laws taking effect in 2023.CaliforniaMedium and Large license types became legal Jan. 1, 2023. Above, Pacific Stone in Carpinteria, CA. (Mike Rosati for Leafly)The world’s largest legal weed market, California, keeps leading the way with several…

Maryland lawmakers convened for another marijuana legalization workgroup meeting on Thursday, with members hearing from cannabis policy experts about market demand considerations once a regulated systems of sales launches. The House Cannabis Referendum and Legalization Workgroup—which was formed in 2021 by Speaker Adrienne Jones (D)—listened to a presentation from the firm Cannabis Public Policy Consulting (CPPC) that overviewed the issue. The final MGA Cannabis Workgroup meeting of this interim is underway. Today, we receive a presentation on market demand and taxation in the cannabis industry. Of course, our work will continue into #mdga23. Tune into this meeting here: https://t.co/L7ONsRs6kH —…