national news

2.5 ounces is the limit for Cannabis carried in cars under Michigan’s new legalization implementation.

15.6 dispensaries per 100,00 residents gives Oklahoma the second highest number of pot shops per capita.

20 grams or less of marijuana have been decriminalized in Hillsborough County, Florida, home to nearly 1.5m people.

72 pounds of THC-infused vaporizer cartridges were found in an Iowa woman’s car during a routine traffic stop, along with a reported 130 pounds of raw marijuana.

84 percent of Alabama newspaper readers favored legalization in a February online poll hosted by AL.com, in which more than 2,000 people backed legalizing medical & rec marijuana.

700 Cannabis plants were found inside a Mocksville, NC, man’s home in February, as part of what was described as a “sophisticated operation” where police found 127 pounds of pot and seven firearms.

NORTHWEST

BILL TO ADDRESS RACIAL INEQUITY IN CANNABIS LICENSING APPROVED BY WA HOUSE

ashington state lawmakers in February passed a bill intended to address racial inequalities within the marijuana industry. The bill would issue previously forfeited, canceled and revoked retail licenses to applicants of a new social equity program.

House Bill 2870 would require the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) to prioritize applicants who represent communities disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs. The agency would consider factors including the applicant’s race, gender, history of marijuana convictions during prohibition, and plans to employ people of color. Also considered would be the impact the war on drugs had on the applicant’s neighborhood. W

WASHINGTON CANNABIS FARM ACCUSED IN $4.85 MILLION PONZI SCHEME

he owner of a Cannabis farm near Anacortes, Washington, is accused of using Green Acre Pharms in a complicated Ponzi scheme that allegedly took $4.85 million from 2015 to 2017. According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, it included at least two dozen investors in Washington, Arizona, California and Texas, reports The Seattle Times.

Many investors used retirement funds or family loans, having been lured by

promises of huge profits from Russell’s Cannabis farm, according to an SEC complaint filed in federal court in Santa Ana, California.

Green Acre Pharms - which closed shop in December - was never profitable, according to the SEC. Meanwhile, owner Robert W. Russell, 60, and his partner, smalltime California film executive Guy Scott Griffithe, spent $3.5 million of investors’ money on a 65-foot yacht, luxury vehicles, and other “extravagant luxuries, inappropriate personal expenditures, and unrelated business ventures,” according to the SEC complaint. Russell and Griffithe have been charged with civil violations of federal securities law and seeks the return of “all ill-gotten gains.” No criminal charges have been filed. T

economy

NORTHWEST STATES RANK HIGH FOR CANNABIS JOBS

Washington state ranks third in the nation in Cannabis industry jobs, with Oregon coming in fourth, according to online weed guide Leafly’s fourth annual national report. California, with 39,804 jobs, and Colorado, with 34,705, nailed down the number one and two spots. Those numbers don’t include hemp jobs, which are also rapidly growing, particularly in Oregon.

DISCRIMINATION

roposed changes to Utah’s medical marijuana law would clarify that private employers aren’t required to accommodate workers who use Cannabis, nor are they barred from having policies restricting it. Some medical Cannabis advocates, pointing to what they say is the importance of Utah allowing businesses to run the way they choose, say they’re OK with that. But other advocates question why marijuana will be treated differently than any prescribed medication. “It’s still private employers’ business,” said Desiree Hennessy, executive director of Utah Patients Coalition. She said Utah doesn’t want to “step on the toes of private employers.” But Christine Stenquist, president of Together for Responsible Use and Cannabis Education, or TRUCE, said her group “absolutely opposes” the bill not requiring private employers to allow use. “What other medication or medical treatment is subject to employers’ scrutiny?” Stenquist asked. P UTAH BILL SAYS EMPLOYERS CAN BAN MEDICINAL USE ADVOCATES QUESTION WHY MARIJUANA WILL BE TREATED DIFFERENTLY THAN ANY PRESCRIBED MEDICATION.

east coast

Joy Strand resigned as executive director of the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission last Fall. The former top regulator of Maryland’s medical Cannabis industry has joined a Frederick, Maryland-based marijuana company as executive vice president, reports The Baltimore Sun. Strand now works for Green Leaf Medical, the company announced in January. Strand is in charge of coordinating Green Leaf’s government relations in multiple states, according to Kevin Goldberg, president and general counsel of the company. “She brings a wealth of knowledge about the Cannabis industry and compliance,” Goldberg said. “We’re really looking forward to her input for all aspects of our operations.” FORMER TOP MARYLAND MEDICAL MARIJUANA OFFICIAL JOINS CANNABIS COMPANY

health & safety PITTSBURGH GRANDMA GIVES JOINTS TO GRANDKIDS

Pittsburgh woman is being charged after allegedly allowing her grandchildren to smoke Cannabis while recorded on social media. Tonika Averytt is charged with two cases of endangering the welfare of children and two cases of corruption of minors, reports CBS Pittsburgh. According to a criminal complaint filed by Pittsburgh Police, Averytt allowed her grandsons, 11 and 12, to smoke marijuana under her supervision. According to police, both juveniles were supplied with a joint, which they smoked while recording the incident on social media. A

AVERYTT ALLOWED HER GRANDSONS, 11 AND 12, TO SMOKE MARIJUANA UNDER HER SUPERVISION.

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