Cannabis Hemp News

Jury Duty as Gigantic Waste of Time David Warner 8 January 2009 http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/the941/20...-waste-of-time/ I love jury duty. I really do. Civic pride, the American way, whodunnits, sitting in judgment — what’s not to like? But I didn’t love jury duty today. Because today, at the Pinellas County Criminal Justice Center, I had to witness the gigantic waste of time, money, labor, energy and brains that is expended on taking a single individual to trial for the alleged crime of “trafficking in cannabis.” I never got to find out how the case turned out. Maybe that’s because, when the prosecuting attorney asked if any of the prospective jurors would have…

Man banned from park for two years over drug dealing offences 9 Janaury 2009 Islington News http://www.thecnj.co.uk/islington/2009/010...s010909_18.html A MAN has been banned from a park for two years after he was caught carrying eight bags of cannabis. Highbury Corner Magistrates imposed a two-year anti-social behaviour order on Shumon Ahmed, 20, from Inglebert Street, Finsbury, after he was last week convicted of possessing the drugs at Grimaldi Park, off Pentonville Road, in October last year. He was also sentenced to 70 hours of community service. Mr Ahmed has been banned from the park and the roads around Priory Green estate until December 2010. Islington Police …

ENCOD Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Vienna 6 December 2008 Dear Mr. Costa, On 6 December 2007 at the Drug Policy Alliance Conference in New Orleans I asked you the following question: “Why, after more than 30 years of regulated availability to adults over 18 years, is cannabis use in the Netherlands lower than in most European countries and the USA - and not higher, as would be expected if the prohibition of illicit drugs really was effective?” I am still waiting for your answer to this question. Although you made some comments about related matters, you did not answer my simple question. The basic assumption of drug pr…

Radical alternatives proposed for cannabis controls Andy Coghlan 30 December 2008 New Scientist http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg2012....html?full=true WHAT should we do to minimise the harm cannabis can cause to the health and welfare of users and to society at large? The answer, according to a report by a group of prominent academics and government advisers, is to change the law to allow the state to prepare and distribute the drug for recreational use. This controversial proposal comes from a commission assembled by the Beckley Foundation, a British charity dedicated to exploring the science of psychoactive substances. "The damage done by prohibition is worse…

11th Annual Medical Marijuana Benefit Concert at Tobacco Road 6 January 2009 James Echols examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/x-1010-Miami-Night...acco-Road-12409 On Saturday, January 24, 2009 Ploppy Palace Productions and Tobacco Road will be hosting the 11th Annual Medical Marijuana Benefit Concert to raise funds for FL NORML’s (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) medical marijuana campaign and the protection of patients’ rights. As part of this four stage extravaganza, some of South Florida's top bands, spoken word artists and community activists will join together for patients’ and physicians’ right to use medical cannabis. As a testament to …

Police manage to stop only 20 percent of hashish entering Spain 8 January 2009 http://www.typicallyspanish.com/news/publi...cle_19543.shtml National Police and Guardia Civil cannot cope with the volume of drugs being smuggled from Morocco into Andalucía. The National Police and the Guardia Civil have admitted with their latest statistics that they are losing the battle against the hashish traffickers. Despite achieving an average of two large successes a week against the traffickers, it is estimated that only 20% of the drug which enters the country is caught by the authorities. Most of the drug is brought into Spain from Morocco with the main port of entry being…

Children taken from parents with no evidence of risk, judge says By Kim Arlington December 26, 2008 Daily Telegraph http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/stor...5005941,00.html Kids taken from parents by child welfare Judge says no evidence they were at risk Says it was a gross abuse of power A JUDGE says it was a "gross abuse of power" for child welfare staff to forcibly remove two babies from their parents' care when there was no evidence they were at risk of harm. Ordering that the children be returned to their parents immediately, Supreme Court Justice George Palmer said the New South Wales Department of Community Services officers' actions had "gravely impe…

Written by: Cornelius Wilson January 05th, 2009 http://www.wrestling-edge.com/wwenews.php?...rom=&ucat=1 copyright - wrestling edge 2006 It is being reported that several wrestlers are unhappy with WWE's crackdown on marijuana usage. The argument people have made is that those who were fined for using marijuana have been forced to turn to heavy drinking or pain pills. The general feeling in the wrestling industry is that pain pills will destroy more lives than steroids or any other drug. Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

By Marcus Gilmer in News January 5, 2009 10:55 AM http://chicagoist.com/2009/01/05/man_arres...le_bunch_of.php 2003-2009 Gothamist LLC. All rights reserved Add Samuel Randall to the list of "Chicago People Who We Need To Party With." Randall was arrested yesterday for possession of six pounds of cannabis. That amount has a street value of $18,000 or enough to get one through an East Coast leg of a Phish tour. Zing! Randall was pulled over by police after he was spotted driving the wrong way down a one-way street yesterday afternoon. During the stop, officers spotted two bags of the wacky weed in one of the car's cup holders and smelled the rest in a shopping bag on …

Summerfieldayze, Big Day Out cops undercover in drug sting Greg Stolz January 04, 2009 11:00pm Courier Mail http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0...01-3102,00.html GROOVY undercover cops disguised as dance music lovers are crashing the party for drug-taking revellers at this summer's music festivals. The covert cops nabbed dozens of patrons for possessing ecstasy and other drugs at the Summerfieldayze festival on the Gold Coast at the weekend. And they are warning the blitz will continue during upcoming music festivals like Good Vibrations and the Big Day Out. Undercover and uniformed police charged 37 people with mostly drug offences during Summerfieldayze …

Recreational Cannabis "No Problem" Say Boston Police Bill Stone PR Cannazine 4 January 2009 http://pr.cannazine.co.uk/content/view/799/1/ On January 26th 2009 the British government is set to increase the penalties for simple cannabis possession, up from 2 years jail time, to 5 years. According to the Home Office this action is being taken to "send a message" that cannabis is dangerous, and is therefore unacceptable in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile in Boston, Massachusetts in the United States of America, State police have today announced they will no longer ticket people caught in possession of cannabis, and regardless of whether they are actually caught smoking …

Disabled man grew cannabis for pain relief Andrew Pugh Jan 1 2009 Port Talbot Guardian http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/south-wa...91466-22568976/ A WHEELCHAIR- BOUND Sandfields man grew 17 cannabis plants at his home to use as pain relief for his chronic back pain. Desmond Humphrey, 43, admitted cultivating the plants when he appeared before Port Talbot Magistrates on Tuesday, December 23. The court heard that at 9.42am on December 16, police executed a search warrant at his home in Sandpiper Court, Seaward Avenue. On their arrival Humphrey indicated where the drugs were, directing them to a wardrobe. There, police found three stashes of the plants. In total,…