Kharla Vezzetti

UPDATE: April 4 – One week after Davidovich’s acquittal, the San Diego DA’s office brought new charges against medical marijuana defendant Donna Lambert, over possession of two legally registered guns in her home. Deputy District Attorney Steve Walter said outside court Friday that the two jury verdicts [Davidovich and Jovan Jackson] should not be interpreted as a widespread rejection of the office’s approach to prosecuting medical marijuana cases. Read more.

March 28 – After a two-week trial, a jury has fully acquitted Eugene Davidovich on four counts of possession and sales of marijuana.…

March 17 – As federal DEA pressure subsides in California, opponents of medical marijuana are pushing to impose new and unprecedented restrictions on medical marijuana cultivation through local ordinances of dubious constitutionality.

In Long Beach, a city within LA County, the city council adopted a dispensary ordinance that requires all patient collectives to grow marijuana on their own premises within the city limits. The Los Angeles DA’s office has maintained – falsely – that this is necessary under state law. In fact, state law has no such restrictions; patients from anywhere in the state can join in collective cultivation projects.…

UPDATE: BILL TO DECRIMINALIZE MINOR POT POSSESSION OFFENSES SIGNED BY GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER

Cal NORML Release – March 14, 2010

SACRAMENTO State Sen. Mark Leno (D-SF) has announced the introduction of a bill (SB1449) to downgrade possession of one ounce or less of marijuana to an infraction instead of a misdemeanor.

By making possession an infraction, the bill would spare possession offenders the necessity of a court appearance and criminal record. Instead, they would simply pay a ticket.

Leno’s bill would save the state millions of dollars in court costs by keeping minor pot offenders out of court.…

UPDATE March 24 – AB 1811 was passed by the Assembly Public Safety committee on March 23rd and will now go to the Assembly floor. CalNORML director Dale Gieringer testified in favor of the bill at the hearing.

March 10 – A bill to legalize medical marijuana paraphernalia has been introduced by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-SF). The bill, AB 1811, modifies the existing drug paraphernalia law to exempt items designed or marketed for lawful purposes, notably medical use of marijuana.

AB 1811 would protect both patients and vendors from bogus arrests, which continue to be reported despite passage of Prop.…

Feb 18, 2010 – Assemblyman Tom Ammiano has re-submitted his bill to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana in California. The new bill, AB 2254, the Marijuana Control, Regulation, and Education Act of 2010 is identical to its predecessor AB 390, which was approved by the Public Safety Committee in January. Because it was introduced last year, AB 390 ran out of time to be heard on this year’s calendar.

Advocates are hopeful that AB 2254 will move forward this year through the Health Committee, as the legislature has yet to hold hearings on the health aspects of legal marijuana.…

Studies Show Marijuana Safe and Effective in Treatment of Chronic Pain & Neuralgia

SACRAMENTO, Feb 17th – In a landmark report to the state legislature, the California Center
for Medicinal Cannabis Research announced that its studies have shown marijuana to have
therapeutic value (report at http://www.cmcr.ucsd.edu).

The CMCR, established at the University of California in 2000 to conduct controlled
scientific studies of medical marijuana, reported positive results in six different human clinical trials regarding chronic pain, spasticity and vaporization.

Four studies showed marijuana to be safe and effective in relieving the chronic pain of
neuralgia.…

MEDIA ADVISORY
February 16, 2010

CONTACTS
Ali Bay (916) 651-4003
Rand Martin (916) 441-1034

Medical Cannabis Report, Commissioned by State, to be Released

SACRAMENTO – In 1999, the California Legislature and Governor enacted Senate Bill 847 (Vasconcellos), which commissioned the University of California to establish a scientific research program to expand the scientific knowledge on purported therapeutic usages of medical marijuana. The legislation passed with a strong bi-partisan vote and was supported by former Attorney General Dan Lungren as well as a coalition of statewide public safety and health organizations.…

California voters will have the opportunity to vote for marijuana reform this November. The Tax and Regulate Cannabis Initiative or “TC2010”, sponsored by Richard Lee of Oaksterdam University, will appear on the November 2 ballot as Proposition 19.

The initiative would decriminalize marijuana at the state level, while giving local county and city governments the power to legalize, tax and regulate production and sales if they see fit. In particular, the initiative would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess one ounce of marijuana in the privacy of their homes and to cultivate up to 25 square feet of garden space for personal use.…