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Berkeley Patients Group

Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Expected to Open in Washington D.C. by Summer

dc monument

With the iconic Berkeley Patient’s Group being forced to close its doors, the Federal government has demonstrated its desire to uphold not only its failed war on drugs, but also the war on patients.  Interestingly enough, inside the belly of the beast, medical marijuana centers will be opening up within months.

Washington D.C. is expected to start serving medical marijuana patients by this summer.  The process has already begun as cultivators are filling out the paperwork for leasing growing space.  Sixty nine percent of D.C. voters approved a measure to legalize medical marijuana way back in 1998, but Congress stood in the way several times.  In 2010, the City Council in D.C. approved another measure and this time Congress decided to respect the decision of both the council and residents of Washington.  Residents who qualify will be purchasing marijuana within miles of the white house and congress, even as patients thousands of miles away fear raids and shutdowns.

The medical marijuana program in Washington D.C., like many other new states enacting programs, will have a much stricter set of guidelines than California’s system.  This may be why the federal government, for the moment, seems to be far less concerned.  California does not have a state run program, and municipalities have different interpretations of what rights are afforded under proposition 215.  However this is all speculation and with little information available as to how the federal government selects its raid targets, advocates are left without an answer.  Even if laws become stricter in California, many patients and advocates are hoping for a unified system so that everyone can operate legally.

Until the federal government decides to take the guessing game out of the legal realm, medical marijuana will remain in limbo.  Although Washington D.C. will be allowed to serve patients now, no one can be certain of what the new faces in congress will decide after this November.  No one wants a prolonged battle with the federal government, and a government should not be seeking to battle sick patients.  The debate seems to be getting sillier each day and if our government cannot decide what they even want  in their own backyard (City of Washington D.C), then can we really expect to look to them for leadership elsewhere?

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Medical Marijuana Industry News March 16, 2012

berkeley patients group

Berkeley Patients Group to Close its Doors

 

One of the largest medical marijuana dispensaries in the state of California has been ordered to shut down.  Berkeley Patients Group has served many patients and has one of the best reputations in the industry.  They are known for charitable donations to the poor and helping the community.  Local politicians have even referred to it as the model business for how a dispensary should operate.  Federal authorities were not moved by Berkeley Patients Group’s compassionate for both its patients and the community.  They claimed the dispensary was in violation of Federal law but also that it was within 1,000 feet of two schools and in violation of state law.

 

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Montel Williams and Dan Morhaim Continue Fight for Medical Marijuana even after Legislation Fails

 

Although patients in Maryland were hopeful that they would finally be permitted to medicate with marijuana, Governor O’ Malley has decided to veto the bill citing his fear of Federal intervention.  Celebrity and longtime cannabis advocate Montel Williams has joined state Senator Dan Morhaim who is also a medical doctor  The two men also held a gathering where patients voiced their desire for medical marijuana.  Montel was quoted as saying “What you are trying to accomplish is being compassionate to those who are suffering.”  Williams provides a national platform for the medical marijuana conversation and Morhaim has submitted several bills in the Maryland Senate.

 

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Legalize Medical Marijuana Billboards are Put Up in Florida

 

Billboards supporting marijuana reform have been appearing in the Sunshine State.  Florida holds the title of largest indoor grower of cannabis in the country which clearly demonstrates a high demand.  However Florida has been known for a very strict approach toward marijuana enforcement and many of the state’s residents are elderly and do not support marijuana reform.  The man responsible for the signs is 69 year old Robert Platshorn.  Platshorn spent 30 years in prison for smuggling marijuana and says he does not want others to suffer his fate.  One billboard reads “Legalize Medical Marijuana.  I’m a patient not a criminal” while others call for a rescheduling of marijuana.

 

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