{"id":7973,"date":"2018-01-06T13:41:17","date_gmt":"2018-01-06T13:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.420magazine.com\/?p=7719"},"modified":"2018-01-06T13:41:17","modified_gmt":"2018-01-06T13:41:17","slug":"california-proposal-would-make-it-a-sanctuary-state-for-marijuana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/california-proposal-would-make-it-a-sanctuary-state-for-marijuana\/","title":{"rendered":"California Proposal Would Make It A \u2018Sanctuary State\u2019 For Marijuana"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/california-proposal-would-make-it-a-sanctuary-state-for-marijuana\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><p>California is putting up a united front against U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his federal directive targeting legal weed, with one state lawmaker reviving a proposal this year that would make California a so-called \u201csanctuary state\u201d for marijuana.<\/p>\n<p>Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, said Sessions\u2019 decision Thursday to allow federal prosecutors to crack down on marijuana growers and sellers, just as California\u2019s recreational use law took effect, prompts the need for protection from what he called the \u201coutdated federal war on drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe impacts of this ill-conceived and poorly executed war are still being felt by communities of color across the state,\u201d Jones-Sawyer said in a statement. \u201cThe last time California supported the federal government\u2019s efforts, families were torn apart and critical state resources were used to incarcerate more black and brown people than ever before in the history of our state.\u201d<br \/>\nJones-Sawyer said he\u2019d work with Gov. Jerry Brown and the Legislature to advance his 2017 proposal, Assembly Bill 1578. The bill stalled in the Senate in June after clearing the Assembly floor.<\/p>\n<p>Modeled after California\u2019s new law that restricts law enforcement agencies\u2019 ability to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, helping shield undocumented immigrants from widespread deportation, the bill seeks to prevent state and local agencies from helping federal drug enforcement agencies target the state\u2019s burgeoning marijuana industry without a federal court order.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, state officials acted swiftly this week to identify legal or other actions California can take to block anti-marijuana policies advanced by the Trump administration.<\/p>\n<p>State Attorney General Xavier Becerra requested information from U.S. attorneys in California, who represent the federal government in court. Under the Department of Justice memo issued by Sessions this week, U.S. attorneys have the power to aggressively go after marijuana growers and sellers, or to refrain from targeting the state\u2019s multibillion-dollar cannabis industry.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m hoping to sit down with them,\u201d Becerra said in an interview. \u201cWe\u2019ve reached out to the Department of Justice and to the U.S. attorneys in the state of California to find out what they can tell us about what they plan to do to implement the new policy issued by Attorney General Sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There are four in California, though the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California, Brian Stretch, announced this week that he is stepping down. Appointed in 2016 by the Obama administration, his vacancy now leaves Sessions in charge of choosing a successor.<\/p>\n<p>Federal law still classifies marijuana as an illegal substance. California voters passed Proposition 64, legalizing recreational marijuana in 2016, and public opinion polling indicates support continues to rise.<\/p>\n<p>Becerra has not ruled out a lawsuit, he said Friday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re ready to protect the state\u2019s laws when it comes to marijuana,\u201d Becerra said. \u201cWe\u2019ll do whatever we must to make sure that California\u2019s laws are obeyed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of the Trump administration\u2019s stance, Becerra said California law allowing for legal consumption and sale of recreational weed hasn\u2019t changed. He also said he\u2019s working with other state attorneys general, the governor\u2019s office and the Legislature to identify the best course of action.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhether it\u2019s growing or selling or using, my best advice is to know the law in the state of California and know what you are required to do and not do,\u201d Becerra said.<\/p>\n<p>Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Le\u00f3n is consulting with former Obama administration U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on other ways California can protect voters\u2019 decision, said de Le\u00f3n\u2019s communications director, Anthony Reyes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>California is putting up a united front against U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and his federal directive targeting legal weed,&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.420magazine.com\/news\/international-cannabis-news\/california-proposal-make-sanctuary-state-marijuana\/\" class=\"read-more\">[Read More]<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1616,9,1,3],"tags":[4184],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7973"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7973"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7973\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}