NORML's Weekly News Bulletin - December 7, 2006 |
Posted by CN Staff on December 07, 2006 at 14:07:37 PT Weekly Press Release Source: NORML Judge Upholds Ruling Dismissing Counties' Prop. 215 Challenge December 7, 2006 - San Diego, CA, USA San Diego, CA: Superior Court Judge William Nevitt upheld last month's preliminary ruling rejecting a lawsuit filed by San Diego County supervisors, who had argued that the state's medical cannabis laws should be pre-empted by the federal Controlled Substances Act. In his opinion, Nevitt declared that the state's ten-year-old medical marijuana law is legal because it does not "require" conduct that violates federal law. Nevitt also rejected plaintiffs challenge to California's three-year-old medical ID card system, ruling that "requiring the counties to issue identification cards for the purpose of identifying those whom California chooses not to arrest and prosecute for certain activities involving marijuana does not create a 'positive conflict' [with federal law.]" In 2004, the California legislature approved legislation calling on counties to issue identification cards to state-authorized medical cannabis patients. San Diego supervisors, along with lawmakers from San Bernardino and Merced counties, filed suit against the state of California and NORML's San Diego affiliate earlier this year rather than comply with the ID card law. It is unclear whether defendants will appeal Judge Nevitt's ruling. "We are pleased that the court ruled that San Diego must follow California's medical marijuana law," said California NORML Coordinator Dale Gieringer. "[Defendants] would be well advised to stop wasting taxpayers' money on this ill-advised lawsuit. The ID cards will save the county money by avoiding needless arrest and prosecution of legal patients." For more information, please contact Keith Stroup, NORML Legal Counsel, at (202) 483-5500 or Dale Gieringer, California NORML Coordinator, at (415) 563-5858. Text of the decision in the case, County of San Diego v. San Diego NORML and the State of California, is available online at: http://www.normlaudiostash.com DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7117 Marijuana Use Per Se Not a 'Gateway' To Illicit Drug Use, Study Says December 7, 2006 - Pittsburgh, PA, USA Pittsburgh, PA: Adolescent marijuana use is not a reliable predictor of later substance abuse, according to clinical trial data published this month in The American Journal of Psychiatry. DL http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7118 NORML's Daily "AudioStash" Celebrates Six-Month Anniversary, Surpasses 775,000 Downloads December 7, 2006 - Washington, DC, USA Washington, DC: More than 775,000 listeners have downloaded episodes of NORML's daily podcast since the program's launch six months ago, ranking the "AudioStash" as one of the most popular political audio programs available on the Internet. Featured guests on the show have included: PBS television host and NORML Advisory Board Member Rick Steves, New York Congressman Maurice Hinchey, comedian and NORML Advisory Board Member Tommy Chong, musical artists The Kottonmouth Kings, director Josh Gilbert, Chicago Tribune columnist Clarence Page, television producer and NORML Board of Directors member Ann Druyan, Santa Barbara City Councilman Das Williams, and former Seattle police chief and NORML Advisory Board Member Norm Stamper, among many others. Daily podcasts also feature breaking news, music, and political commentary. Archived interviews and episodes of the "AudioStash" are available for download online at: http://www.normlaudiostash.com/archivetest.htm DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7119 Source: NORML Foundation (DC) CannabisNews NORML Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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