medical marijuana news stories on Newser

Calif. Dem: Elect Me and I'll Smoke Dope on Capitol Hill

Kevin Spak — Tue, 22 May 2012 10:37:00 CDT

Andy Caffrey is for the most part a pretty standard-issue progressive, but he's got one campaign promise that makes him stand out: He's vowing to smoke pot on the steps of Capitol Hill if he's elected. Caffrey, 54, is running for Congress in California and happens to have a prescription...

Ailing Judge: It's 'Barbaric' to Block Medical Marijuana

John Johnson — Sun, 20 May 2012 19:00:05 CDT

A sitting justice on the State Supreme Court in Brooklyn on Thursday outed himself as a criminal in the pages of the New York Times : Gustin L. Reichbach admits he uses marijuana to ease the constant pain of his three-year-plus battle with pancreatic cancer. Friends warned him it might not...

Obama Disappoints His Pro-Pot Fans

John Johnson — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 13:13:16 CDT

President Obama seems to have made nothing but enemies in the pro-pot camp over four years. Those in favor of medical marijuana or the larger principle of legalizing recreational pot see it this way, writes Byron Tau in Politico : Obama the candidate in 2008 left the distinct impression he would...

Feds Raid California Medical Pot University

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 03:13:31 CDT

A small army of feds yesterday raided California's only "medical marijuana university" in Oakland. Two of a mob of protesters who descended on the school—many of them smoking dope—were busted by cops as federal agents swarmed Oaksterdam , a college dedicated to training people how to grow and distribute...

Medical Pot Delivery Guy: 2 Ninjas Robbed Me

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 08:31:05 CDT

Police in California are on the hunt for two men dressed as ninjas who allegedly robbed a medical marijuana delivery man on Friday, the San Gabriel Valley Tribune reports. The man says he was set upon by the ninjas-slash-robbers while walking back to his car after making a delivery, and,...

Pot Shops Must Grow Dope on Premises: Calif. Court

Matt Cantor — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 11:11:05 CST

California cities can't simply ban medical marijuana shops—but the dispensaries must grow their own pot, an appeals court in the state has unanimously ruled. The city of Lake Forest had been trying to implement, in the appeals court's words, "a total bar contradicting state law" on dispensaries via a...

NJ OKed Medical Pot in '10 —but It's Still Not for Sale

Mark Russell — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 11:19:44 CST

Opposition to pot dispensaries around New Jersey is slowing the rollout of medical marijuana there, and officials say the first doctor-prescribed doobies won't be available until the end of the year at the earliest, reports the Wall Street Journal . So how long has the wait been? The New Jersey legislature...

Even Mendocino Crumbling to Feds on Pot

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 05:12:00 CST

The US county with one of the highest concentrations of pot farms—and tokers—is finally caving in to pressure from the feds. California officials in Mendocino County are snuffing out an innovative medical marijuana program that put pot growers under the supervision of the county sheriff. The program was...

Pot-Based Drug Poised for FDA OK

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:14:00 CST

A company developing a marijuana-based mouth spray for cancer pain is hoping for FDA approval by next year. British firm GW Pharma is already carrying out advanced clinical trials for Sativex, the first pharmaceutical developed from raw marijuana, reports AP . Sativex contains marijuana components delta 9-THC and cannabidiol, and has...