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  2011: The Year In Review – NORML’s Top 10 Events That Shaped Marijuana Policy

  by Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director

  #1 NORML Sues to Halt Government’s Prosecution of Medical Cannabis Providers In October, the United States Deputy Attorney General, along with the four US Attorneys from California, announced their intentions to escalate federal efforts targeting the state’s medical cannabis dispensaries and providers. In response, members of the NORML Legal Committee filed suit in November against the federal government arguing that its actions were in violation of the Ninth, Tenth, and Fourteenth Amendments of the US Constitution. Plaintiffs further argued, using the theory of judicial estoppel, that the Justice Department had [...]

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  NORML Women Fall Wrap-Up

  by Sabrina Fendrick, NORML Women's Alliance

  While the NORML Women’s Alliance is still in its infancy (the program is barely 2 years old), it is evolving quickly into an effective platform (and forum) for women to speak out and support marijuana legalization. It’s a very exciting time to be a woman in the marijuana law reform movement.

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  Cannabis, circles, cycles, caring and sharing

  by Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director

  There is something inherently communal about cannabis. When used in groups, unlike with alcohol and tobacco products, cannabis is shared among willing participants (and where hogging something to oneself is frowned about: "Don’t Bogart that joint!"). A smoke circle–not a square, triangle or pentagon, comes to mind. With nearly forty one years of cannabis consumer advocacy in NORML’s rearview mirror, and fast approaching a momentous presidential election cycle–which will most likely include up to four state initiatives to either medicalize or legalize cannabis–NORML’s large grassroots network again will be relied [...]

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  Drug Education Should Reflect Reality Not Deny It

  by Sabrina Fendrick, NORML Women's Alliance

  We can all agree that teens should not smoke pot, or be using any mind-altering substances. Those are important, developmental years. Still, teens should be educated regarding how smoking marijuana can affect their body’s development specifically, how to reduce any harms associated with its use, and to distinguish between use and abuse. There should be honest, truthful drug education.

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  Pot Patriotism Plus Jury Nullification Equals US vs. Heicklen

  by Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director

  George Washington University law professor and longtime jury nullification proponent Paul Butler pens a noteworthy op-ed in yesterday’s New York Times. Notable not only because of the important subject matter vis-à-vis the first example proffered by Professor Butler, but also too because of the defendant in the case at bar cited. Professor Julian Heicklen has been protesting Cannabis Prohibition laws since the mid 1990s, mainly around the Penn State campus where he was a longtime Chemistry professor, principally by causing a ruckus around jury nullification and protesting without permits. Here [...]

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  Do The Math: The ‘War’ On Pot Is Largely A War Upon Young People

  by Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director

  A new study out today estimates that one-third of US young people will be arrested or taken into custody for illegal or delinquent offenses (excluding arrests for minor traffic violations) by the age of 23. CBS News/Web MD reports on the findings here: Study: Nearly 1 in 3 U.S. youths will be arrested by age 23 Parents and non-parents alike might be shocked to learn a new study estimates that roughly 1 in 3 U.S. youths will be arrested for a non-traffic offense by age 23 – a “substantively higher” [...]

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  Rep. Barney Frank Educates George Will and Paul Ryan on Marijuana Legalization

  by Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Coordinator

  Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), the primary sponsor of HR 2306: The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2011, appeared on ‘This Week with Christiane Amanpour’ on ABC with fellow guests George Will of the Washington Post and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI). The conversation found its way to marijuana legalization which led to Barney Frank calling out the hypocrisy of most of his conservative colleagues. “It’s a great embarrassment to the conservatives,” said Frank, “They want to tell people who they can have sex with. Come on, all this is big [...]

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  President Obama: End Your War on Cannabis Patients

  by Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Coordinator

  Over the past several months, the Federal government escalated its war against medical marijuana to previously unseen heights. The Drug War machine kicked into high gear starting in October when the IRS began applying an obscure part of the US tax code, meant to target drug cartels, against medical dispensaries in attempts to shut them down. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms joined in the fight when it issued a heavy handed one page memo to every gun and ammunition dealer nationwide informing them that they must, by law, [...]

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  The Next State In The Federal Government’s Crosshairs Is Colorado

  by Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director

  In recent months, the federal Justice Department has engaged in concerted efforts to crack down on the proliferation of medical cannabis related activities in states that allow for its therapeutic use under state law, including California, Montana, and Washington. Now, according to a CBS News report, the next state on the federal government’s ‘hit list’ is Colorado — arguably the state with the most comprehensive and stringent statewide regulations governing medical cannabis activities. These regulations explicitly license state-authorized cannabis dispensaries, of which there are now some 700 operating statewide. Nonetheless, [...]

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  Marijuana Law Reform Marching On: Legalization Highly Favored In New Massachusetts Poll

  by Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director

  58% support in Massachusetts for legalizing marijuana and regulating it as other agricultural commodities Georgetown, MA – This evening, attendees at the Second Annual Massachusetts Cannabis Convention hosted by the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition/NORML (MassCann/NORML) at the Crowne Plaza in Natick heard the major results of a live telephone poll conducted in November by DAPA Research Inc. of 600 Massachusetts voters with a margin of error of +/-4%. The most significant findings: *Fifty-eight percent (58%) support legalizing marijuana and regulating it in the same manner as other agricultural commodities with [...]