Category: Criminal Justice
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Psychedelics Decriminalization Efforts in Washington D.C. Ramp Up
The Outlaw Report has been keeping an eye on cannabis-adjacent organizing within Washington D.C. having to do with Initiative 81, or the Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act of 2020, which would decriminalize psychedelics. The organization behind the effort, Decriminalize Nature D.C., has kept up its goal of getting an initiative to decriminalize psychedelics on…
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Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission Meeting Addresses George Floyd, Rejects a Dispensary License
In its first meeting since March and following a Finance Committee meeting and Policy Committee meeting at the end of May, the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission addressed its role in racial justice amid nationwide protests against police violence, approved a number of regulatory changes, and in a rare move for the aggressively pro-business commission, rescinded…
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Virginia Governor Connects Cannabis Reform To Nationwide Protests Against Police Violence
Last week during a press briefing, Virginia governor Ralph Northam, who has been instrumental in moving cannabis reform forward in the state, connected cannabis laws to the broader Black Lives Matter movement and the current moment of nationwide protest against police violence and police militarization. “Through 400 years of American history—starting with the enslavement of…
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DEA Has Trump’s Permission To Surveil Protesters: What Does That Mean When Cannabis Remains Federally Illegal?
As first revealed by Buzzfeed, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has been given additional policing powers under the Trump administration to surveil protesters. Generally, the DEA can only enforce drug-related crimes but this temporary adjustment means that the DEA’s resources and surveillance network can be used towards those marching in protest of the police killing…
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Maryland Court of Special Appeals Rules Against Cop Who Tackled and Pepper-Sprayed Man Found With Cannabis
The Maryland Court of Special Appeals ruled in favor of Richard Williams, a man who was stopped by police back in 2018 for driving while using his cell phone and then tackled and pepper-sprayed by police and had his person and car searched for cannabis. The opinion says that Williams’ Fourth Amendment rights were violated…
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Virginia’s Expansive Cannabis Reform In 2020—and Who It Leaves Behind
Last week, Virginia’s decriminalization of cannabis possession of up to an ounce became official—it goes into effect on July 1. It is the most notable legislation amid a number of cannabis bills that passed in what was a legislative session of sprawling reform regarding cannabis in the state. 18 bills succeeded in passing both the…
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Cannabis and Washington D.C.’s Primary Election
Tuesday June 2 is Washington DC’s primary election. With ongoing concerns about COVID-19’s spread and now, what appears to be a growing uprising against police violence nearly at the door of the White House—President Trump is reportedly hiding in a bunker underground—it will surely be an especially complicated election. There are six council seats on…
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Virginia Cannabis Decriminalization Is Official; ACLU Explains How Cops Can Still Bust You For Weed
Last week, Virginia’s decriminalization bill allowing possession of up to an ounce of cannabis, was officially signed into law. For readers of The Outlaw Report, this is fairly anticlimactic given Virginia governor Ralph Northam’s public support of decriminalization for quite some time including during the 2017 election. Back in February, the Virginia Senate approved Senator…
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‘Cannabis’ 68 Times: Debunking a Republican Talking Point
Earlier this month, the expansive COVID-19 relief bill, the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (or The HEROES Act) was approved by the House Of Representatives. For those in the cannabis industry, the HEROES Act was especially welcome because it included The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act (or The SAFE Banking Act)…
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Richmond Will No Longer Drug Test City Employees For Cannabis
Last week, Richmond’s City Council approved a resolution that would stop the city from drug testing employees for cannabis. Currently, Richmond drug tests for cannabis for pre-employment and randomly drug tests current city employees. But now, with Virginia getting ready to institute its medicinal cannabis program—as well as decriminalization of up to an ounce and…
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COVID-19 Relief Bill Passed By House Allows Cannabis Banking
The Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (or HEROES Act), the latest legislation to provide economic support during the COVID-19 pandemic, was approved by the House of Representatives last week. It provides $3 trillion for COVID-19 relief and includes local and state government funding in the billions, extended unemployment benefits, assistance for farmers…
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The Outlaw Report Podcast Episode 02: Cannabis in the DMV During COVID-19
In the second episode of The Outlaw Report podcast, Prohibited podcast founder Scott Cecil talks to reporter Brandon Soderberg about how Maryland, Washington DC, and Virgina are dealing with cannabis during COVID-19. They discuss responses to cannabis laws by police during the pandemic and how the medicinal cannabis industry in Maryland and DC are dealing…