Category: Criminal Justice
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Maryland General Assembly Considers Decriminalizing An Ounce Of Cannabis…Again
Last week the Maryland General Assembly held hearings in both the House and Senate to discuss increasing the amount of cannabis decriminalized for personal use from 10 grams to one ounce (26 grams). The House of Delegates passed this measure in 2020 as HB 550 but did not send the legislation to the Senate in…
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Clemency For 12 Cannabis Prisoners Thanks To Trump’s Last-Minute Pardons
President Donald Trump’s last-minute pardons of 143 people included 12 people currently or formerly incarcerated for cannabis. Primarily of course, the pardons made news for the numerous Trump associates who received clemency (such as Steve Bannon) and for the pop culture oddballs who did not receive clemency (such as Tiger King’s Joe Exotic)—all of which…
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Joints for Jabs: Get Some Pot With Your Shot at D.C. Vaccination Sites
Advocacy group DC Marijuana Justice (DCMJ) will hand out baggies of weed to people who receive coronavirus vaccines as part of its recently-announced “Joints for Jabs” program. Cannabis treat bags will be provided by masked and gloved DCMJ volunteers, and will contain pot homegrown by DCMJ members that is pesticide and synthetic fertilizer-free. The organization…
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Quick Hit: Move Over Andy Harris, Idaho’s Scott Grow is the New Enemy to Cannabis Reform
The Outlaw Report has spent plenty of time reflecting the general consensus among cannabis advocates when it comes to Maryland Representative Andy Harris: He is an enemy of cannabis reform. Harris, as we’ve discussed plenty of times, is why cannabis is legal in Washington D.C. but there is no regulated, commercial industry, has opposed to…
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Can Prosecutors Drop Cannabis Cases? Virginia Supreme Court Won’t Weigh In, This Time
Prosecutorial discretion, the power of government prosecutors to choose which cases to pursue or dismiss, has been under scrutiny lately in Virginia, especially in regard to cannabis charges. In late 2020, the Supreme Court of Virginia declined to engage in a conflict between Arlington Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti and county judges, over Dehghani-Tafti’s choice to…
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Following Capitol Attack, Maryland Democrats Demand Cannabis Reform Enemy Andy Harris Resign
Undeterred by the previous day’s attack on the Capitol where Trump supporters destroyed property, stole objects, and killed one police officer and injured many more, Maryland Representative—and well-known enemy for cannabis reform—Andy Harris continued making claims of election fraud on the House Floor, yelling and punching his fists in the air early in the morning…
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Democratic Senate Victories Mean High Chance of Federal Cannabis Decriminalization in 2021
For the first time in U.S. history, the White House and both chambers of Congress will be controlled by Democratic party leaders who support decriminalizing cannabis at the federal level. Last week’s victories of Senator-Elects Jon Ossoff and Pastor Raphael Warnock secured Democrats’ control of the senate, a big step in the right direction towards…
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The Year in Cannabis: Washington D.C.
The year in cannabis in Washington D.C. was one of incremental change with a number of policies and initiatives put forth that will likely lead to major reforms later on. It was appropriate for 2020, a year in which due to COVID-19 and widespread mismanagement of the pandemic, the District was in emergency mode much…
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The Complexities of Cannabis in the Consolidated Appropriations Act
It was down to the wire last week as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which would among other things—and perhaps most importantly—give millions of Americans some much-needed (if modest) economic relief was finally signed by President Donald Trump. The massive spending bill was passed by both the House and the Senate on Dec. 21 and then…