Category: Outlaw Report
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Maryland Cannabis Employees Eligible for Vaccine, Qualifying As Essential Healthcare Workers
Maryland cannabis industry employees are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine during phase 1A of Maryland’s distribution program, qualifying as healthcare providers and essential employees. According to a Jan. 11 notice released by the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission (MMCC), anyone who works in the cannabis industry that is registered with the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission…
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Legalize It Right: Advocates Critique Governor Northam’s Cannabis Plan
On Jan. 13, Governor Northam released a 400-page bill outlining a process to legalize recreational adult cannabis use in Virginia by 2023. The following evening, ACLU Virginia and Marijuana Justice hosted a discussion called, “Legalize Marijuana Right,” which featured local and national speakers from the cannabis space. While the online forum was planned before Northam’s…
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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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Quick Hit: In Praise Of John Fetterman
Amid the months of bogus claims of election fraud from President Donald Trump and his fanatical supporters which escalated further last week during the attack on the Capitol, one of the beacons of progressive politics and just downright reasonability has been Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania John Fetterman. Amid an endless sea of bloviating wrinkled-up Republicans…
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Maryland Recreational Cannabis Bill Pre-filed by P.G. County Delegate for 2021 Legislative Session
Legislation that legalizes cannabis for recreational use and outlines provisions for recreational cannabis sales in Maryland was pre-filed by Delegate Jazz Lewis before the General Assembly convenes on January 13, indicating the growing likelihood that the legislature will vote on recreational cannabis in 2021. As first reported by Marijuana Moment, Lewis released a draft of…
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The Year in Cannabis: Virginia
The police killing of George Floyd was not mentioned in The Outlaw Report’s year in cannabis round-ups for Maryland and Washington D.C. That’s because the state, which has decriminalized cannabis since 2014, and the District, which has had legal cannabis since 2014, did very little to address the obvious intersection between racial justice and cannabis…
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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…
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Virginia Governor Budgets for Cannabis Legalization as Richmond Mayor Calls for Equity
Cannabis legalization in Virginia is advancing rapidly—two of the latest strategic moves are the Governor’s budget proposal and a letter from the Richmond Mayor. On Dec. 16, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam included funding for legalization in proposed amendments to the 2020–2022 budget, following through on his official statement of support for adult-use legalization. Earlier in…