Police And Judges Call For California To Legally Opt Out Of War On Cannabis

[Jacob Bell]

Santa Ana, CA - In response to the Obama administration's recent escalation of federal raids against California's medical marijuana dispensaries, a group of retired police officers and judges will hold a press conference this Tuesday to tout a new statewide ballot initiative to regulate marijuana like wine. The law enforcers say that by passing the new voter initiative, California voters will have a strong argument that they can opt out of the Controlled Substances Act.

James Gray, a retired superior court judge from Orange County, says, "For the federal government to interfere with state and local implementation of California's medical marijuana law is tantamount to a government bailout for criminal gangs and violent drug cartels. For some reason the federal government wants to force legal medical marijuana patients toward a dangerous criminal market and away from an above-ground industry that pays over $100 million per year in state taxes and provides jobs for thousands of our citizens. California voters can tell the feds to back off and let Californians implement our own laws by voting to regulate marijuana like wine next November."

The initiative, the Regulate Marijuana Like Wine Act of 2012, which is endorsed by the Libertarian Party and medical marijuana business training professionals, 420 College, would repeal failed marijuana laws for adults aged 21 and older, strictly regulate the sale of marijuana similar to the wine industry and authorize a vibrant new economy of eco-friendly hemp agriculture and products. The initiative would not change laws regarding medical marijuana, impairment in the workplace, driving while impaired or use by persons under 21 years old.

Despite the escalation in federal threats, initiative proponents are pointing to recent legal cases as well as comments by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia as an indication that the federal courts are increasingly open to seeing states take more control in setting their own drug policies. Justice Scalia recently told a U.S. Senate committee that, "it was a great mistake to put routine drug offenses into the federal courts."

Retired LAPD deputy chief of police Stephen Downing says, "Now more than ever, it is important for Californians to stand up and tell the federal government that enough is enough when it comes to their interference with our marijuana policies. Next November, California voters have the opportunity to hurt the cartels in their pockets in a way that no level of prohibition enforcement and dedicated skill on the part of my police colleagues ever can."

WHO: Retired LAPD deputy chief of police Stephen Downing, retired superior court judge Jim Gray and retired Redondo Beach PD lieutenant commander Diane Goldstein

WHAT: Press conference on voter initiative telling the feds to back off its marijuana threats

WHEN: Tuesday, October 18, 2011 at 10:00 AM PT

WHERE: Plaza of the Flags, which is behind the Santa Ana Courthouse, 700 Civic Center Drive West, Santa Ana, CA 92701.

News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: digitaljournal.com
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: digitaljournal.com
Website: Police and Judges Call for California to Legally Opt Out of War on Marijuana

 

[ilynnboy]

Isn't California something like the 6th or 7th largest economy in the world?
How about your state attorney general sending the feds an official Back Off letter of their own.
Tell the feds your not going to send them more money until they recognize the authority of the state of California in implementing their own laws.
Now that would be awesome.

 

[farmboy420]

What the hell, lets be the new "United California" and the hell with the Bull S_it regulations from the Feds, all they are trying to do is let Big Pharma step in.....if you read what is on the internet you can see this and at some point we will have to pay like the crops like soybeans that some of the pesticide companies have royalty on...think about it..Goodbye Obama.

 

[hempaz]

Retied Police + Judges Call For Calf To Opt Out Of War On Cannabis

I had seen a Twitter post that mentioned Scalia had changed his mind, but I didn't believe it.

I thought it may be some sort of DEA implant into the 'Twittersphere' to deflect criticism from their Supreme Court cronie, Antonin Scalia.

However, my analysis of the last Supreme Court case involving Med Mj that was decided in favor of the Federal Government using the Article 1, Section 8 'Commerce Clause' of our USA Constitution as cover, you will see indeed the fact that Antonin Scalia wrote the majority opinion that led to the current expansion of the Federal government policing powers into the realm of 'INTRASTATE' non-commercial activities.

In essence, Scalia gave the Federal DEA thugs a 'hot pursuit' option into non-commercial 'INTRASTATE' activities IF those 'INTRASTATE' activities impeded the Federal DEA thugs' desire to crush ALL 'INTER-STATE' hemp seed, hemp fiber and Medicinal Marijuana traffic in their ENTIRETY, no matter how minute!

So, to hear ANY reference that the 'Sicilian Pin-Head' Scalia had retracted and gone in a different direction since his infamous and scandalous 'UNAMERICAN' jack-boot backing, fascist message that Federal thuggary was 'OK' in his eyes, under the cloak of regulating 'INTER-STATE' commerce, is a welcome direction.

 

[markscastle]

NO Taxes! No Regulations! Never ,ever!

 

[GanjaAL2]

Again... tax and regulation is where the problem is. That is why the federal government is getting involved. You want the feds out of it... re-schedule it to II and the problem is solved. MMJ is the only hope to insure the feds leave us alone.

 

[markscastle]

Again... tax and regulation is where the problem is. That is why the federal government is getting involved. You want the feds out of it... re-schedule it to II and the problem is solved. MMJ is the only hope to insure the feds leave us alone.

I agree! Taxes and Regulations only makes Big brother drewl!

 

[Slowpuffer]

Pretty soon, they'll be taxing the garden vegetables !! LOL !! Wonder if they'll bring back the pay toilets ?? Pay toilets were everywhere when I was a kid. The surpreme rulers of our supreme court have way to much power. They think people who smoke pot to be a bunch of pin heads and losers and that's just not the facts. I bet 50 per cent of teachers and cops and lawyers smoke or use pot in some form, but they have to fear loseing their jobs everyday, because of decisions of 9 pin heads !! They're actually above the law !! And I do believe the protests in our major citys are a result of the little guy is f--ing tired of being kicked when they're down. If law inforcement wants something to be a law, they just ramrod it thru. If a citizen wants to make a new law, they have to go stand in a hot or cold grocery parking lot and solicit petition signatures to just get a question on the state ballot. It's nothing new, they separate us into groups, which makes it much easier to control us. They get us to dislike each other for one reason or another, so we don't cooperate with each other. LOL !! And if we can't trust each other, then we're fighting a big brick wall, with no gloves !! But if you're big biz , ie big pharm, You can get a new and potentially dangerious drug put on the market, in a lickety split !! I have no symphy for you bros & sisters in Ca., you had your chance last yr to break this pot issue, wide open forever. The way Ca. goes, so goes the nation !! And i'm especially ashamed of the growers in Medicino co., who voted against the bill because it hurt their bottom line. Shame on you !! I hav'nt smoked pot in like 10 yrs., but this is not about pot, it's about right and wrong !! Close the human warehouses, and set the inocent people free !! Redondo Beach, 1961-1975 !!

 

[harryo]

you know just cannot believe these fucking idiopts are still spouting the same old shit, truth be known I think there stalling till the big pharmacutical companies can step in somehow with new strains and mqybe patents.Without medical marajuana I would be stuck taking 12 pain pills daily nobody has any idea how hard that is on your liver and kidneys plus constapation. Give me medical pot please stop being assholes and start helping those in need those patients who not only get some pain relief but can catch a buzz and relax and enjoy a few moments feeling alright

 

[markscastle]

Pretty soon, they'll be taxing the garden vegetables !! LOL !! Wonder if they'll bring back the pay toilets ?? Pay toilets were everywhere when I was a kid. The surpreme rulers of our supreme court have way to much power. They think people who smoke pot to be a bunch of pin heads and losers and that's just not the facts. I bet 50 per cent of teachers and cops and lawyers smoke or use pot in some form, but they have to fear loseing their jobs everyday, because of decisions of 9 pin heads !! They're actually above the law !! And I do believe the protests in our major citys are a result of the little guy is f--ing tired of being kicked when they're down. If law inforcement wants something to be a law, they just ramrod it thru. If a citizen wants to make a new law, they have to go stand in a hot or cold grocery parking lot and solicit petition signatures to just get a question on the state ballot. It's nothing new, they separate us into groups, which makes it much easier to control us. They get us to dislike each other for one reason or another, so we don't cooperate with each other. LOL !! And if we can't trust each other, then we're fighting a big brick wall, with no gloves !! But if you're big biz , ie big pharm, You can get a new and potentially dangerious drug put on the market, in a lickety split !! I have no symphy for you bros & sisters in Ca., you had your chance last yr to break this pot issue, wide open forever. The way Ca. goes, so goes the nation !! And i'm especially ashamed of the growers in Medicino co., who voted against the bill because it hurt their bottom line. Shame on you !! I hav'nt smoked pot in like 10 yrs., but this is not about pot, it's about right and wrong !! Close the human warehouses, and set the inocent people free !! Redondo Beach, 1961-1975 !!

I voted No and I`ll do it again! This is about freedom and your not free when you are subject to Taxes and Regulations!

 

[budbro]

you know just cannot believe these fucking idiopts are still spouting the same old shit, truth be known I think there stalling till the big pharmacutical companies can step in somehow with new strains and mqybe patents.Without medical marajuana I would be stuck taking 12 pain pills daily nobody has any idea how hard that is on your liver and kidneys plus constapation. Give me medical pot please stop being assholes and start helping those in need those patients who not only get some pain relief but can catch a buzz and relax and enjoy a few moments feeling alright

GW Pharceuticals already has a patent for the extraction of THC and CBD from cannabis. Sativex, a drug derived wholly from the cannabis plant is in Phase IIIb of clinical trials in the United States. It's basically throw a pot plant in a chilled blender and put it in a fancy spray bottle for $1,100.00 a month. Buuuuuuuuuuuut, don't be so quick to bash them or the approval process. Many, and I included think this will end the prohibition of marijuana as we know it. If approved, the DEA will have to remove marijuana from Schedule 1 of the CSA. And that is the victory we should all be shooting for now. With the FDA approving it as "safe and useful" and with DEA out of the way, complete legalization will follow much faster than it is right now.

 

[TorturedSoul]

Santa Ana, CA - In response to the Obama administration's recent escalation of federal raids against California's medical marijuana dispensaries, a group of retired police officers and judges will hold a press conference this Tuesday to tout a new statewide ballot initiative to regulate marijuana like wine. The law enforcers say that by passing the new voter initiative, California voters will have a strong argument that they can opt out of the Controlled Substances Act.

That's all well and good, I suppose. But I'd like to mention a couple of things: First, from reading various news threads around here, it is my understanding that the D (a federal agency) is enforcing federal laws, not state ones. What I'm getting at is that I don't see where it would matter much, in practical terms, whether CA continues to treat cannabis as a medicine, decides to regulate it in much the same way that alcohol is regulated, completely removes the laws which persecute cannabis, or even return it to its prior "completely illegal" state-legislated state. It will still be considered to be illegal by the federal government, and therefore in their eyes, they will still have the same "justification" that they have now. If anything, it might give them the excuse - from their standpoint - to get the ball rolling, declare a limited martial law situation, and send federal troops in large numbers into the state to "restore order."

Oh, and the other thing I wanted to mention is that because there is nothing either specific or in general that forbids cannabis or even provides an avenue to consider such a thing written into the US Constitution (indeed, the original document is written on paper made from cannabis [/IRONY]), because cannabis fails to meet even one of the three requirements for categorizing something as a Schedule I Narcotic, and because cannabis has in large part become a tool for the federal government to arbitrarily declare a certain portion of its own citizenry to be criminals and therefore to take up arms against them & persecute them - a known act that has been used in the past by our governments and others' when the both the economy & said governments' power have eroded and the other oft-used alternative, that of declaring aggression (be it official war, "police" action, et cetera) on another country far away and sending large numbers of troops to fight/die there - that the citizens of the state of California and, indeed, every citizen of the United states already have all the argument and justification they need for doing everything that they can to fight this insanity and to stop it. In fact, a strict Constitutionalist would say that each citizen has not only a right, but a duty to do exactly that!

It is at this point that I find myself... Not recommending, no, definitely not that. But, rather, making a simple observation: We all know that passive resistance works - in some cases. For example, take the rampant segregation, prejudice, and civil rights issues that were prevalent through the first half of the 20th century. On December 1, 1955 in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Louise McCauley Parks - a black woman - refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. She was not the first person to attempt to fight a widespread injustice through civil disobedience, nor was she the first woman to do so. She was not even the first woman to do so that year on the same bus system. But her act of defiance was in large part responsible for the Montgomery Bus Boycott. As everyone knows, these things were in large part responsible for the movement that ended the Jim Crow laws. However... Although there were unjust and unfair laws, the driving force behind them was the prejudice of individuals. What we face today is far more a case of government persecuting cannabis users/growers/etc. solely for its own sake. When people are being persecuted, harmed, and imprisoned by their very own government... I can think of another example of this type of behavior, when Hitler and his government - a government that has been charitably described as being evil and insane - decided to persecute the Jews. The Jews tried passive resistance. They tried to cooperate with the ever-growing insanity that was the government. They tried to carry on their activities in secret so as to avoid persecution. Somewhere along the way, they found themselves having to register with the government and carry special identification (Hmm...). Some of them, driven beyond weakness, tried to deny their very beliefs; a few actually became collaborators and narced on their fellows. Passive resistance and civil disobedience, it turns out, doesn't work very well when the evil that is being done, the persecution that happens, and the injustices that are proliferated, happens at the hands and the will of their very own government. Eventually, half the world had to take up arms and declare themselves willing to fight & die to stop the madness.

Again, I am NOT making a recommendation or suggestion; merely making observations. You may read my words, consider them and agree - or disagree - or even ignore them entirely. Any conclusions you draw from them are solely up to you. And on each and every person's head rests the decision that only they can make - and, perhaps, the shadow of the ax. So be it. I am just rambling, as I have been known to do.

Hey... Off-topic, but since you used that particular picture, if they decided to name a strain after a blind man, shouldn't they at least have the courtesy to have a braille translation on the label so that the blind can read it?

 

[Newfriend]

I am glad to see some of our Law inforcement come out of the closset in favor of legalizing MJ, But:
I find it sad that they (Downing, Gray and Goldstein)
are all retired.
I have ran on to several articals saying so and so in fav of MJ, all retired.
I guess they have got there over inflated retirement package and now see the light.
It really sucks.

 

[mishap]

Time to show them we won't go down without a fight! Wonder who's paying off who from south of the border?

 

[Jacob Bell]

Hey... Off-topic, but since you used that particular picture, if they decided to name a strain after a blind man, shouldn't they at least have the courtesy to have a braille translation on the label so that the blind can read it?

Haha, I like that T.S.

As far as the scheduling goes for Cannabis and big pharma, I believe the DEA already re-scheduled it for them earlier this year in February, or it was at least requested. Four big pharma companies requested it be moved to Schedule 3 in Feb. of this year. That's going to happen, but it will not bring about legalization for the rest of us "normal folk". It's only for big pharma. That's one of the double standards that ticks me off so much.

 

[GeorgeV]

very good points to all. I see many have lost hope in our goverment and I dont blame you, I hope and pray this will all be over, I love my life, I love my country, I follow the law. I hate to fight, I hate to have to be fearfull for choosing medical marijuana over pain pills. I hate that some will never understand because of lies they have been told. The Constitution was put in place for one reason, and one reason only, so this land may find itself free and to leave a way for us all to pursue happiness how we see fit. This country was founded on the fact that a freeman may and can govern himself. I for one am proud of California, but what if you fail? Then will all other states follow suite? NO we cannot allow California to burden this all by themselves because if they fail, we all fail and I cant live with that. EVERY state must follow californias lead or take control themselves, or we all may fail, and the lier's will have won, and we cannot except that, we must fight as one, with one voice. Lets face some facts 13 states are the closest in the history of this nation at breaking from the union, ALL eyes are on us to show the truth and be willing to lay it all on the line, or this is all just talk, and the same ole dance weve been playing to for 200yrs. I have one question for ALL that know the facts DO YOU WANT YOUR CHILDREN TO HAVE TO TAKE A PILL, OR SMOKE A HERB, AND SHOULD IT NOT BE THEIR CHOICE? We stand on this issue or we fall all togather, no this war is just begining, I fear, every state is feeling the pinch, Michigan to Cali and all around. How far are you willing to take this America? We stand at the crossroads god forbid blood be spilled in such an occord, but I say this, this nation, the constitution, freemen, ALL points and said arguements were made in 1776, and the forefathers made it clear we would someday have to have the courage to fight for our rights, they even made it so everyone may own a gun not for the things they foreseen but the things they could not foresee. Unite!= one voice!= freedom! California, do you think the goverment is going to wait for your vote, NO-WAY! They are coming I fear, they are coming for us all, and all we got is each other, first thing is we must spread the word the big 13 are not affraid, we are fully cabable of governing ourselves, and we will do all we can to preserve our pursuit of happiness, it is our duty it is our responsibility. Im affraid Nov is to long to wait, we all see whats happening Mich. Raids, shut down EVERYTHING, no pateint to pateint contributions, no compassion clubs no dispensarys, we have seen a new wave of madness. I talked to people from all the states same thing, invasion on all cannabis levels, our states act like they dont want to fight for our rights even though the vote proves we all approve of just medical pot, the polls say this country overwhelmingly would vote to totally legalize marijuana, yet the goverment spits in our face, I have seen a FEW people in power able to curb the whole system, with nothing more than out right lies, no-one addresses the facts that pain pills are FAR worse, no one wants the truth and I ask again is this what you want for your children? If we cannot control our own goverment how can we be free, our own statesman are fighting us and they have a totality baseless arguement, and they are winning, how? Enough is enough, I will fight as peacefull as can be, but I greatly fear the possibility of others once they start going home to home, or worse try to round up sick and cripples, I live in fear these days, not that I may go to jail or die, but that my son may someday have a similar fate, and that is something I cannot live with and it has kept me up many a night. Remmember America, Unite- one voice- freedom.

 

[4N20Blackbird]

 

[markscastle]

Current National polls have 73% in favor of legal MMJ. AARP poll showed 89% in favor of legal MMJ. Same National polls show 53% in favor of legal (non medical) marijuana.History of polling shows steady rise in favor of legalization over the past 30 yrs.

 

[TorturedSoul]

I am glad to see some of our Law inforcement come out of the closset in favor of legalizing MJ, But:
I find it sad that they (Downing, Gray and Goldstein)
are all retired.
I have ran on to several articals saying so and so in fav of MJ, all retired.
I guess they have got there over inflated retirement package and now see the light.
It really sucks.

Well, technically, LEO personnel should be as apolitical as possible. I don't mean that they shouldn't vote, and vote their conscience, but... They are part of the enforcement arm of the government, not the legislative one. Their job is to enforce the laws as written to the best of their ability, without prejudice or "cherry-picking." For those who try to do their job to the best of their ability without becoming corrupt (or at least jaded people who basically just focus on putting in their 20 so they can retire) and who manage to somehow keep a grasp on their sanity, it must be really tough to do so considering the amount of nonsensical, unjust, and often contradictory laws that they are expected to enforce. To say nothing of the examples of outright brutal cruelty that many of them have to deal with from time to time (and for some, on a daily basis). I am not surprised that every year some of them eat a bullet from their own service weapons.

As far as the scheduling goes for Cannabis and big pharma, I believe the DEA already re-scheduled it for them earlier this year in February, or it was at least requested. Four big pharma companies requested it be moved to Schedule 3 in Feb. of this year.

That is GREAT news if it is indeed rescheduled to Schedule III. First I've heard of it. If you come across any articles in your Newshound pursuits showing that it has indeed been moved to Schedule III, and you would be so kind, please send me a link to the thread.

That's going to happen, but it will not bring about legalization for the rest of us "normal folk". It's only for big pharma. That's one of the double standards that ticks me off so much.

Keep in mind a couple of points: "Big Pharma" has, so far, had success in producing medicine made up of "components" found in cannabis and that success has apparently not been affected by cannabis' status on the Schedule of Controlled Substances. I do not see how rescheduling cannabis can help them; there has already been a large-scale test in this country for Sativex (spray combining THC and CBD) for cancer patients - with positive results - and Dronabinol (aka Marinol) is legal in the US now and is approved by the FDA for the treatment of anorexia in AIDS patients, as well as for refractory nausea and vomiting of patients undergoing chemotherapy. Nabilone (a synthetic cannabinoid analogous to Dronabinol) was approved by the FDA in 1985(!) - although it has only been on the market here since 2006 (Big Pharma is not opposed to dribbling its drug discoveries out over time in order the collect the most profit possible, something the industry probably learned from De Beers' monopolistic control of the worldwide diamond market through the end of the 20th century) - for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting that has not responded to conventional antiemetics. It is also approved for use in treatment of anorexia and weight loss in patients with AIDS. IOW, it would seem that it would be in Big Pharma's interests for the federal government to keep cannabis listed as a Schedule I Narcotic, since they are able to market whichever constituent components - alone, in combination, or synthetic analogues of same - that are contained in cannabis as it likes without facing the competition that it would if cannabis were rescheduled or removed entirely. I'm sure that their profits have already been affected by the fact that cannabis is considered to have medicinal value in several states at this time.

Which brings up my second point: If cannabis becomes classified as a Schedule III narcotic...










...wait for it...









...your doctor will be able to write you a prescription for it!

Now I think it is a safe bet that everyone that knows me knows that I want cannabis to be removed from the Schedule entirely because it has NO, NONE, ZIP, ZERO reason for being there. The decision to consume cannabis either as medicine or food, to grow it as a renewable resource to make fuel, plastics(sic), building materials, or even as an ornamental plant, et cetera, should be left to each individual - or at the very least, to each individual state government as provided for by our Constitution (in a de facto manner, by stating that ALL powers not expressly granted by it to the federal government are the states'). Some of you have probably read a post or two where I have wondered somewhat whether states declaring that cannabis is legally a medicine has had at least some minor negative impact on the overall relegalization movement as a whole (although I still applaud the voters of each and every state - and Washington DC - who have done so and am glad that at least some of this country's sick have legal access).

But if it is not completely legalized, then the decision as to whether someone who has an illness, medical condition, chronic pain, mental issue, et cetera should be made by the individual's doctor and NOT by a legislator who likely has no medical qualifications and almost certainly doesn't know the individual or his/her actual situation.

 

[TorturedSoul]

Current National polls have 73% in favor of legal MMJ. AARP poll showed 89% in favor of legal MMJ. Same National polls show 53% in favor of legal (non medical) marijuana.History of polling shows steady rise in favor of legalization over the past 30 yrs.

Get that up to 2/3 majority across the nation - and get them ALL to actually come out and vote for it - and the matter could be decided and added as a Constitutional amendment. Although I would rather the issue was resolved by some other means - our Constitution was not meant to become an unwieldy document containing every bit of law and piece of legislation - I would settle for it in this case. I am (literally) sick and tired of seeing Mom refuse to consider cannabis simply because "it's illegal." Even though she has had pain that has been so bad that it has caused her to lose her balance and fall to the floor on a number of occasions. Even though she refuses to take the strong meds that her doctors have suggested/prescribed because they leave her less than 100% in command of her mind. Even though when thinking about the "quality vs. quantity of live" issue, she is fast losing out on both. Even though it is the right thing to do, in her mind it is not the legal thing to do - so it will not be done. It is... difficult for those who love her.

Or, failing the 2/3 thing, get each and every one of those 53% who are in favor of legalization to march on DC at the same time. Admittedly, they would literally fill the area surrounding it for many miles around, but the politicians would have no choice but to address things. (I do have some fear that they would address it with extreme violence.)