Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
California Round Up
LA City Attorney Misrepresents Attorney General to Advance Narrow Agenda
From the blog of Don Duncan, ASA California Director:
"The Los Angeles City Attorney's office misrepresented the position of California Attorney General Jerry Brown today, implying that the state's top law enforcement official said that all sales of cannabis are illegal. That never happened."
Read the full post: LA City Attorney Wrong About AG
ASA California Legal Tip of the Month
From Lauren Payne, ASA Legal Coordinator:
Have you or a friend been charged with DUI-MJ or faced DMV revocation proceedings?
While patients are not allowed to medicate in a moving vehicle or operate a moving vehicle while under the influence of marijuana, determining what constitutes "under the influence" is far from cut and dry. In alcohol-related DUI cases, blood alcohol levels are set at a threshold and anything over that limit is considered "driving under the influence." Marijuana use presents a more difficult scenario, as baseline THC levels vary based on frequency of use, and whether or not the patient is a prolonged user. Unfortunately, this has led to many patients facing DUI-MJ charges even though they explained at the time of arrest that they had not medicated for 8 or more hours.
ASA is interested in hearing stories about law enforcement encounters related to DUI-MJ. If you or a friend has had this happen, please give us a call, even if the charges have already been dealt with.
We are also particularly interested in hearing stories from patients who are having trouble with the DMV, whether or not there is a DUI-MJ pending. As you may remember, in March of this year, Americans for Safe Access settled a lawsuit with the DMV. Part of the settlement agreement was that DMV would no longer revoke licenses strictly based on patient status. If you or a friend have been contacted by DMV simply because you are a medical marijuana patient, please give us a call: (510) 251-1856 or info@SafeAccessNow.org.
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Take Action
Help us Hit 50!
28 Members of Congress have already cosponsored the Truth in Trials Act. That's a great start, but there are a total of 435 members in the US House of Representatives!
Help us reach our next goal: getting 50 Members of Congress to cosponsor the bill. Please write a letter to your U. S. Representative. Urge him or her to "cosponsor HR 3939, the Truth in Trials Act."
Tell your Member of Congress that medical marijuana patients should be able to tell a federal court that they were following state law.
You can find your Member of Congress by typing your zip code here: United States House of Representatives, 111th Congress, 1st Session You might need to include your full "Zip+4", which you can find on the last piece of junk mail you received.
Read about the Truth in Trials Act here: ASA : Truth in Trials
Mail your letter to:
The Honorable [Full Name of your U. S. Rep] U. S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515
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Chapter and Affiliate Meetings
Tuesday, December 1st -- Sacramento: Crusaders 4 Patients Rights Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ Crusaders Hall, 320 Harris Avenue, Suite H, Sacramento For more info, contact: cpr4mercy@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 2nd -- Riverside/Western Inland Empire MAPP Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ THCF Medical Clinic, 647 Main St., Riverside For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net or
760-799-2055.
Thursday, December 3rd -- Sonoma County ASA Meeting
5:00 p.m. @ Dept. of Public Health, South City View Room, 625 Fifth Street (Between Mendocino Ave & Humboldt St.), Santa Rosa. Note that the DPH closes at 5 pm; please knock loudly or enter glass door directly into classroom. For more info, contact: sarah@safeaccessnow.org or
415-756-4587
Saturday, December 5th -- Palm Springs/Coachella Valley MAPP Meeting
3:00 p.m. @ Crystal Fantasy, 266 N. Palm Canyon, Palm Springs For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net or 760-799-2055.
Tuesday, December 8th -- Fresno ASA Meeting
6:00 p.m. @ Full Circle Brewing Co., 620 "F" Street, Fresno For more info, contact: fresnocagal@sbcglobal.net
Tuesday, December 8th -- San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 6070 Mt. Alifan Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92111 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 8th -- San Francisco ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ Bowzer's Pizza, 371 11th St in San Francisco For more info, contact: dcgoldman@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 9th -- Marin ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ The Whistlestop at 930 Tamalpais Ave., San Rafael For more info, contact: Thomas Mullin, mullin12321@yahoo.fr
Thursday, December 10th -- Sacramento ASA Meeting
8:00 pm @ Crepeville, 2700 24th Street (at Second Ave), Sacramento. For more info, contact haleymoore82@gmail.com
Friday, December 11th -- North County San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 1050 S. Santa Fe Ave. Vista, CA 92084 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 15th -- Sacramento: Crusaders 4 Patients Rights Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ Crusaders Hall, 320 Harris Avenue, Suite H, Sacramento For more info, contact: cpr4mercy@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 16th -- Landers: High Desert MAPP meeting
6:30 p.m. @ Castle Inn, 1388 N. Golden Slipper Lane, Landers For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net
Thursday, December 17th -- Humboldt County ASA Meeting
6:00 p.m. @ Community Rec Room of Bayview Courtyard Senior Housing Complex, 550 Union Street, Arcata For more info, contact: asa-humboldt@sbcglobal.net or
(707) 407-8522
Saturday, December 19th -- Los Angeles ASA Meeting
1:00 p.m. @ Patient ID Center, 470 S. San Vicente Blvd., Los Angeles (at Drexel, between Wilshire & 3rd St.) For more info, contact: Don@AmericansforSafeAccess.org
Tuesday, December 22nd -- San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 6070 Mt. Alifan Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92111 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 22nd -- San Francisco ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ Bowzer's Pizza, 371 11th St in San Francisco For more info, contact: dcgoldman@yahoo.com
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City and County Hearings
West Sacramento Planning Commission Workshop on Medical Marijuana Draft Ordinance
What: Workshop on Medical Marijuana Draft Ordinance Where: West Sacramento City Hall Council Chambers,
1110 West Capitol Ave., 2nd floor, West Sacramento
95691 When: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM, 12/3/2009 Contact: Craig Litwin, litwin@sonic.net
West Sacramento has recently come out with a draft medical marijuana ordinance. Please attend this workshop and show your support for safe access for patients in West Sacramento.
LA City Attorney Misrepresents Attorney General to Advance Narrow Agenda
From the blog of Don Duncan, ASA California Director:
"The Los Angeles City Attorney's office misrepresented the position of California Attorney General Jerry Brown today, implying that the state's top law enforcement official said that all sales of cannabis are illegal. That never happened."
Read the full post: LA City Attorney Wrong About AG
ASA California Legal Tip of the Month
From Lauren Payne, ASA Legal Coordinator:
Have you or a friend been charged with DUI-MJ or faced DMV revocation proceedings?
While patients are not allowed to medicate in a moving vehicle or operate a moving vehicle while under the influence of marijuana, determining what constitutes "under the influence" is far from cut and dry. In alcohol-related DUI cases, blood alcohol levels are set at a threshold and anything over that limit is considered "driving under the influence." Marijuana use presents a more difficult scenario, as baseline THC levels vary based on frequency of use, and whether or not the patient is a prolonged user. Unfortunately, this has led to many patients facing DUI-MJ charges even though they explained at the time of arrest that they had not medicated for 8 or more hours.
ASA is interested in hearing stories about law enforcement encounters related to DUI-MJ. If you or a friend has had this happen, please give us a call, even if the charges have already been dealt with.
We are also particularly interested in hearing stories from patients who are having trouble with the DMV, whether or not there is a DUI-MJ pending. As you may remember, in March of this year, Americans for Safe Access settled a lawsuit with the DMV. Part of the settlement agreement was that DMV would no longer revoke licenses strictly based on patient status. If you or a friend have been contacted by DMV simply because you are a medical marijuana patient, please give us a call: (510) 251-1856 or info@SafeAccessNow.org.
----------
Take Action
Help us Hit 50!
28 Members of Congress have already cosponsored the Truth in Trials Act. That's a great start, but there are a total of 435 members in the US House of Representatives!
Help us reach our next goal: getting 50 Members of Congress to cosponsor the bill. Please write a letter to your U. S. Representative. Urge him or her to "cosponsor HR 3939, the Truth in Trials Act."
Tell your Member of Congress that medical marijuana patients should be able to tell a federal court that they were following state law.
You can find your Member of Congress by typing your zip code here: United States House of Representatives, 111th Congress, 1st Session You might need to include your full "Zip+4", which you can find on the last piece of junk mail you received.
Read about the Truth in Trials Act here: ASA : Truth in Trials
Mail your letter to:
The Honorable [Full Name of your U. S. Rep] U. S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515
----------
Chapter and Affiliate Meetings
Tuesday, December 1st -- Sacramento: Crusaders 4 Patients Rights Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ Crusaders Hall, 320 Harris Avenue, Suite H, Sacramento For more info, contact: cpr4mercy@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 2nd -- Riverside/Western Inland Empire MAPP Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ THCF Medical Clinic, 647 Main St., Riverside For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net or
760-799-2055.
Thursday, December 3rd -- Sonoma County ASA Meeting
5:00 p.m. @ Dept. of Public Health, South City View Room, 625 Fifth Street (Between Mendocino Ave & Humboldt St.), Santa Rosa. Note that the DPH closes at 5 pm; please knock loudly or enter glass door directly into classroom. For more info, contact: sarah@safeaccessnow.org or
415-756-4587
Saturday, December 5th -- Palm Springs/Coachella Valley MAPP Meeting
3:00 p.m. @ Crystal Fantasy, 266 N. Palm Canyon, Palm Springs For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net or 760-799-2055.
Tuesday, December 8th -- Fresno ASA Meeting
6:00 p.m. @ Full Circle Brewing Co., 620 "F" Street, Fresno For more info, contact: fresnocagal@sbcglobal.net
Tuesday, December 8th -- San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 6070 Mt. Alifan Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92111 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 8th -- San Francisco ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ Bowzer's Pizza, 371 11th St in San Francisco For more info, contact: dcgoldman@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 9th -- Marin ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ The Whistlestop at 930 Tamalpais Ave., San Rafael For more info, contact: Thomas Mullin, mullin12321@yahoo.fr
Thursday, December 10th -- Sacramento ASA Meeting
8:00 pm @ Crepeville, 2700 24th Street (at Second Ave), Sacramento. For more info, contact haleymoore82@gmail.com
Friday, December 11th -- North County San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 1050 S. Santa Fe Ave. Vista, CA 92084 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 15th -- Sacramento: Crusaders 4 Patients Rights Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ Crusaders Hall, 320 Harris Avenue, Suite H, Sacramento For more info, contact: cpr4mercy@yahoo.com
Wednesday, December 16th -- Landers: High Desert MAPP meeting
6:30 p.m. @ Castle Inn, 1388 N. Golden Slipper Lane, Landers For more info, contact: lannyswerdlow@earthlink.net
Thursday, December 17th -- Humboldt County ASA Meeting
6:00 p.m. @ Community Rec Room of Bayview Courtyard Senior Housing Complex, 550 Union Street, Arcata For more info, contact: asa-humboldt@sbcglobal.net or
(707) 407-8522
Saturday, December 19th -- Los Angeles ASA Meeting
1:00 p.m. @ Patient ID Center, 470 S. San Vicente Blvd., Los Angeles (at Drexel, between Wilshire & 3rd St.) For more info, contact: Don@AmericansforSafeAccess.org
Tuesday, December 22nd -- San Diego ASA Meeting
7:00 p.m. @ 6070 Mt. Alifan Suite 202 San Diego, CA 92111 For more info, contact: eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
Tuesday, December 22nd -- San Francisco ASA Meeting
7:30 p.m. @ Bowzer's Pizza, 371 11th St in San Francisco For more info, contact: dcgoldman@yahoo.com
----------
City and County Hearings
West Sacramento Planning Commission Workshop on Medical Marijuana Draft Ordinance
What: Workshop on Medical Marijuana Draft Ordinance Where: West Sacramento City Hall Council Chambers,
1110 West Capitol Ave., 2nd floor, West Sacramento
95691 When: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM, 12/3/2009 Contact: Craig Litwin, litwin@sonic.net
West Sacramento has recently come out with a draft medical marijuana ordinance. Please attend this workshop and show your support for safe access for patients in West Sacramento.
