News

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Guaranteed to be the top-clicked story in the newsletter 

 We were going to ignore this . . . but just couldn’t.  Cannabis and sex.  Read More »

Getting what you need 

Americans for Safe Access have put out a U.S. travel guide for medical cannabis patients so they have access to safe and legal cannabis.

“There are currently 47 states and four territories with some form of a medical cannabis law, but the rights and privileges they extend to medical cannabis patients vary among them. As a result, patients who travel for personal or employment reasons can find themselves unsure as to how to access medical cannabis in an unfamiliar place.” More »

Thinking outside the box 

States with marijuana dispensaries flush with cash are exploring banking workarounds using credit unions, digital currencies, and payment apps. More »

We got this

An interesting Q and A with Natalie Riggins, program manager for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment MMJ Registry, who discusses implementation of new legislation on medical marijuana.

Westword Article »

Related: Doctors can recommend cannabis in place of opioids Read »

Cannabis love connection 

When cannabis is featured as the way two people met, fell in love and got married in the Vows section of The New York Times, you know things have changed.
Read »

NIMBYers take note

The impacts of regulated retail dispensaries is associated with a decrease in local criminal activity, according to a new study in Regional Science and Urban Economics. The study was conducted in Denver. 

“Overall, our results suggest that dispensaries cause an overall reduction in crime in neighborhoods, with no evidence of spillovers to surrounding neighborhoods. … Our results are consistent with theories that predict that marijuana legalization will displace illicit criminal organizations and decrease crime through changes in security behaviors or substitution toward more harmful substances. … Lastly, there is no evidence that increased marijuana use itself results in additional crime.”

More »

CBD and Parkinson’s 

CU Anschutz researchers jumped through seemingly endless government hoops to study CBD and Parkinson’s. What they found is that participants reported they felt less irritable and that they were sleeping better. They even saw that some of their motor symptoms, including stiffness and slowness, improved.

The researchers are helping others navigate the red tape to do more studies. 

Read More »

File under “trust, but verify”

President Trump said last week that his administration is allowing states to set their own marijuana policies.

“We’re going to see what’s going on. It’s a very big subject and right now we are allowing states to make that decision,” Trump said. “A lot of states are making that decision, but we’re allowing states to make that decision.”

Read More »

Streamlining Denver 

City regulators are streamlining the application and inspection processes for marijuana license transfer of ownership.  Information » 

Bloomberg looks at how states are working to create solutions to take tax payments from marijuana businesses.

Another myth bites the dust 

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Researchers at the United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Services found that illegal marijuana grow operations on federally protected lands fell after states began legalizing it for adult use.

“Outright, national recreational cannabis legalization would be one means by which illegal growing on national forests could be made to disappear,” they found. 

Read More »

Turning over a new leaf

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So far 323 citizens have taken advantage of Denver’s “Turn Over A New Leaf,” a program that helps erase low-level marijuana convictions.  It is estimated that 13,000 people are eligible.

Read More »

Also at the legislature . . . 

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The Colorado House passed a bill to reduce drug possession penalties, moving the bill to the Senate. The bill would lower the penalty for Schedule I or II drug possession to a level 1 drug misdemeanor instead of a level 4 drug felony. Level 4 drug felonies are punishable by six to 12 months in prison.

Read More »

The bill allowing greater investment flexibility in marijuana businesses, HB-1090, cleared another hurdle Tuesday, when appropriations committee referred it unamended to the Senate. The Denver Business Journal gave a preview of what passage of the bill may mean to Colorado. 

Read More »

It’s like it never happened . . . 

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Denver Mayor Michael Hancock promoted the city’s “Turn Over A New Leaf” program, a free service announced last December that’s making it easier for people to remove convictions for activity that is legal today. Hancock said the initiative is an attempt to balance the prosperity some have seen in the marijuana industry with convictions made during marijuana prohibition. Those with juvenile convictions can have it “expunged” while adults’ conviction can be “sealed.”  Charges are expected to be taken care of in 48 hours with the city and in about two weeks with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.


Denver begins clearing residents’ records of low-level marijuana offenses

Headlines

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Wipe low-level marijuana convictions clean?

That’s what The Denver Post editorial board proposes, noting that laws have “adapted to meet the realization dawning over America that marijuana is a relatively safe drug.”

Read More »

Cause for concern?

What President Trump’s pick for AG could mean for the marijuana industry.

Read More »

Cannabis and Alzheimer’s

Harvard’s McLean Psychiatric Hospital is partnering with Spier Family Foundation to research the potential benefits.

Read More »

Following the money 

As legalization spreads, the Associated Press looks at which U.S. companies are getting into on the marijuana industry. 

Read More »

Looking ahead

Will new legislature be more cannabis friendly?

Read More »

Body of research quelling fears about legal cannabis continues to grow

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As the number of states and countries legalizing marijuana grows, so too does the research into the potential effects on society. The common theme: legal cannabis isn’t contributing to society’s ills. It may even be helping.

One of the biggest concerns – and misconceptions – has been about the dangers of driving under the influence and what opponents contended was a rise in DUIs because of legal adult cannabis use. But a first-ever study from the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice shows the majority of Coloradans suspected of driving under the influence in 2016 had been drinking, but only a small fraction had used marijuana. 

Colorado Politics Story »

Westword Story »

Colorado.gov Report »

Another study set to be published in October found that workplace deaths dropped in states that had legalized cannabis. The researchers analyzed federal Department of Labor statistics, finding that the numbers backed the theory that if people use marijuana as an alternative to alcohol or painkillers, the risk of impairment on the job could be lower.

Read the Story »

New reports dispute widespread claims tying legal cannabis to cartels and crime

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Since cannabis has been legalized for adult use, critics have tried to tie it to every negative societal change in Colorado.  Forget that fact that nearly 2 million new people have moved to the state. Everything is the fault of cannabis.  

Some law enforcement agencies have jumped on the bandwagon, alleging repeatedly that legalization is luring dangerous drug cartels to the state. Turns out, according to one of the newspapers that has been fanning the flames of much of that misinformation, there is no data or court cases to prove any of those assertions.

Read the Story »

At the same time, a new report throws cold water on claims that the legalization of pot has led to a rise in crime. Researchers at Washington State University say their review of FBI data for Washington and Colorado shows “no negative effects of legalization and, instead, indicate(s) that crime clearance rates for at least some types of crime are increasing faster in states that legalized than in those that did not.” 

In other words, the researchers say, their findings seem to support the argument that marijuana legalization frees up police resources to focus on more serious crimes.

Quotable

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“What we have a tendency to do is think if there’s a Mexican involved in Colorado, they’re cartels…Probably not.”

~ Tim Gorman
Director of the federally funded anti-marijuana police organization
Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

Read Story »

Headlines

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Why Colorado needs to legalize cannabis delivery

A veteran who works with many disabled and terminally ill vets explains why he supports efforts to make marijuana delivery legal.  And no, it’s not about being able to get pot with your pizza.

Read the Story »

Colorado Gazette backpedals on black market report

Earlier this year, the newspaper reported the black market for marijuana had dramatically expanded in Colorado since adult-use was legalized. Its newest report admits that isn’t really true because there isn’t a central, comprehensive data collection mechanism in place to track the black market.  As the Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Patricia Billinger said:

“We did not have a definitive measurement of the black market prior to legalization and do not have a definitive measurement today, so at best we can say with certainty that the percent of black market activity in Colorado has gone down.”

Read the Story »

Cannabis Tax Money Funding Local Projects

The Denver Parks and Recreation department is receiving four million dollars in funding to get “projects done that would not have been done before,” said Scott Gilmore, Denver’s Executive Director of Parks and Planning. 

Read the Story »

Education

Responsibility Grows Here,” the new public education effort launched by the state health department this week, will include four targeted campaigns addressing consumers, youth, trusted adults, and pregnant and breastfeeding women.

Read the Story »

Jefferson University seeking 100,000 medical marijuana patients.

The Philadelphia-based  Thomas Jefferson University is working to build the world’s largest database of medical cannabis users to provide evidence-based resources for patients and caregivers.

Read the Story »

For the record

The Motley Fool compiles “7 Jaw-Dropping Marijuana Statistics You Have to See to Believe.”

Read the Story »