Florida recreational pot constitutional amendment clears initial hurdle
Backers of a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow recreational use of marijuana have passed a preliminary hurdle to get on the 2024 ballot, submitting more than enough petition signatures to trigger a Florida Supreme Court review of the measure.
Biden pardons thousands for ‘simple possession’ of marijuana
President Joe Biden is pardoning thousands of Americans convicted of “simple possession” of marijuana under federal law, as his administration takes a dramatic step toward decriminalizing the drug and addressing charging practices that disproportionately impact people of color.
Judge criticizes Florida health officials for not granting additional medical marijuana licenses
An appeals-court judge this week chided Florida health officials for not following up on promises to grant additional medical-marijuana licenses as required by state law, saying potential applicants are “understandably frustrated” and offering a legal playbook for entrepreneurs who have been shut out of the cannabis market for years.
WATCH, LISTEN: Video, 911 call released after THC-laced food found at Longwood wedding
Deputies have released body camera video from a February wedding in Longwood where multiple guests complained of feeling ill, believing they had ingested marijuana-laced food, ultimately resulting in the arrests of the bride and the caterer.
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Florida city fires top IT manager over legal medical marijuana use
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – A Florida city has fired a top information technology manager for smoking marijuana — even though he been authorized by his doctor to use it legally for medical reasons. Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a measure legalizing medical marijuana in 2016. While Florida is one of numerous states that have legalized marijuana use partially or fully, it is still against federal law. In 2019, the city revised page 13 of its 15-page employee drug-use policy to read, “The use of marijuana by city employees, including medical marijuana, with or without a prescription, is prohibited." “He’s not trying to be a medical marijuana martyr,” Cormican said.
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Florida legislation aims to legalize cannabis for adults, review pot-related convictions
Could Florida be the next state to legalize marijuana in 2022? There are a number of related bills in both the House and Senate taking aim at how Florida handles pot-related crimes. Under House Bill 189 and Senate Bill 712, individuals with certain marijuana-related crimes would be able to petition the court to expunge their criminal history. It's past time to legalize cannabis for responsible adults, let small businesses into the industry AND use the additional revenue to offset unnecessary cuts to our public schools in the budget year!! https://t.co/ovlnsgm6Bh — Rep. Carlos G Smith (@CarlosGSmith) January 22, 2021In 2016, Florida voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to allow medical marijuana.
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Man serving 90-year sentence for marijuana released from Florida prison
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – While serving a 90-year prison sentence for selling marijuana, Richard DeLisi's wife died, as did his 23-year-old son and both his parents. Yet, 71-year-old DeLisi walked out of a Florida prison Tuesday morning grateful and unresentful as he hugged his tearful family. Rick DeLisi was only 11-years-old when he sat in the courtroom and said goodbye to his father. Is there somebody that can answer to this?”Rick DeLisi said his family fell apart after his father's sentence. “There's a feeling of who's responsible for this debt in my mind, and justice," said Rick DeLisi.
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The unexpected winner on election night? Drugs
While we may not know if President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden won the presidential election for a while longer, there was one clear “winner” on election night, and that was recreational drugs. States across the country have been legalizing recreational marijuana every election cycle, and 2020 was no different. Residents in New Jersey, Arizona, Montana and South Dakota all voted to legalize recreational cannabis, and South Dakota also legalized medical marijuana, along with Mississippi. South Dakota became the first state to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in the same election. For the first time in U.S. history, the state of Oregon decriminalized possession of hard drugs, as well as voted to legalize psychedelic mushrooms.
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Florida Supreme Court looks at high-stakes marijuana case
Tampa-based Florigrown LLC is challenging the 2017 law, which created a regulatory structure for the state’s medical marijuana industry. Several prospective medical marijuana operators have intervened in the case, hoping to gain access to what is forecast to be one of the nation’s most lucrative markets. Triangle’s principles hold medical marijuana licenses in Colorado and Arizona, according to court documents. “We are not allowed to use the statutes to hand out special favors to private corporations, which is exactly what has happened in the medical marijuana arena,” he said. “Ultimately, our goal is to provide affordable, safe medical marijuana to patients.