Global Ganja Report

Costa Rica took a step towards becoming the next Latin American country to decriminalize cannabis Jan. 19, when attorney Mario Alberto Cerdas Salazar was cleared of cultivation charges on grounds of individual liberties. Cerdas Salazar was arrested in August at his home in the city of Alajuela in August, after publicly advocating for a personal right to use and cultivation of cannabis for medicinal and gastronomic purposes. He has been held since, charged with "drug trafficking." The Judicial Investigation Organism (OIJ, Costa Rica's answer to the FBI) said they found enough cannabis on the premises to make 5,000 cigarettes. The quantity was also ambiguously put at 170 "plants and leaves of plants." But the OIJ admitted they had no evidence the cannabis was intended for commercial purposes. The judge hearing the case, Carolina Leitón, found: "Yes, marijuana cultivation is illegal; nonetheless, it is not a crime if it is not utilized for sale." 

Cerdas was arrested in his dining room, where he said he frequently enjoyed a self-prepared dish of scrambled eggs in his own special cannabis sauce. (Etorno Inteligente, El Mundo, Costa Rica, Jan. 19; Costa Rican Times, Jan. 10; La Nación, Costa Rica, Jan. 7)

Cross-post to High Times

Follow @GlobalGanjaRpt