Global Ganja Report

Medical marijuana advocates in Montana are condemning recent arson attempts against two local dispensaries. Two separate attempts to set fire to medicinal cannabis dispensaries occurred last week in Billings. At both locations, the words "Not in Our Town" were spray-painted on the storefronts. These acts of intimidation come as the city is considering a temporary ban or moratorium on new dispensaries, in order to allow for the development of a regulatory ordinance.

The Missouri state legislature passed a bill May 13 banning the popular incense known as K2, which is said to mimic the effects of cannabis. If Gov. Jay Nixon sign the bill, the incense will be illegal to smoke, buy or sell in the state. Kansas passed similar legislation in March. Small businesses selling the K2 oppose the measure. While a May 13 account in The State Column refers to K2 as "synthetic marijuana," the blog What Is K2 calls it an "herbal smoke blend."

Cannabis Medical Solutions Inc., a leading company specializing in both physical-world and online payment solutions and financial security products for medical marijuana dispensaries, on May 13 announced that the company is in negotiations to acquire and open at least two medical marijuana dispensaries within the state of California.

New York State Sen. George H. Winner Jr. (R-Elmira) plans to renew efforts to pass legislation creating a state-level drug dealer registry that would require convicted felony drug convicts to register with the state Division of Criminal Justice Services for up to 10 years. The effort was prompted by several high profile felony drug arrests across the state's Southern Tier, along with input from local law enforcement officials, Winner said. The registry would be similar to one that is already in place for convicted sex offenders.

Canadian Justice Minister Robert Nicholson came to a decision May 10 in the case of cannabis crusader and one-time mail-order seed entrepreneur Marc Emery, approving an order to extradite him to the United States to face charges of money-laundering and "conspiracy to manufacture marijuana." He faces up to five years in prison, for a crime punishable by a $200 fine in Canada.

On May 11, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP, or "Drug Czar" office) released its 2010 National Drug Control Strategy, marking a shift of emphasis from law enforcement to treatment and prevention—compared to the enforcement-centered strategy of the Bush administration.

A supposed member of the rebel Army of the Paraguayan People (EPP), identifying himself as "Máximo Brizuela," called into radio station Primero de Marzo on May 10 to take responsibility for an attack that left four dead, including a police officer, on April 21 at the department of Concepción. President Fernando Lugo has meanwhile deployed extra police and army troops to the country's north, a major marijuana-producing region. The impoverished South American country has recently emerged as a major cannabis producer—with the government crackdown on cultivation occasioning the predictable rights abuses. (World War 4 Report, May 10)

A judge on May 7 ruled that officials in San Jose, Calif., may continue to threaten landlords of medical marijuana cooperatives with fines of up to $2,500 a day—a practice that has resulted in the eviction of at least one cannabis club. Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Kevin Murphy ruled against the medical marijuana collectives, citing a lack of evidence to issue a ban on city officials from sending the letters. However, he did not throw out the case entirely. Murphy will listen to arguments from both sides at a hearing June 25.