New York decriminalizes cannabis and offers medical cannabis delivery services to patients

Bethan Rose Jenkins, Cannabis News Writer/Editorial

August 13, 2019

The landscape for legal weed in New York is most certainly evolving. Following a failed effort to legalize recreational cannabis in July, weed has now been decriminalized statewide. Unlawfully possessing cannabis will no longer be considered a crime but instead, a violation. A $50 fine must be pai...

Updated medical cannabis law in New Mexico could grant inmates access to weed

Bethan Rose Jenkins, Cannabis News Writer/Editorial

April 24, 2019

New Mexico is still feeling the effects of a bill that was recently signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. The new law amends the State's medical cannabis rule to expand patient access to pharmaceutical-grade weed. Since the changes were signed into law, confusion has permeated New Mexico's...

Expungement fairs are helping cannabis convicts to work in the legal weed industry

Bethan Rose Jenkins, Cannabis News Writer/Editorial

November 10, 2018

As cannabis investments, stocks and consumption rates rise countrywide, more job opportunities are opening up in the legal weed industry. Demand for knowledgeable workers is soaring, with available roles ranging from budtenders and laboratory testers to cannabis cultivators and plant trimmers. In an at...

New cannabis breathalyzer could prevent drugged-driving

Bethan Rose Jenkins, Cannabis News Writer/Editorial

August 17, 2018

New York is inching closer to legalizing recreational cannabis and in the midst of this, a new cannabis breathalyzer is being unveiled. The unique law enforcement device is designed to detect traces of cannabis in pot smokers. Motorists who are caught behind the wheel with more than 0.08 percent blood-alcohol...

Sen. Cory Booker says legalization is inevitable

March 9, 2018

Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced a bill called the Marijuana Justice Act in 2017 that would end the federal prohibition of cannabis, and he thinks we’re well on our way to legalizing. "It will happen," Booker said in a recent interview. "It's not a matter of if, but when." Booker is seen as a likely candidate for president in 2020, and another l...

Even after legalization, black Americans face most cannabis arrests

February 3, 2018

Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor It’s well known that the War on Drugs has disproportionately targeted people of color, and unfortunately, that doesn’t immediately change when a state legalizes cannabis. According to a new report from the Drug Policy Alliance, even after a state legalizes,...

Where California cannabis legalization goes from here

January 5, 2018

Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor Social use cannabis sales began in California on the 1st of January, but there are still quite a few regulatory issues to address. California is currently operating under temporary emergency regulations so sales could commence, and the details of the permanent regulations will be hashed out...

Here are the effects of cannabis legalization after 5 years

November 6, 2017

Today is the five-year anniversary of Colorado and Washington residents voting to legalize cannabis for social use. While most of legalization naysayers have created narratives regarding the "danger" of cannabis use, the data collected in the last five years has refuted all those fears with factual evidence. Read...

Legalization saves lives in Colorado

October 20, 2017

Thor Benson /  Cannabis News Box Contributor Studies have previously shown legalizing medical cannabis can help reduce the number of people using and dying from the abuse of opioids, and it looks like Colorado is proving social use cannabis legalization can have a similar effect. New research p...

High sales in Nevada’s social market come as no surprise

October 9, 2017

Thor Benson / Cannabis News Box Contributor Nevada only started selling cannabis for social use in July, and it’s already raking in a lot of money from it, according to a new report from the state’s tax department. Over $27 million worth of cannabis was sold in the first month, which is far more than Colorado, Oregon o...

FBI data shows more cannabis arrests than all violent crimes combined

Logan Lowrey-Rasmussen

September 27, 2017

According to 2016 crime data released by the FBI, more people were arrested for cannabis possession than any other violent crime in the United States. Cannabis possession accounted for more than 5 percent of all arrests last year with more than one in 20 arrests involving a cannabis possession c...

ACLU, Drug Policy Alliance sue California city over home cultivation requirements

June 7, 2017

The ACLU of California and the Drug Policy Alliance have filed suit against the California city of Fontana over the city's restrictive requirements regarding cultivation cannabis plants at home. Under Proposition 64, California residents are allowed to grow six cannabis plants for personal use. The...