Global Ganja Report

The Internet is atwitter over a June 19 report in the Santa Monica Observer with the headline: "US Gov't Will Legalize Marijuana on August 1." The article claims that "weed will soon be legal in all 50 states, with a prescription," thanks to the imminent government action, with cannabis about to be switched from Schedule I to Schedule II. An unnamed DEA attorney is quoted as saying: "Whatever the law may be in California, Arizona or Utah or any other State, because of Federal preemption this will have the effect of making THC products legal with a prescription, in all 50 states." The story also cites a June 17 article in the Denver Post asserting (with no attribution) that the DEA will issue a decision in the matter by July 1.

On June 15, DEA agents and Sonoma County law enforcement raided six facilities associated with Care By Design (CBD), a Santa Rosa company that produces cannabis oils, tinctures and sprays under the Absolute Xtracts brand. The raid comes just days after the company hosted local and state officials at its facilities to discuss regulations for the emerging industry. CBD co-founder Dennis Hunter was arrested and charged with a felony for manufacturing a controlled substance by chemical extraction (a law created for meth labs). He is being held on $5 million bail. Equipment and payroll records were also seized. The company is apparently accused of using butane gas to produce concentrated cannabis oil—a practice banned in California. (Santa Rosa Press-Democrat, High Times, CBD press release via Weed Blog)

Well, this is a little funny. The US has been eager to find any evidence that the left-wing government of Venezuela is tainted by narco-trafficking. But now it looks like a Florida police force may have been co-opted by the Venezuelan narco-networks. Federal authorities now say that for two years starting in 2010, police in Bal Harbour, Miami-Dade County, funneled millions in drug money into the bank accounts of Venezuelans—including William Amaro Sánchez, now special assistant to President Nicolás Maduro. The supposed goal was to disrupt the networks. But this supposed undercover sting operation generated millions for a local police task force and never made a single arrest.

On Dec. 18, Congress approved a $1.1 trillion dollar spending bill—and in the process approved a provision promising to keep federal law enforcement out of medical marijuana operations in states that have passed acts legalizing them. The provision, known as the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment, was first approved in December of last year. The rider for a second year bars the use of Department of Justice funds "to prevent such States from implementing their own State laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana."

Two nephews of the wife of Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro were arrested this week in Haiti, turned over to DEA agents and flown to the United States to face drug trafficking charges, the New York Times reports Nov. 11. The two men, Efraín Antonio Campo Flores and Francisco Flores de Freitas, are nephews of Cilia Flores—called by the populist Maduro the "First Combatant" rather than first lady. Flores is a powerful political figure in her own right, and is currently running for Venezuela's congress with the ruling party. The nephews are expected to appear this week in Federal District Court in Manhattan. They were charged in a sealed indictment accusing them of conspiring to ship 800 kilograms of cocaine to the United States, to be sold in New York City, according to a "person with knowledge of the matter."

DEA agents raided the reservation of  Wisconsin's Menominee Indian Tribe on Oct. 23—destroying what federal authorities say was a crop of illegal marijuana, and what tribal authorities say was a field of industrial hemp. Acting US Attorney Gregory Haanstad says agents executed a search warrant and seized about 30,000 marijuana plants weighing several thousand pounds. But tribal chairman Gary Besaw flatly contradicted this. According to Milwaukee's CBS 58, he said in a statement: "I am deeply disappointed that Obama administration has made the decision to utilize the full force of the DEA to raid our Tribe. We were attempting to grow industrial hemp for research purposes in accordance with the farm bill."

On Sept. 11, the California state legislature approved a trio of bills to establish comprehensive regulation and licensing of medical cannabis. Assembly Bills 243 and 266 and Senate Bill 643 were all passed, and will delegate regulation of commercial medical cannabis cultivation, manufacturing, transportation, and distribution to various state agencies as well as create a state-level licensing system. Gov. Jerry Brown is widely expected to sign all three pieces of legislation. "We're glad the legislature has finally been able to move forward on regulations," said Don Duncan, California direcotr of Americans for Safe Access (ASA). "History has shown that regulation can improve community outcomes while still preserving patient access. Passing medical cannabis regulation before the state moves forward with a potential adult-use recreational system next year is extremely important for the preservation of the medical cannabis program.”

California's Eureka Times-Standard reported July 27 that a two-week multi-agency operation eradicated some 55,000 cannabis plants on and around the Yurok Indian reservation. The Yurok Tribe carried out similar raids last year, eradicating 15,000 plants, and intends to go on doing so every summer until growers leave the area, Yurok vice-chair Susan Masten said.  "We're not going to quit until there are zero plants growing on the reservation," she told the Times-Standard. Authorities also seized 1,000 pounds of processed cannabis, made seven arrests, served 30 search warrants, discovered one butane hash oil lab, and allegedly found (unnamed) evidence indicating the possibility of Mexican cartel involvement in some of the grows. Along with tribal police, the Humboldt County Drug Task Force, California Department of Fish & Wildlife, National Guard, and California Department of Forestry participated in "Operation Yurok."