420 with CNW – Luxembourg Reveals Intention to Become First in Europe to Legalize Marijuana

Luxembourg’s health minister has confirmed that the country plans to legalize recreational marijuana and he has urged other European Union (EU) member states to relax their own marijuana laws. If the country ends prohibition, it will be the first European country to take this bold step in defiance of UN conventions on the matter.

Etienne Schneider, Luxembourg’s health minister, said that the current drug policy which has been in existence in the country for the past 50 years hasn’t had the desired effect because prohibition only served to make marijuana more appealing to the youth. He added that he hoped that the citizens of Luxembourg would all become more open-minded towards drugs.

According to the legalization plan, residents who are at least 18-years old would be able to buy, possess and use marijuana in Luxembourg two years from now. The state plans to create an agency through which the production and distribution of marijuana will be regulated.

The draft law through which this legalization will be implemented is expected to be unveiled later this year. The health minister revealed that the draft law is likely to include provisions banning visitors from buying marijuana during their stay in Luxembourg. Schneider says this provision is necessary in order to prevent the country from becoming a destination for “drug tourists.”

The legalization law is also likely to ban the home cultivation of marijuana while also decriminalizing the possession of less than 28grams of the drug by minors between 12 and 17 years of age. However, minors who contravene this rather liberal provision will face stiff penalties.

Luxembourg’s health minister also said that he was keen to convince other countries in the EU to follow Luxembourg’s lead and reform their own marijuana laws.

According to additional information provided by Schneider, there is likely to be limited resistance to the plan to legalize marijuana in Luxembourg because a coalition of the Liberals, the Greens and the Social Democrats agreed to this plan. Last year, Felix Braz (the justice minister) and Schneider flew to Canada to see how one of the largest Canadian pot companies was producing marijuana for the recreational market.

Medical marijuana is already legal in Luxembourg and the possession of limited amounts of marijuana was decriminalized. Full legalization therefore seems to be the next logical step for this EU country.

It is unclear how other EU countries will respond to the legalization of cannabis in Luxembourg. The Netherlands is currently the only country in the EU which tolerates recreational marijuana since the drug is neither illegal nor legal. Coffee shops openly sell marijuana even if the cultivation and processing of the substance remains illegal in the country.

Pundits believe that the global cannabis industry, including actors like Plus Products Inc. (CSE: PLUS) (OTCQB: PLPRF) and SinglePoint Inc. (OTCQB: SING), could be very pleased by the news coming from Luxembourg since this may trigger a domino effect in other EU countries.

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CNW420 spotlights the latest developments in the rapidly evolving cannabis industry through the release of two informative articles each business day. Our concise, informative content serves as a gateway for investors interested in the legalized cannabis sector and provides updates on how regulatory developments may impact financial markets. Articles are released each business day at 4:20 a.m. and 4:20 p.m. Eastern – our tribute to the time synonymous with cannabis culture. If marijuana and the burgeoning industry surrounding it are on your radar, CNW420 is for you! Check back daily to stay up-to-date on the latest milestones in the fast -changing world of cannabis.

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420 with CNW – Former FDA Boss Says Federal Marijuana Decriminalization Should Be Considered

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the former director of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has revealed that he believes that there are valid reasons why the U.S. federal government should consider decriminalizing marijuana at a national level. Gottlieb was speaking on Wednesday during an interview with C-SPAN’s Washington Journal.

Responding to a caller from Washington State who revealed that the legalization of recreational marijuana was showing good results in the state, Gottlieb remarked that it was important to draw a distinction between decriminalization and legalization.

The former director revealed that in his opinion, it wasn’t right from a public policy perspective to keep incarcerating people for low-level marijuana possession and those people suffer because of the resultant criminal records and yet other people who commit more serious offenses don’t suffer as much.

As a follow up question to this response, the show host asked Scott Gottlieb whether he ever made similar statements to the White House while he was still the FDA head. He responded that he had not, and added that his work at the FDA was focused on public health issues and delving into decriminalization would have been beyond his mandate.

Gottlieb explained that he is personally opposed to the legalization of marijuana, especially adult-use marijuana, because it raises public health concerns regarding how the developing brains of minors will be affected in the long-term due to the use of marijuana.

It should be remembered that recent research has shown that the rates of teen cannabis use reduce once states legalize recreational cannabis, contradicting the view held by the former FDA chief.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb also stated that there is need for the federal government to come up with a system which standardizes the marijuana laws in the states which have enacted laws to end cannabis prohibition. In his view, some states are “too permissive” while others have adequate protections in place, such as on matters of access by minors. Federal action would raise the bar and ensure that the states which legalize marijuana do so in a way that meets the minimum standards established by the federal government.

However, Gottlieb admitted that this is unlikely to happen any time soon since the federal government still has a lot of catching up to do on matters of marijuana. Analysts think industry players like Nabis Holdings Inc. (CSE: NAB) (OTC: NABIF) (FRA: 71P) and Organigram Holdings Inc. (TSX.V: OGI) (NASDAQ: OGI) can only wait until voters put their elected leaders under immense pressure so that they implement marijuana law reforms.

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420 with CNW – Florida Personal Injury Lawyer Turns Around and Decides to Back Marijuana Legalization Drive

Last week, we reported that Regulate Florida, an advocacy group campaigning to put marijuana legalization on the 2020 state ballot had gathered enough valid votes to get the Supreme Court to review the language of their petition and that John Morgan, the personal injury lawyer who had bankrolled an initiative to legalize medical marijuana had declined to support the current push to legalize recreational marijuana saying that in his opinion, Florida wasn’t ready for such a shift. Now the lawyer has made a 180-degree turn and has decided to put his weight behind efforts to make adult-use marijuana legal in the state in 2020.

Initially, John Morgan had opted to back an initiative to raise the minimum wage in Florida rather than support attempts to get a measure on recreational marijuana voted on during the next elections.

However, the lawyer wrote on his Twitter account on Tuesday that he was too old to care (about what critics think) and that he believed that marijuana should be legal in Florida. Morgan said that he believes that there is time and money to push for legalization through a ballot measure and now that he had helped to gather sufficient signatures to put the minimum wage issue on the ballot, he would now turn his attention to marijuana legalization.

The self-appointed “pot daddy” wrote that his change of mind came about after marijuana industry leaders who had the financial muscle to get marijuana legalized sooner rather than later approached him and asked for his involvement.

John Morgan admitted that while getting a measure approved for inclusion on the ballot will be very hard, such an initiative will pass with overwhelming support once the matter is up for a decision on Election Day.

Morgan was tightlipped about the identity of the “industry leaders” who contacted him, but one of the legalization campaigns is being spearheaded by a lobbyist who is on the payroll of MedMen, a medical marijuana dispensary chain.

Any measure that is included on the ballot must get at least 60 percent voter approval before the constitution can be amended. In 2014, Morgan backed a move to have medical marijuana legalized but that campaign only garnered 58 percent support, which was just shy of the proportion needed to amend the constitution.

For now, analysts believe that industry participants like Marijuana Company of America Inc. (OTCQB: MCOA) and MustGrow Biologics Corp. (CSE: MGRO) could be relieved that the experienced marijuana campaigner has jumped into the fray even if he hasn’t yet decided which particular campaign he intends to join.

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420 with CNW – Mexican Government Seeks Public Input on Plans to Legalize Marijuana

Mexican legislators have announced plans to hold a series of public meetings in order to gather information on how the public thinks the government should handle the matter of legalizing recreational marijuana in the country. The meetings are planned for August 12, 14 and 16.

The announcements indicate that Mexicans will be free to pass on their suggestions on five different aspects of marijuana legalization. These are public health issues, matters of human rights, how to develop drugs derived from marijuana, how to prevent access to marijuana by minors and how to deal with marijuana addiction.

A translation of the information carried on the government website indicates that the move towards legalizing marijuana is motivated by several factors which include the changing attitude towards prohibition at the international level and the Supreme Court ruling that declared banning the recreational use of marijuana by adults as unconstitutional. These factors made it necessary to give serious thought to creating a regulated marijuana industry in the country.

The Mexican Senate has created a page where members of the public can find all the details about the planned meetings, as well as how interested people can register to attend the meetings in person. There is also a provision for Mexicans to submit their comments using an online form provided on the website.

The website also indicates that many bills related to marijuana legalization have been filed before the Senate and the content of those bills would form part of what is discussed during the public meetings.

Before the legislative committees start examining those bills, public input will be collected in a transparent and inclusive way so that the final legislation passed will be a true reflection of what the people of Mexico want at this time.

It should be remembered that a few months ago, Julio Ramon Salazar, the chair of the Senate Justice Committee, announced that his committee would use the summer recess to draft a law for the legalization of marijuana in the country.

While there are at least 10 bills seeking to reform Mexico’s marijuana policies, it is widely believed that the bill introduced by Olga Sanchez Cordero, the Mexican Secretary of Interior, is the one that is most likely to be passed by the lawmakers.

Marijuana reform is supported to the very top tiers of decision making in Mexico, with President Manuel Obrador saying that it is unsustainable to continue the war on drugs. He even went so far as suggesting in his National Development Plan that marijuana should be decriminalized.

Marijuana industry analysts would be eager to know what players like IONIC Brands Corp. (CSE: IONC) (OTC: IONKF) and Lexaria Bioscience Corp. (CSE: LXX) (OTCQX: LXRP) think will be the regional ramifications of Mexico legalizing marijuana.

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420 with CNW – Oregon Law Forbids the Sale of Marijuana Byproducts

As Oregon struggles with an oversupply of marijuana on its recreational market, it has emerged that the law under which adult-use marijuana was legalized bans the sale of cannabis byproducts out of state.

This information was revealed by Caleb Mata, the CEO of Oregon Genetics. Mata raised this issue when he was speaking at a listening event organized in July by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC).

OLCC says that under the current law in the state, every product that is derived from marijuana is regarded as marijuana, and that is why it cannot be legally transported or sold out of state. This rule also applies to cannabis byproducts, such as the terpenes Mata talked about, which don’t contain any THC.

Mata believes that the state trapped itself when it passed such a provision in its law because the marijuana industry will struggle to survive if such clauses remain in the laws regulating the industry.

He is convinced that allowing the cannabis industry in Oregon to sell terpenes (cannabis flavors that can be obtained by distilling the plant) and other byproducts free from THC may provide a lifeline to fixing the glut on the Oregon marijuana market.

Terpenes attract high prices online because they can be added to CBD products in states where marijuana is still illegal. The current practice has been to use terpenes which have been extracted from other plants, but marijuana terpenes are distinct and offer a better experience to the users of the products in which these terpenes have been added.

The market for terpenes is unlikely to face the same oversupply challenges that the market for cannabis flower and related products is facing for two key reasons.

The first, as already mentioned, is that marijuana is still illegal in many states and those provide a regular market for terpenes to be added to CBD products.

Secondly, terpenes are volatile and are usually lost as marijuana concentrates, oils and other extracts are being processed. These flavors must then be added after the extraction process, and that means that there will always be a market for the terpenes.

Hugh Palcic, an OLCC commissioner, admitted that Caleb Mata and other members of the industry have a legitimate concern which can only be addressed by reviewing the existing law so that necessary amendments can be made. He added that OLCC is open to any ideas and recommendations that could be beneficial to the industry in Oregon.

It isn’t yet clear to industry analysts how marijuana industry players like Green Hygienics Holdings Inc. (OTCQB: GRYN) and Hemptown USA regard the long-term viability of the market for marijuana terpenes.

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420 with CNW – Florida Legislator Files Marijuana Decriminalization Bill

Rep. Shevrin Jones (D) has filed a bill in the Florida Assembly seeking to decriminalize the possession of up to 20grams of marijuana. This bill comes at a time when campaigners who wish to have marijuana legalized through a ballot measure have collected and submitted the number of voter signatures required before the Supreme Court of the state can review the language of their petition.

In a press release, Jones said that he was pleased to file this bill as a way to fix the broken criminal justice system of the state. The existing marijuana laws have disproportionately affected people of color who end up losing their student financial aid, access to housing loans, denial of job opportunities and so many other collateral effects of having a marijuana possession conviction on one’s criminal record. Jones adds that he is proud to introduce this law which will put an end to more Floridians being adversely affected by these laws which are implemented in a selective manner.

The bill also makes the possession of less than 600miligrams of THC a non-criminal offense that is punishable by a fine rather than jail time.

Marijuana law reform advocacy groups, such as NORML, have welcomed this new bill saying that Florida has a reputation of having some of the most draconian marijuana laws in the country, so any measure that pegs back those punitive policies will provide much needed relief. NORML pledged to support the legislator in any way they can to ensure that the draft legislation passes in both legislative chambers of the state.

Meanwhile, it isn’t yet clear whether marijuana will be legalized in Florida since attempts to do so legislatively failed and the push to refer the matter to voters is still in its infancy.

However, some jurisdictions within the state have taken matters into their own hands and they are initiating local laws decriminalizing low-level marijuana possession. Cocoa Beach for example approved a measure in May to decriminalize the possession of less than 20grams of cannabis. Tallahassee is also likely to do the same if the efforts of one local lawmaker spearheading a decriminalization drive achieve the desired outcome.

As all this is going on, the state police has admitted that the legalization of industrial hemp has made it harder to prosecute marijuana possession cases. Police officers have therefore been advised to be extra vigilant so that they don’t prosecute people for marijuana-related crimes when those people had hemp, a plant that looks like marijuana but doesn’t cause any psychoactive effects.

Industry analysts believe that cannabis industry players like Grapefruit Boulevard Investments Inc. (OTCQB: IGNG) and Green Growth Brands Inc. (CSE: GGB) (OTCQB: GGBXF) could be wondering when the federal government will reform its marijuana policies so that the fragmented reforms being seen in different states can come to an end.

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420 with CNW – Colorado Lawmakers Pass Bill Allowing Medical Marijuana as Alternative to Opioids

Across the U.S., more than 130 people die each day due to overdosing on opioids. Colorado has permitted medical marijuana to be used as a way to combat this crisis, at least within its borders. This makes Colorado the third state in the country to give doctors permission to discuss medical marijuana with their patients who need opioids to deal with their acute or post-operative pain.

The other states that have this provision are Illinois and New York. Two other states (New Jersey and Pennsylvania) have allowed patients diagnosed with opioid use disorder to consider medical marijuana as a treatment option.

Rep. Edie Hooton, the Colorado lawmaker who co-sponsored the bill to legalize the use of medical marijuana as an alternative to opioids, said that the law was designed to give doctors the legal protection that they needed in order to discuss medical marijuana freely with their patients. He added that the passing of the bill on Friday now makes it normal for doctors to have this conversation.

While the supporters of this new law say that it will help to curb the opioid crisis in the state, there is insufficient scientific research to support this assertion. One of the studies which is cited to prove that medical marijuana can curb the opioid crisis is a study which was published in JAMA in 2014.

That research found that there was a 25 percent drop in the number of people dying from opioid overdoses in the states where medical marijuana is legal. The data analyzed covered the years between 1999 and 2010.

However, other studies done on the subject have come up with opposite conclusions, with a recent study which expanded the timeframe to 2017 revealing that opioid overdoses increased by almost 23 percent in the states with legal medical marijuana.

As the scientific community works round the clock to build consensus on how useful medical marijuana may be in stemming the tide of deaths associated with opioids, state lawmakers have gone ahead to enact policies and laws permitting the use of marijuana as an alternative to prescription meds for pain. These lawmakers believe that giving patients more options will empower them to choose what they believe will work for them instead of being forced to use opioids, thereby exposing themselves to the well-documented harmful side effects of these drugs.

For example, the state of Illinois launched its Opioid Alternative Pilot Program in January this year in order to gather data on how patients manage their pain if they are allowed to use medical marijuana instead of opioids. So far, 2,000 patients have signed up.

The entire cannabis industry believes that industry players, such as Geyser Brands Inc. (TSX.V: GYSR) and Golden Developing Solutions Inc. (OTC: DVLP), hope that the patient data collected will provide proof that medical marijuana can play a part in taming the opioid crisis.

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420 with CNW – New Mexico Cannabis Legalization Working Group Schedules First Meeting

The working group created by New Mexico Gov. Michelle Grisham (D) announced on Friday that it would be holding its first public meeting on August 14. During that meeting, several issues connected to plans to legalize recreational marijuana in the state will be discussed.

Individual residents and groups are free to comment either in advance or during the actual meeting on the topics lined up for the day. During that meeting, the Department of Health will address the people present about the medical cannabis program in the state while the Department of Regulation and Licensing will deliver a presentation about the current status of cannabis regulation.

The committee members will then discuss various issues, such as recreational marijuana marketing, the option of creating state-operated marijuana shops, how licensing should be done and whether a marijuana control division should be created by the state.

The website of the working group has a landing page for almost all the items lined up for discussion during this maiden meeting. On those pages, visitors will find the specific goals that the committee has for that area, the questions that the committee plans to answer on that topic, details about how that particular aspect was going to be legalized under the bill which was put before lawmakers, and how other states have legislated on that matter.

At the bottom of each of those pages, online visitors will find a form that they can use to share their opinion on that specific aspect of marijuana legalization.

For example, on the matter of whether the state should directly run a marijuana retail network, the working group posed a question regarding what risks, if any, the state employees will face by participating in what the federal government calls “drug trafficking.” The committee also posed a question on how else a fair distribution of marijuana shops can be ensured if the state isn’t to be involved in retail sales.

Once an item on the list is discussed extensively, the members of the working group will finally take a vote on the matter and move onto the next item on the agenda. The members of the working committee are also free to suggest policy proposals for discussion by the entire group following a method that will be explained during the meeting on August 14.

Another meeting of this committee will be held on August 27 to handle other matters connected to cannabis legalization.

It should be remembered that Gov. Grisham made a campaign promise to legalize recreational marijuana and she formed the working group after a legalization bill failed to pass in the state senate. The findings of the working group will form the basis of a new legalization bill which will be tabled before lawmakers early next year.

Analysts believe that industry players like ChineseInvestors.com Inc. (OTCQB: CIIX) and Earth Science Tech Inc. (OTCQB: ETST) will be hoping that the method of using a working group will result in a legalization bill which is widely acceptable to the lawmakers on different sides of this topic.

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420 with CNW – Texas State Police Memo Instructs Officers to Stop Cannabis Possession Arrests

An interoffice memo sent to all Department of Public Safety officers in Texas instructs the members of the largest law enforcement agency in the state to stop arresting suspects on marijuana possession charges. This communication marks the most recent twist in the confusion surrounding marijuana law enforcement after lawmakers passed a law legalizing industrial hemp.

The memo instead advises police officers to write a citation asking a suspect to appear in court in order to respond to the criminal charges against him or her. Individuals who receive these citations are still liable to serve a maximum custodial sentence of one year as well as a $4,000 fine for marijuana misdemeanor charges.

The memo adds that department personnel should continue enforcing marijuana laws, but they will only cite and release the suspects.

The interoffice memo, written on July 10, came barely a week before the top Republican leaders in the state (the governor, lieutenant governor and assembly leader) wrote a letter castigating the prosecutors who had either dropped or put marijuana possession cases on hold because of the law legalizing hemp.

In the memo, Randall Prince (deputy director in charge of law enforcement operations, DPS) emphasizes that HB 1325 didn’t decriminalize marijuana, but the change in the law enforcement approach was needed since only a laboratory analysis can prove that a substance is hemp or marijuana.

The difficulty of proving that a substance is hemp and not marijuana is responsible for the decision of many prosecutors to drop marijuana possession cases since the crime labs of the state don’t have the required testing equipment.

However, the DPS memo states that while police officers may be unable to prove beyond reasonable doubt that someone was found in possession of marijuana, it is still possible to find probable cause to institute charges against an individual. The legal burden to prove probable cause is lower than the burden of proving beyond reasonable doubt, and that is why the memo asks officers to issue citations.

That notwithstanding, prosecutors in Tarrant County have decided to send seized samples to a private lab for analysis so that the pending felony cases can proceed. One of the three samples tested was found to have 13 percent THC while another had 15 percent THC. These substances were therefore confirmed to be marijuana while the third sample only contained 0.2 percent THC, which ruled it out as being marijuana.

It isn’t immediately clear how the new directive in the memo will affect marijuana prosecutions given the fact that some exceptions were made in the instructions provided. For example, the cite and release policy directive can only apply if the person suspected to have marijuana is found within the county in which he or she resides. Individuals found outside their counties, such as during traffic stops, will still be arrested.

Secondly, the cite and release policy can only apply in counties where mechanisms are in place to enforce such a measure. For example, a court system should be in place to handle such cases. However, most counties lack the processes needed to enforce the cite and release policy, so the prosecutors in those areas are unlikely to implement this directive.

Commentators wonder what kind of discussions could be taking place in the corridors of industry players like Youngevity International Inc. (NASDAQ: YGYI) and Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTCQB: NUGS) about the marijuana law enforcement chaos in Texas.

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420 with CNW – Seven Oklahoma Marijuana Dispensaries Sue Facebook

It seems that Facebook is unable to decide whether it loathes or loves marijuana. At about this time last year, the social media giant was reported to be silently banning companies that were either advocating for marijuana or selling marijuana products. In October last year, Facebook seemed to have softened its stance when it announced that it would start allowing verified legal cannabis companies to use its platform for marketing or advocacy purposes.

However, all that doesn’t seem to have become a reality since many cannabis companies still complain that their content is flagged. Now seven Oklahoma medical marijuana dispensaries have decided enough is enough and have sued Facebook on the matter.

Danna Malone and her dispensary Ye Olde Apothecary Shoppe were the first to go to court alleging that Facebook, its CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the COO Sheryl Sandberg and Peter Thiel (executive team member) had placed the dispensary in what they called “Facebook jail” and prevented the legal business from posting about its shops and products.

This first lawsuit was filed in May this year. On July 18, six other medical cannabis dispensaries joined Ye Olde Apothecary Shoppe as plaintiffs in this particular case. The complaints of the additional dispensaries were similar to those of Danna Malone.

When a profile or page is taken to “Facebook jail,” that particular profile or page is temporarily disabled by the platform as a result of a perceived violation of any of the Facebook standards. The seven medical marijuana dispensaries in Oklahoma that assert that Facebook put them in “Facebook jail” want the social media giant to be compelled by court to stop blocking these businesses from promoting their shops on this platform.

The companies are also demanding for a total of $75,000 as damages for the economic losses that they have suffered as a result of Facebook’s actions.

Additionally, the plaintiffs are requesting court to compel the defendants to meet the legal fees of the plaintiffs if the seven dispensaries decide to engage an attorney to argue their case.

The petition of the plaintiffs states that “Facebook has an arbitrary, discriminatory and subjective policy which is archaic and doesn’t apply uniformly to all.” The seven dispensaries also claim that the implementation of that policy appears to be random and there is no one at the platform who can be contacted if someone or a business has a concern.

The plaintiffs say the people at Facebook “hide behind their keyboards” while deciding the punishments they should mete out upon those they feel have contravened one of their subjectively defined community standards.

The lawsuit states that on the surface, it appears that Facebook isn’t sanctioning companies in states, such as California, Washington and Oregon, which have legalized recreational marijuana.

Industry watchers believe that this case will be followed closely by cannabis industry players like Canopy Rivers Inc. (TSX.V: RIV) (OTC: CNPOF) and Chemistree Technology Inc. (CSE: CHM) (OTCQB: CHMJF) since it could open the floodgate of lawsuits by marijuana companies that feel aggrieved with the platform in different jurisdictions.

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