Marijuana

OLYMPIA – Rules for growing, processing and selling medical marijuana passed the Washington state House of Representatives after heated debate Monday on whether the proposed law has enough safeguards to prevent sales to children. Supporters said it was an effort to be compassionate to the chronically ill and dying who have a doctor’s recommendation for, but no access to, a substance that will give them relief.

Medical marijuana dispensaries in Spokane face federal prosecution if they do not end their operations immediately, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday. Federal authorities hope for voluntary compliance but are prepared “for quick and direct action against the operators of the stores,” according to a statement by Mike Ormsby, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.

OLYMPIA – A new version of a plan to regulate the production and sale of medical marijuana in Washington is headed for a vote in the state House after narrowly passing a committee Wednesday. Now heavily amended, SB 5073 would allow the state Health Department to decide how many medical marijuana dispensaries could be located in each county, and would set up a lottery to obtain a license. There’s no guarantee the current dispensaries would receive a state license and stay in business after July 2012 when the new law takes effect, state Rep. Eileen Cody, D-West Seattle, said.

Marijuana advocates say Spokane has quickly earned a new nickname: Spokansterdam, a nod to the Dutch city where the sale and use of marijuana is legal.

In the last week it seemed that Liberty Lake was the place for people to pull over and light up their marijuana pipes. Liberty Lake Police made arrests in two instances where suspicious parked cars were spotted and officers could smell the distinctive odor of the drug. In one case clouds of smoke were billowing out of the car, said police chief Brian Asmus. At 9:30 p.m. on March 5 an officer spotted a car parked on a dead-end street in the 19700 block of Shannon Ave. at a 45-degree angle to the roadway, Asmus said. When the officer approached, it was evident that the car was filled with smoke. A lot of it came out when the driver opened the door to talk to the officer, Asmus said. The driver, a 17-year-old Spokane Valley boy, was charged with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

OLYMPIA – Washington state could collect about $200 million a year by legalizing marijuana, then regulating, taxing and selling it in state liquor stores, a legislative panel was told Tuesday. But Rep. Christopher Hurst, chairman of the House Public Safety Committee, doubted the state would keep any money as long as federal laws remain in place: “The federal government will seize every penny of that revenue. Employees in liquor stores that sell marijuana will be arrested and face five years in federal prison.”

Four Shadle Park High School students were hospitalized Wednesday after smoking Spice – a substance that gives a marijuana-like high – the same day the Drug Enforcement Agency announced it will place an emergency ban on the five herbs used to make it.

The chief of Washington State Patrol said Tuesday he has no reason to believe last week’s shooting of an unarmed pregnant woman in Spokane was accidental. “I don’t have anything to lead me to believe that,” Chief John Batiste said Tuesday during an interview with The Spokesman-Review editorial board.

SOQUEL, Calif. – Smoke a bowl or eat a bowl (of ice cream)? That’s the question at a new medical marijuana dispensary, where half pints of Banannabis Foster and Straw-Mari Cheesecake marijuana-infused ice creams sell alongside more run-of-the-mill bags of pot.

It’s time to de-stupidify medical marijuana. Earlier this month, the local gendarmes once again expended a bunch of time and effort bringing down a medical marijuana dispensary. If someone breaks into your garage, don’t hold your breath waiting for an officer. But if you’re growing medical marijuana in that garage, they’ll find a way to send a car.

A Mason jar filled with pot found in a backpack led to a teen’s arrest Monday at Mt. Spokane High School. The 16-year-year-old, who attended the school, told a school resource deputy he “sells the drug at school to make money,” said Spokane County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Dave Reagan.

A 16-year-old Mount Spokane High School student is being investigated for selling marijuana to students, according to the Spokane County Sheriff's Office.

A Canadian truck driver was arrested at an Avista Utilities power plant in Ferry County with 300 pounds of marijuana on Friday.