Hawaii May Expand Medical Program

[vta]

Things are looking up for MMJ users in Hawaii. Lawmakers are poised to make major changes to the law. Increase of plant count from 4 to 10, also Caregivers may be allowed up to 4 patients...40 plants! Dr requirements may be expanded as well. Also the creation of a State regulated dispensary system!!!

Check out the video for more info...

http://www.kitv.com/video/26582518/detail.html


I will be writing these lawmakers asking them to include language that allows out of state medical users access as well. That could boost tourism.

 

[Greyskull]

the rainbow state rules!

 

[HorseMouth]

Oh Lord am I wanting to spend some time in Hawaii.

I would love to go OD all Summer here in Or. then over to HI for the winter, but how would I get my Snowboarding Skiing fix in?

I mean, on a Powder day I can get a lifetime of amazing turns on my snowboard in one day, that I couldn't get on my surfboard.

I guess 2 OD seasons would be the argument the other way.

Go Hawaii

Peace

 

[mrktwiz]

ahhh the old Kona Gold and Maui WoWi days, bring back good memories...wonder if those strains still exist?

 

[theJointedOne]

thanks VTA keep us updated please

 

[Maj.Cottonmouth]

This is great news, a friend and his wife just bought a condo in Maui this week!

 

[somoz]

Now all we need are boats that can make the trip to the east coast and it'll be just like cali but with better sand......

Nice post, thanks for sharing as usual!

 

[Greyskull]

from: http://www.mauinews.com/page/conten...nalty-advances--in-state-Senate.html?nav=5031

HONOLULU - Possession of small amounts of marijuana in Hawaii would become a minor offense that comes with a $100 fine under a measure approved Friday by a Senate committee.

A joint hearing of Senate health and judiciary committees unanimously passed the marijuana decriminalization bill, which would make punishment for possession of less than an ounce of the drug similar to a traffic ticket.

Advocates of relaxed laws said marijuana smokers shouldn't be sent to jail and clog up the court system for a nonviolent offense.

''Given how common, how normalized marijuana use is in this country . . . this is counterproductive,'' said Pam Lichty, president of the Drug Policy Action Group. ''Saddling young people particularly with criminal penalties affects their entire life.''

Law-enforcement agencies opposed to the bill testified that they didn't want to send the message that it was permissible to possess and smoke marijuana.

''We shouldn't be telling our youth that it's OK to smoke or to deal one ounce of marijuana, period,'' said Keith Kamita, chief of the narcotics enforcement division for the Hawaii Department of Public Safety.

If passed, marijuana possession would still be illegal, but offenders wouldn't be given a criminal record if they're caught with a few joints.

Current law calls for small amounts of marijuana possession to be prosecuted as a petty misdemeanor, with penalties reaching a year imprisonment and a $1,000 fine.

''The possession of marijuana is still a crime,'' said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Clayton Hee, D-Kahuku-Kaneohe. ''It will be handled differently, more appropriately.''

The bill's text says marijuana decriminalization would save the state government money that's spent on enforcing and prosecuting marijuana laws.

The measure now advances to the Senate Ways and Means Committee for additional consideration.

A vote on a separate measure creating medical marijuana dispensaries in the state was deferred until later this month.

nice

 

[vta]

Great news!

 

[vta]

Maui police lobbying against medical marijuana on duty in uniform

By "Radical" Russ Belville

“We don’t make the laws, we just enforce ‘em” – Every cop ever.

If I had a dime every time some cop said that, I could afford a dimebag. Yet time after time when legislatures come into session, there are the cops, in uniform, testifying against medical marijuana and decriminalization or re-legalization of cannabis.

(Maui News) After seeing more and more bills in the Legislature intended to liberalize marijuana use, Maui Police Chief Gary Yabuta said the department is taking a more “proactive stance” to show the public its opposition to marijuana by reaching out to Maui residents at public places.

On Monday, officers went to Walmart to pass out pamphlets on what experts say about marijuana as medicine and related health risks, a news release said. They will be there again today.

Yabuta did not know the cost of the brochures that are being passed out but said they were nothing fancy. Funding came partly from a grant that initiated the brochure, as well as county funds.

Nice to know that the taxpayers of Maui County are buying brochures to convince themselves that medical marijuana is bad.

“It’s something that we feel is an important message for the public to know from what we believe is the reality of marijuana, that if we continue to have an attempt to lax the marijuana law, we are going to be advocating the wrong message to the youth that it’s socially OK to use marijuana. We feel that it will be contradictory to character building, job skills, academics, all the skills necessary to become a productive citizen,” Yabuta said Monday.

Like, say, a 17-year-old kid named Barry who grew up in Hawaii using marijuana and cocaine with his friends… that guy never amounted to anything!

The police department also is voicing its opposition to two Senate bills, one (SB 58) that would increase the amount of medical marijuana that one could possess; and the other (SB 175) that would transfer the jurisdiction of the medical marijuana laws from the Department of Public Safety to the Department of Health.

Now, why would we want to have something called medical marijuana run by something called a Department of Health? In Yabuda’s mind, the medical marijuana should continue to be run by the Department of Public Safety.

The police pamphlet quotes agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration saying that “smoked marijuana has no currently accepted or proven medical use in the United States and is not an approved medical treatment.”

It also says the American Medical Association discourages medical marijuana use and that cannabis is a dangerous drug and is a public health concern.

Could that be the same AMA that said, “short term controlled trials indicate that smoked cannabis reduces neuropathic pain, improves appetite and caloric intake especially in patients with reduced muscle mass, and may relieve spasticity and pain in patients with multiple sclerosis,” and “the Schedule I status of marijuana be reviewed with the goal of facilitating clinical research and development of cannabinoid-based medicines, and alternate delivery methods”?

 

[BiG H3rB Tr3E]

ohh.... PLEASE allow for dispensaries in hawaii. i will be on the next plane out!!!!

 

[Rednick]

I will be writing these lawmakers asking them to include language that allows out of state medical users access as well. That could boost tourism.

Reciprocity?


There's no surfing in Colorado,
Maybe Josh Stanely would move.

 

[Greyskull]

ohh.... PLEASE allow for dispensaries in hawaii. i will be on the next plane out!!!!

Im soooooo ready

 

[festivus]

I don't think the cops can derail us this go around!

 

[Greyskull]

its silly seeing them in front of kmart passing out those pamphlets...
what a waste of resources - arent there some missing girls they should be looking for?
our states legislature has the right idea though >>> c'mon Hawaii!!!!

 

[Weezard]

Misinformation!

Misinformation!

Things are looking up for MMJ users in Hawaii. Lawmakers are poised to make major changes to the law. Increase of plant count from 4 to 10,

Welcome to "Third-world State" journalism.
I watched the clip and see where you were mis-informed.
Do not trust KITV for factual information, ever!
They do not fact-check.
Here's the real skinny.

The state law allows seven, (7) plants per patient!

3 mature plants + 4 immature plants and up to 3 Oz. of processed buds per patient.
The law only allows 2 caregivers per address, so it 14 plants max per address.

also Caregivers may be allowed up to 4 patients...40 plants! Dr requirements may be expanded as well. Also the creation of a State regulated dispensary system!!!

Yay! that will double the present allowance.
And the extra 3 plants per patient will allow even black-thumbers to be self-sufficient.

Check out the video for more info...

http://www.kitv.com/video/26582518/detail.html


I will be writing these lawmakers asking them to include language that allows out of state medical users access as well. That could boost tourism.

Great! Goodonya!
I will do the same.

"Governor Ben Cayetano signed Senate Bill 862 into law on June 14, 2000. The law took effect on December 28, 2000. The law removes state-level criminal penalties on the use, possession and cultivation of marijuana by patients who possess a signed statement from their physician affirming that he or she suffers from a debilitating condition and that the "potential benefits of medical use of marijuana would likely outweigh the health risks." Patients diagnosed with the following illnesses are afforded legal protection under this act: cachexia; cancer; chronic pain; Crohn�s disease; epilepsy and other disorders characterized by seizures; glaucoma; HIV or AIDS; multiple sclerosis and other disorders characterized by muscle spasticity; and nausea. Other conditions are subject to approval by the Hawaii Department of Health. Patients (or their primary caregivers) may legally possess no more than one ounce of usable marijuana (edit:per mature plant), and may cultivate no more than seven marijuana plants, of which no more than three may be mature. The law establishes a mandatory, confidential state-run patient registry that issues identification cards to qualifying patients. To date, approximately 2,600 cards have been issued to registered patients."

I posted this summary to illustrate.

It is a mostly factual summary that missed 3 little words!
3 important words!

I urge every caregiver and patient to personally look-up and print out the actual rules from the State you are in, before starting a grow.
No summaries, no digests, no "translations".

This is important my friends.
Ignorance of the actual letter of the law is no defense.
I number my plants 1-7, and attach my MMJ cert. no. to each container.
I also keep a large-type, printout of the actual rules posted at the grow, along with a photo of my rec.
(Just in case officer Kimo got his information from KITV.)

That makes it obvious that I'm compliant and that I know the law.

That makes any encounters with the law much more pleasant.
I will not have to make any "statements" at all. I can just , and point, yah?

Stay well, stay safe.
An' Aloha,
Weezard

 

[vta]

I watched the clip and see where you were mis-informed.

I just posted their article. I did not write or edit the orig story.

 

[vta]

Oh NO!!!! What about the Children!?!?

Oh NO!!!! What about the Children!?!?


DESPITE HURDLES, ANTI-DRUG RALLY GOES ON

Keiki, Youth Groups Still Show After Cancellation

Supporters of Lighter Marijuana Laws, Medical Use Provide Alternative Points of View

LIHU'E - Medical marijuana user Aukai Edens watched quietly from his wheelchair, as a group of children shouted "We want to be drug-free!" at passing cars on Rice Street.

"I'm glad they want to be drug-free and I hope they never end up in a wheelchair," said Edens' mom, Kaiulani.

Six years ago, 27-year-old Edens broke his neck after jumping off a bridge, Kaiulani said at an anti-drug rally held at the historic County Building on Thursday afternoon.

"I'm appalled they're using children for this issue," she added. "They don't understand that this issue isn't about being anti-drugs. This is about being anti-medical marijuana."

Originally meant to be hosted by county officials, the rally was canceled due to a weather advisory and a complaint from the American Civil Liberties Union. County councilman Mel Rapozo then reinstated the rally as a member of the community. The purpose of the demonstration, according to the county, was intended to inform the public about several pending marijuana bills that would decriminalize limited possession and allow for island dispensaries.

While the rally went on around him, Rapozo said he disagreed with Kaiulani Edens' assessment.

"This is not about medical marijuana. I support medical marijuana for debilitating diseases," Rapozo said.

"This is about the state trying to soften our drug laws to make marijuana more accessible to the people who don't have debilitating diseases."

He added he is upset that the county attempted to shut down the rally hours before it started. Because of it, an expected turnout of 400 or 500 people dwindled to less than 100 - including a small group of pro-marijuana demonstrators, children from the Boys & Girls Club of Lihu'e, parents and a church pastor.

Matt Higa, the pastor of New Hope Kaua'i, said he attended the rally to support a drug-free Kaua'i.

"I'm a former user and I know that marijuana is the gateway drug," Higa said. "It is the initiator to the use of more illegal substances.

"Can you imagine your bus driver, your EMS, your airline pilots, your doctors, your nurses, your dentists high on marijuana because now it's legal?"

Aukai Edens said something that grows out of the ground shouldn't be forbidden.

"Tomatoes, corn, fruit - you might as well put them on the list, too," he said. "The real problem is pharmaceutically, chemically produced drugs."

Another marijuana supporter, Amalia Gray of Kapa'a, stood with Edens and others who had gathered away from the chanting children.

"I'm a nurse and I know people who have benefited greatly from medical marijuana," Gray said.

The children who attended the event and their caretakers seemed unclear about whether the rally was about drugs, marijuana legalization or medical marijuana.

Angela Agustin, a program assistant for the Boys & Girls Club, said the club got an e-mail from Theresa Koki, the county's anti-drug coordinator, asking them to participate. Mike Miranda, the program director, said he wanted to bring the keiki because of the anti-drug sentiment.

"I thought it was important to bring the kids because it's important to give the kids a consistent message that drugs are bad for them. .. Substances like marijuana are not good for people their age," Miranda said.

Carrying a pink sign stating "Honk to stop drugs" 10-year-old Karmela Buenconsejo said she didn't know much about the issues behind the rally. But she did understand what it meant to be anti-drug. She said she heard that a new law could put "marijuana stands" around the island.

"We're against that," she said. "I think the rally is good because it teaches us that drugs don't do any good for you."

 

[vta]

Expert Calls County Press Release 'Fear-Mongering'

KAUA'I OFFICIALS TO RALLY AGAINST POT LEGISLATION

LIHU'E - Pending marijuana bills that could decriminalize possession and open the door for island dispensaries have spurred county officials to host an anti-drug rally Thursday.

Intended to raise awareness about the legislation and possible associated dangers, the demonstration is being led by the Kaua'i Police Department, County of Kaua'i Anti-Drug Program, Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, among others.

It's set for 4 p.m. in front of the Historic County Building on Rice Street and will include speakers from local law enforcement, drug treatment providers and community leaders.

"If passed, these measures will result in increased violent crime, economic crisis, and a rise in marijuana usage among our children," Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho said in a county press release.

Assistant Chief Roy Asher of the Kaua'i Police Department also expressed concern over the House and Senate bills, including SB 1460, SB 175 and SB 1458.

According to the press release, most of these would weaken Hawai'i's drug laws by decriminalizing possession and distribution, legalizing cultivation and commercial dispensaries, and eliminating the Board of Education's reporting requirements for students possessing marijuana.

Many of the bills are likely to move on from committees to a vote before the full chambers. Police chiefs and prosecuting attorneys from Hawai'i's four counties oppose the legislation, the press release states.

"We've already had a stabbing and home burglaries involving marijuana over the past few weeks," Asher said in the release.

Francis Keany, the 69-year-old man suspected of stabbing another in front of the Kojima Store earlier this month, said the dispute that led to Justin Freemon's injury had nothing to do with marijuana, despite police statements.

He said he did have marijuana in his backpack, but it also contained money from a recently cashed Social Security check. He contends that Freemon stole the pack and was injured while Keany attempted to take it back.

"In my mind, I stopped an attempted robbery," Keany said.

Asher also pointed to California as an example of why the group of county officials is opposing the pending legislation.

"California is dealing with the sharp increase in murders, assaults, and robberies associated with its marijuana dispensaries and weakened drug laws," he said in the release. "We don't want to invite those kinds of problems into our community."

On the other side of the argument, former community prosecutor for the city of Oakland James Anthony called the county press release "pure propaganda."

Anthony, who grew up in Honolulu, sits on the board of directors for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.

"That's just the worst kind of fear mongering," Anthony said after reading the county's press release.

"California is experiencing a 30-year-low in violent crimes and where medical marijuana dispensaries are regulated, they are a positive benefit to the community and are problem-free.

"I think that it's unfortunate that there is this type of misunderstanding and hysterical overreaction by people who are supposed to protect us."

As long as dispensaries are controlled and regulated by the government, he went on to say, they are problem-free. While they can be the target of criminal activity, so can banks, Anthony said.

"Maybe the police and the prosecutors are worried about public health being affected by getting real on marijuana - or maybe they are just worried about their loss of funding and having to go after real crime: violence and theft and robbery," he said.

 

[vta]

Besides these protests, MJ reform in Hawaii is running at full steam.

Nothing beats smoking in paradise...