MARIJUANA

Voters in several Texas cities have sought to decriminalize marijuana. However, their efforts have been met by reluctant city councils that say they can’t go against state law.

Home to more than 260,000 people, the West Texas town of Lubbock is no stranger to passing local laws by petition. In 2021, residents overwhelmingly approved a local ban on abortion.

Authorities said multiple arrests were made and more than 100 pounds of drugs were seized at an illegal dispensary in southwest Houston last week.

A Houston man reportedly helped police track down his stolen equipment using an Apple AirTag last month.According to officials, the man filed a report with Houston Police Department on May 19 and detectives were able to quickly track down his property on May 26.

Over the last decade of diagnosing countless young patients with new psychotic disorders, one striking result has stuck out for a psychiatrist.

Under current state law, possessing two to four ounces of marijuana could send you to jail for up to a year and cost you $4000. House Bill 218 would remove criminal penalties for possession of up to one ounce of marijuana or cannabis concentrate.

You already know what illegal drugs like cocaine, opioids and marijuana look like, but have you seen the sneaky, new devices kids are using to hide drugs from their parents?

Police often can’t tell if a cannabis vape pen is derived from marijuana or legal hemp, like the delta-8 products on display in gas stations across Texas. That doesn’t stop them from making felony arrests in high schools.

The new delta-8 hemp products, which are widely available, can produce a high similar to marijuana’s. State Sen. Charles Perry said he and his peers never intended for such products to reach the market.

Some local leaders say they worry the changes violate state law, while residents who supported decriminalizing marijuana say the pushback disrespects democracy.

Voters in Denton, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Harker Heights overwhelmingly supported the local ballot propositions to decriminalize low-level possession. These moves followed Austin voters’ similar decision in May.

Pot is a popular topic on ballots again this election.

Biden’s federal pardons will help at least 6,500 people, though most possession crimes are charged at the state level. Gov. Greg Abbott hasn’t yet said whether he’ll follow suit. Gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke was quick to support the measure.

President Joe Biden on Thursday announced he will take executive action to pardon all prior federal offenses of simple marijuana possession.

A massive haul of dope was kept off the streets after authorities discovered what they said was a “highly sophisticated” marijuana grow house in Freeport, the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office.

In 2019, Texas legalized hemp, but not marijuana. The new law led to confusion about which marijuana products are legal in Texas. Meanwhile, support for legalizing the drug remains high in polling, and other cannabis-derived products like delta-8 have emerged.

Angela Rose is worried and upset after learning that her 9-year-old daughter who is a 3rd-grade student at Krahn Elementary School ate candy infused with marijuana which was brought to the campus by another student.

Gov. Greg Abbott’s openness to marijuana decriminalization shows that the state, while conservative, isn’t immune to larger trends.

“Small possession of marijuana is not the type of violation that we want to stockpile jails with,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Monday.

Texas health officials insist delta-8 is an illegal substance and has been for 40 years.

A Travis County judge temporarily blocked the state from listing delta-8 as a Schedule I drug, which effectively made it illegal. The cannabis extract became popular because users say it produces the “high” effect of marijuana.

Alief ISD Police are investigating allegations a student distributed cookies, believed to be laced with THC, to other students during a lunch break, district officials confirmed Thursday.

The federal farm bill in 2018 made the substance legal because of its low THC content.

A new law going into effect Sept. 1 will also increase the cap of THC in medical marijuana to 1%.

House Bill 1535 expands eligibility for the Texas Compassionate Use Program to people with cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder. It's effective Sept. 1.

House Bill 1535 would expand the state’s medical cannabis program to include those with chronic pain, all cancer patients and Texans with post-traumatic stress disorder. But it hasn’t yet been referred to a Senate committee.

U.S. Marine Corps 1st Sgt. Arthur Davis spent decades overseas serving his country, sometimes in the most precarious combat situations on earth.

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia lawmakers gave final approval Saturday to a bill that will legalize marijuana for adult recreational use, but not until 2024, when retail sales of the drug would also begin. With a compromise bill clearing the House and Senate, Virginia becomes the first Southern state to vote to legalize marijuana, joining 15 other states and the District of Columbia. AdUnder the legislation, possession of up to an ounce (28.3 grams) of marijuana will become legal beginning Jan. 1, 2024, at the same time sales will begin and regulations will go into effect to control the marijuana marketplace in Virginia. Lawmakers last year decriminalized marijuana, making simple possession a civil penalty that can be punished by a fine of no more than $25. “Today, the Virginia General Assembly failed to legalize marijuana for racial justice.

HOUSTON – There are no less than 20 bills up for consideration regarding marijuana this legislative session in Texas but don’t bet the farm that any of them will become law. He said he believes that without the governor and lieutenant governor on board, marijuana legalization in Texas is destined for failure. “Criminal Justice Chair John Whitmire is right that HB63 is dead in the Texas Senate,” Texas Lt. Gov. In 2015, the Texas Legislature passed a marijuana “Compassionate Use” law that allows doctor-prescribed low-THC-level marijuana to epilepsy patients. There are more bills up for consideration this legislative session that would further expand marijuana treatment options.

This image from House Television shows the final vote, 228-164, in the House on passage of a bill to decriminalize and tax marijuana at the federal level. (House Television via AP)WASHINGTON – The Democratic-controlled House on Friday approved a bill to decriminalize and tax marijuana at the federal level, reversing what supporters call a failed policy of criminalizing pot use and taking steps to address racial disparities in enforcement of federal drug laws. “Whatever one’s views are on the use of marijuana for recreational or medicinal use, the policy of arrests, prosecution and incarceration at the federal level has proven unwise and unjust.″Drug reform advocates called the House vote historic, noting it is the first time comprehensive legislation to decriminalize marijuana has passed the full House or Senate. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., called the House bill an important racial justice measure. Instead of allowing a vote on the GOP bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is “actually focused more on legalizing pot,'' Scalise said.

While we may not know if President Donald Trump or former Vice President Joe Biden won the presidential election for a while longer, there was one clear “winner” on election night, and that was recreational drugs. States across the country have been legalizing recreational marijuana every election cycle, and 2020 was no different. Residents in New Jersey, Arizona, Montana and South Dakota all voted to legalize recreational cannabis, and South Dakota also legalized medical marijuana, along with Mississippi. South Dakota became the first state to legalize medical and recreational marijuana in the same election. For the first time in U.S. history, the state of Oregon decriminalized possession of hard drugs, as well as voted to legalize psychedelic mushrooms.

HOUSTON – A Houston man was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison following a conviction of possession with intent to distribute a large amount of marijuana, announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick on Wednesday. Roberto Garcia Saldana pleaded guilty June 9, confessing his involvement in a marijuana stash house in Zapata, a Texas border town. Authorities said Saldana admitted that he knew there were drugs inside the trailer and that he was storing for others. Authorities conducted surveillance on what they suspected to be a marijuana stash house in Zapata on May 2, 2017. Inside the trailer, authorities discovered 50 bundles of marijuana, totaling about 476 kilograms with an approximate value of $420,000.

HOUSTON – Should Texas expand medical marijuana? Well, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller believes the state should. During a tour of the Austin-based marijuana facility Compassionate Cultivation on Thursday, Miller said he wanted to learn more about how hemp, THC and medical marijuana can help people. After meeting with a group of parents whose children use medical marijuana for autism and other conditions, Miller said he is in favor of expanding the use of medical marijuana, according to a report by Austin NBC affiliate KXAN. “I would certainly expand medical marijuana.

HOUSTON The Houston Forensic Science Center has developed a chemical test that can differentiate between hemp and marijuana, making it possible for prosecutors to more easily prosecute misdemeanor marijuana cases in Texas. When a Texas law defining hemp and marijuana went into effect in June 2019, labs in Texas were not prepared to provide the evidence prosecutors needed to enforce the law. The law defined hemp as cannabis with less than 0.3 percent THC, and marijuana with above 0.3 percent THC. Hemp can smell and look like marijuana, and vice versa, said Peter Stout, President and CEO of HFSC. If you buy a CBD product or other hemp or cannabis product, you have no way of knowing whats in that, you just dont, Stout said.

The world's other most-famous musical weed enthusiast, Willie Nelson, will be hosting a variety show Monday in honor of 4/20. "Come and Toke It" is being presented by Nelson and Luck Reunion. "This 4/20 at 4:20 PM CT we're bringing together artists, chefs, comedians, educators and more for 4 hours and 20 minutes of cannabis-centric entertainment hosted by Willie Nelson himself -- all from the comfort of quarantine," the description reads on a YouTube video promoting the event. "Whether you partake or not, this is your chance to live the dream," a posting on the site stated. Select videos will be featured during the Come And Toke It broadcast before Willie takes the last hit on air."