The Tribune, 24 Jan 2013 – SAN DIEGO – A San Diego medical marijuana dispensary owner was sentenced Thursday to more than eight years in prison for conspiracy to distribute marijuana and other crimes, according to federal prosecutors. U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy called Joshua Hester the "poster boy" for the types of marijuana dispensary operators the federal government is targeting for criminal investigation.

The Chico News & Review, 24 Jan 2013 – Activists From Both Sides Unite to Draft New County Medi-Pot Ordinance Last August, after District Attorney Mike Ramsey declared the Butte County Board of Supervisors’ second attempt at a medical-marijuana ordinance unconstitutional, a novel idea was proposed: form an ad-hoc committee with representatives from both sides to draft a middle-ground mandate.

Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan 2013 – For a muscular agency that combats vicious drug criminals, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration acts like a terrified and obstinate toddler when it comes to basic science. For years, the DEA and the National Institute for Drug Abuse have made it all but impossible to develop a robust body of research on the medical uses of marijuana. A pro-marijuana group lost its legal battle this week when a federal appellate court ruled that marijuana would remain a Schedule I drug, defined as having no accepted medical value and a high potential for abuse. The court deferred to the judgment of federal authorities, quoting the DEA’s statement that "the effectiveness of a drug must be established in well-controlled, well-designed, well-conducted and well-documented scientific studies…. To date, such studies have not been performed."

Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan 2013 – Re "Overkill in the war on pot," Jan. 22 Kudos to Marie Myung-Ok Lee for her outstanding Op-Ed article on the federal government’s intransigence on marijuana policy. I’d like to add that as a U.S. Senate candidate from Illinois in 2004, Barack Obama said that the war on drugs had been an "utter failure." So what has President Obama done about this failure? Escalate the war.

The Times-Herald, 20 Jan 2013 – So let me get this straight. Vallejo City Manager Dan Keen maintains, "I don’t think anything’s changed," in regards to the question of whether cannabis dispensaries are legally permitted by state law ("Charges dropped against second Vallejo marijuana dispensary", Jan. 12). Really?

East Bay Express, 23 Jan 2013 – The movers and shakers of the cannabis legalization movement are gathering in San Francisco to plot a plan for the future. About three hundred activists – the people who likely will operate and staff the next legalization effort in California in 2016 – will gather with their allies at San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center this weekend for a pivotal meeting on the future of freeing the herb. "Cannabis in California: Ending the 100-Year War," sponsored by the California chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, will pack eleven strategy sessions over two days with the rock stars of the reform community, including Colorado Amendment 64 campaign co-director Mason Tvert; Washington Initiative 502 director Alison Holcomb; the leaders of Marijuana Policy Project, Drug Policy Alliance, and NORML – as well as major dispensary operators, union organizers, and pioneers in the movement.

Napa Valley Register, 25 Jan 2013 – Studies Say Marijuana Can Decrease Your IQ A local grassroots organization hopes to educate teens about the negative impacts of marijuana use. The Catalyst Coalition, a program of the Napa County Office of Education, is launching a campaign titled, "Be Ahead of the Crowd," based on recent research conducted by Duke University.

Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan 2013 – As a candidate in 2008, Barack Obama emphatically stated that medical marijuana use was an issue best left to the states. One of the first promises he made as the newly elected president was that he was "not going to be using Justice Department resources to try to circumvent state laws." This was even reiterated formally in the so-called Ogden memo of 2009, in which the Department of Justice instructed U.S. attorneys that federal enforcement should apply only to medical marijuana operations that were not in clear compliance with state law.

Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan 2013 – As a retired lawyer, I am fully aware that the courts are underfunded and that justice is being delayed or denied every day. That problem would be solved, and many others as well, if we accepted the fact that the war on drugs has been a disastrous failure and we ended it. Not only would our children be saved, but the courts would be relieved of the flood of unnecessary prosecutions.

Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan 2013 – Mendocino County Is Defying Federal Orders for Data on Registered Cannabis Growers. Mendocino County is fighting efforts by federal prosecutors to get records on medical marijuana growers who signed up for a program intended to sanction their businesses under state law.