The Record, 11 Jun 2013 – ARNOLD – A third medical marijuana dispensary has opened in Calaveras County, according to a medical marijuana advocate familiar with the business. The latest dispensary, Little Trees Wellness Collective, opened on June 5 or 6 in the Oakridge Center on Highway 4 in Arnold, said Thomas Liberty of Collective Patient Resources, a group that assists terminally-ill medical marijuana patients.

Calaveras Enterprise, 11 Jun 2013 – San Andreas pot dispensary owner protests With the opening of Little Trees Wellness Collective in Arnold, Calaveras County now has three medical marijuana storefronts in operation. What may be a problem is only one of them is properly permitted with the county.

DrugSense

Sacramento News & Review, 13 Jun 2013 – Remember back in May when I asked people to tell me their favorite spot to toke in Sac? This is one of the responses: I like the park atop the subterranean building [Seventh and Eighth streets at N and O streets]. There’s a sculpture garden, an amphitheater, lots of park seating, and a big, open space for pacing back and forth. (Why they don’t hold food-truck events [here] is beyond me-there’s even driveway access up there.) Great view of downtown buildings, including the light show atop the building that houses Morton’s [the Steakhouse], and a view of the harlequin building that is the state power station, plus the Stanford Mansion and a view of the state Capitol dome. There is hardly anyone up there day [or] night, and especially weekends. For a cozy smoke spot nearby, try the passageway beneath N Street that connects the subterranean building with the state [Employment Development Department] building. When I’m really stoned up there, it’s fun to pretend that the place is an empty Star Trek set, and Kirk and Spock are just around the corner getting high.

Sacramento News & Review, 13 Jun 2013 – Lee Seale made one rookie mistake during his first budget hearing Monday as Sacramento County’s new chief probation officer-he forgot to ask for more money. Seale, 41, appointed in April after a career in state corrections, found himself dumped in the deep fiscal end his first week on the job. He acquitted himself well, laying out what he’d like to do with limited resources to affect change in a high-risk, drug-abuser population currently receiving limited supervision by his undermanned department.

Los Angeles Daily News, 13 Jun 2013 – Federal prosecutors are targeting more than 100 marijuana shops in Los Angeles County this week, threatening prosecution if dispensary owners stay in operation. Officials also moved to seize two properties in Long Beach catering to marijuana users. Letters from the federal government were sent to dispensaries in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Lancaster, and Pearblossom, U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesman Thom Mrozek said. The letters informed dispensary owners they are operating in violation of federal laws.

DrugSense

DrugSense

The Press Democrat, 08 Jun 2013 – In the heart of Wine Country, where harvest time produces pungent scents of fermenting grapes, the conversation these days is about another odor – that of skunk-like budding marijuana plants. The harvest is still months away, but wine-centric Healdsburg is wrestling with guidelines for medical marijuana cultivation and whether to confine it indoors.

Los Angeles Times, 09 Jun 2013 – Simple possession of small amounts of methamphetamine – enough for personal use but presumably not for dealing – is a "wobbler" in California, meaning that offenses can be charged as either felonies or misdemeanors. It’s different with possession of cocaine, opiates such as heroin and many other addictive drugs; they currently can be charged only as felonies. The state Senate has now passed a bill to bring criminal handling of those drugs into line with methamphetamine, and the measure is before the Assembly. SB 649, by Democrat Mark Leno of San Francisco, is good policy and should be adopted.