The Press Democrat, 28 Sep 2012 – Sonoma County sheriff’s officials, still sifting through reports and findings from a massive raid on home marijuana gardens in southwest Santa Rosa, said Thursday that authorities yanked a total 1,150 plants weighing more than 15,000 pounds in Wednesday’s daylong operation. Ninety-six pounds of processed marijuana, worth about $2,000 a pound on the street, also were confiscated, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Lt. Dennis O’Leary said.

The Press Democrat, 29 Sep 2012 – EDITOR: I grew up on Moorland Avenue, right across the street from the site of Wednesday’s raid ("150 officers in SR pot raid," Thursday). I lived on Moorland from 1951 to 1974. That street had more trees, children, dogs, cats and horses compared to all the houses and pot gardens that exist there now. We had no problem trick-or-treating on Halloween – everyone’s home was open, no hesitation or any homes to be wary of. By the time I was a senior in high school, I had to defend my neighborhood in government class when the son of the garbage company owner said that Moorland Avenue had the most disgusting garbage he ever encountered. Only a few homes that popped up out of nowhere fit that description. I was embarrassed, but I stood my ground and defended Moorland Avenue.

The Daily Californian, 28 Sep 2012 – Zoning board report states medical cannabis group is in violation of codes City officials met Thursday night to discuss the fate of the Perfect Plants Patient’s Group, a medical cannabis operation that they say has been operating illegally for months.

The Tribune, 28 Sep 2012 – In response to a report issued by the county’s civil grand jury earlier this year, the Arroyo Grande City Council has taken the first step toward prohibiting mobile medical marijuana dispensaries from operating within the city. The city has had rules in place since 2008 prohibiting the establishment of medical marijuana dispensaries. But its ordinance did not explicitly refer to mobile dispensaries, such as a delivery service.

DrugSense

Sacramento News & Review, 27 Sep 2012 – Are there three states that have a shot at actually legalizing marijuana in November? Is it really possible? – -High Curious In the words of Lili Von Shtupp: "It’s twue! It’s twue!" There is a really good chance that Oregon, Washington and Colorado could pass laws legalizing marijuana. The polls in Washington and Colorado show each measure is supported by more than 50 percent of likely voters. Oregon polls show them to be in a dead heat.

The Daily Aztec, 25 Sep 2012 – The two San Diego mayoral candidates, Carl DeMaio and Bob Filner, have agreed on almost nothing since their campaigns began. However, Republican DeMaio and Democratic Rep. Filner appear to have similar opinions when it comes to medical marijuana. Both candidates say, if they are elected mayor, they will support the use of medical marijuana.

Chico Enterprise-Record, 27 Sep 2012 – BUTTE COUNTY – Hundreds of marijuana plants with an estimated street value of $34.2 million were found and eradicated Wednesday during a joint federal and county operation at 10 residences in Forest Ranch, Palermo and south Oroville, according to authorities. The operation began around 6 a.m. with agents, deputies and officers serving federal search warrants at the locations.

Sacramento News & Review, 27 Sep 2012 – Re "Jim Crow 2012" by Jeff vonKaenel (SN&R Greenlight, September 13): The drug war has been waged in a racist manner since its inception. The Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914 was preceded by a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment. Opium was identified with Chinese laborers, marijuana with Mexicans and cocaine with African-Americans. Racial profiling continues to be the norm, despite similar rates of drug use for minorities and whites. Support for the drug war would end overnight if whites were incarcerated for drugs at the same rate as minorities. The drug war is a cultural inquisition, not a public-health campaign.

The Press Democrat, 27 Sep 2012 – Dozens of combat-clad police officers, deputies and federal agents swarmed a southwest Santa Rosa neighborhood Wednesday morning in the region’s largest-ever operation against residential marijuana gardens. A team of 150 law enforcement officers raided 32 homes off Moorland Avenue immediately south of the Corby Auto Mall, where the pungent smell of marijuana hung heavily in the air and backyard marijuana plants towered over fences in plain view from the street.