MONTPELIER - Gov. Peter Shumlin said Tuesday he has no plans to partake in legal marijuana if the state moves to allow it. "No," Shumlin said, when asked by Seven Days reporter Terri Hallenbeck if he would smoke legal weed. "Been there, done that." Shumlin appeared caught off guard when asked when he last smoked marijuana. "Oh, my God," Shumlin said. "It was a while ago. I'm old." During an open-ended press conference Tuesday, the 58-year-old governor then clarified that he last smoked pot in his late 20s, but gave it up as his responsibilities grew. [continues 405 words]
Vermont lawmakers are considering whether to become the first state Legislature to legalize marijuana. Four states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational cannabis, but in each of those cases, it was voters at the ballot box, not lawmakers, who changed the law. Vermont could become the first state in history where elected officials directly legalize pot, and Gov. Peter Shumlin said he "continues to support" efforts to legalize marijuana. Vermont's Constitution prohibits ballot referendums and initiatives, meaning any decision on marijuana would have to come from lawmakers. [continues 211 words]
The letter in the paper, "Legalization not so simple," was simple-minded when the writer states "it seems obvious that regulation would not remove underage access to pot ..." This way of thinking rules out any parental guidance or, for that matter, any of the authorities from enforcing the law. If pot is sold to adults over age 21 and these "children" (I define children as ages 5-12 and teens ages 13-17) the writer speaks of are at home and not out on the street, then police and others will enforce the laws and deal with violators. This argument would translate to any controlled substance. [continues 219 words]
Vermont Is Exploring Whether to Become the Center of Legal Pot Sales in the East. If It Does, a Tourism Boom May Follow. Forget ski resorts and prize-winning maple syrup. The big tourism draw for tiny Vermont could soon be marijuana. Led by Gov. Peter Shumlin, state lawmakers are exploring legalizing a drug that has been as much apart of local culture as tie-dyes, psychedelic music and hippie farmers. The state commissioned Rand Corp. to look at what it would mean for the Green Mountain State to become the official beachhead of legal recreational pot sales on the East Coast. [continues 520 words]
Vermont must legalize, regulate, and control marijuana if we expect to improve public safety, inform our children of its dangers, keep money out of the pockets of criminals, and build a coherent policy coordinating police, public health, education and peer support to reduce youth drug use. Marijuana prohibition has failed to deter people from consuming marijuana and, as a result, it has fostered the growth of an underground market and made criminals rich. Existing prohibitionist policies simply haven't worked, and even decriminalizing marijuana possession for adults still stops short of undercutting street dealers and reducing associated violence. As we have in so many other ways, Vermont can once again be a leader, showing how a carefully crafted law can be a victory for justice and public safety. [continues 560 words]
I would like to thank the Rutland Herald for making the Libertarian case for legalizing drugs in the recent op-ed piece. The point of the Herald article was that because of the American craving for drugs, we have allowed the Mexican and Central and South American drug cartels to prosper and terrorize the populace of those countries. What the Herald failed to point out is that this case has been made over and over again to no avail. Appealing to the conscience of a drug addict is pure folly. [continues 182 words]
A public hearing is planned this week on the possible legalization of marijuana in Vermont. The Wednesday hearing will be held statewide via Vermont Interactive Television. Earlier this year the Legislature ordered the administration to study marijuana legalization. A report is due in January. The state contracted with the RAND Corporation to examine issues that include production, distribution, and possession of marijuana. The hearing will be held by Secretary of Administration Jeb Spaulding and Beau Kilmer, the codirector of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center. Spaulding and Kilmer will make brief presentations, after which the session will be devoted to questions and comments from people attending the meeting. [end]
This fall, a routine visit to the University of Vermont's student health center - say, for a sprained ankle - will expose the patient to an entirely new routine. The ankle will be examined, of course, but the student will also be offered an opportunity to disclose how much he or she has been drinking, or smoking weed, or using other drugs, including heroin. Any such disclosure will be voluntary - and confidential, with no legal or disciplinary ramifications. It might have nothing to do with the ankle sprain. But it might lead to further conversations or interventions that will affect the student's well-being long after the ankle has healed. [continues 1707 words]
Advocates for legalizing marijuana are touting a new poll released this week that shows a majority of Vermonters support legalizing and taxing the drug. The Castleton Polling Institute, part of Castleton State College, released poll results Wednesday showing that 57.2 percent of Vermonters favor legalizing and taxing marijuana similar to alcohol. The results show 34.3 percent oppose it. Another 8.5 percent remain unsure. The poll has a margin of error of 4 percent. Matt Simon, the New England political director for the Marijuana Policy Project, said people are displeased with the prohibition of marijuana. He said the drug is viewed by the public as a less harmful substance than alcohol and people want it to be treated the same way. [continues 467 words]
MONTPELIER -- The administration of Gov. Peter Shumlin is gearing up for a task assigned to it by the Legislature: studying the fiscal and other impacts if the state were to legalize marijuana. Shumlin agrees with lawmakers "it's timely to do a study," said Administration Secretary Jeb Spaulding, whose agency is to report its findings to lawmakers by Jan. 15. "We're not going to prejudge what our position would be at the end of it," he said. An amendment to a bill removing the cap on the number of patients who can get medical marijuana in Vermont called for a study of "possible taxing systems" for marijuana, any savings or costs connected with taxing and regulating the drug, and the experiences of other states that have legalized, which as of now are Colorado and Washington. [continues 375 words]
Editor's note: This is the first in an occasional series of stories of one person's battle against heroin addiction. At 27 years old, Colin MacNeil is starting his life over - again. Addicted to cocaine by the age of 20 and hooked on heroin and opiate-based painkillers by the age of 23, MacNeil was a graduate of six inpatient drug treatment programs by the time he arrived at the Serenity House in Wallingford earlier this month. He knows what he's up against and he'll be the first to say that there are no guarantees in a fight that's as personal as it is pharmaceutical in nature. [continues 1202 words]
I share Joe Hanson's concerns regarding Keith Flynn's influence over the House Human Services Committee's consideration of medical marijuana for PTSD (Letters April 24: "What is the real agenda?"). "A lack of testimony" was cited as a reason to drop PTSD ("Lawmakers balk at medical marijuana for PTSD," April 12) Why was there no testimony? I can't understand how one man can sway so many lawmakers, especially when considering the fact that apparently no other people were present to offer their professional or personal perspective. [continues 100 words]
MONTPELIER - A Senate panel is looking to wrap up work on a drugged driving bill this week, but questions remain on how the changes it would make in state law would affect Vermonters. Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn said current law prohibits operation of a vehicle when a person is under the influence of a drug "to a degree which renders the person incapable of driving safely." Law enforcement is looking to prohibit driving while under the influence of a drug "in the slightest degree." [continues 521 words]
I'm writing a letter in response to the article "Lawmakers balk at medical marijuana for PTSD." It is astounding to me that the committee which was set to vote in favor of adding PTSD to the medical marijuana laws 7-4 until one man, Keith Flynn, stepped in to personally deny our most vulnerable and brave citizens a medication which is easily attainable in other states that allow medical marijuana. One has to wonder what Flynn's agenda is. As a person who owns the title of public safety commissioner he doesn't seem to be working in the public's interest, and he most certainly doesn't seem to be working in the interests of democracy. [continues 125 words]
MONTPELIER - The Vermont House advanced a marijuana dispensary bill Wednesday that includes a study on the revenue effects of legalizing the drug. The House version, passed on a voice vote, stripped the expansion to six dispensaries that was passed in the Senate. The House would keep the number at the current four. Rep. Thomas Burditt, R-West Rutland, who reported the bill on the House floor for the Human Services Committee, said the House version would remove a 1,000-person cap that exists at current medical marijuana dispensaries. [continues 590 words]
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) - A Vermont library is resorting to locking its public restrooms to curb a persistent problem of drug paraphernalia clogging the drains. Burlington's Fletcher Free Library hopes to have locksmiths complete the work this week. Library officials say the bathrooms on the mezzanine level of the library were closed three weeks ago for the third time after needles and other drug paraphernalia clogged the drains. The Burlington Free Press reports that once the locks are installed, library patrons will have to exchange their library card or other identification for a key to the bathrooms. That policy mirrors one already in place for using the handicapped-accessible restroom. The clogged drains were noticed before they could cause water damage to the bathrooms. [end]
MONTPELIER - The House Human Services Committee advanced a medical marijuana dispensary bill Friday without including post-traumatic stress disorder as a qualifying diagnosis for a medical marijuana card. The committee added a bit of drama to the process, however. Members initially voted 7-4 in a straw poll Friday morning in favor of adding language to the bill, S.247, to allow Vermonters to use medical marijuana to treat symptoms of PTSD. For supporters, adding PTSD was simply an extension of other uses lawmakers have already approved, such as cancer, AIDS and multiple sclerosis. [continues 523 words]
At about 1:30 a.m. on Feb. 5, Vermont State Police Trooper Kevin Hughes and patrol commander Sgt. Michael Studin pulled over a Chrysler 300 and a red Honda Accord traveling together on Interstate 91 in Springfield. Studin's affidavit says the Chrysler's windshield was cracked and one of the Honda's taillights was cracked. The police found one of those minor violations only after the Chrysler's driver gave permission to search the car. Hidden inside a spare tire in the Chrysler's trunk were 740 one-dose bags of heroin, Studin said. [continues 2379 words]
A drug designed to save the lives of opiate users who overdose will soon be available to a broader population of users and the general public in Rutland. Naloxone, an opioid antagonist medication that revives people who overdose on drugs such as heroin or prescription painkillers, has been available to addicts since November at needle exchange sites in Burlington and White River Junction. But in a pilot program designed to increase the drug's availability, state Health Commissioner Dr. Harry Chen said the West Ridge Center for Addiction Recovery in Rutland would be the first of the state's seven treatment hubs to dispense the lifesaving drug to a broader number of addicts, their family members and anyone else who may need Naloxone. [continues 527 words]
BENNINGTON, Vt. - Stephanie Predel, a stick-thin 23-year-old freshly out of jail, said she was off heroin. But she knows precisely where she could get more drugs if she ever wanted them - at the support meetings for addicts. "I can get most of my drugs right at the meeting," she said. "Drug dealers go because they know they're going to get business." She added, "People are going into the bathroom to get high." Bennington, a pre-Revolutionary town of 17,000 people, presents another face of the heroin epidemic that has swept through Vermont. [continues 793 words]
Editor of the Reformer: In reference to your recent editorial "The next agricultural boon?" (Feb. 1). Not only "all our trading partners can grow these crops (but U.S. farmers can't)," that includes communist Chinese farmers and America's largest foreign debt is with China. It's time to re-introduce hemp as a component of U.S. agriculture. I've been purchasing hemp food products for nearly two decades but the hemp is all imported and I'd rather purchase those products with American grown hemp. A sane argument to continue banning hemp cultivation doesn't exist. Stan White, Dillon, Colo. [end]
To the Editor: Lately, marijuana has taken a top slot in the national news. Large sums of money are being spent to investigate, capture, try and imprison those who produce, package and sell it. In spite of this effort, the supply has not been cut off. Whenever society decides to prohibit a particular activity because certain members of our society decide said activity is "immoral" or "sinful," said activity becomes more desirable and more expensive. However, the activity continues unabated. Apparently we have forgotten the 18th Amendment to our Constitution, which banned alcoholic beverages and supplied fertile ground for the growth of organized crime. Whiskey, wine and beer were made illegally in the U.S. or imported by smugglers. Illegal alcohol became a big business. In the 1920s nearly everyone knew a bootlegger or of a "speakeasy" where one could partake in alcoholic beverages. Those of you who were born after the the late 1920s may not remember that one of the planks of FDR's platform in the 1932 election was "Repeal the 18th Amendment." This was done after he was elected with the 21st Amendment. [continues 84 words]
Governor Devotes Speech to It, Seeks Additional $10m to Deal With Crisis MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - Behind the facade of pristine ski slopes, craft beer, quaint village greens and one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country, Vermont is grappling with painkiller and heroin abuse, a challenge leaders say is fueling crime and wrecking lives and families disproportionately in this tiny state. Nearly every day, police across Vermont respond to burglaries or armed robberies investigators believe are prompted by the unslakable hunger for money to feed heroin or pill habits. In many cases, law enforcement officials say, what began as the abuse of prescription drugs has turned into heroin use because it's less expensive and, more recently, easier to get. [continues 355 words]
To the Editor: Reading Ben Barber's op-ed piece ("We'll Pay a High Price for Legalizing Pot," Dec. 20) reminded me once again of the hilarity of listening to educated people saying incredibly stupid things. Having smoked pot for almost 40 years - although not at all in the last 10 - leaves me -eminently qualified to speak to the horrible debauchery of one more late-night munchy attack on the fridge. Just reading this account will reveal to the general public the incredible amount of dementia and brain loss I have suffered as a result of cannabis sa tiva. [continues 131 words]
Montpelier - Backers of a push to legalize marijuana in Vermont are getting help from an unlikely source: retired police officers who spent their careers enforcing cannabis laws. Just months into Vermont's new policy of decriminalization, several high-profile politicians are already talking about moving to outright legalization. Gov. Peter Shumlin last month set the table for legislative action in the next few years by indicating for the first time publicly his support for a tax-and-regulate model. At an event in the Statehouse next month, elected officials in favor of legalization will look to an organization made up of retired law enforcement officers to help make the case. [continues 673 words]
MONTPELIER - Backers of a push to legalize marijuana in Vermont are getting help from an unlikely source: retired police officers who spent their careers enforcing cannabis laws. Just months into Vermont's new policy of decriminalization, several high-profile politicians are already talking about moving to outright legalization. Gov. Peter Shumlin last month set the table for legislative action in the next few years by indicating for the first time publicly his support for a tax-and-regulate model. At an event in the Statehouse next month, elected officials in favor of legalization will look to an organization made up of retired law enforcement officers to help make the case. [continues 670 words]
In the 1920's, Americans learned the dangers of alcohol prohibition. It created a surge in crime as organized gangs fought for control of the underground liquor distribution and ordinary persons who just wanted a drink were targeted as criminals by the state. So why in 2013 are we still making the same mistake with cannabis? In the 2012 general election, 70 percent of Burlington voters said "yes" to the question of "Shall the people of Burlington support the legalization, regulation, and taxation of all cannabis and hemp products?" Legalization clearly has public support and it also makes economic sense -taxation of cannabis would raise vast amounts of revenue for the state of Vermont. [continues 496 words]
WAITSFIELD, Vt. (AP)- Some Vermont farmers want to plant hemp now that the state has set up rules to grow it. But some advocates for a free market of industrial hemp say they'd be risking their farms because federal law doesn't allow them to cultivate the crop that's a cousin of marijuana. Hemp and marijuana share the same species - cannabis sativa. But hemp contains a negligible amount of THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. The plant once was legally grown in the U.S. and used to make rope, fabric and other products. But now under federal law, all cannabis plants - including hemp - fall under the marijuana label so farmers could get into trouble for growing it. So far, 19 states have passed hemp legislation, including nine that allow its production. [end]
BENNINGTON COUNTY - The decriminalization of marijuana is now in effect, but some local officials are waving cautionary flags. They believe that it may not only result in increased public use, but cause some other problems as well. The new law - which went into effect July 1 - prevents Vermont residents from being arrested for carrying less than an ounce of marijuana. The law removes the criminal penalties associated with possession of small amounts of cannabis and replaces them with civil fines ranging from $200 to $500 depending on whether a person is a repeat offender. For those under the age of 21, the offense will be treated the same as possession of alcohol, which would include referral for court diversion for the first and second offense. However, failure to complete the diversion program would result in a $300 fine and a 90-day driver's license suspension for the first offense and a $600 fine and 180-day license suspension for the second offense. A third offense could result in up to 30 days in jail, a $600 fine or both if diversion was not completed for both the first and second offenses. A person under 16 may have a delinquency petition filed and must be given a chance to participate in the diversion program unless the courts determine otherwise. [continues 1437 words]
WAITSFIELD, Vt. (AP)- Some Vermont farmers want to plant hemp now that the state has a law setting up rules to grow the plant, a cousin of marijuana that's more suitable for making sandals than getting high. But federal law forbids growing hemp without a permit, so farmers could be risking the farm if they decide to grow the plant that the Drug Enforcement Agency basically considers marijuana. Hemp and marijuana share the same species - cannabis sativa - but hemp has a negligible content of THC, the psychoactive compound in marijuana. Under federal law, all cannabis plants are marijuana, regardless of THC content. [continues 479 words]
Vermont's court diversion programs are watching for the impact of a new law decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana. Put into effect at the start of this month, the new law makes possessing an ounce or less of marijuana or up to five grams of hashish a civil rather than criminal offense. But the new law also includes big incentives for violators under age 21 to enroll in the state's court diversion programs -- a process usually used to divert those accused of minor crimes into a system that addresses offenses through community restoration efforts and other redemptive activities in exchange for purging the criminal charge. [continues 548 words]
It's time to end the war on drugs, said one of the founders of LEAP, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, who spoke to the Northfield Rotary Club last week. Capt. Peter Christ (pronounced "Chris"), Vice Chair from the New York chapter of the group, told local Rotary members and guests present that society could save lives, reduce disease, crime and addiction as well as conserve the tax dollars the government is spending on the War on Drugs, if the drug laws were reformed. [continues 380 words]
BARRE - As the ink dries on Vermont's newly signed marijuana decriminalization law, a retired police captain has been traveling around the state talking to rotary clubs and media outlets about his groups opposition to the country's drug policy. - -- Peter Christ worked for the Tonawanda, N.Y., police department for 20 years. After he retired he co-founded a group called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). The organization is composed of those who previously worked in the criminal justice field and now are speaking out against the so called "drug war." Christ said his organization offers something that other organizations can't in terms of who is presenting the message. When there is a drug debate and those in law enforcement present a police chief or state trooper to argue for maintaining current drug policy, LEAP can send its own former police chief or former state trooper to argue for change. [continues 470 words]
Gov. Shumlin signed into law Thursday a bill that decriminalizes possession of an ounce or less of marijuana ESSEX - As of July 1, those caught by police in Vermont with an ounce or less of marijuana will be subject to a ticket, not a criminal charge. Gov. Peter Shumlin signed the bill into law Thursday while speaking to a group of public defenders at their annual conference at the Inn at Essex. The law makes Vermont the 17th state to either decriminalize or legalize marijuana. [continues 190 words]
The Rutland Town Select Board has decided not to ban medical marijuana dispensaries in town. Following a trend set by a number of other communities in Rutland County, Select Board members recently lent their perspectives to a debate taking place in towns around the state. "Mainly because our neighboring communities have been talking about it, I thought it should get a thorough airing," Selectman James Hall said. No specific request regarding a marijuana dispensary has been submitted or discussed with the town. Some communities, including Rutland and Fair Haven, are working toward, or have already implemented, bans on the opening of dispensaries that would legally provide marijuana to those prescribed the drug. [continues 519 words]
Selling marijuana will remain completely illegal in the City of Rutland. The Board of Aldermen voted unanimously Monday to approve an ordinance banning medical marijuana dispensaries and the growing of marijuana for such dispensaries within city limits. There was no debate on the measure, which had unanimously cleared the Public Safety Committee the previous week. Act 65, which authorized the licensing of four medical marijuana dispensaries around the state, allows municipalities to opt out by using either zoning or an ordinance to forbid such facilities. [continues 141 words]
A medical marijuana dispensary has been approved to set up shop in Burlington. The Champlain Valley Dispensary was granted conditional approval by the Department of Public Safety to begin selling marijuana to patients with chronic illness or intractable pain Sept. 10. The dispensary, which will be located inside the Wing Complex on Steele Street, is expected to be open for business within six months. Shayne Lynn, the owner of Champlain Valley Dispensary, told WCAX that he hopes to provide a comfortable and safe atmosphere for his patients. [continues 328 words]
Legalizing marijuana may still be up for debate, but come Election Day, Burlington voters will have the chance to tell lawmakers how the Queen City really feels about the illegal drug. With an 11-3 vote, the city council approved a non-binding question on the November ballot that will allow citizens of Burlington to vote for or against the legalization of cannabis and hemp products. The official ballot question, denied two years ago with a 6-6 vote, states, "Shall the people of Burlington support the legalization, regulation and taxation of all cannabis and hemp products?" [continues 762 words]
WATERBURY -- The state Public Safety Department has conditionally approved two medical marijuana dispensaries. The approvals under the state's medical marijuana program are for Patients First Inc. in Waterbury and Champlain Valley Dispensary Inc. in Burlington, according to the state. Once each dispensary satisfies the stipulations set forth in the statute, a certificate of operation will be issued. The dispensaries are expected to open within six months of approval, following rules adopted by the Public Safety Department. The state would not identify the proposed locations of the sites. [continues 65 words]
Cannabis Referendum Could Serve As Message to Montpelier Leaders Legalize marijuana and hemp? Don't hold your breath. But with eight votes Monday night, the 14-member Burlington City Council might place a non-binding question on the legalization issue before city voters in November. Councilor Max Tracy, P-Ward 2, plans to introduce the referendum at the Monday council meeting with Democratic co-sponsors Ed Adrian, Ward 1, and Norm Blais, Ward 6. The proposed ballot item reads: "Shall the people of Burlington support the legalization, regulation, and taxation of all cannabis and hemp products?" [continues 306 words]
Deputies hear a car alarm and rush out to find a nasty surprise in the parking lot. The deputies with the Orleans County Sheriff's Department were rousted from a quiet Thursday afternoon in the Newport, Vt., office this week by a car alarm - from their own parking lot. Two deputies bolted for the door. In the back lot, they found five cruisers, one transport van and another department vehicle crushed on the concrete like soon-to be-recycled cans. They also saw a large tractor rumbling down the road and out of sight. [continues 383 words]
Editor of the Reformer: Regarding your July 13 editorial, the use of synthetic marijuana is an unintended side-effect of the war on natural marijuana. Consumers are turning to potentially toxic drugs made in China and sold as research chemicals before being repackaged as legal incense. Expanding the drug war will do little other than add to what is already the highest incarceration rate in the world. Chinese chemists will tweak formulas to stay one step ahead of the law and two steps ahead of the drug tests. New versions won't be safer. Misguided efforts to protect children from drugs are putting children at risk. [continues 95 words]
Every day we hear of atrocities committed in Mexico related to the illegal drug trade. Hundreds of thousands of Americans are locked up behind bars for nothing more than possessing an illegal drug. College students have lost federal aid because they toked on a joint. Substance abusers can't get the help they need to kick their habits because more than a trillion dollars has been spent on prohibition since Pres. Nixon declared the war on drugs. Now add a few more causalities to the list: Those who have been seriously injured or killed by synthetic marijuana, which can cause elevated body temperature and blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, heart attack, seizures, suicidal ideation, paranoia, hallucinations, psychotic episodes, organ failure and death. [continues 447 words]
MONTPELIER - It was 1975, and a teen-aged Joe Benning was playing guitar with his rock band at the home of a bandmate when police raided the home. He didn't smoke marijuana, he said, but knew some of his friends did. Benning and his friends got arrested. Fast-forward to 2012, and Benning is a 55-year-old defense attorney and Republican senator from Caledonia County. On the Vermont Senate floor Friday, he pulled out what was a surprise to some senators - an amendment that would decriminalize an ounce or less of marijuana, making possession of it a civil penalty similar to a traffic ticket instead. [continues 711 words]
I was disappointed to read recently that legislation to decriminalize marijuana was "stalled" in the House. Legalization and regulation of marijuana would be the most reasonable approach to this public policy issue, but decriminalization would have been a step in the right direction. The proposed legislation was well thought out and would have encouraged youthful offenders (under 21 years old) in the possession of one ounce or less of marijuana to choose an educational / community service piece, offered in every county through court diversion, in lieu of a fine. Repeat youthful offenders would face increasing fines and possibly the loss of their driver's license for a specified period of time. A person 21 years of age or older would simply face a fine, which would increase for repeat civil offenses. [continues 166 words]
MONTPELIER - A recent survey of Vermonters shows broad support of decriminalization of marijuana, but legislation is stalled in the House that would reduce the possession of small quantities of marijuana to a civil offense. According to a Public Policy Polling survey of nearly 1,100 Vermonters released this week, a majority of Vermont voters is in favor of removing criminal penalties for possession of small amounts of marijuana. Under Vermont law, the penalty for possession of marijuana is up to six months in jail and up to a $500 fine. [continues 470 words]
MONTPELIER -- Evidence of gang activity is on the rise in Vermont, spurred by an active illicit drug market and the ease of obtaining guns in the state, the commander of the Vermont Narcotics Investigation Unit told a Senate panel Thursday. Also at the hearing, a state Health Department official expressed support for the concept of allowing state police drug investigators access to Vermont's prescription drug monitoring database. "There's no question that we have gang members from large metropolitan areas coming to Vermont specifically to profit from the drug trade," Vermont State Police Capt. Glenn Hall said at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. [continues 489 words]
MONTPELIER -- Vermont's first medical marijuana dispensaries might be slightly delayed by Tropical Storm Irene but could begin to pop up as early as this summer. A law that passed last year authorized up to four privately run dispensaries, putting the job of creating rules for them in the hands of the state Public Safety Department. Those rules should be ready in the next couple of weeks, Francis Aumand, director of the Division of Criminal Justice Services, told the Senate Government Operations Committee on Wednesday. [continues 285 words]
I had been traveling for some time, when I came back home and discovered that Vermont had finally repealed its archaic compliance with the U.S. marijuana prohibition. The millions of dollars wasted on Law Enforcement and the Judicial system in their efforts to comply with this outdated mandate was too much for pragmatic Vermont. It was an unexpectedly progressive and enlightened step forward when Governor Shumlin enacted the new "Vermont Gold" law. At the state liquor store there was a rack of 20 brands of Vermont's finest Marijuana and hashish. The attractive packages were certified, weighed, taxed, and branded with the Freedom and Unity labels. Each of the brands -- Vermont Gold, Maple Red, Cow-patty Natural, and so forth - -- was neatly displayed, along with the prices: $15 for a quarter-ounce of Gold, and $10 for the Maple Red. What the hippies had long fantasized about had finally materialized. Marginal agricultural land became verdant pastures, and new cottage industries started to boom. Even Grandma in Guilford was making the finest handcrafted bongs. She said, "Vermonters have been using this weed for generations, as a lineament, a salve, a cure for arthritic pains, and a neat way to treat whatever else ails you. What took 'em so long to make it legal?" [continues 464 words]
MONTPELIER -- For Sue Thayer of East Wallingford, a new law that allows four medical marijuana dispensaries to be set up in Vermont comes long after she was busted for growing cannabis. She was growing it to help her ailing son cope with weight loss and poor appetite as he waited for a new kidney. Still, she and Max, who has that new kidney now, joined a celebration Thursday at the Statehouse as Gov. Peter Shumlin signed legislation that should prevent anyone else from the cruel choice Sue Thayer said she faced. [continues 921 words]
Inside Vermont
