Tagged: new jersey

August 28, 2014

Doctors should lead the way on medical cannabis

A Camden County father cooks up marijuana-infused coconut oil for his 7-year-old daughter, who has a severe form of epilepsy. He pays out of pocket for the three doctors who must approve the girl’s medical marijuana card and drives across the state to buy the drug, which he credits for reducing the frequency and severity of her seizures.

A Franklinville mom makes a similar mixture for her 14-year-old, who’s suffered from epilepsy since she was 2. The woman adds the oil to yogurt and feeds it to her daughter every four hours. Spreadsheets keep track of the teen’s seizures and behavior, as well as the marijuana strains that her mother administers through trial and error.

These parents are doing what it takes to care for their children. But however certain they are that cannabis is helping, they are among the few who have jumped through the hoops of New Jersey’s medical marijuana program, which makes cannabis available through just three dispensaries. (The only South Jersey facility is in Egg Harbor Township, Atlantic County; another planned for Bellmawr has been waiting nearly a year and a half for a permit.)

August 21, 2014

Want to learn how to grow your own marijuana? Bally’s Atlantic City to host seminar

Atlantic City, NJ — A California school will hold a seminar this weekend in Atlantic City that teaches participants how to grow their own marijuana, according to a report on Philly.com.

The four-day seminar kicks off Saturday at Bally’s. It’s being run by Oaksterdam University, an Oakland, Calif, marijuana school.

Since recreational use of marijuana is prohibited in the Garden State, organizers will use basil in the cloning demonstration, the report said.

Lawyers on hand will also offer guidance on “best practices for civil disobedience,” the school’s chancellor told Philly.com. He emphasized the school doesn’t suggest people break the law.

Attendees will also hear from horticulture experts as well as speakers who will talk about the business aspect of the industry.

January 27, 2014

New Jersey Considers Full Legalization

New Jersey state Senator Nicholas Scutari (D-Union) said last week he is planning to introduce a bill in the next month that will fully legalize marijuana in the state, much like it is in Colorado.

There are currently three medical marijuana dispensaries operating in New Jersey. The state legislature legalized cannabis to treat certain medical conditions in 2010. But advocates and some lawmakers have criticized the program for moving too slowly.

Scutari’s bill, by contrast, would allow marijuana to be sold to adults over age 21 for recreational or medical purposes. The lawmaker, who heads the state’s Senate Judiciary Committee, told The Wall Street Journal that he was modeling the legislation on Colorado’s law.

Scutari said his intention in crafting the law was to save valuable resources and to generate more money for the state. “Legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana will generate revenue in the state while saving millions of dollars spent each year on law enforcement,” he told local radio station WCBS 880.

A recent poll in New Jersey, however, found that a majority of state residents (59%) were in favor of lifting the prohibition of cannabis so that the state could regulate and tax it.