Tagged: vermont

August 28, 2014

Medical Cannabis: Saving Lives

New studies into the use of medical cannabis show a surprising trend that indicates that it is saving lives versus causing harm. As the uses for medical marijuana continue to be studied, new research clearly indicates that it may actually be effective in lowering death rates as well as helping multiple medical conditions. A study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network, shows indications that states with medical cannabis laws in place have a smaller percentage of pain pill, such as Vicodin and Percocet, overdoses. States such as California and Oregon which had these laws in place prior to 1999 were compared to states such as Colorado, Hawaii and Vermont where the laws were only enacted between 1999 and 2010.

August 21, 2014

VT decriminalization results in uneven enforcement

BURLINGTON, Vt. – New numbers reveal wide variation in the approach taken by police departments across the state when it comes to marijuana.

For the last year year, pot smokers have been spared criminal charges if caught with less than an ounce of marijuana. A 2013 law made that a civil offense — like a traffic ticket. But our look at 13 months worth of ticket numbers found departments across the state take different approaches to policing pot.

Law enforcement officers issued 1,521 marijuana possession tickets across the Green Mountains between July first 2013, and the end of July this year. Citations from the Vermont State Police account for about a third of that number.

Officers in Burlington wrote the most tickets — 111. Just behind Burlington — Hartford — a town with a quarter of the Queen City’s population. Police there issued 106 marijuana possession tickets — the second most in the state. No other local department issued more than 49.