Maryland becomes 21st state to embrace medical marijuana

  By Jake Ellison

Marijuana legalization acts around the U.S.,

Medical marijuana system - Today (Monday, April 14) Maryland became the 21 state to create a medical marijuana system.
Gov. Martin O'Malley today signed into law HB 88:
The Gov.'s announced list of bills signed describes the law this way: “Altering the purpose of the Natalie M. LaPrade Medical Marijuana Commission to include approval of physicians, development of a Web site, establishment of an application review process, and issuance of medical marijuana grower licenses; authorizing a medical marijuana grower to distribute marijuana at specified facilities; identifying patients and caregivers; requiring the Commission to report to the General Assembly on the level of competition in the market for medical marijuana on or before December 1, 2015 … “

(Photo: The flags of Maryland and the United States)

Gov. Martin O’Malley signed into law this morning a bill that establishes the backbone for a medical marijuana market in Maryland. The governor also signed into law a bill decriminalizing possession of weed.
In the gallery above, you’ll find information on both acts as well as an updated list of marijuana legalization acts and efforts from around the world.
Here is what O’Malley said about the decriminalization bill: 
“With more effective policing and more widely available drug treatment, together in Maryland, we have driven violent crime down to its lowest levels in 30 years. This progress has been hard-won and much remains to be done. Recent spikes in homicides and heroin overdose deaths underscore the life-saving urgency of the work before us.

“The General Assembly has decided after much consideration — and with clear majorities in both Chambers — to send to my desk a bill that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, and I plan to sign it. “As a matter of judicial economy and prosecutorial discretion, few if any defendants go to prison for a first or even a second offense of marijuana possession in Maryland. Desuetude is often a precursor of reform. “As a young prosecutor, I once thought that decriminalizing the possession of marijuana might undermine the Public Will necessary to combat drug violence and improve public safety.

I now think that decriminalizing possession of marijuana is an acknowledgement of the low priority that our courts, our prosecutors, our police, and the vast majority of citizens already attach to this transgression of public order and public health. Such an acknowledgment in law might even lead to a greater focus on far more serious threats to public safety and the lives of our citizens.” The Marijuana Policy Project was happy about both bills … as you might imagine: “We applaud Gov. O’Malley for signing these important bills into law,” said Rachelle Yeung, a legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project, (in a news release)t.

“The progress we’re seeing in Maryland is emblematic of what is taking place nationwide. Most Marylanders, like most Americans, are fed up with outdated marijuana prohibition policies and ready to start taking a more sensible approach.”  Senate Bill 923 and House Bill 881 are identical bills that allow state residents suffering from certain qualifying conditions to use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it. Possession limits and regulations governing cultivation and dispensary facilities will be determined by a state-sanctioned commission prior to implementation. The measure will officially go into effect on June 1.

“This law is long overdue and comes as a relief to the many seriously ill patients throughout Maryland who will benefit from safe access to medical marijuana,” Yeung said. The Marijuana Policy Project has been lobbying in support of medical marijuana legislation in Maryland for more than a decade.

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