In the days of the Armada, a fleet of warships, the scuttlebutt was the rumor or gossip that would spread throughout the ship. Today, Armada Law Corp presents The Scuttlebutt, a daily summery of news articles that people within the cannabis, hemp and plant medicine industries are chatting about along with links to the full articles.
In today’s news:
#hempderivedproducts – “The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is proposing changes to federal drug-control laws that could effectively ban nearly all delta-8 THC products currently on the market and significantly upend the country’s $5 billion CBD industry, according to a presentation at a recent agency conference….
Critics say the booming trade in hemp-derived cannabinoids was not what Congress intended when it
legalized hemp – defined as cannabis plants with 0.3% THC by dry weight – and it takes advantage of a loophole that the DEA is proposing to close.”
https://mjbizdaily.com/dea-mulling-delta-8-thc-ban/
#californiacannabis – “Outrage is growing in Northern California after law enforcement officers raided a state-licensed pot farm earlier this month, arresting the owner and shooting and killing his dog, who was tethered at the time.
Video of the May 2 shooting shows armed officers from the Trinity County Sheriff’s Department and Cal Fire breaking the gate of Nhia Yang’s pot farm in Trinity County. Yang, who is not a native English speaker, walked toward the officers with his hands raised as the officers shouted commands at him in English and walked within range of a tied-up dog. The dog approached one of the officers, who raised his weapon and shot it. The dog later died, according to a
sheriff’s department press release.”
https://www.sfgate.com/cannabis/article/california-officer-shoots-cannabis-farm-dog-18109109.php
#cannabisindustry – “The Minnesota House approved the final draft of the bill to legalize recreational cannabis late Thursday night.
Negotiators from the House and Senate reached the final deal on the bill on Tuesday. The legislation is the culmination of 30 committees, hours of testimony and several changes to the bill over the course of this legislative session…
Gov. Tim Walz has said he intends to sign the bill.”
https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/minnesota-legislature-takes-up-final-draft-of-cannabis-bill-expected-to-pass/
#californiacannabis – “Three other cannabis farms for which a Trinity County magistrate in late April approved sheriff’s raids also were licensed by the state.
What the targeted farms allegedly lacked were Trinity County permits….
As of Thursday, the state had 345 active cultivation licenses in Trinity County, but the county had approved only 134….
But the warrants also state that farm owners were warned they could not grow cannabis until they secured the local permit and there was evidence many of these farms had been growing illegally for years.
Even so, the alleged crime that brought an armed strike team to Nhia Pao Yang’s gate the morning of May 2 — unlicensed commercial cannabis — is a $500 misdemeanor.”
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-05-19/weed-war-trinity-raids-on-state-licensed-farms-end-in-dog-killing
#psychedelics – “NY-based biotech platform Terran Biosciences announced the publication of an international PCT patent application covering what may be the first new salts, co-crystals and polymorphs of psilocybin in history.
CEO Dr. Sam Clark stated the company believes the new forms of psilocybin “will significantly broaden access and improve the ability of researchers and developers to work with this compound to deliver new therapeutics.””
https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/23/05/32489374/this-biotech-company-discovers-what-may-be-the-first-new-compounds-of-psilocybin-in-history
#cannabisindustry – “In March, Colorado’s
total medical marijuana sales were about $17 million — around $5 million less than last March. Retail marijuana sales racked up to $122 million, but that’s still a $17 million drop from March 2022.
It’s an improved outlook from February when medical marijuana sales dipped to their lowest point since retail sales began — around $15 million. And sales for both recreational and medical weed totaled to over $139 million, which is the highest it’s climbed to since last October.
But times have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic — now officially over — which gave the cannabis industry a boost as customers stocked up on edibles and joints to enjoy under lockdown.
Instead, in 2023, Colorado’s cannabis entrepreneurs face a perfect storm of problems: too much supply, not enough demand, plunging prices, heightened competition in other states, the allure of black market weed, a lack of cannabis tourism and more. That’s on top of the shaky economic forecast for the rest of the year, even though inflation is steadily slowing.”
https://www.denverpost.com/2023/05/21/colorado-cannabis-marijuana-weed-dispensaries-downturn/
#cannabislaw – “Curaleaf Inc. has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a putative class action from customers claiming they unknowingly purchased cannabidiol drops that actually contained psychoactive THC, according to a motion filed in Oregon federal court.
Named plaintiff Ronald Williamson asked the court to sign off on the deal, which calls for each of roughly 500 customers to receive a payment of between $150 and $200, depending on how many consumers lodge claims. The settlement class would include Oregon consumers who purchased one of Curaleaf’s allegedly mislabeled Select CBD Drops on or after June 19, 2021, per the Wednesday filing.”
Curaleaf Settles Latest Suit Over THC-Laden CBD Drops: https://www.law360.com/articles/1679264?utm_source=android&utm_medium=android&utm_campaign=android-shared
#cannabislaw – “The Massachusetts Appeals Court said Lloyd Jennings and Brad Brooks’ threats aimed at forcing Caroline Pineau and her husband to pay them $30,000 weren’t covered by the litigation privilege because they weren’t related to actions in the Land Court and before the city council of Haverhill, Massachusetts.
“Just as the defendants did not have ‘free rein to threaten and coerce’ because they were involved in legitimate petitioning activity,” the panel said, “they were not entitled to use the shield of the litigation privilege to make threats or false statements that were unrelated to the subject of the contemplated city council and Land Court proceedings.”
The opinion marks a second loss at the appeals court for Jennings and Brooks, following a 2021 decision where a panel held the alleged threats were not petitioning activity protected by the state’s anti-SLAPP law.”
Litigation Shield Doesn’t Bar Mass. Pot Shop’s Extortion Suit: https://www.law360.com/articles/1679752?utm_source=android&utm_medium=android&utm_campaign=android-shared
#cannabisindustry – “While a prime business opportunity for cannabis operators, agents need to help clients realize that consumption lounges come loaded with risks, including the potential for crime, drugged driving and health issues associated with cannabis smoke exposure.
Just as dram shop laws protect businesses from civil liability for serving or selling alcohol to minors or intoxicated people, the cannabis industry has “gram shop” laws that aim to provide the same protections for cannabis lounges. Gram shop laws also will prevent a cannabis consumption lounge from being liable if someone leaves and injures someone else after consuming cannabis.
Agents also should familiarize business owners with other liability risks that consumption lounges face. Exposure risks (such as product recalls), exclusions and limitations (health hazards or product withdrawal expenses), and loss control and mitigation are all examples of liability risks that cannabis businesses face. Assault and battery is another key coverage agents should recommend.”
https://www.insurancejournal.com/magazines/mag-features/2023/05/22/721423.htm
