azdailysun.com:  “Guillermo Padres Elias is worried that Mexican drug cartels will seek a share of the medical marijuana trade in Arizona.  TUCSON — Arizona voters made a mistake in legalizing marijuana for medical use, the governor of Sonora said Friday, at least from his country’s perspective.  ‘I don’t believe in it,’ Guillermo Padres Elias said in response to a question about how the 2010 law might affect the ability of his country to combat the drug cartels.”

Wow!  What can I say.  The New York Times has an article dated June 7, 2012, that reads like it was written by a high school newspaper reporter – short, fluffy, lacking substance and out of touch with reality.  It does disclose for the first time that Will Humble had a fake Facebook page on medical marijuana. The article says:

“Will Humble, director of the Arizona Health Services Department, said his staff used a fake Facebook page to monitor the conversation about the state’s medical marijuana program, which is how they got to hear about loopholes they never knew existed.

For example, the state gives preference to people who have $150,000 or more in cash for each dispensary application they file; a bank statement would have sufficed as proof the money was there. But people suggested they would just transfer the money from one bank to another, then use the statements to support different applications.

The state went on to ask applicants to prove the money had been in the bank for at least 30 days, Mr. Humble said.”

I was at a public presentation last year given by Will Humble right after ADHS’ third and “final” draft of Arizona’s medical marijuana regulations were published.  This was the version of the rules that contained the $150,000 capital requirement.  A man asked Will Humble if it would be ok to put the money in the bank on Monday, get a letter from the bank and then take the money out of the bank on Tuesday.  You should have seen the surprised look on Will’s face as he realized the carefully drafted rule had a door a mile wide in it.  ADHS then quickly published a fourth and really final version of the rules that modified the capital requirement rule that applicants show they had at least $150,000 in the bank for at least 30 days.

New York Times:  “The New York Police Department, the mayor and the city’s top prosecutors on Monday endorsed a proposal to decriminalize the open possession of small amounts of marijuana, giving an unexpected lift to an effort by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to cut down on the number of people arrested as a result of police stops. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, whose Police Department made about 50,000 arrests last year for low-level marijuana possession, said the governor’s proposal “strikes the right balance” in part because it would still allow the police to arrest people who smoke marijuana in public.”

Phoenix New Times:  “Hundreds of applications for medical-marijuana dispensaries — along with their $5,000 application fees — poured into the state Department of Health Services last week.  The latest update on the Arizona DHS Web site shows 484 applications received in 99 of the 126 districts (a.k.a., “CHAAs,”) around Arizona that are allowed to have the facilities, which under state law can cultivate and sell marijuana to qualified patients.  Permits are expected to be granted on August 7.”

Yuma Sun:  “Nearly 500 applications have been submitted by those hoping to operate one or more of the 126 legal marijuana dispensaries that will be allowed to open later this year. . . . The Estrella area southwest of Phoenix garnered the most applications with 16. But 11 other areas had double-digit requests, including Catalina north of Tucson.”

I have enjoyed creating this website since it went public in early January of 2011.  As of the moment I am writing this my Arizona Medical Marijuana Law website has had 139,893 viewers.  The best month was March of 2011 when the site had 21,421.  The best day was March 28, 2011, when 1,572 people viewed the site. (more…)

Modern Times:  “Several Community Health Analysis Areas did not receive an application. Those CHAAs are: Kaibab Paiute, Hualapai, Navajo Nation, Hopi Nation, Havasupai, White Moiuntain Apache, Yavapai-Prescott Indian Tribe, San Carlos Apache, Colorado Indian Tribes, Yavapai-Fort McDowell, Maricopa County West, Paradise Valley, Salt River, Gila River, Chandler Northwest, Tohono O’Odham, Yuma Northwest, Cocopah, Somerton, San Luis, Ak-Chin, Tucson West, San Xavier District, Pascua Yaqui, Green Valley, Tombstone/Elfrida and Nogales.  Several CHAAs received only one application, which means that as long as those who did apply have their applications in order, they will be awarded the dispensary certificate. The CHAAs with only one application are: Littlefield, Fort Mohave, St. Johns, Globe/Hayden, Maricopa County North, Desert View/North Gateway, Glendale North, Sun City, Avondale, Mesa Central, Ahwatukee Foothills, Chandler Southeast, Duncan/Morenci, Graham County South, Yuma East, Yuma South, San Manuel, Florence, Ajo, Marana, Tucson Northwest, Arivaca, Bisbee, and Douglas.”

Rasmussen Reports:  “A new national telephone survey of Likely Voters shows that 56% favor legalizing and regulating marijuana in a similar manner to the way alcohol and tobacco cigarettes are regulated.”

New York Times:  “THREE and a half years ago, on my 62nd birthday, doctors discovered a mass on my pancreas. It turned out to be Stage 3 pancreatic cancer. I was told I would be dead in four to six months. Today I am in that rare coterie of people who have survived this long with the disease. But I did not foresee that after having dedicated myself for 40 years to a life of the law, including more than two decades as a New York State judge, my quest for ameliorative and palliative care would lead me to marijuana. . . . Because criminalizing an effective medical technique affects the fair administration of justice, I feel obliged to speak out as both a judge and a cancer patient suffering with a fatal disease. I implore the governor and the Legislature of New York, always considered a leader among states, to join the forward and humane thinking of 16 other states and pass the medical marijuana bill this year. Medical science has not yet found a cure, but it is barbaric to deny us access to one substance that has proved to ameliorate our suffering.”

Today at 5:00 pm Arizona time the Arizona Department of Health Services will cease to accept applications for Arizona medical marijuana dispensary registration certificates, which is required to obtain a license to operate a dispensary.  As of the end of the day yesterday 250 would-be dispensaries had submitted applications and paid the $5,000 application fee.  As of yesterday there were 42 CHAAs that had not yet received a dispensary application and 20 CHAAs had only one applicatant.

If you intend to become involved with an Arizona medical marijuana dispensary I urge you to read my article called “Warning to Everybody Considering Becoming Involved with an Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensary.”

Phoenix New Times:  “The state opened the door for medical-marijuana dispensary applications yesterday, receiving 15 by the end of the day. . . . The first thing you probably noticed is what’s not on the list yet. A dispensary in Ajo before Tempe? Really? . . . That was just one unwelcome sign that spurred local lawyer and blogger Richard Keyt to write a “warning” for people considering investing in or running a dispensary.