According to the College of Psychiatrists in Ireland, some 45,000 people between the ages of 15 and 34 meet the criteria for marijuana dependence. In 2021, fewer people in Ireland were charged or issued a summons for possessing drugs following the introduction of a new scheme that allows for cannabis possession to be treated with a warning, reported The Irish Times. According to Garda Press Office’s figures, as of December 14, 2021, up to 5,957 people were either charged or issued a summons in connection to drug possession for personal use compared to 11,127 in 2020 and 9,923 in 2019. This means that the number of people charged was nearly halved. The expansion of the Adult Cautioning Scheme covering section 3 of the Misuse of Drugs Act (regarding possession of illegal drugs) only covered simple marijuana possession. The cautioning scheme is run by An Garda Síochána (the Irish police dept.) along with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions was extended across possession of cannabis for personal use, trespassing, trading without permission, and laws relating to specific events, according to the Times.

420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 01/03/2022 19:00:00

Open article: https://420intel.com/articles/2022/01/04/fewer-people-charged-weed-possession-ireland-due-new-warning-scheme

Wyoming activists say they’ve made solid progress in collecting signatures for a pair of ballot initiatives to decriminalize marijuana possession and legalize medical cannabis, but they didn’t get enough to make the 2022 ballot deadline and will be aiming for 2024 while simultaneously pushing the legislature to advance reform even sooner. Weather conditions, the ongoing pandemic, and late approval for their petitions by state officials made the prospect of putting legalization and decriminalization before voters this year especially challenging. Apollo Pazell, chief strategist for the campaign, which is being backed by the national Libertarian Party and Wyoming NORML, told Marijuana Moment that they’d considered “keeping teams on the ground [to collect signatures] through the holiday season, and we may have made it, but the uncertainty was too much in my opinion.” The ballot process is especially taxing for activists in Wyoming, with high threshold requirements for citizen initiatives. To have made the 2022 ballot, they would have needed to collect 41,776 valid signatures from registered voters per measure by February. Bennett Sondeno of Wyoming NORML told Marijuana Moment that activists are about 30 percent of the way through that goal, but making the deadline next month is not tenable so they are looking to turn in enough signatures by January 2023 to make the 2024 ballot. He said, “we will push for legislative action this session and next, and fall back to the 2024 election if the legislators refuse to pass something workable.” This ballot effort launched after state lawmakers advanced—but failed to pass—a bill to legalize marijuana in 2021.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 01/03/2022 16:50:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/wyoming-marijuana-activists-turn-focus-to-2024-ballot-for-decriminalization-and-medical-cannabis-initiatives/

The incoming governor of Virginia says that while he’s not interested in re-criminalizing marijuana possession, which became legal in the state last summer, he feels there’s “still work to be done” before he gets behind creating a market for commercial sales and production. Advocates have been closely following Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin (R) as he prepares to take office later this month, with some expressing concerns that he may seek to interfere in the implementation of the cannabis legalization law that Democratic lawmakers passed last year. In an interview with Virginia Business that was published on Friday, Youngkin made clear that he “will not seek to overturn the law on personal possession,” but he’s not making the same commitment with respect to cannabis commercialization. “I’m not against it, but there’s a lot of work to be done,” he said, adding that there are “some nonstarters” in what Democrats passed, including provisions setting labor union requirements for marijuana businesses. He also cited “concerns expressed by law enforcement in how the gap in the laws can actually be enforced.” Youngkin added that “there’s a real need to make sure that we aren’t promoting an anti-competitive industry” and “there are preferences to make sure that all participants in the industry are qualified to do the industry well.” A Virginia legislature marijuana oversight panel looked into issues like licensing and regulatory authority at a meeting last month, and members voted to recommend expediting the timeline for launching retail sales by one year to January 2023. It remains to be seen whether the full legislature will ultimately adopt that recommendation when members reconvene this month under new incoming Republican leadership in the House of Delegates and with a skeptical new governor in office.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 01/03/2022 12:23:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/incoming-virginia-gop-governor-wont-overturn-legal-marijuana-possession-but-casts-doubt-on-sales/