Florida

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

A 63-year-old Florida woman with Lou Gehrig's disease wants her medical marijuana back -- and she's going to court to make sure the cops never confiscate her pot plants again.

The back yard of Cathy Jordan, director of the Florida Cannabis Action Network, was raided on February 25 by Manatee County Sheriff's deputies working on a tip that she and husband Robert were growing pot. Deputies confiscated 23 plants, according to a sheriff's department spokesman, who claimed the plants were worth about $30,000.

But the state attorney's office decided it was going to be difficult to get a conviction, given the Jordans' medical necessity defense, and it declined to prosecute the case, reports Billy Cox at the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

Cathy Jordan said she started smoking marijuana in 1989. According to Jordan, cannabis alleviates her painful symptoms, and prescription medications do not.

Her name has become so synonymous with the medical marijuana movement in Florida that when a medicinal cannabis bill was introduced in the state Legislature, it was called the Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Florida lawmakers have passed a bill outlawing the sale of marijuana pipes.

The bong ban, HB 49, on Friday passed the Florida Senate on a 31-2, reports The Associated Press. The measure, which had already passed the House on a 112-3 vote, now heads for the desk of Governor Rick Scott for his signature.

Florida law currently allows stores to sell the pipes. Any sale of marijuana pipes would be a first-degree misdemeanor if Gov. Scott signs the bill into law. Second and subsequent violations would be a third-degree felony.

Recovering crack addict Rep. Darryl Rouson believes marijuana is a gateway drug to things like, well, crack cocaine (despite all the evidence to the contrary). He sponsored the bill to ban all bongs, glass bowls, roach clips, and other things that can used as devices with which to smoke pot, reports Chris Joseph at Broward Palm Beach New Times.

"If we can make people drive to Georgia and Alabama and South Carolina to get fireworks, they can drive to get these utensils of death," the overly dramatic Rep. Rouson said.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Robert Platshorn became the longest serving marijuana prisoner in United States history, doing almost 30 years in federal prison for importing Colombian pot in the 1970s. When he got out five years ago, Platshorn -- a weed warrior through and through -- didn't take the easy way out and opt for a quiet retirement. Instead, he took up the cause of medical marijuana, launching The Silver Tour to bring the good news about cannabis to senior citizens.

Platshorn did his time, and when he got out, he started trying to make the world a better place and to help sick and aging people. But last May, even though he'd been officially released from the jurisdiction of the U.S. Parole Commission, the federal government moved to silence him, ordering travel restrictions -- effectively, if temporarily, ending The Silver Tour.

That's where things have stood for almost a year now, but finally, Platshorn, a Florida resident also known as The Tuna (from his '70s smuggling group, The Black Tuna Gang), got some good news this week: permission to travel to state capitol Tallahassee to help push for medical marijuana in the Sunshine State.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Charges have been dropped against Robert Jordan, who was accused of growing marijuana at his home in Parrish, Florida.

Manatee County Sheriff's Department deputies in February raided Robert and Cathy Jordan's home, confiscating 23 cannabis plants from their back yard, reports News 13.

The Jordans said that they were growing marijuana to help his wife, who uses it to treat Lou Gehrig's disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS).

Robert Jordan learned on Tuesday that the state had dropped all charges against him.

The Jordans are current in Tallahassee, Florida's capitol city, lobbying for the legalization of medical marijuana in the Sunshine State.

The Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act has been filed with state legislators. If passed, Florida would become the 19th state allowing medical marijuana.

(Photo: News 13)

Republican Legislator Suggests Medical Marijuana Patients Move Out of the State

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act can't even get a hearing in the Florida Senate or House, despite the fact that seven of 10 Floridians support medical marijuana. Meanwhile, a bill banning bongs was approved by a Senate committee -- unanimously.

What's going on in Florida? Things are so bad, that one Republican legislator, Jimmy Patronis of Panama City, has suggested that Cathy Jordan and other Floridians who need medical marijuana for their conditions should move out of the state and go somewhere it's legal, reports the Huffington Post.

"Shame on us as a Legislature for not taking the opportunity to hear this bill this year," said House bill sponsor Rep. Katie Edwards (D-Plantation) on Monday. She introduced the bill after getting cancer herself last year and talking with fellow patients about how marijuana alleviated their suffering.

"I thought, 'These are real people,' and I cannot turn a blind eye and stick my head in the sane and pretend like it's not happening, because it is," Edwards told ABC Action News.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday limited the ability of police to use trained drug-sniffing dogs to check around the outside of homes for illegal drugs that might be inside.

On a 5-4 split, the Court said that law enforcement's use of dogs to investigate a home and its surroundings qualifies as a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, and thus requires a search warrant, reports Jonathan Stempel at Reuters.

"A police officer not armed with a warrant may approach a home and knock, precisely because that is no more than any private citizen might do," wrote Justice Antonin Scalia for the majority.

"But introducing a trained police dog to explore the area around the home in hopes of discovering incriminating evidence is something else," Scalia wrote. "There is no customary invitation to do that."

"The home is the first among equals" when it comes to the Fourth Amendment, Scalia said.

The decision upholds a 2011 ruling by the Florida Supreme Court which suppressed evidence found at Joelis Jardines' home with the assistance of Frankie, a trained drug-detecting chocolate Labrador retriever.

"It's a very important decision for all citizens, because it helps ensure their right of privacy in the places where they live," said Howard Blumberg, a public defender who argued Jardines' appeal.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Two major Democratic fundraisers have said they would provide the money and expertise to get legalization of medical marijuana on the Florida ballot in 2014.

"I'm prepared to keep raising money and writing checks until I get the signatures to put it on the ballot," said attorney John Morgan -- who routinely hosts presidents and national political figures at his home, and is a former fundraiser for President Barack Obama -- late on Tuesday, reports Barbara Liston of Reuters.

Morgan recently signed on as chairman of People United For Medical Marijuana (PUFMM), a grassroots campaign that, until now, was operating on a shoestring budget. He was recruited by Ben Pollara, a lobbyist and fellow Obama campaign fundraiser, who recently became treasurer of PUFMM.

The problem was, PUFMM didn't have the money to wage a high-profile battle and couldn't get enough signatures to get their medical marijuana legalization proposal on the ballot.

"We were just scraping together pennies," said Kim Russell of Orlando, who founded PUFMM four years ago. The group could barely afford to photocopy its own petition, she said.

Now, PUFMM has commissioned a poll and is planning to hire a company to manage the petition drive. "It's a 180-degree turnaround," Russell said.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Marijuana growth is "rampant" throughout Florida, according to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, but the DEA says it is cracking down on cannabis cultivation in the Sunshine State.

The DEA allocated $500,000 to Florida's Domestic Marijuana Eradication Program last year, an increase of $50,000 over 2011, reports Ben Bornstein at WUFT.

That tax money paid for something called "marijuana-growth detection training" for law enforcement agents throughout the state, according to Judith Ivester, program coordinator for domestic marijuana eradication.

Ivester said that 87 percent of the money was used to "reimburse investigative costs" for local law enforcement, which she said provided an incentive to identify, investigate and eradicate the plant.

According to the report, 772 marijuana cultivation sites were discovered in 2012, resulting in 723 arrests and 37,388 plants being destroyed.

North Central Florida is a hotbed for cannabis cultivation, Ivester said. She claimed indoor growth is more prevalent in South Florida "because the area is more urban." Growers in heavily populated counties like Dade and Broward move their grow-ops inside to avoid detection, according to Ivester.

By Charles Billi, WTSP

Tallahassee, Florida -- You may not know the name Cathy Jordan, but you will soon. Jordan is the woman at the center of the battle to legalize medical marijuana in Florida.

She suffers from Lou Gehrig's disease and she grows and smokes marijuana to help alleviate her pain.

Ironically, police raided her home Monday and seized her marijuana stash after a government employee saw her pot plants growing in her yard. Because she can barely speak, her husband, Bob Jordan, a veteran, speaks for her.

"If there is another drug that can help her, tell me what it is and we will use it, but there's not. I'm going to do what I have to do to keep my wife alive," said Jordan.

Wednesday, State Senator Jeff Clemens of Lake Worth introduced State Bill 1250 in Tallahassee entitled "The Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act," that would allow Floridians with debilitating medical conditions to legally obtain and use marijuana if their doctors recommend it.

The announcement is front and center on Clemens' Facebook page, and his address on the subject two months ago hit Youtube.

"We have to get to those people who are non-believers. We need to reach those people who are willing to listen," said Clemens. "We need to get to those people who we can change their hearts and minds, because that's how we're going to make a difference in the state."

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Robert Platshorn wants to spread the good news about medicinal cannabis. Since late last year, the former pot smuggler -- who served almost 30 years in federal prison after the "Black Tuna Gang" was busted by authorities -- has been buying TV time on local stations for his infomercial aimed and senior citizens, Should Grandma Smoke Pot?

The 30-minute show aims to educate the elderly on the pros of medical legalization, and is an extension of Platshorn's popular "Silver Tour," reports Kyle Swenson at Broward Palm Beach New Times.

Having already successful bought airtime and aired the show on stations in the Tampa area and in South Florida, Platshorn was ready to crack the Orlando market on WKCF, a CW affiliate owned by Hearst Media. But the deal fell apart at the last minute when the station got cold feet about the infomercial's message.

"When we bought the time to start running in March, they were very happy to sell it to us," Platshorn said. Should Grandma Smoke Pot? was scheduled for six half-hour slots on WKCF, according to Platshorn, at a total price of about $2,200; the deal was signed on February 26.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Florida state Senator Jeff Clemens last week introduced a bill that would finally allow patients in the Sunshine State with serious qualifying medical conditions to legally possess and use marijuana for medicinal purposes.

S.B. 1250, the Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act, named after Florida Cannabis Action Network president and ALS patient Cathy Jordan, would allow qualifying patients to have up to four ounces of marijuana and to grow up to eight marijuana plants, reports Chris Joseph at Broward Palm Beach New Times.

"When a patient comes into your office and tells you all the meds that they're taking don't work, don't relieve their suffering, but marijuana does, it's hard to look that person in the eye and not do something about it," Sen. Clemens said.

Clemens already made history three years ago when he introduced the first-ever medical marijuana bill in the Florida Legislature. It was quickly shot down, but the senator said he knew from the outset that this would be an uphill, four- to six-year battle.

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By Robert Nolin, Sun Sentinel

That kindly gent with the rose garden, the cute little old lady in the deli line, the mahjong master at the community center — any one could be among a growing portion of our aging population: the senior stoner.

In retiree-rich South Florida, some golden-agers are — gasp! — sporting illegal smiles as they discreetly puff on joints to ease the aches and pains of advancing years.

"It's like taking a magic pill," said a 70-year-old Boca Raton woman who smokes pot almost daily to counteract cancer chemotherapy pain. "I can have a crappy, crappy day and I take one toke and in less than three minutes I'm leveled out and feel wonderful."

Such scofflaws opt to flout convention rather than suffer. And their numbers are hardly insubstantial: 30 percent of Americans 50 and older have tried pot, according to a 2009 survey by the government's Substance Abuse and Mental Health Data Archive.

Last year, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimated that drug use among seniors has increased more than 3 percent over the past eight years. The number is expected to triple by 2020.

One recent convert was a 70-year-old Delray Beach woman who calls herself Mary. "I'm a good, Catholic churchgoing person," she said. "I've never taken a drug in my life."

But when a friend with an out-of-state prescription for medical marijuana offered a joint to alleviate the "excruciating" pain of a shoulder injury, Mary took a chance.

View Larger Map

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Correspondent

WHAT: The Silver Tour - Teaching Seniors the Benefits of Medical Marijuana

WHEN: Tuesday, April 3rd, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. E.S.T.

WHERE: Lake Worth’s Temple L’Dor V-Dor
7306 Lake Worth Rd.
Lake Worth, Florida 33467
(See Google Map Above)

ADMISSION: Free

Lake Worth’s well known civil rights attorney and popular Rabbi, Barry Silver, is hosting The Silver Tour at Lake Worth’s Temple L’Dor V-Dor. Medical marijuana is the hot topic of the show. Audiences will hear the facts from doctors, patients, lawyers and the man who filed Florida’s first bill to legalize medical marijuana, Lake Worth Representative Jeff Clemens.

By CBS NEWS

MIAMI, FL - A South Florida man is setting out to promote the use of medical marijuana.

Billboards are popping up along Sample Road in Broward County that are targeting senior citizens.

The more ornate billboard says, 'Legalize Medical Marijuana. I'm a patient not a criminal' and another depicts an elderly person in a wheelchair.

Down the road, another billboard reads 'Reschedule Medical Marijuana, one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man." CBS4's Cynthia Demos spoke with folks who drove by the billboard.

"For my family I don't like it," said Roseanne Alves.

"Marijuana is a gateway drug," said Zed Castro.

The billboards are the work of 69-year-old Robert Platshorn.

Platshorm said he spent 30 years in prison for smuggling marijuana, a substance he says can help people and shouldn't be illegal. He doesn't want others sent to prison for what he calls, 'not committing a crime', so he is trying to make it legal.

"The billboard is a way to bring attention to the cause," Platshorn said. In the four years he's been out of prison he started his cause, "The Silver Tour" to promote the legalization of marijuana for seniors.

"They have the time, the inclination and the need," he said.

Irvin Rosenfels, 59, is one of Platshorn's biggest supporters.