marijuana | ARLnow.com

Marijuana Decriminalization Bills Stall in State Senate Committee

Published January 24, 2017 at 11:00AM | Updated January 24, 2017 at 9:27PM

State Sen. Adam Ebbin (D) earlier this month proposed a bill to decriminalize marijuana possession in Virginia. The bill, SB 1269, would reduce marijuana possession to a civil offense punishable only by fines, much like a traffic ticket. Another bill introduced by State Sen. L. Louise Lucas (D), SB 908, would have had similar effects.

Though the Senate’s Courts of Justice Committee did not approve the bills yesterday, it did promise more study on marijuana decriminalization, according to Ebbin’s office.

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Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published January 4, 2017 at 8:30AM | Updated January 4, 2017 at 10:11AM

CivFed Approves Marijuana Resolution — The Arlington County Civic Federation has approved a resolution in support of legalizing medical marijuana in Virginia. [WJLA, InsideNova]

Beyer Opposes ‘Holman Rule’ — Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) has joined other local legislators in opposing the proposed reinstatement of the “Holman Rule,” which would allow a legislator to offer an amendment that would “reduce the salary of any federal employee, or eliminate a federal employee’s position without hearings, testimony, or due process.” [Federal News Radio, House of Representatives]

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Trio on ‘Hippie Trip’ Busted for Sleeping Naked in Car

By ARLnow.com

Published August 1, 2016 at 11:40AM

File photo

The incident happened around 10:30 p.m. Police say somebody walked past a car on the 4200 block of Campbell Avenue — the approximate location of the Shirlington parking garage — and noticed that the windows were down and two people were naked inside.

The witness found the scene to be suspicious and called police.

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Police: Middle School Teaching Assistant Busted for Smoking Pot With Student

By ARLnow.com

Published June 1, 2016 at 4:35PM

Police say Zachary Van Dyke, 32, smoked pot with a 13-year-old student at his home. He also allegedly sold some pot to the teen.

Van Dyke was a teaching assistant at Gunston Middle School and a freshman basketball coach at Washington-Lee High School. He has been suspended by Arlington Public Schools and charged by police with contributing to the delinquency of a minor and distribution of marijuana.

Around Town

Dispatch: Man Can’t See After Smoking Marijuana for the First Time

By ARLnow.com

Published April 7, 2016 at 10:15AM

Around 5 p.m., a man who claimed to have just smoked marijuana for the first time called 911 and said he couldn’t see and was having difficulty breathing.

He was evaluated by medics and voluntarily handed over the pot to police, according to scanner traffic.

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ACPD Announces Big Pot Bust

By ARLnow.com

Published February 26, 2016 at 4:10PM | Updated February 26, 2016 at 4:30PM

In a press release, below, ACPD said the network sent parcels filled with marijuana from California to businesses and homes in the D.C. area. Thus far those businesses have not been identified, though police say warrants were executed at “various businesses and residences throughout the region.”

Two suspects — Dat T. Ngo and Kien V. Luong — have been arrested. Ngo was taken into custody at a nail salon in a Bethesda shopping center, ACPD spokeswoman Ashley Savage said. Drugs were seized from his vehicle, Bethesda Beat reported, citing a witness account.

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Morning Poll: Do You Support Sen. Ebbin’s Marijuana Decriminalization Bill?

By ARLnow.com

Published January 15, 2016 at 11:00AM | Updated January 16, 2018 at 2:31PM

Ebbin, who has won the endorsement of the pro-pot group NORML, proposed a similar bill last year, but it failed in the conservative Virginia General Assembly.

The bill, SB 104, would reduce marijuana possession to a civil offense punishable only by fines, like a traffic ticket, rather than jail time. It would also reduce the criminal penalties for marijuana distribution and possession with the intent to distribute.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published November 18, 2015 at 9:15AM | Updated November 18, 2015 at 12:53PM

County Creates Veterans Committee — Arlington County is creating a Military and Veterans Affairs Committee, to “identify, prioritize and implement programs and initiatives to recognize and support our active duty military population, our veterans, and their families.” The committee will also serve as the county’s liaison to the Vietnam War 50th anniversary commemoration. [Arlington County]

Pot Legalization Advocates Meeting in Arlington — The 2015 International Drug Policy Reform Conference is being held in Crystal City today through Saturday. The group holding the conference is planning to lobby Congress for laws that would make it easier for states to legalize marijuana and decrease penalties for non-violent drug offenders. [Associated Press, Drugpolicy.org]

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published April 10, 2015 at 9:40AM | Updated April 10, 2015 at 10:09AM

Arlington Ranks High for Tax Burden — Arlington County has the second highest overall tax burden in the nation, according to stats compiled by the website NerdWallet. Arlington’s high median income and high real estate costs factored heavily in the calculation, which includes federal, state and local taxes. [NerdWallet, Washington Business Journal]

Trevor Noah Performs in Arlington — Comedian Trevor Noah performed his first stand-up comedy show since being named the next host of The Daily Show last night in Arlington. It was the first of seven sold-out shows Noah is performing this weekend at the Arlington Cinema Drafthouse. In writing about the performance, the New York Times described the Drafthouse as “about a half-hour drive outside Washington, with drinks far cheaper than most places in the District.” [New York Times]

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Pot Advocates Lobby for Ebbin’s Decriminalization Bill

By Ethan Rothstein

Published January 16, 2015 at 3:45PM | Updated January 16, 2018 at 2:34PM

Ebbin’s bill, SB 686, has been referred to the 15-member Courts of Justice Committee, and if it’s approved would need to be approved by the full Senate before going through the same process in the House of Delegates.

Both houses are controlled by Republicans, which has traditionally been the party opposing marijuana legalization efforts nationwide. For that reason, Ebbin and NORML are targeting decriminalization, instead of NORML’s preferred policy, recreational legalization.

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Ebbin Proposes Marijuana Decriminalization in Virginia

By ARLnow.com

Published November 24, 2014 at 4:30PM | Updated January 16, 2018 at 2:35PM

Ebbin’s bill, SB686, is similar to the marijuana decriminalization statute that went into effect in the District earlier this year. (D.C. has since voted to legalize marijuana.) SB686 changes simple marijuana possession from a crime punishable by a $500 fine, and/or up to 30 days in jail, to a civil infraction — a ticket — with a maximum $100 penalty, payable to the state’s Literary Fund.

The distribution of marijuana would remain a crime, but would be reduced to a lesser misdemeanor for all marijuana quantities less than a pound. Growing up to up to six marijuana plants would be considered personal use and not an intent to distribute.

News

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Published June 3, 2014 at 9:00AM

County Releases Development Report — Arlington County has issued its Development Tracking Report for the first quarter of 2014. In Q1, the County Board approved 170,834 square feet of office space, 4,280 square feet of retail, 387 apartment units, and 161 hotel rooms. [Arlington County]

Library Honors Outstanding Volunteers — Arlington Public Library has presented its annual Outstanding Volunteer of the Year awards. The awards went to Deborah Jones, who helps to manage nine book clubs, and to the Talking Books and Homebound Services team. [Arlington Public Library]