Requires that nonviolent persons currently in prison for personal possession or use of illegal drugs, and not serving a concurrent sentence for another crime, or previously convicted under any habitual criminal statute in any jurisdiction of the United States, be made eligible for immediate parole and drug treatment, education, and community service. State voters will approve or reject the initiative on November 5. Thielen is a staunch proponent of hemp's industrial uses and sponsored legislation this spring to allow for the domestic cultivation of the crop. Thielen sent a letter to Governor Fob James informing him that she is encouraging hemp-related industries in Hawaii to avoid doing any business in Alabama. Business owners Angela Guilford and her husband Jeff Russell were charged with trafficking in marijuana after law enforcement raided her small shop in July and seized hemp-based clothing, jewelry, and sterilized seeds.
Federal law allows for the possession and importation of hemp fiber and products.
Guilford and Russell have a preliminary hearing scheduled for September 23. CA - The California Legislature failed to act on legislation to establish a Medical Marijuana Research Center at a campus of the University of California. The legislation will now be held over until 1998. This is a golden opportunity missed. Backers of the research proposal include the American Cancer Society, Attorney General Dan Lungren, the California Narcotics Officers Association, the California Medical Association, and the California District Attorney's Association.