Law Enforcement

The DEA reported an uptick in cannabis arrests and seizures for last year, marking the highest federal enforcement figures since 2011.

American teacher and former U.S. diplomat Marc Fogel was sentenced in Russia to a 14-year prison sentence on charges of smuggling about 17 grams of cannabis.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D), a former New York City Police Department officer, said he doesn’t want to see heavy enforcement against businesses found to be illegally gifting cannabis.

Virginia lawmakers are looking to create stricter cannabis possession rules despite the state having passed a legalization bill in April 2021.

Chatham County District Attorney Shalena Cook Jones said she will no longer prosecute cannabis possession cases dealing with less than one ounce or test small amounts of cannabis unless other felony charges are involved.

The Oklahoma Senate passed a bill increasing fines for medical cannabis cardholders who intentionally or improperly divert cannabis to unauthorized persons.

The Canada Border Services Agency recently announced it seized 36,371 pounds of cannabis in 2021.

Empyreal Logistics, a cannabis security company, won its lawsuit against the San Bernadino Sheriff’s Department after local deputies seized more than $1 million from the company’s delivery vehicles.

Voters in Austin, Texas have overwhelmingly approved a measure to decriminalize cannabis possession and ban no-knock search warrants in the city.

A U.S. District Judge in Maryland granted a pretrial motion by federal prosecutors to exclude any mention of the fact that cannabis has been legalized in 18 states from Jonathan Wall’s upcoming drug trafficking case.

While a recent DEA letter appeared to suggest that cannabis material containing less than 0.3% THC is federally legal under the 2018 Farm Bill, legal experts still caution against sending seeds, clones, and other byproducts by mail.

New Jersey police officers are allowed to engage in cannabis use while off-duty without repercussions, according to a recent memo by the state Attorney General.

Police agencies in Georgia are returning the THC/CBD products and cash seized during recent raids after a legal challenge proved law enforcement didn’t understand the state’s hemp law.

Nearly double the rate of people in Japan were involved in cannabis-related criminal cases compared to last year, a record for the country where 70% of offenders are in their 20s or younger.

The Tuscaloosa, Alabama City Council Public Safety Committee advanced a provision to lower penalties for low-level cannabis crimes to a ticket instead of the maximum penalty of 180 days in jail.

A 30-day restraining order issued by a judge in Fulton County, Georgia prohibits Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gaston from prosecuting people for possessing or selling synthetic cannabinoids.

Law enforcement raided a Los Angeles dispensary for all of its cash — including the budtender tip jars — over an appealed $66,000 fee related to the company’s inability to pay taxes in cash during the pandemic.

South Dakota law enforcement officials are arresting medical cannabis cardholders issued by the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, arguing that the cards are invalid for non-tribal members.

Police in New Zealand have set aside more than $600,000 to revive a national cannabis eradication program one year after the operation was canceled.

The Indiana Senate passed a proposal by state Sen. Mike Young (R) which would allow the state attorney general to intervene when county prosecutors decide not to pursue cannabis-related charges.

An armored car company in California filed a lawsuit against the FBI and San Bernardino County Sheriff’s department, alleging they illegally seized cash the company was transporting for state-licensed cannabis companies.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Gary Chambers Jr. from Louisiana was featured smoking a blunt in his first campaign ad, which emphasizes the many failures of the war on drugs.

Austin, Texas residents will have the opportunity to vote in May on ending enforcement of low-level cannabis offenses and no-knock raids by police.

Oregon recently allocated $25 million under a new enforcement program to combat illegal cannabis grows in the state.