(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . As of today, 8/1, Cannabis is legal in Minnesota [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.'] Date: 2023-08-01 Star Tribune - Marijuana use and possession are now legal in Minnesota. Here's what to know. Minnesota marijuana users can exhale without worry — weed is legal to use, possess and grow in the North Star State as of today. But since no one has been licensed to sell recreational marijuana in the state, it's still illegal to sell. Until dispensaries open their doors, likely in early 2025, Minnesotans will have to get their marijuana the old-fashioned way or grow it themselves. The exception is tribal reservations, which can craft their own cannabis policies. The Red Lake Nation will open up cannabis sales at its medical marijuana dispensary in northern Minnesota today, serving anyone 21 and older. The White Earth Nation created its own recreational marijuana program last week and plans to open its medical cannabis dispensary this month. I drive through the White Earth Reservation on my way to visit my mother. I don’t smoke cannabis, I dislike the smoke. I use gummies and oil. But I might buy a little anyway. With Minnesota, recreational use is legal in 23 states. Medical use us legal in 15 states, and it’s illegal in 12 states. In two of those states where it’s illegal, it’s been decriminalized. Minnesota has had a couple of legalize marijuana parties, which received funding from the Republican Party because they siphon votes from the DFL (Democratic Farmer-Labor Party, the name for the Democratic Party in Minnesota. It was formed from the merger of the Democratic and Farmer-Labor Parties ages ago). With legalization, these parties presumably will dry up and vanish. It’s been a good session; Democrats under the leadership of Governor Tim Walz have really delivered, and not just on cannabis. There was a time when legalization seemed like a pipe dream, but we’re only going to see more and more state legalizing. There doesn’t seem to be any rolling this back. When gummies were legalized last year, there was some shock, and Minnesota Republicans laughably said it wasn’t fair because they hadn’t read the bill. Well, they should have read it. But even in ruby-red parts of the state, they’re embracing their THC oils and gummies. I don’t think there will be any serious effort to reinstate prohibition. Minnesota Republicans stood to gain by denying Democrats a win on cannabis, but I don’t think they have anything to gain by bringing back prohibition. Duluth police prepare ahead of Tuesday’s marijuana legalization Of course, not everyone is going to be very cooperative. Police in Duluth intend to continue using drug-sniffing dogs. One of the arguments against legalization was that it would put these dogs out of work. That’s fine with me. Take them home, have them sit by the fire and beg for snausages. According to Ceynowa, drug-sniffing K-9s will still be utilized because those dogs are more trained to sniff for fentanyl, methamphetamine and heroin. He added it is important the dogs alert to marijuana to ensure everything found is under the legal limit you’re allowed to possess. “Oftentimes you’ll find more than one drug when they’re doing a search warrant,” Ceynowa said. “You may find marijuana, and that amount may be legal to possess within that location, but the fentanyl or methamphetamine or other drugs not.” So train dogs to sniff for these other drugs if they want. The dog detecting marijuana doesn’t give probable cause for anything else. It seems like it should be an unreasonable search if a dog detects a legal product. You can carry up to two ounces on your person, while you can have up to 2 pounds in your home. I don’t see why it should be a police priority to search people just to see if they’re over the limit, that seems to be an abuse of the law. Police have gotten used to be able to use “I smelled marijuana” as an all-purpose excuse for searches. I think it might be a nice bit of malicious compliance for people to put a small satchel of cannabis in their pocket. If the dogs are detecting everywhere, it’s harder to use the dogs as an excuse to crack down. That might be a bit naive, of course, because they might only have the dogs sniffing at certain people and not others... The law also allow you go grow up to 8 plants, with only four of them in flower at a time. You can grow your plants indoors or outdoors but they must be out of sight in an enclosed locked space. You can use it at home, on private property and in public where not prohibited. Some cities are banning it in locations where tobacco use is prohibited. You also can’t own a gun if you use marijuana, but that’s generally not enforced unless your name is Hunter Biden. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/8/1/2184560/-As-of-today-8-1-Cannabis-is-legal-in-Minnesota Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/