Politics, Government and Business in Southern California's Inland Empire
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 30, 2012 | 3:31 pm
California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye lost a round over Judicial Council power
The state’s top judge lost a political battle Monday when the state Assembly voted to shift key budget decisions from the state Judicial Council that she heads to local trial courts, some of which have complained about the panel’s handling of money.
By Howard Mintz hmintz@mercurynews.com
Posted: 01/30/2012 06:56:26 AM PST
Updated: 01/30/2012 07:31:17 AM PST
With a crucial vote looming Monday, a conflict that has shaken California’s judiciary reaches a critical stage when the Assembly considers legislation that would strip control of most of the court system’s purse strings from a central bureaucracy and turn it over to the Legislature and local trial judges.
Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 01/28/2012 06:06:01 AM PST
UPLAND – The City Council has not made a formal request for the League of California Cities’ assistance in the medical marijuana case pending in the state Supreme Court, but some inquiries have been made.
By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
A California Supreme Court ruling Friday significantly raised Democratic Party prospects of gaining the supermajority needed in the state Senate to pass tax or fee increases.
The high court decided that Senate maps drawn recently by a 14-member citizens commission will be used for this year’s legislative elections, even if a pending referendum qualifies for the ballot.
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
January 27, 2012 | 10:19 am
A correction has been added to this post. See below for details.
The California Supreme Court, faced with a possible ballot measure to scrap newly drawn election districts, decided Friday to leave the boundaries in place for this year’s state Senate races.
January 26, 2012
Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye today urged the defeat of Assembly legislation that would undermine the authority of the Judicial Council, and give courts in as few as two counties authority to veto any statewide judicial project.
Cantil-Sakauye, who became chief justice in 2010, is showing herself to be a tough fighter as she lobbies to kill legislation by Assemblyman Charles Calderon, D-Whittier, himself the consummate inside player.
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
As the Legislature reconvened this month, California’s judges resumed their civil war over money and power.
It pits Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye and the State Judicial Council, along with one faction of trial and appellate judges, against a rebellious faction, organized as the Alliance of California Judges, over how to allocate pain as the courts adjust to reduced financing.
BY RICHARD K. De ATLEY
STAFF WRITER
rdeatley@pe.com
Published: 18 January 2012 03:51 PM
The California Supreme Court will review a city of Riverside medical marijuana case in which a lower court ruled that cities and counties have the right to ban dispensaries.
Local governments throughout the state have used that decision, issued in November by the Fourth District Court of Appeal, to shut down medical marijuana clinics within their boundaries.
By Sandra Emerson, Staff Writer
Created: 01/18/2012 03:55:17 PM PST
UPLAND – The California Supreme Court decided on Wednesday to review an appeal filed by an Upland medical marijuana cooperative.
Counsel representing G3 Holistic in Upland filed the appeal in December following a decision in November by the Fourth District Appellate Court in Riverside siding with the city’s ban on medical marijuana dispensaries through its zoning code.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012 – 4:00 p.m.
The attempt by the City of Upland to shutter a medical marijuana co-op fell flat last week.
BY ALICIA ROBINSON
STAFF WRITER
arobinson@pe.com
Published: 07 January 2012 06:52 PM
Riverside may have to scrap plans for a downtown bus and train transit hub, a new shopping plaza in the Five Points area of La Sierra, relocation of two historic Victorian homes and a variety of other projects, now that state legislation and a court ruling have dismantled redevelopment.
Worse yet, say city officials, they may be forced to sell many of the properties owned by the city’s now-defunct redevelopment agency, including some on the Main Street mall, University Avenue, at Five Points, and in several areas downtown where new and better housing was planned.
Published: Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012 – 12:00 am | Page 4A
A Republican group backing a referendum challenging newly drawn state Senate districts believes they have inched closer to qualifying just days before the California Supreme Court will hear arguments over whether it should intervene.
Wes Woods II and Sandra Emerson, Staff writers
Created: 01/05/2012 03:34:25 PM PST
UPLAND – A week later: It’s still open.
Medical marijuana collective G3 Holistics Inc. continues to be open for business, but it may not be so for long.
By Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 01/02/2012 03:10:55 PM PST
The California Supreme Court will hear arguments on Jan. 10 about redistricting lines that will be used in 2012′s state Senate elections.
A Republican group had asked the California Supreme Court on Dec. 2 to shelve the newly drawn state Senate district map, even though the court previously declined to take up such a challenge.
BY KIMBERLY PIERCEALL
STAFF WRITER
kpierceall@pe.com
Published: 30 December 2011 07:21 PM
Leaders with three Inland groups overhauling former military bases say legislation that would dissolve the state’s redevelopment agencies doesn’t apply to them.
The legislation was upheld by the state’s Supreme Court on Thursday.
Marisa Lagos, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, December 30, 2011
The California Supreme Court dealt a deathblow to the state’s 60-year-old redevelopment program, ruling Thursday that lawmakers had the authority to eliminate the economic development program and striking down a law that would have allowed the agencies to exist in smaller form.
The ruling was the worst-case scenario for cities, which argued they needed the program to spur economic development in blighted areas and create jobs – but it was a win for Gov. Jerry Brown.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
December 29, 2011
In a significant budget win for Gov. Jerry Brown and lawmakers, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday the state can eliminate the local agencies that subsidize construction in blighted areas.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
December 28, 2011
The California Supreme Court will rule Thursday on a case with huge implications for the state budget and the future of some 400 local redevelopment agencies.
By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
December 24, 2011
Reporting from San Francisco— Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, who heads the state’s judicial branch and its highest court, said in an interview that the death penalty is no longer effective in California and suggested she would welcome a public debate on its merits and costs.
Canan Tasci, Staff Writer
Created: 12/22/2011 12:55:33 PM PST
CHINO HILLS – The state Supreme Court has denied a city petition to review its case against the installation of high-voltage power lines in the city.
The city’s attorney was informed that the Supreme Court declined to review a Court of Appeal’s decision on the city’s efforts to fight the route on which Southern California Edison has plans to build 200-foot transmission towers through the city.
BY JIM MILLER, SACRAMENTO BUREAU
AND BRIAN JOSEPH, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
jmiller@pe.combjoseph@ocregister.com
Published: 17 December 2011 06:33 PM
SACRAMENTO — More than 230 years since the American Revolution, taxation without representation survives in the California State Senate.
Under new lines scheduled to take effect next year, millions of Californians will lack a senator while millions of others will be represented by two senators in 2013 and 2014.
And it’s totally legal.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
December 9, 2011
The California Supreme Court expects to rule “as early as the end of January” on which state Senate districts would apply to next year’s state elections if a referendum challenging newly drawn maps qualifies for the November ballot.
Cheryl Miller
The Recorder
December 5, 2011
SACRAMENTO — With 2011 nearing a close, California lawyers must be wondering which will arrive first: Gov. Jerry Brown’s first trial court appointments or Santa Claus.
Nearly a full year into his administration, Brown has named just one jurist — albeit a very high-profile one — to the bench: Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu. Meanwhile, vacancies in the superior and appellate courts have gone unfilled and totaled 62 at the end of October, the latest figure available from the Administrative Office of the Courts. The vacancy rate is nearing a two-year high.
BY LAURIE LUCAS
STAFF WRITER
llucas@pe.com
Published: 27 November 2011 06:28 PM
Aaron Sandusky is bloodied but unbowed.
For several years he owned G3 Holistics Inc., a not-for-profit company that ran three Inland medical marijuana dispensaries.
Earlier this month, federal agents raided facilities in Colton, Upland and Moreno Valley, which are now bare and shuttered, and cleaned out his 40,000-square-pot growing warehouse in Ontario.
By Ed Mendel
Monday, November 28, 2011
A state Supreme Court ruling last week could make it more difficult for state and local governments to cut spending on health care for their retired employees, one of the fastest-growing costs.
By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
November 21, 2011, 5:50 p.m.
Health benefits for government retirees may not be eliminated if state and local governments had clearly promised workers those benefits, the California Supreme Court ruled in an Orange County case Monday.
By David Siders and Peter Hecht
dsiders@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Nov. 18, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Friday, Nov. 18, 2011 – 7:36 am
In a major lift for supporters of California’s same-sex marriage ban, the state’s highest court ruled Thursday that proponents of ballot initiatives can defend their measures in court when the governor and attorney general refuse to do so.
By Maura Dolan and Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times
November 11, 2011
Reporting from San Francisco and Los Angeles — The California Supreme Court appears inclined to permit the state to abolish municipal redevelopment agencies, but the justices did not clearly signal whether some of the entities could continue to operate as long as they shared tax revenues with schools and special districts.
Sandra Emerson, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Created: 10/28/2011 05:13:30 PM PDT
CLAREMONT – The issue facing redevelopment agencies across the state may boil down to one question – where should property taxes be allocated?
California Supreme Court urged to issue dismissal
Neil Nisperos, Staff Writer
Created: 10/22/2011 06:16:05 PM PDT
The California Supreme Court is reviewing a request to dismiss lawsuits challenging newly drawn political districts for Congress and the state Senate.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
October 12, 2011
The commission that drew new political districts for California this year has asked the California Supreme Court to toss out lawsuits challenging lines for Congress and the state Senate.
Canan Tasci, Staff Writer
Created: 10/03/2011 05:48:40 PM PDT
CHINO HILLS – The city’s fight against Southern California Edison’s construction of 200-foot high-voltage power lines isn’t over.
RICHARD K. DE ATLEY
STAFF WRITER
rdeatley@pe.com
Inland area cities and counties are working to close storefront medical marijuana dispensaries that have appeared all over the landscape in the past two years.
Josh Dulaney, Staff Writer
Posted: 09/30/2011 02:50:44 PM PDT
SAN BERNARDINO – A slew of redevelopment projects are on the shelf as officials await word from the state Supreme Court on whether a redevelopment-related law is constitutional.
By Jim Sanders
jsanders@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Sep. 30, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
A former Republican congressman and four others filed suit Thursday with the California Supreme Court, alleging that that state’s newly drawn congressional districts are illegal and unconstitutional.
Dan Walters
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Sep. 30, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
The Legislature’s budget analyst has waded into the political war between the state court system’s San Francisco-based leadership – including Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye – and hundreds of local trial court judges.
Several California Supreme Court justices appear skeptical that only elected officials could defend measures passed by voters. This could give opponents of same-sex marriage a chance to test the case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
California Supreme Court Justices, from left, Joyce Kennard, Tani Cantil-Sakauye, Marvin Baxter, Ming Chin and Goodwin Liu enter court during a hearing on a Proposition 8-related issue in San Francisco on Tuesday. (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press / September 6, 2011)
By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
September 7, 2011
Reporting from San Francisco— The California Supreme Court appeared ready Tuesday to rule that the backers of Proposition 8 and other ballot measures have the right to defend them in court, a stance that would give opponents of same-sex marriage the chance to champion the initiative all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
By JESSE McKINLEY
Published: August 23, 2011
SAN FRANCISCO — Lines at a courthouse are kind of like hurt feelings in a divorce: they are expected, they are unavoidable, but, hopefully, they are dealt with quickly.
Dan Walters
By Dan Walters
dwalters@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
When Gov. Jerry Brown and the Legislature took another bite out of the state court system to balance the state budget – on paper, anyway – they reignited a political war between rival factions of judges over financial priorities.
By Mike Cruz Staff Writer
Created: 08/12/2011 09:51:32 PM PDT
State Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye is convening meetings with key members of the state bar association to develop solutions for massive budget cuts in California’s courts.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
August 11, 2011
The California Supreme Court agreed Thursday to review the state’s redevelopment overhaul and delayed most provisions until it can decide the matter.
By Torey Van Oot
tvanoot@sacbee.com
Published: Thursday, Aug. 11, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
As California court employees across the state brace for the possibility of more layoffs and hour reductions, the paychecks of those who actually sit on the bench continue to enjoy a constitutional protection from cuts.
By Kevin Yamamura
kyamamura@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Jul. 29, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 4A
California Attorney General Kamala Harris told the state Supreme Court this week that it should allow the state’s elimination of redevelopment agencies to proceed.
By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
July 23, 2011
Reporting from San Francisco— California judicial leaders, responding to budget slashing by state lawmakers, voted Friday to approve cutbacks that will close some courthouses, reduce court hours, and delay civil trials, custody decisions and divorces in some counties.
Tani Cantil-Sakauye
10:00 PM PDT on Thursday, July 14, 2011
By RICHARD K. DE ATLEY
The Press-Enterprise
California’s chief justice told a gathering of Inland attorneys and judges that the state judiciary faces a critical 10 days as it deals with an additional $150 million in cuts to a budget previously sliced by $200 million.
By Greg Lucas | 07/14/11 12:00 AM PST
California’s $3.7 billion court system is another of this year’s budget victims, grappling with its highest single-year reduction since the state began paying trial court costs 14 years ago.
Overall, California’s judicial branch – the largest in the nation with nearly 1,700 judges – must reduce costs by $350 million in the fiscal year that began July 1.
And continue doing so each year thereafter.
Dan Walters
Published: Monday, Jul. 4, 2011 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
When Assemblyman Charles Calderon commented on the physical and mental attributes of Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye – positively – flags went up.
By John Howard | 06/30/11 12:00 AM PST
California’s redevelopment agencies are taking their fight for survival directly to the California Supreme Court, saying Gov. Brown and the Legislature ignored the voters’ will and violated the constitution by dismantling hundreds of local agencies.
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
June 14, 2011 | 5:30 pm
Highlights of the Democratic budget package that lawmakers plan to vote on Wednesday, according to Assembly budget staff:
TAXES AND FEES
$900 million –- Raise local sales tax rate by 0.25 percentage point
Tani Cantil-Sakauye
PolitiCal
On politics in the Golden State
June 14, 2011 | 10:38 pm
Tani Cantil-Sakauye The chief justice of the California Supreme Court, Tani Cantil-Sakauye, said the severity of budget cuts to the courts that Democrats plan to push through the Legislature on Wednesday would undermine Californians’ fundamental rights and deliver “a blow against justice.”
Wednesday, May 18, 2011 – 01:00 p.m.
InlandPolitics has learned on May 12, 2011, the California Supreme Court reassigned the criminal appeal of former Rancho Cucamonga City Councilman Rex Gutierrez.
Friday, April 22, 2011
By Ed Mendel
Orange County supervisors led by John Moorlach took on the legal issue of boosting pensions for years already served under a less generous plan. They lost when the state Supreme Court last week unanimously refused to hear their appeal.
Thursday, April 21, 201 – 07:40 a.m.
The Orange County Board of Supervisors led by foolish supervisor John Moorlach just had their hats handed to them by the California Supreme Court.
Finding similar to Colonies case
Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Created: 04/18/2011 09:27:08 PM PDT
A recent state appeals court ruling could bolster the San Bernardino County district attorney’s efforts to void a $102 million settlement with a Rancho Cucamonga developer, legal observers say.
Hansberger
Wednesday, April 6, 2011 – 03:15 p.m.
Opportunism!
It’s something that rears its ugly head all too often.
Especially in politics.
L.A. NOW
Southern California — this just in
March 23, 2011 | 1:06 pm
Gay marriage won’t be allowed to resume until state and federal appeals courts decide the fate of Proposition 8, the voter initiative that limited marriage to heterosexual couples, three federal judges ruled Wednesday.
March 8th, 2011, 8:02 am
Posted by Kimberly Edds, Staff Writer
The County of Orange took the next step in its fight to overturn the county’s generous “3 percent at 50″ pension plan for sheriff’s deputies, filing its petition with the California Supreme Court.
Harris argues that the hold must be removed because the appeal of last year’s ruling that overturned Proposition 8 is taking more time than expected.
By Maura Dolan, Los Angeles Times
March 2, 2011
California Atty. Gen. Kamala D. Harris urged a federal appeals court Tuesday to permit same-sex couples to marry during an appeal of last year’s ruling that overturned Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure that banned gay marriage.
Staff and Wire Reports
Created: 02/16/2011 06:40:45 PM PST
The California Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to decide whether backers of Proposition 8 have a legal right to defend the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage when the state’s top elected officials refuse to do so.
Capitol Alert
The latest on California politics and government
December 15, 2010
The California Supreme Court has denied a request to intervene in the legal challenge against the top-two primary system set to take effect Jan. 1, leaving the case at the appeals court level.
In June, Californians approved a measure to replace party primaries with a system in which candidates of all party affiliations run on one primary ballot, with the top two vote-getters advancing to a run-off election.
Critics say the California law that state Supreme Court justices upheld conflicts with a federal ban on undocumented immigrants getting college benefits based on residency. An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is expected.
By Maura Dolan and Larry Gordon, Los Angeles Times
November 15, 2010|7:43 p.m.
Illegal immigrants who graduated from state high schools can continue to receive lower, in-state tuition at California’s public universities and colleges, the California Supreme Court decided unanimously Monday.
10:33 PM PDT on Monday, October 25, 2010
By RICHARD K. DE ATLEY
The Press-Enterprise
The California Supreme Court on Monday turned down Riverside County District Attorney Rod Pacheco’s bid to use specialized courts such as family law, juvenile, and probate to hear criminal cases at risk of being dismissed because of speedy trial guarantees.
The 7-0 decision was written by Chief Justice Ronald George. He said that while the disputed statute cited by the district attorney does give criminal cases precedence over civil matters, it is not absolute.
By Jon Ortiz
jortiz@sacbee.com The Sacramento Bee
Published: Thursday, Oct. 7, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
They finished the narrative on Friday, cast the villain and set the story in motion. Then on Monday, the California Supreme Court blew it up.
With the state budget three months late and $19 billion upside down, lawmakers agreed last week to whack $896 million from employee compensation. Negotiators agreed on the figure by extrapolating savings from recent contract concessions made by six unions representing 37,000 state workers.
By David Siders
dsiders@sacbee.com
Published: Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010 – 12:17 am
The California Supreme Court handed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger a victory when it ruled Monday that state worker furloughs were legal and employees are not owed back pay.
But by unanimously pinning responsibility on the Legislature, the court rejected the governor’s bid to expand executive power, making it more difficult for future governors to order unpaid days off. The decision said Schwarzenegger had no authority to act on his own.
L.A. NOW
Southern California — this just in
September 8, 2010 | 11:27 am
Photo: Times file photo of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, shown July 28, 2010. Credit: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times The California Supreme Court appeared likely Wednesday to uphold Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s furlough of state employees to reduce spending during the state’s fiscal crisis.
10:00 PM PDT on Tuesday, September 7, 2010
By JIM MILLER
Sacramento Bureau
SAN FRANCISCO – A Riverside County prosecutor faced tough questioning Tuesday from members of the California Supreme Court over the Riverside County district attorney’s office’s contention that a judge wrongly refused to move a felony criminal case to a specialized civil court, resulting in the case’s dismissal.
Lower courts have rejected the Riverside County district attorney’s office’s argument that state law obligates judges to try to find a family law, probate or other specialized courtroom when a criminal defendant is on the verge of a right-to-a-speedy-trial deadline and no other courtroom is available.
By Jon Ortiz
jortiz@sacbee.com
Published: Wednesday, Sep. 8, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 11A
Union and government lawyers square off before California’s Supreme Court today to debate whether Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger illegally ordered unpaid days off for more than 200,000 state workers.
Legal experts say the court’s decision will likely affect the 40 or so lawsuits filed since the governor’s first furlough order in December 2008.
10:48 PM PDT on Sunday, September 5, 2010
By RICHARD K. DE ATLEY
The Press-Enterprise
A Riverside County case scheduled to be argued Tuesday before the California Supreme Court will affect how courts statewide handle criminal cases on the verge of dismissal because of constitutional speedy-trial deadlines.
People v. Engram emerged from three years of severe courtroom congestion in Riverside County Superior Courts that saw dismissal of about 350 cases — most of them misdemeanors — because they had reached those limits.
Tani Cantil-Sakauye
By Gina Kim
gkim@sacbee.com
Published: Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 3A
Last Modified: Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010 – 12:08 am
Tani Cantil-Sakauye took one step closer to donning the robe of chief justice of the California Supreme Court on Wednesday when the three-member Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed her appointment.
“You’ve got my vote,” said Joan Dempsey Klein, the senior presiding justice of the Courts of Appeal, after Cantil-Sakauye paid homage during the San Francisco hearing to the women and minorities who have warmed judicial benches before her.
By Tony Quinn
Political Commentator and Former Legislative Staffer
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Read Part 1: Here
Three strikes and you’re out should apply to the Jerry Brown Supreme Court, and in fact did. In 1986, an angry electorate defeated three of the Brown judges up for retention election, and fundamentally changed the Supreme Court. These three strikes are the legacy of Brown’s court.
Strike One: Destroying of the court’s reputation for excellence and impartiality.
Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Posted: 02/18/2010 03:31:52 PM PST
The California Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an appeal from former San Bernardino County assistant assessor Jim Erwin to hear his motion to recuse District Attorney Michael A. Ramos from his criminal case.
Erwin’s attorney, Alan Yockelson, said Thursday he had just returned from a trip to New Orleans and needed time to consult with Erwin before deciding on whether they’ll appeal all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
I’m sure that is what the reporter who called me a little while ago regarding Former Assessor Bill Postmus’ and Former Assistant Assessor Jim Erwin’s early morning arrests was thinking. Well, yes, as a matter of fact I do believe this is just another attempt by a desperate district attorney to be re-elected and a governor-wannabe-again feeling the pressure from Meg Whitman.
Ramos will do anything to deflect from his own misdeeds. And time will prove these charges are as trumped up as the last ones.
One thing comes to mind here and that is something Postmus keeps telling me. He claims this whole corruption scandal is the result of Mike Ramos wanting to get at Jeff Burum. He thought Erwin would roll on Jeff the first time. If anything, their friendship seems stronger. I expect today’s event to strengthen it even more.
Read the rest of this entry »
Southern California — this just in
January 25, 2010 | 1:46 pm
The California Supreme Court today threw out criminal charges filed by the San Diego County district attorney against five former members of the city retirement board stemming from the city’s pension controversy.
The court, however, allowed conflict-of-interest charges to remain against the firefighters union president because of his alleged role in tailoring a pension boost for himself in 2002.
JUSTICES RULE 2003 LAW WAS WRONG TO RESTRICT STASHES
By Peter Hecht
phecht@sacbee.com
Published: Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 – 12:00 am | Page 1A
Last Modified: Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 – 7:10 am
The California Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state cannot impose legal limits on the amount of pot that medical marijuana users can grow or possess.
In a ruling certain to exacerbate debate over the governance of medical marijuana in California, the court threw out legislation that limited medical pot users to 8 ounces of dried marijuana and six mature or 12 immature marijuana plants.
Today, in a surprise development the California Supreme Court has requested briefing related to a Petition for Review filed by former Assistant Assessor Jim Erwin.
On December 10, 2009, Erwin filed an appeal of Superior Court Judge Duke Rouse’s denial of an evidentiary hearing to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to disqualify the San Bernardino County District Attorney from prosecuting the case against him.
The appeal was summarily denied by the Fourth District Court of Appeals last Friday.
| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Jan | ||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
| 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | |||
| |