Mitchell Trellis is putting everything on the line for a chance at what could be one of the most lucrative new business opportunities in Maryland: medical marijuana.

Trellis’ company, Maryland Wellness Access LLC, is among those gearing up to compete for one of 15 licenses Maryland will issue to cultivate cannabis and sell it to dispensaries. Trellis thinks the company’s best shot for a strong application — and being able to open for business — is to have the company ready to fire out of the gate, should Maryland give the signal.

“This is a heavy lift,” Trellis said. “This is kind of a difficult situation for an entrepreneur. You have to invest upfront without the promise of winning, then have the resources set up if you do win.”

During the 1980s and 1990s, as the United States battled the scourge of cocaine throughout the hemisphere, Washington did most of the talking. Latin American governments were forced to listen and fall in line. The American government had the most money to throw at the problem, the toughest justice system and the biggest bully pulpit.

Dr. Mechoulam is the Israeli scientist who identified THC as the psychoactive compound in marijuana, and decades later he discovered the brain's endocannabinoid system and the endogenous neurotransmitter anandamide. He is one of the most respected Israeli neuroscientists and has been a senior advisor to the Israeli government on marijuana policy and the ethics of research with human subjects. He discussed his experiments demonstrating the neuroprotective effects of the endocannabinoid system in mice that have had traumatic injuries to the brain. He believes the neuroprotective effects of marijuana may eventually have applications for other neurological and psychiatric conditions, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

CASPER, Wyo. — After more than a year of writing and rewriting, organizers behind a medical marijuana ballot measure believe they’re close to finalizing the proposal.

The initative needs only a few minor changes before the Wyoming Secretary of State staff gives it preliminary approval, said Chris Christian, of the Wyoming chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Approval would allow supporters across across the state to begin gathering more than 25,000 signatures required before Feb. 8, the deadline for it to appear on the November 2016 ballot.

The Wyoming Secretary of State’s staff could not say whether NORML will obtain the preliminary approval, since it has yet to review the latest version.

SEATTLE (AP) - With Washington state overhauling its medical marijuana law, Seattle Mayor Ed Murray says the city is planning to shutter dozens of dispensaries.

Murray on Tuesday announced plans to require a new special business license for marijuana establishments, akin to those required for taxi operators and pawn shops. Under the mayor's plan, the businesses will be required to obtain the licenses by July 2016.

But just as the state's new medical marijuana law gives priority in licensing to dispensaries that were in operation before Jan. 1, 2013, so does Murray's proposal. Seattle officials say that by their tally, 54 of the city's 99 medical marijuana storefronts opened after that date or have been operating without a city business license.

ALBANY, N.Y. — The 10-year-old girl stood smiling at the governor's side as he signed a medical marijuana bill into law last July.

Amanda Houser was so excited for the event, her mother said, her health problems — a rare form of epilepsy — were nearly forgotten for the day. And the photo from the New York City event of Amanda bashfully holding her cheeks next to Gov. Andrew Cuomo is one of the more memorable images from his time in office.

But the good feelings from the event have gradually subsided, and ill patients are increasingly frustrated that, nearly a year later, they still can't access medical marijuana in New York.

Drug laws don’t affect everyone equally.

It’s good to be white.

For example, as a white guy, I’m statistically more likely to be selling drugs than an African-American man. (I’ve always been too scared of going to jail to actually sell pot, but I’m using this to make my point.) If I were black, however, it would be three times more likely that I’d be arrested for dealing. It gets even better for whitey. Though five times as many of us use drugs, African-Americans are sent to prison 10 times as often for the same crimes. And once ya get to jail? On average, African-Americans serve as much time in prisons for drug offenses (58 months) as white folks do for violent ones (62 months).

Federal lawmakers are looking to expedite the approval process for marijuana research. Earlier last week, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved a measure that would force the Drug Enforcement Administration to develop accelerated procedures for researchers seeking permission to study cannabis.

The DEA’s meticulous demands have been sandbagging cannabis researchers for decades, but the approval of this legislation would put an end to this by forcing the agency to "review all relevant DEA rules governing research on the medical efficacy of marijuana and determine ways to facilitate further research through streamlining the DEA approval process.”

Marijuana and its legal status is a hot-button issue these days, with Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, the state of Washington and Washington D.C. recently legalizing non-medical use of marijuana. Medical marijuana, used for real medical afflictions like epilepsy, inflammatory diseases and neurodegenerative diseases, should be legal nationwide. You might think medical marijuana is just an excuse to sell legal weed and, for the most part, I agree. However, there exists true medical marijuana: cannabis oil from strains high in Cannabidiol (CBD), used to treat patients with epilepsy.

Retail sales of recreational marijuana continue to grow in Washington state, trending up about $3 million over April to May 20th, according to the latest report of activities from state regulators.

An earlier report here suggested there was a 30 percent reduction from April to May, but that turned out to be a misinterpretation of data issued by Washington State Liquor Control Board.

Customers purchased more than $35 million in 502 products in April, but receipts are just $22,582,100 in the May 20th report. 

When questioned about the drop, WSLCB spokesman Mikhail Carpenter said comparison of this newest data to prior months is not valid, because those are for the full month, while May’s numbers are only through the third week.