Judge Rules NYC Pot Shop Crackdown Unconstitutional, Trump Vows to Seize Cartel Assets, More... (10/30/24)

Arizona marijuana consumers will be able to get deliveries from pot shops beginning Friday, and more.

Presidential candidate Donald Trump is vowing to crack down on cartels -- as if law enforcement hasn't been trying that for years. (Gage Skidmore/Creative Commons)

Marijuana Policy

Arizona to Allow Pot Deliveries Beginning Friday. A new Department of Health Services policy allowing marijuana retailers to do home deliveries goes into effect Friday. Under the old policy, only medical marijuana dispensaries could offer delivery services.

The state's marijuana industry is pleased.

"We are thrilled that the Department of Health's proactive approach and commitment to implementing a well-thought-out delivery program has helped us reach this landmark moment sooner than expected," said Ann Torrez, executive director of the Arizona Dispensary Association. "This is a significant step forward for Arizona's marijuana market and consumer accessibility."

The association also noted that the rollout of deliveries came ahead of schedule. The original timeline for allowing deliveries was January 1, 2025.

The move comes as the state's legal pot market shows signs of slowing. Sales in August totaled just under $84 million, the lowest figure in the calendar year so far.

New York City Pot Shop Crackdown Unconstitutional, Judge Rules. A state Supreme Court judge in Queens has ruled that an unlicensed pot shot that was shuttered under Mayor Eric Adams' (D) Operation Padlock to Protect was denied due process and that the program giving the sheriff the power to decide whether to keep it closed for up to a year is unconstitutional.

A plaintiff's attorney said the decision means that all the shops that have been shut down will be able to reopen immediately. They could also sue for damages associated with the closure, the attorney said.

The mayor's office said the city will appeal the ruling. "Illegal smoke shops and their products endanger young New Yorkers and quality of life," the office added.

The city says it will continue to padlock illicit storefronts.

The city saw a proliferation of unlicensed marijuana retailers emerge after legalization became law but before the legal market was up and running. Operation Padlock began in May in a bid to shut them down. More than 1,200 were padlocked, but now they could come roaring back.

Drug Policy

Trump Vows to Seize Money from Cartels, Give It to Victims. As his campaign to retake the White House enters its final week, former President Donald Trump (R) is vowing to seize money and assets from drug cartels and criminal migrant gangs and give it to the victims of crimes committed by people in the US illegally.

"We're going to get them out fast. We're going to get them out," Trump said. "I'm announcing that for the first time under my administration, we are seizing the assets of the criminal gangs and drug cartels and we will use those assets to create a compensation fund to provide restitution for the victims of migrant crime, and the government will help in the restoration."

In fact, US law enforcement has long targeted Mexican drug trafficking organizations -- the cartels -- seizing $53 million from them in the past year. And the Treasury Forfeiture Fund in the Treasury Executive Office for Asset Forfeitures, currently contains over $800 million. Not all of that money was seized from cartels; some of it comes from fraud schemes. That fund has been in place since 1992.

Money in that fund does not go to "victims of migrant crime." Instead, it goes to pay state and local law enforcement agencies that helped seize the funds, cover the fund's operating costs, and compensate victims of fraud.

(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org's 501(c)(4) lobbying nonprofit, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this website. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)