Another month, another marijuana sales record in Colorado; Toledo votes on ending marijuana possession penalties today; Missouri activists eye a medical marijuana initiative, and more.

They're going to the polls over pot in Toledo today. (Facebook.com/SensibleToledo)

Colorado Sets Another Marijuana Sales Record. More than $96 million worth of marijuana was sold in the state's legal marijuana and medical marijuana shops in July, up from the previous record of $85 million in June. Recreational sales were a record $56.4 million, while medical sales were more than $39.8 million. Both figures are records for the legal marijuana era.

Toledo Votes Today on Ending Marijuana Possession Penalties. Voters there will have the chance to approve Issue 1, the "Sensible Marijuana Ordinance" supported by Sensible Toledo. The ordinance would eliminate jail time and fines for possession of up to 200 grams of marijuana. Current municipal ordinances make possession of up to 100 grams a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and possession of up to 200 grams a misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days in jail. Under Ohio state law, possession of up to 100 grams is decriminalized.

Medical Marijuana

Missouri Activists Aim at 2016 Medical Marijuana Initiative Instead of Legalization. The activist group Show Me Cannabis has announced it will try to put a medical marijuana initiative -- not a legalization initiative -- on the November 2016 ballot. They will need to come up with 160,000 valid voter signatures by next May to do it.

Las Vegas Dispensary Forced to Close Over Shortages After Test Samples Come Up Dirty. The only dispensary in the city, Euphoria Wellness, was forced to close its doors for almost a week after it ran short on marijuana because too many batches failed state-required contamination tests. The state basically allows no pesticides to be present, and about one-third of samples have failed, mostly over the presence of pesticides, but some for microbial contamination. The dispensary planned to reopen today.

Law Enforcement

Wisconsin GOP Lawmakers File Search Warrant, SWAT Bills. A pair of Republican state lawmakers, Rep. Dean Knudson and Sen. Duey Stroebel, announced today that they have introduced bills that would require police to develop policies for executing no-knock search warrants and require every police department with a SWAT team to report on each call-out and reason for deployment. The bills aren't yet up on the legislative website.

International

Bolivian President Rejects US Criticism, Calls US Drug Policy "Failed." President Evo Morales rejected the US claim that it had failed to live up to its drug control obligations, saying that the major failure of drug control was the US's war on drugs policy. "I think this [the US designation of Bolivia as not in compliance with anti-drug goals] is a political action by the US State Department. But if we are sincere, the policy of the US is a failure in the fight to control the drug traffic," Morales said. "I could talk of many countries of the world where there is this problem and how it has grown with the presence of the United States. This makes us think that, in truth, they use the struggle against the drug trade for political ends."

The recent drug war killing of South Carolina teenager Zachary Hammond is drawing national attention, but he wasn't the only one to be killed by police enforcing drug laws in the month of July. At least three others have been killed as well.

Hammond's case appears especially outrageous -- it was a small-time pot bust, he wasn't even the target, and there is evidence he was shot from behind -- but the three other cases ought to also be cause for concern.

In two of them -- both young black men -- the victims were unarmed, but both cases also included automobiles as threats. In one, the dead man hit and injured an officer before fleeing on foot and then being shot while "reaching for his waistband" (no gun was found); in the other, the dead man attempted to flee in a deputy's police cruiser.

The third case -- a middle-aged white man -- appears more easily justifiable. The man allegedly fired at police coming to arrest him. But that begs the question of why police are arresting drug users and small-time sellers in the first place.

In any case, the combination of aggressive drug law enforcement, widespread access to guns, racially-tinged policing, and -- apparently -- cars, ensures that readers come back and read another story just like this one next month. At least now, in this period of intense scrutiny on police use of force, some of them will get the attention they deserve.

July's drug war dead:

Kevin Lamont Judson

On July 1, in McMinnville, Oregon, a Yamhill County sheriff's deputy shot and killed Judson, 24, after he fled a traffic stop, ran across the highway, and jumped into the deputy's car. He was unarmed.

According to KOIN TV, citing police accounts, a deputy stopped a motorist at 7:30 a.m., and during the stop, Judson bolted from the vehicle, dropped a meth pipe, and took off running. Deputy Richard Broyles chased him in his patrol vehicle, and the two were "involved in a struggle." Broyles shot Judson twice, killing him.

"At the time he was shot, (Judson) was alone in the driver's patrol vehicle," McMinnville police said in a release.

The Yamhill Valley News-Register quoted Yamhill County District Brad Berry as saying he didn't know if Judson was armed or trying to arm himself.

"I don't have that information," he said. "I'm not in a position at this time to state factually the sequence of events, and I won't be until the investigation is completed."

Surveillance video from a local business showed Deputy Broyles and Judson struggling at the vehicle's driver side door, but the video is truncated -- showing only the roof of the vehicle and the tops of their heads. Broyles appears to shoot Judson through the open door, and the vehicle then takes off in reverse, arcing backwards until it crashes into an antenna and stops.

Two weeks later, the Yamhill County District Attorney announced that the killing was justified.

Judson may have fled because not only was he in a vehicle with meth, he was already wanted for failure to appear on probation violation charge related to a 2011 meth possession conviction.

Clay Alan Lickteig

On July1, in Franklin, North Carolina, police officers serving a felony drug probation violation warrant shot and killed Lickteig, 52, after a confrontation at his home.

According to the Asheville Citizen-Times, citing police sources, Lickteig was standing in his driveway when officers arrived, threatened them, and refused to show his hands. They then tased him, and he pulled a pistol from behind his back and fired at them. The officers then returned fire, killing Lickteig.

One officer suffered a slight injury and was treated and released at a local hospital.

Two weeks later, the State Bureau of Investigation and the Macon County District Attorney's Office announced that the killing was justified.

Victo Larosa

On July 2, in Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville Sheriff's Office undercover officers doing a day-long operation targeting street drug sales shot and killed Larosa, 33, after he struck one officer with a vehicle while attempting to flee. But he wasn't killed while driving the vehicle.

According to Action News Jacksonville, citing police sources, once cops made a drug buy from Larosa, he began driving off before their "apprehension team" could arrive to bust him. Sgt. D.R. White, a member of the team, signaled for Larosa to stop, but Larosa instead struck White. It's not clear if White was in uniform or undercover.

Larosa then drove off, striking multiple vehicles before his car was pinned by a police cruiser. He then took off running, but tripped and fell with an officer in close pursuit. He was then shot multiple times and killed.

According to the Florida Times-Union, again citing police accounts, the police shooter was narcotics detective Mike Boree, who said Larosa tripped jumping over a fence, landed on his hands in a push-up position, then turned toward Boree and "reached for his waistband."

No weapon was found.

Police could have thought they were dealing with a cop-killer. Sgt. White, who had been struck by Larosa as he made his escape, hit his head on the pavement and lost his weapon on impact.

"Officers on the scene, detectives at the scene thought he was dead right there," sheriff's office director of investigations and homeland security Mike Bruno said.

But White was treated and released from a local hospital the same day.

Zachary Hammond

On July 26, in Columbia, South Carolina, Hammond , 19, was shot and killed by an undercover Columbia police officer after driving a woman friend to fast food restaurant parking lot so she could sell a small amount of marijuana.

According to the Columbia Daily Journal, citing police accounts, the undercover officer pulled up beside Hammond's car, and a uniformed officer was approaching to help with arrests when Hammond drove toward the officer, forcing him to open fire.

But that account has been challenged by Eric Bland, an attorney representing Hammond's family. Bland said that the autopsy report showed that Hammond had been shot from behind and that the vehicle was not moving. The autopsy showed a first shot entering the teen's left rear shoulder and a second in his side five inches away that went through his heart and lungs before exiting his lower right side.

"It is clearly, clearly from the back," Bland said after viewing pictures of the bullet wounds at the coroner's office. "It is physically impossible for him to be trying to flee or run over the officer that shot him. This is a 19-year-old kid without a weapon in his car, clearly in the Hardee's parking lot on a date, and within five minutes he has two shots that appear to be in his back and his side, from an officer shooting him from the back -- and he's dead and this family needs answers."

Bland is calling on the state attorney general to convene a statewide grand jury investigation of the shooting.

There's medical marijuana news from the far Pacific, with Hawaii okaying dispensaries and Guam releasing draft medical marijuana regulations, plus more.

Last Wednesday, state officials rejected medical marijuana for PTSD. Health officials voted against adding PTSD to the list of qualifying ailments for medical marijuana. They cited scant research on the issue. "We can't have physicians counseling people in favor of it because we don't have data to show it's correct," said Jill Hunsaker-Ryan, one of the board members who voted no.

Hawaii

Last Tuesday, Hawaii began moving toward licensing dispensaries. After Gov. David Ige (D) signed a bill allowing for eight dispensaries to operate in the state, state officials are moving forward with developing rules and regulations for the program. They say to they will begin accepting license applications early next year. The move comes 15 years after Hawaii became the first state to okay medical marijuana through the legislative process.

Guam

Last Thursday, the US protectorate released medical marijuana draft regulations. The Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services has released draft rules for the island territory's medical marijuana program. Guamanians voted to allow medical marijuana in last November's elections. The rules must be approved by the legislature. Click on the link to read the draft rules.

Michigan

Last week, Michigan cops raided medical marijuana dispensaries. Police departments in the greater Detroit area have shut down several dispensaries in the past week, in some cases bringing felony charges against the operators. Raids, arrests, and seizures took place in Shelby Township and Detroit last week. While the city has an estimated 180 dispensaries, they are illegal under the state's medical marijuana law.

On Tuesday, a state panel deferred a decision on medical marijuana for autism. The Michigan Medical Marijuana Review Panel postponed action on recommending whether or not autism should be a qualifying condition for medical marijuana. The panel said it wanted more time to review the evidence.

[For extensive information about the medical marijuana debate, presented in a neutral format, visit MedicalMarijuana.ProCon.org.]

Midwest marijuana legalization initiatives make news, Sen. Feinstein feels some heat, some European countries keep giving Iran anti-drug aid despite a rising number of executions, California's governor signs a bill barring discrimination against medical marijuana patients in organ transplants, and more.

Sen. Feinstein is being urged to support medical marijuana. (senate.gov)

Michigan Greens Endorse MILegalize Initiative. The Green Party of Michigan has endorsed the more grassroots of two competing Michigan legalization initiatives, the MILegalize initiative sponsored by the Comprehensive Cannabis Law Reform Committee. The Greens say they like the "craft beer" model in the initiative, as opposed to the "industrial" model adopted by the other active Michigan initiative this year.

ResponsibleOhio "Fresh Start Act" Initiative Certified by Attorney General. ResponsibleOhio, the same people bringing you the controversial "monopoly" marijuana legalization initiative, are also moving forward with an initiative that would expunge the criminal records of people with past marijuana convictions. Their Fresh Start Act initiative has been certified by Attorney General Mike DeWine. It must now be approved by the Ohio Ballot Board for review before signature gathering can begin. It is aiming at the 2016 election.

UFCW Endorses ResponsibleOhio Initiative. The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) said Monday it is supporting the ResponsibleOhio legalization initiative. The UFCW has been organizing industry workers in medical marijuana and legal marijuana states for some years now.

Medical Marijuana

Senator Feinstein Gets Petition Demanding She Get on Board With Marijuana Reform. Marijuana reform advocates led by the Drug Policy Alliance today delivered a petition with 10,000 signatures from people "fed up with Feinstein's well-documented opposition to medical marijuana" to her San Francisco office. They want her to chance her stance. "California has allowed access to medical marijuana for 20 years and the vast majority of Californians support this," said DPA's Amanda Reiman. "It is disappointing that Sen. Feinstein continues to be a lone voice of opposition from California when it comes to supporting medical marijuana patients."

California Governor Signs Medical Marijuana Organ Transplant Bill. Gov. Jerry Brown (D) has signed Assembly Bill 258, which will bar doctors and hospitals from denying organ transplants to medical marijuana patients solely because they use it. Some patients have been denied life-saving organ transplants in the past. The new law goes into effect January 1.

Drug Testing

Connecticut Court Says Urine Drug Testing Rules Don't Apply to Hair Testing. In upholding the dismissal of a man who was fired after a hair follicle drug test came back positive, a state Superior Court judge ruled that regulations that restrict urine drug testing do not apply to hair drug tests, which can detect drug use for months into the past. The court conceded that the disparate protections offered against urine and hair drug testing create a "seemingly irrational inconsistency," but that "the task of changing the law lies with the legislature and not with the judiciary."

Harm Reduction

Maryland Congressman Calls for Price Cuts on Opiate Overdose Reversal Drug. US Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) is accusing the maker of the opiate overdose reversal drug naloxone of "taking advantage of the citizens of Maryland" by overcharging for the drug. On Tuesday, Cummings wrote a letter to Gov. Larry Hogan (R) urging him to reach a deal with the company to reduce the cost of the drug. "I believe the State of Maryland is being overcharged for a critical drug called naloxone that is used by first responders and medical personnel to reverse the life-threatening effects of heroin and other opioid overdoses, and I urge you to make sure that the company charging these prices is not allowed to continue taking advantage of the citizens of Maryland," Cummings wrote. Other states have managed to get discounts from Amphastar Pharmaceuticals after getting aggressive with the company.

Law Enforcement

Massachusetts SWAT Teams Increasingly Used for Minor Drug Raids. Documents made public today by the ACLU of Massachusetts show that SWAT teams in the state are increasingly used to undertake small-time drug raids. The ACLU filed suit against the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council to force it to reveal the records. The records show that of 79 SWAT deployments between 2012 and 2014, 21 were for drug-related search warrants, but that only five resulted in any mention of drug seizures. "The drug hauls are not exactly Pablo Escobar-levels of seriousness," said ACLU's Kate Crockford, referring to the notorious Colombian drug lord. "In one case they found some pills. In another case they found some marijuana. It's important for local communities who pay those police department salaries to understand what's really going on here," she said.

International

Canadian Electronic Music Festival Organizers Will Offer Free Pill Testing. The Evolve Festival in Nova Scotia is set for this coming weekend, and beginning Friday, people arriving at the festival can submit small samples of their stashes to have them tested. Festival organizers say the move is an effort to reduce harm and overdoses.

European Countries Continue to Fund Iran's Drug War Despite Rampant Resort to Death Penalty. Iran Human Rights reports that nearly 400 people have been executed for drug offenses in Iran this year, accounting for nearly two thirds of all executions. That's not stopping the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and some European countries from continuing to fund Iran's anti-drug efforts. France has provided over a million dollars' worth of aid to the Anti-Narcotics Police, while Germany has contributed more than five million to UNODC projects to train and equip the police. Faced with pressure from campaigners such as the British nonprofit Reprieve, other European countries, including Denmark and Great Britain, have stopped such aid. "Even as Iran's execution rate skyrockets, European nations like France and Germany continue to fund brutal raids by the Iranian police which routinely send people to death row for nonviolent offenses. 7 out of 10 people hanged in Iran this year have been caught in these type of operations, but European funders and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime continue to turn a blind eye, and are even considering a new funding deal," said Maya Foa, Director of Reprieve's death penalty team. "It is an untenable hypocrisy for European countries and the UNODC to claim they oppose the death penalty in all circumstances while enabling and encouraging it overseas. If their commitments on the death penalty are to count for anything, they should impose effective and transparent conditions to ensure their aid does not lead to executions."