From NORMAL
On Monday, members of the California Assembly approved Senate Bill 1449, which reduces adult marijuana possession offenses in California from a criminal misdemeanor to an infraction, by a vote of 43 to 33.The vote split largely along party lines, with Democrats voting 40 to 8 in favor of more lenient penalties and Republicans voting 2 to 23 against. Senate lawmakers had previously approved the measure in June by a vote of 21 to 13. The marijuana infraction bill now goes to the Governor’s desk for his approval.
Senate Bill 1449 amends the California Health and Safety Code so that the adult possession of up to 28.5 grams of marijuana is classified as a noncriminal infraction, punishable by no more than a $100 fine — no court appearance, no court costs, and no criminal record.
Passage of bill would save the state millions of dollars in court costs by keeping minor pot offenders out of court. The number of misdemeanor pot arrests has surged in recent years, reaching 61,388 in 2008, the highest level since the state partially decriminalized pot possession in 1976.
Adults who consume marijuana responsibly are not part of the crime problem, and the state should stop treating them like criminals
Governor Schwarzenegger, a Republican, has vetoed several different marijuana law reform bills in the past. Therefore, if you live in California, it is vital that you please e-mail or call Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and urge him to sign SB 1449 into law. For your convenience, a pre-written letter will be e-mailed to the Governor when you visit NORML’s ‘Take Action’ Center here.
Authorities in the western U.S. state of California are investigating a crash at a popular off-road race that killed eight people. A dozen more were injured, some seriously.
The accident occurred Saturday (evening – 0240 GMT Sunday) just as the race, called the California 200, was starting. The driver of a truck participating in the race lost control. The vehicle plowed into a crowd of spectators who had gathered at a dry lake bed in southern California for the annual event.
The 200-mile race involving a variety of off-road vehicles was being held near the city of Lucerne Valley in the Mojave desert, 165 kilometers northeast of Los Angeles. It had been scheduled to last through the night before the accident brought it to an abrupt end.
We haven’t had a chance to interview Jimmy @ Skate Thru Life yet so I just grabbed the mission statement off the Skate Thru Life site:
The Mission of Skate Thru Life is not only to further the positive image of the sport of skateboarding, but to do so by helping to build free community skate parks. Skateboarding is an activity that runs into problems at times with local business owners and police, etc. I love banzing down a huge hill just like the next guy, or skating a cool parking lot, but not everybody else loves it when skateboarders are present. Given the reality of this situation, the solution is to build more free skate parks. Almost every athlete has a place to engage in their respective sports provided to them by their cities. More and more municipalities these days are recognizing the need for free community skate parks, and more and more of them are popping up all over the place. We as community members, however, have to make things happen. If we don’t do anything, almost no city is just going to up and build a free skate park.
Check out the Tony Hawk Foundation for more information about becoming active in your community in terms of getting a free skate park built.
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Although Sunday at San Diego’s COMIC-CON International can be a little light on the freaks and geeks which populate the earlier days of the convention, Swasted’s lone CON correspondent is bringing you the best of what’s left in the following series of shots which also serve as an unspoken criticism of the iPhone’s indoor photo capabilities. Enjoy!
Last week California’s senior senator, Democrat Dianne Feinstein cosigned the ballot argument against Prop. 19, The Regulate, Control & Tax Cannabis Initiative of 2010, which would allow adults 21 years or older to privately possess and cultivate marijuana for personal use.
Senator Feinstein’s public opposition is hardly surprising. After all, if there is one thing about marijuana we are certain of it’s that the public is well ahead of the politicians when it comes to the issue of enacting common sense cannabis law reforms. But that doesn’t mean that Feinstein’s fear-mongering — and yes, that is exactly what it is; at one point the senator claims that the passage of Prop. 19 will ‘require’ employees to sell marijuana laced cosmetics (huh?) and candy bars in the office — doesn’t warrant a public smack down. This is the same bitch that voted for the patriot act and internet censorship, should we really be surprised?
For the full scoop on Feinstein’s misguided opposition, visit, L.A. Times
Local, News, North County, San Diego
California, cannabis, Feinstein, Green Team, L.A. Times, marijuana, NORMAL, Pot, Prop. 19, weed
I love baseball and it would be nice to have a Triple-A stadium down the street but I’m not sure this is a good idea. No cash from the Padres? Is this really the way most minor league stadium deals are structured?
From NCTimes.com
Landing the top minor league team of the San Diego Padres would require Escondido to pay the entire $45 million cost to build a 9,000-seat ballpark and to give the team all revenue from concessions and naming rights, city officials said Monday.
Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler said the city’s motive for spending so much money without any immediate revenue in return would be spurring development of a large district of shops, restaurants and condominiums near the ballpark, which would be built on mostly vacant city land between Washington Avenue and the Sprinter rail line.
“A ballpark would be a cool anchor that changes the way people feel about that area,” said Pfeiler, predicting the ballpark would attract many millions of dollars in private development to the industrial zone south of Highway 78 and east of Interstate 15. “This is the quickest way to get what we want to happen there.”
When asked about the proposal, City Councilman Sam Abed said he was concerned that the city would be committing nearly all of its redevelopment revenue for the next 25 years without any guaranteed return on that investment.
“The deal right now is frontloaded to the Padres and backloaded to the city,” Abed said, noting that the only immediate revenue would be “insignificant” lease payments from the team. “We only benefit if and when all this ancillary development happens.”
The North County Times is reporting Escondido is pulling ahead of San Marcos as the front-runner to become the next home for the Padres Triple-A baseball team. City officials have been meeting with the Padres to discuss potential plans a new minor league ballpark surrounded by a large shopping and dining district. Escondido officials say their location offers the greater potential for accompanying development and is located south of Highway 78 and just east of Interstate 15.
NCTimes.com
“They like the location and they like the potential for ancillary development,” said attorney Dave Ferguson, who last fall spearheaded an effort to bring a new San Diego Chargers stadium to the same area. Ferguson said the San Marcos ballpark site provided less opportunity for extra revenue.
Padres officials declined to comment Thursday, but Padres chief executive Jeff Moorad told the North County Times last week that the team was leaning away from San Marcos because another city had a better plan.
I’m going to submit my request for Swasted.com press credentials right now…
Landlords of several prominent retail locations throughout Escondido have been offering discounted lease agreements to retailers in hopes of filling their vacancies. So far, it appears its have been working.
Ross and Dick’s Sporting Goods will split the vacant 76,000 square-foot building on 9th Avenue that was formerly Mervyn’s but has sat empty since December 2008. Souplantation will open a new location nearby at an open spot near Applebee’s.
The building on Valley Parkway that was formerly Good Guys will become a Furniture Warehouse store. Another retailer has been secured for a vacancy across the street, formerly Circuit City, but no formal announcement has been made.
An Escondido In-N-Out Burger is currently being built on Valley Parkway just west of the 15 and Ruth’s Chris is adding a location in the new Lexus dealership, also on 9th Avenue.
More at NCTimes.com
E3 2010 is over but the next big event is just over a month away. It’s the San Diego Comic-Con on July 22-25 and the massive convention is already sold out of its tickets. 125,000 people are expected to attend this year’s event and game publishers and related companies are all set to attend.
Game publishers have been making a bigger push to attend Comic-Con in recent years and this year’s exhibitor list shows that’s continuing with companies like EA, Ubisoft, THQ, Capcom, NCsoft and many other listed as attending the how. There should also be a number of game related panels and events at Comic-Con and we will report on them when they are announced.
ESCONDIDO — A man who admitted to driving under the influence of marijuana caused at least 13 crashes Thursday afternoon, police said. The spree finally stopped when he hit the last vehicle head-on, disabling the 1998 Nissan Pathfinder he was driving.
The 24-year-old from Temecula began hitting vehicles at about 2:40 p.m. while driving the sport utility vehicle north on Bear Valley Parkway near Royal Crest Drive, said Escondido police Sergeant Don Shumate. At least seven crashes were reported to police in that area, and the man did not stop for any of them, Shumate said… The Full Rip
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