Monday, September 21, 2020
A jury previously found Brian Folks, 45, guilty of 13 felonies related to sex and drug rings that federal prosecutors said he operated in the Burlington area between 2012 and 2016.
Tags: Brian Folks , Sex Trafficking , Drug Trafficking , Human Trafficking , Christina Nolan , William K Sessions III , U.S. District Court , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, September 16, 2020
House and Senate members of the S.54 conference committee signed off on their compromise proposal late Tuesday after settling two outstanding issues related to local funding and advertising, according to Rep. John Gannon (D-Wilmington).
They agreed to provide towns a share of the state's cannabis licensing fees instead of the tax revenue model preferred by the Senate. In exchange, the House dropped a controversial — and constitutionally dubious — all-out ban on weed advertising. Terms of the deal were first reported in the Bennington Banner.
Tags: Cannabeat , cannabis , retail , Dick Sears , John Gannon , S.54 , Web Only , Image
Friday, September 11, 2020
The two cannabis-related measures were included in a miscellaneous judiciary bill that passed the chamber by an overwhelming margin. Final action is expected next week before it then heads to the Senate, where lawmakers passed a similar decriminalization bill in May and have expressed support for the expungement concept.
"We have approximately 10,000 Vermonters who continue to struggle to live, work, find a house, raise their families and be productive members of society with that cloud of a past nonviolent low-level marijuana conviction hanging over their heads," Rep. Tom Burditt (R-Rutland) said prior to Friday's virtual House vote, which was 113 to 10.
The bill is "also a critical component of the movement towards racial justice in cannabis policy," he added, referencing how marijuana charges have disproportionately impacted people of color throughout the United States for decades.
Tags: cannabis , expungement , marijuana , Web Only , Image
Friday, September 4, 2020
Two main points of contention remain between the two chambers. The House wants towns to get a share of the state's cannabis licensing fees, while the Senate wants municipalities that host cannabis businesses to receive a share of tax revenue — an amount equal to a 2 percent tax. Questions also remain over what land-use exemptions should apply to cannabis cultivators.
"It appears that we are probably extremely close on everything" except those issues, Sen. Dick Sears (D-Bennington) said on Friday during a meeting between the House and Senate negotiating teams.
While bills have died over less, the conference committee's significant progress Friday suggests that the bill has a good chance of moving during this month's brief budget session.
Tags: retail marijuana , conference committee , pot , cannabis , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
“We’re here today to discuss differences between the bodies,” Rep. John Gannon (D-Wilmington) said. “But I think it’s important to appreciate how fundamentally close we are in many ways with respect to the bill.”
Sen. Dick Sears (D-Bennington) said that many of the differences amounted to little more than “word-smithing” that could be ironed out easily enough.
But it quickly became clear the House and Senate remain deeply divided on a number of core issues that could prove significant hurdles to forging a compromise during the brief upcoming legislative budget session.
Tags: cannabis , pot , marijuana , legalization , Vermont , Web Only , Image
Thursday, February 27, 2020
Rep. Anne Donahue (R-Northfield), who proposed the amendment, told her colleagues on the House floor that allowing cannabis advertisements goes against what she believes is the bill's main intent.
"The purpose of the bill is safety for current users," Donahue said. "If there are more people who start using because they see ads, that means there are more people potentially on the highway driving impaired; there are more children exposed — the negative things that we don't want to see happening."
Tags: Cannabeat , cannabis , S.54 , pot bill , advertising , First Amendment , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
But while the move means the bill will face another committee vote on its long-awaited path to the floor, a key lawmaker says the return-to-sender is actually a positive development.
“It means that we have completed the 360-degree view from every single policy committee who has jurisdiction over a section of this bill, and we have now found a way to incorporate their recommendations,” said Rep. Sarah Copeland Hanzas (D-Bradford), who chairs Gov Ops and has been an avid supporter of S.54. “It strengthens the bill's path forward.”
Tags: Cannabeat , cannabis , Phil Scott , universal after school , S.54 , weed , pot , marijuana , legalization , retail market , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
Burlington joins St. Albans, Bennington and more than 2,500 cities, counties and Native American tribes in the “multi-district lawsuit” that will be heard in U.S. District Court in Ohio. By taking no formal action Monday night, the Burlington City Council automatically enrolled the city in the suit against 13 defendants, including Purdue Pharma, Cardinal Health, McKesson Corporation, Cephalon, CVS, Rite Aid and others.
“This is unlike any previous mass tort litigation," Burlington City Attorney Eileen Blackwood wrote in a memo to the council. "Individual cities, town[s], and counties across the country are pursuing claims against the same major defendants to recover money to help fight the epidemic and fund prevention and treatment programs."
Tags: Burlington City Council , opioids , lawsuit , Web Only , Image
Thursday, September 12, 2019
The Connecticut-based company reportedly reached a tentative agreement on Wednesday with half of the states and local governments that have filed suit against the OxyContin maker and its owners, the Sacklers. That deal “would have Purdue file for a structured bankruptcy and pay as much as $12 billion over time, with about $3 billion coming from the Sackler family,” the Associated Press reported.
But on Thursday morning, Donovan said in a statement that the state rejected the offer because the amount of money to be paid is not yet settled, and the deal “is not fully developed and we want to be certain that any benefit is not illusory.”
“Vermont demands more certainty and guarantees regarding the money in order to effectively address the opioids crisis in Vermont,” Donovan wrote.
The AG also blasted the idea of the company declaring bankruptcy, saying the business could shutter and sell its assets instead.
“I want to be sure that billionaires can’t use bankruptcy court as a vehicle to avoid accountability,” Donovan wrote.
Tags: Vermont , Purdue Pharma , settlement , reject , T.J. Donovan , attorney general , drugs , OxyContin , Sackler family , Web Only , Image
Thursday, August 22, 2019
The owners of Ridin' High Skate Shop, John Van Hazinga and Samantha Steady, face federal conspiracy charges for growing marijuana and selling it out of their eccentric Burlington storefront, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday.
It's the second downtown business to be raided this year for dealing pot.
The feds allege Van Hazinga, also known as "Big John," and Steady ran a grow operation at their Underhill home, then sold the drug and THC-infused edibles out of their skateboard shop at the corner of Pearl and Battery streets, within sight of the Burlington police headquarters.
Tags: Cannabeat , John Van Hazinga , Ridin' High , Burlington , DEA , cannabis , marijuana , Web Only , Image