Since cannabis legalization in Virginia has been an outgrowth from "medical marijuana", I thought this to be the best forum to house this thread in.
Virginia government FAQ website
One week from today, on 1 July, this year, cannabis becomes legal in the US Commonwealth of Virginia. Kinda sorta.
Individual possession of up to 1 ounce in public will be legal. However, since it cannot be bought, GETTING it to possess it will be illegal. Possession of an amount more than 1 ounce and less than 1 pound in public will be a civil penalty, carrying a 25 dollar fine. Possession of one pound or over skyrockets all the way up to a felony. 16 ounces, 25 dollar fine. 17 ounces, go directly to jail for several years, do not pass "GO", do not collect 200 dollars. There is no misdemeanor middle ground.
While it will be legal to possess, share, or gift up to 1 ounce, selling or trading it will still be illegal. How is one to get it in the first place to legally possess it, gift it, or share it then? I don't expect any folks are going to drop by my house and say "here's an ounce of pot for ya. have a nice day" and walk back out. If they did, I would view that as suspicious as hell, anyhow.
Possession of ANY amount "with intent to sell or distribute" will still be illegal. So simply coming to my house to gift me an ounce of reefer (i.e. "distribution") will be illegal - so how are folks supposed to gift it?
It will be legal to grow up to 4 plants per household, for personal use... but getting seed to grow will still be illegal. No one in Virginia is authorized to sell seeds, and it's illegal to import them across state lines... so how are those 4 plants per household supposed to get their start? Will they just magically appear in yards, sans seeds?
Assuming that seeds were available, one can get up to around 2 pounds / 1 kg per plant. That would allow for a substantial stash... but if one can only legally possess 1 ounce, how does that work, with 4 plants yielding up to 8 pounds or so? 8 pounds is 128 times the legal limit, 127 ounces more than you are allowed to possess. It's 8 times the amount they can send you to prison over... but they're telling you that you can grow it anyhow, "go ahead and pop those plants out, buddy, wink-wink, nudge-nudge. We'll just stand over here and watch, until they get bigger than 1/4 pound each..."?
While legal to grow up to 4 plants, there are onerous coda that go along with that, over and above the inability to get seed to grow it from. It can't be visible from the street. Has to be socked in so that no one under 21 can touch it. And it has to be "tagged" with your name, driver's license number, and a notation that it is "for personal use". No idea why they would put in a tagging requirement... are they scared someone might steal it? If so, how in the hell are you supposed to tag it permanently, in a way that the thieves can't just remove the tag and go on their merry way? Could that tagging requirement just be a way to stealth bust individuals for illegally acquiring seeds, since they couldn't be busted for the plants themselves, but getting the seed to grow the plants is still illegal?
Hell, I could grow a whole row of opium poppies (ornamentally) right next to the road, and no one would say "boo!", but I would have to hide hemp away and erect fencing and safeguards like it might give someone the plague if they saw it or - God forbid - touched it?
I don't see "guerrilla growing" to become a thing of the past any time soon. It's easier and far less risky than trying to navigate this new law.
One part of the legislation that wasn't neglected was taxation. It provides for a 21% state excise tax on top of the already existent 6% state sales tax. Additionally, localities may levy up to 3% or additional taxes, so the government has the potential to rake in 30% taxes per transaction if they ever get around to making sales legal. I see where their priorities are, and it's not with the citizenry... this is in no way an altruistic law, it's not in favor of the people, and most laughable of all, it in no way promotes the "equity" they claim is the basis of it.
All in all, this has got to be one of the worst drafted pieces of legislation I have ever had the misfortune to behold. No wonder - it was drafted by Democrats. Their hearts may have been in the right place, but as usual they are not getting a name for attention to detail or logical thought. They didn't think it through very well, and that is exactly what I expected of them.
Either that, or it's a trap. "Oh, you've got an ounce of reefer? No matter - that's legal now... so how'd you get it?"
I recommend continued guerrilla possession and farming, keeping it away from the eyes of the law. That has worked for years and years now, at least since I was a teenager, and I don't see anything in this law to substantially change the need for it.
.
Virginia government FAQ website
One week from today, on 1 July, this year, cannabis becomes legal in the US Commonwealth of Virginia. Kinda sorta.
Individual possession of up to 1 ounce in public will be legal. However, since it cannot be bought, GETTING it to possess it will be illegal. Possession of an amount more than 1 ounce and less than 1 pound in public will be a civil penalty, carrying a 25 dollar fine. Possession of one pound or over skyrockets all the way up to a felony. 16 ounces, 25 dollar fine. 17 ounces, go directly to jail for several years, do not pass "GO", do not collect 200 dollars. There is no misdemeanor middle ground.
While it will be legal to possess, share, or gift up to 1 ounce, selling or trading it will still be illegal. How is one to get it in the first place to legally possess it, gift it, or share it then? I don't expect any folks are going to drop by my house and say "here's an ounce of pot for ya. have a nice day" and walk back out. If they did, I would view that as suspicious as hell, anyhow.
Possession of ANY amount "with intent to sell or distribute" will still be illegal. So simply coming to my house to gift me an ounce of reefer (i.e. "distribution") will be illegal - so how are folks supposed to gift it?
It will be legal to grow up to 4 plants per household, for personal use... but getting seed to grow will still be illegal. No one in Virginia is authorized to sell seeds, and it's illegal to import them across state lines... so how are those 4 plants per household supposed to get their start? Will they just magically appear in yards, sans seeds?
Assuming that seeds were available, one can get up to around 2 pounds / 1 kg per plant. That would allow for a substantial stash... but if one can only legally possess 1 ounce, how does that work, with 4 plants yielding up to 8 pounds or so? 8 pounds is 128 times the legal limit, 127 ounces more than you are allowed to possess. It's 8 times the amount they can send you to prison over... but they're telling you that you can grow it anyhow, "go ahead and pop those plants out, buddy, wink-wink, nudge-nudge. We'll just stand over here and watch, until they get bigger than 1/4 pound each..."?
While legal to grow up to 4 plants, there are onerous coda that go along with that, over and above the inability to get seed to grow it from. It can't be visible from the street. Has to be socked in so that no one under 21 can touch it. And it has to be "tagged" with your name, driver's license number, and a notation that it is "for personal use". No idea why they would put in a tagging requirement... are they scared someone might steal it? If so, how in the hell are you supposed to tag it permanently, in a way that the thieves can't just remove the tag and go on their merry way? Could that tagging requirement just be a way to stealth bust individuals for illegally acquiring seeds, since they couldn't be busted for the plants themselves, but getting the seed to grow the plants is still illegal?
Hell, I could grow a whole row of opium poppies (ornamentally) right next to the road, and no one would say "boo!", but I would have to hide hemp away and erect fencing and safeguards like it might give someone the plague if they saw it or - God forbid - touched it?
I don't see "guerrilla growing" to become a thing of the past any time soon. It's easier and far less risky than trying to navigate this new law.
One part of the legislation that wasn't neglected was taxation. It provides for a 21% state excise tax on top of the already existent 6% state sales tax. Additionally, localities may levy up to 3% or additional taxes, so the government has the potential to rake in 30% taxes per transaction if they ever get around to making sales legal. I see where their priorities are, and it's not with the citizenry... this is in no way an altruistic law, it's not in favor of the people, and most laughable of all, it in no way promotes the "equity" they claim is the basis of it.
All in all, this has got to be one of the worst drafted pieces of legislation I have ever had the misfortune to behold. No wonder - it was drafted by Democrats. Their hearts may have been in the right place, but as usual they are not getting a name for attention to detail or logical thought. They didn't think it through very well, and that is exactly what I expected of them.
Either that, or it's a trap. "Oh, you've got an ounce of reefer? No matter - that's legal now... so how'd you get it?"
I recommend continued guerrilla possession and farming, keeping it away from the eyes of the law. That has worked for years and years now, at least since I was a teenager, and I don't see anything in this law to substantially change the need for it.
.
Diogenes was eating bread and lentils for supper. He was seen by the philosopher Aristippus, who lived comfortably by flattering the king.
Said Aristippus, ‘If you would learn to be subservient to the king you would not have to live on lentils.’ Said Diogenes, ‘Learn to live on lentils and you will not have to be subservient to the king.’
Said Aristippus, ‘If you would learn to be subservient to the king you would not have to live on lentils.’ Said Diogenes, ‘Learn to live on lentils and you will not have to be subservient to the king.’