Washington state’s county prosecutors have entered murky waters in the ever-evolving legal land of recreational marijuana.

Many are still unsure of how to handle charges leveled against state-licensed marijuana retailer employees who were caught making an in-store sale to an underage investigate aid sent in by the Liquor Cannabis Board (LCB).

In King County, three stores — one in Shoreline, one in Kenmore and one in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood — are among the 19 Washington stores that now have employees nervously awaiting news if they will be prosecuted.

It’s hard to say which direction prosecutors will sway, but what is certain, is that prosecution in multiple counties are reluctant to jump to any harsh conclusions.

Israel has been a shining example of how to deal with cannabis. From the ground breaking scientific research lead by Raphael Mechoulam to the latest news that cannabis will be widely available in all pharmacies. There has been a real problem of patients getting access to the medicinal plant so today’s announcementoutlining a clear path for full introduction into Israeli patient care will bring some much needed relief.

Corporal Damian Flood (39) was caught with €9,814 worth of cannabis herb near Nutgrove in Dublin on March 15 2013. He initially told gardaí he was moving the drugs to pay off a debt of €40,000.

However, the widowed father-of-two later said he brought the the drugs after online research showed him juiced cannabis added to food could act as a pain reliever.

Flood told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that he wanted to ease the suffering of his wife, who was terminally ill with breast cancer. She died some five months later.

Flood of Scribblestown Avenue, Finglas, Dublin pleaded guilty to possessing the drug for sale or supply.

He apologised to the court, saying he was “embarrassed” to be there. “It was a moment of madness,” he said.

A man allegedly posed as a fisherman July 11 in order to watch over more than 1,600 pounds of marijuana hiding along a beach on South Padre Island, according to Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio.

Sheriff officials and the Coast Guard worked together to arrest Mario Antonio San Carmento-Gomez, 39, of Veracruz, Mexico, who now faces federal charges for possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, according to online court records.

Lucio told the The Brownsville Herald that the agency got an anonymous tip, prompting them to search a sandy beach about 14 miles north of beach access No. 6 on the island, north of Port Isabel.

Italy may well be on its way to becoming the largest country in Europe to legalize marijuana. An Italian tracking group has found that more than 250 lawmakers from across the political spectrum have given their support to a proposal that would largely decriminalize production, distribution, sale and consumption of marijuana throughout the nation.

The leap may appear far-fetched for a country that just 10 years ago voted in a draconian anti-drug bill that removed any distinction between hard and soft drugs, increasing sentences for pot smokers and heroin addicts alike.

According to the latest figures available from the ACLU, the cost of enforcement of laws for pot possession alone is more than $3.6 billion a year.

(ANTIMEDIA) Washington, D.C. — A bill with bipartisan support introduced in Congress this week is finally tolling the death knell for cannabis prohibition. By removing a notorious legal contradiction, the legislation would give precedence to state marijuana laws—making federal enforcement a thing of the past in states where medical and recreational weed are legal.

If anyone would have suggested a year ago that Ohio might be on the verge of legalizing marijuana in 2015, I would have laughed at the idea.

First, Ohio is a conservative Midwestern state that is seldom, if ever, on the cutting edge on social issues. And second, 2015 is an off-year election, with no statewide or federal elections, meaning the voter turn-out would be lower and the likely voters would be older and less supportive than would be the case if the proposal were on the ballot in 2016, a presidential election year when younger voters turn out in far higher numbers.

A Senate committee representing all Australia’s major parties is preparing a Regulator of Medicinal Cannabis Bill to legalize medical marijuana, despite warnings of regulatory complications with both Australian and international law, a report says.

The committee includes the Coalition (the Liberal Party, the National Party, the Northern Territory Country Liberal Party, and Queensland Liberal branch the Liberal National Party), the Labor Party and crossbench senators. They will “strongly recommend” parliament pass a cross-party bill setting up a medical marijuana regulator, the Sydney Morning Herald reports, citing Fairfax Media sources close to the legislation debate.

A financial services company gives a prominent reform group the boot, then backtracks.

Earlier this month, a financial services company informed one of the nation’s largest marijuana advocacy groups that its business was no longer welcome, adding an unexpected twist to public debate about the de facto banking ban affecting state-legal pot businesses.