RANCHO CUCAMONGA >> More than 4,000 pot plants and 100 pounds of cannabis were seized at a marijuana grow operation in the mountains north of here, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The illegal grow operation negatively impacted the environment around Day Creek Canyon, authorities said Friday.

The sheriff’s marijuana enforcement team worked with the DEA and the state attorney general’s Campaign Against Marijuana Planting, formed to eradicate cultivation camps “that cause deforestation, damage to wildlife habitats, pose danger to our citizens, and hazardous-chemical pollutions,” according to the attorney general’s website.

ROYAL OAK, Mich. -

It looks like Michigan voters will be deciding whether they want to legalize marijuana in 2016.

Nearly 40,000 signatures have been collected in just 12 days as part of a push to get the issue on the ballot. There are two ballot proposals which have seen language approved by the state board of canvassers, but only one has language drafted by the brightest minds in Lansing. And only one has the premier signature-gathering firm in the country on the ground in Michigan.

SPOKANE — The only member of the so-called “Kettle Falls Five” marijuana-growing family to plead guilty has received a 16-month sentence, but will remain out of custody pending an appeal.

The Spokesman-Review reports that U.S. District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice did not accept Jason Zucker’s explanation that the plants he and others grew on property in northeastern Washington state were for medicinal purposes.

The federal case was widely watched because medical and recreational marijuana is legal under state law in Washington.

Arizona courts appear at odds over the possible impact of legalized medical marijuana on the ability of police to conduct searches prompted solely by officers smelling the drug.

In one case, a three-judge panel of the state Court of Appeals ruled Thursday that a police search of a man's car during a traffic stop was permissible because an officer smelled burnt marijuana.

The panel rejected a defense argument that legalized medical marijuana means police must assume that any marijuana they smell or see is lawful until shown otherwise.

However, a different panel of the same court ruled Monday in a different case that legalization of medical marijuana means circumstances other than mere possession now determine whether there's a legal basis for a search.

Supporters of a proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize medical marijuana sent 100,000 petitions to county elections supervisors this week, one of the first steps in getting the proposal before voters next year.

It’s the second shot for United for Care, the committee behind the petition drive, to get the proposal on the ballot. A similar plan received 58 percent of the vote in November, just shy of the 60 percent required for passage.

PHOENIX -- Just days after three judges one division of the Court of Appeals said the smell of marijuana is not enough for a search, a second panel in another division have reached a contrary conclusion.

The judges on Thursday upheld the actions by police officers who searched a vehicle they had stopped after detecting the smell of burnt marijuana. That search yielded what police said was a "marble size'' quantity of the unburnt drug.

An attorney for Ian H. Cheatham argued that once voters approved the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act, the smell of burnt marijuana, absent more, is no longer evidence that a crime is being committed. And that, he argued, made the search illegal.

The Columbian reports that the changes are part of an overhaul recently approved by lawmakers.

Post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries will now be considered qualifying conditions for patients hoping to receive a medical marijuana card.

Senate Bill 5052 was signed into law in April. Its goal was to align the state's medical and recreational marijuana systems to ensure the drug is delivered in a safe, regulated manner.

One controversial portion of the bill is the medical marijuana database. Although it's voluntary, those who don't register won't benefit from the same tax breaks and wouldn't be able to possess or grow the same amount of marijuana.

Cannabis growers in West Yorkshire will continue to feel the full weight of the law.

That’s the pledge from a West Yorkshire Police chief amid growing concerns about a relaxed attitude to drugs by police forces.

But West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Mark Burns-Williamson vowed that tackling drugs production and supply - at all levels of operation - remained a priority in the region and extra resources have been established to flush out dealers.

Mr Burns-Williamson’s comments come as his counterpart at Durham, Ron Hogg said his force will no longer actively pursue cannabis smokers and small-scale growers in order to prioritise its resources against more serious crime.

West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner Mark Burns-Williamson

Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee voted 16-14 today in favor of an amendment to allow state-compliant marijuana businesses to engage in relationships with financial institutions.

On Thursday, Gallup released a poll showing that 44 percent of Americans have said they've tried marijuana, the largest number the survey has ever recorded. This isn't too far off from what other polls have found (this Pew Research Center poll pegged the number at 49 percent), and given that people are being asked to admit to behavior that is illegal in most places, the true number is almost certainly higher. So we're past the point where most American adults have tried pot, which helps explain why support for legalization has also become a majority position.