France is no Amsterdam when it comes to marijuana laws, in fact it has some of the toughest possession statutes in Europe, but a first of its kind bill proposed this week could change that. The lawmaker behind the legislation tells The Local why marijuana should be legalized in France.

People smoking a joint in France face a maximum penalty of a year behind bars and a €3,750 fine for the first offence, yet 13.4 million French people admit to sparking up at least once in their life. Even France’s top cop, Interior Minister Manuel Vallls, said in a recent interview, he’d tried it “maybe once.”

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Key investors in a campaign to legalize marijuana use in Ohio include a former pro-basketball star, a pro-football player and a fashion designer.

ResponsibleOhio on Friday released the names of 11 key investors in its campaign to legalize marijuana for medical and personal use in Ohio. The investors, along with other supporters, are members of the investment groups that will own and operate the 10 marijuana grow sites to be specified in the group's proposed constitutional amendment.

"The campaign is honored to have such well-respected businesswomen and men, as well as patient advocates supporting our effort to offer a common-sense solution to Ohio's failed drug policies," Ian James, ResponsibleOhio's executive director, said in a press release.      

The marijuana industry is booming, and it doesn't show any signs of slowing down in the near future.

Medical marijuana users will be among the earliest users of bitcoin, according to bitcoin entrepreneur Peter Klamka. Klamka’s Ann Arbor, Mich.-based company, Bitcoin Brands, has placed a bitcoin ATM machine at one medical marijuana dispensary and is in the process of placing another two in the Grand Rapids area.

Klamka’s bitcoin ATM machine, made by Portland, Ore.-based Skyhook, provides the customer a QR code which they get scanned at the checkout counter by a clerk using a bitcoin payment tablet.

“The (payment) technology is like a gift card,”

Medical marijuana advocates in Maine are trying to spread the word about a recent study indicating the drug may slow or stop the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease.

The Gelassen family of Portland says it works.

Allen Gelassen is a pretty happy guy despite living with Alzheimer’s.

“I always have a problem (remembering) day-to-day,”said Gelassen, “But distance, some of it I can, some of it I can’t.”

The diagnosis came a few months ago, after the stroke that left him in a wheelchair. And with it, prescription painkillers; something that impacted his kids’ lives too.

“Groggy, depressed,” said his son, Benjamin Gelassen, “Which put that energy onto me.”

Cannabis might provide more relief from chronic pain than prescription drugs, new research suggests.

The large Australian study found that use of the illegal drug for pain relief is common among people with chronic pain, such as low back pain, neck pain and migraines.

The study also found that cannabis users report greater pain relief in combination with prescription opioids, such as morphine and oxycodone, than when opioids are used alone, the researchers said.

The study of 1500 Australians, led by researchers at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at UNSW, is expected to intensify the debate about allowing cannabis use for medical purposes.

The Hebrew University tech transfer company will collaborate on a novel delivery system.

Hebrew University of Jerusalem technology transfer company Yissum Research Development Co. Ltd. has signed an exclusive licensing and collaboration agreement with PhytoTech Medical Ltd. for the development, manufacturing and marketing of a novel delivery system to enhance the bioavailability of cannabidiol (CBD) and/or THC. These are the active ingredients in cannabis, for the treatment of various medical indications. The novel formulations are based on oral and transbuccal delivery technologies developed by Professors Abraham Domb and Amnon Hoffman of the Hebrew University Faculty of Medicine, School of Pharmacy, Institute of Drug Research.

The Cannabis Movement in Saint Lucia is urging the government to follow the footsteps of Jamaica and decriminalize marijuana. Members say it would pave the way for a legal marijuana industry.

Andre de Caires, the head of the Cannabis Movement, has been a champion of marijuana tourism and decriminalization. He says Jamaica is heading down the right path by approving a bill to decriminalize possession of small amounts of cannabis and believes Saint Lucia should do the same.