ith 23 days left for Ohio voters to make up their minds on legalizing marijuana, there are a lot of complicated issues to consider.

State Issue 3 on the ballot Nov. 3 would amend the Ohio Constitution to allow adults 21 and older to possess an ounce of marijuana and get a permit to grow four flowering plants and keep 8 ounces of homegrown pot.

It also would allow anyone of any age to use marijuana for medical reasons — with a certificate from a licensed Ohio physician.

A 33-YEAR-OLD man who used cannabis to self-medicate decided to grow his own after having a gun pointed at him while buying on the street.

Blackburn magistrates heard Stefan Golec had been terrified by the incident.

Golec, 33, of Wordsworth Close, Oswaldtwistle, pleaded guilty to producing cannabis and abstracting electricity.

He was remanded on bail for the preparation of a pre-sentence report.

Imran Hussain, for Golec, said his client had been involved in a serious road traffic accident six years ago which resulted in his face having to be rebuilt with metal plates. 

“He still has pain from that and uses cannabis in a medical way for pain relief,” said Mr Hussain. “When he was buying on the street he didn’t feel safe.

Detroit city leaders will meet today to discuss new plans to regulate medical marijuana.

Currently, there are no regulations as to where a medical marijuana dispensary can set up shop. City leaders are looking at changing this by putting regulations in place, and creating a zoning plan to keeping certain areas, like near schools, off limits.

A new report released by Loveland Technologies shows that there are a total of 152 medical marijuana dispensaries in the city. Sixty-two of those are located within 1,000 feet of an active school.

The public is invited to listen and voice their concerns about the proposed zoning effort. The hearing is happening at 10:00 a.m. on the 13th floor of City Hall.

Ahead of a debate in Parliament on legalizing cannabis in the UK, the Liberal Democrats have announced a new independent panel to investigate how a legalized market could work.

The party, which was part of the last Coalition Government, say they want to examine evidence from Colorado, Washington State and Uruguay to see if lessons can be learned here.

Lib Dem Health Spokesman Norman Lamb, who was a leadership contender for the party earlier in the summer, made the announcement this morning.

A 58-year-old Icelander is believed to be one of the ringleaders of a major marijuana plantation in Molina de Segura, Spain, RÚV reports. He rented a warehouse in which the drugs were produced. The facility produced at least ten tons of cannabis a month, valued at up to ISK 30 billion (USD 241 million, EUR 210 million).

After the disastrous election result for the Lib Dems, they could have vanished in a puff of smoke. But no: they are back now setting up an expert panel to try to establish how a legal market for cannabis would work. They are looking at becoming the first party in the UK to back its legalisation.

Whether you're excited for the prospect of medical marijuana soon being made available in Maryland or staunchly against the idea, the reality is it's coming to neighborhoods near you soon.

MONOPOLY: Issue 3 would create a monopoly in the Ohio Constitution for growing, cultivating and extracting marijuana.

In November, Ohio voters will get the chance to approve a constitutional amendment legalizing marijuana for recreational and medicinal purposes.

They’ll also vote on a constitutional amendment prohibiting monopolies.

Seems like a couple of issues best left to voters, right?

Problem is, the amendments conflict: One creates a private marijuana monopoly; the other prohibits such monopolies.

So, if voters approve both, lawsuits are sure to ensue, and the courts — not the people — will decide which goes into effect.

Landlords across the Lothians have been warned to be on the look-out for cannabis farms after a spike in the number of cases in the region.

Officers have pledged to hold a series of special seminars to tell property owners about the warning signs.

Between April and August this year, 49 cannabis operations worth tens of thousands of pounds have been recovered in Lothian and Borders.

The plants are often seized from rented properties which have been drastically altered or damaged to help growing conditions, and owners are often landed with large repair bills after the cultivations are uncovered.

Recent incidents include the discovery of a cannabis farm with plants with a street value of £64,800 in the loft of the Tiki Tots nursery in Morningside in April.

Norman Lamb, the Lib Dem health spokesman, has asked the review to look at international examples of where cannabis has been legalised, including in Colorado, Washington and Uruguay.

Mr Lamb argued it was time to stop cannabis convictions “blighting” people’s careers.

“We must end the hypocrisy of senior politicians admitting to using cannabis in younger years – and describing it as ‘youthful indiscretions’ – whilst condemning tens of thousands of their less fortunate fellow countrymen and women to criminal records for precisely the same thing, blighting their careers,” he said.