Archive for the ‘News’ Category
President of cannabis club has expansion plans
January 10th, 2010
Dakta Bourbon
This article also has a video that can be viewed on the 3news website.
By Simon Shepherd
A man who has been operating a cannabis club in west Auckland for the last year plans to set up similar clubs throughout the country.
He calls himself “Dakta Green”, and claims his members have been freely flouting the law until police raided his house last week.
Members of the “Daktory” club, run by Mr Green, pay a fee to smoke cannabis.
Police Raid The Daktory
January 10th, 2010
Dakta Bourbon
Dakta Green:
Police raid my home (The Daktory).
Yesterday (Saturday January 9 2010) about 12 New Zealand Police walked through my open door, entered The Daktory for the first time in the 14 months we have been open and exercised a search warrant. They found a few plants and a couple of ounces. I was arrested, charged with cultivation of cannabis and released on bail.
Today Sunday News have a front page headline “Pot shops to open across NZ” followed by a two page spread.
Lets hope we see some of this on the 6pm news, the more media coverage the better.
Stuff.co.nz have a poll going with the article posted this morning about The Daktory, current votes are: Yes, it should be decriminalised: 552 votes, 62.8%, No, the laws are fine: 327 votes, 37.2%, so it seems the NZ public is heading in the right direction.
Pot clubs go nationwide
January 10th, 2010
Dakta Bourbon
From stuff.co.nz
Cannabis clubs – where users flout the law by meeting to smoke and buy the Class C drug – may soon open nationwide.
Next month founding members of New Zealand’s first cannabis connoisseurs’ club, Auckland’s Daktory, plan to meet fellow users throughout the country to help set-up Daktories in other cities.
“We have demand from virtually every city in the country,” Daktory founder Dakta Green told Sunday News.
” I would expect to see in the next 12 months Daktories in every major city in this country, every city should have at least one – 2010 is the year people within our culture are demanding changes throughout the world.”
Auckland’s Daktory, in New Lynn, plans to offer “degrees in Daktology” later this year – formalised study on all aspects of the cannabis industry including hands-on cultivation techniques.
For the first two-and-a-half months the Daktory was open cannabis was sold from the venue, and at one point almost 20 different strands of cannabis were available.
Marijuana Stores Trump Starbucks In Denver
January 9th, 2010
Dakta Bourbon
Just like in California, the industry is booming…
If you want more proof that selling legal pot is a booming business, consider this statistic: Denver has more medical-marijuana shops than Starbucks Corp. locations.
Denver’s City Treasurer Steve Ellington tells ABC New affiliate Channel 7 that at least 390 pot dispensaries applied for a sales-tax license recently. That compares to 208 Starbucks in the entire state of Colorado, the station reports. Denver’s city council took a step toward regulating the marijuana stores last night, and the businesses are filing their tax applications.
The Denver statistic sheds light on a business that is becoming more institutionalized as local governments try to figure out ways to raise revenue. The Denver council will hold a public hearing and take a final vote Monday. Only a day later, on Tuesday, a California Assembly panel is expected to vote on a bill that would legalize pot across the state.
Dakta Green vs Police
January 5th, 2010
Dakta Green
New Zealand Police mounted a three day operation against The Daktory last Thursday, Friday,and Saturday. (31st December 2009, 1st and 2nd January 2010)
This involved Police parking up the street then following and stopping our members as they left The Daktory.
For some reason Police think they have the right to randomly stop and search people and vehicles for no other reason but they were departing The Daktory. “A known cannabis haunt”, according to Police.
Unfortunately for Police, their actions are illegal and a formal complaint is being prepared.
After suffering this nonsense for 2 days a plan was hatched should Police return for a third day. They did and the plan was implemented to perfection. The plan was simple. Dakta Green would drive away from The Daktory (his home and current court approved bail address) driving another members car with that member in the passenger seat and a cameraman filming from the rear seat he would circle the block and pull up back outside The Daktory. Would Police take the bait? They sure did.
Unlawful behavior by Police officers is never acceptable in a free and democratic society. Even if they are trying to catch ‘bad’ guys, Police must at all times comply with the law.
‘Tipping out’ cars and searching the occupants for no reason other than they have left The Daktory is illegal.
See you in Court
Dakta Green
Colorado: Judge Rules Pot Patients Have a Constitutional Right to Buy Weed
January 1st, 2010
Dakta Bourbon
Back in October the city of Centennial shut down the CanaMart dispensary in Colorado. They used a strategy adopted and deployed by a number of governments in the 14 states that allow medical marijuana; since weed is NOT legal, according to federal law, operating contrary to federal law violates a city’s land-use code.
Yesterday Arapahoe County District Court Judge Christopher Cross (not the same Christopher Cross dude who wrote “Sailing” or (gag) “Ride Like the Wind”) called bullshit and barred the city of Centennial from shutting down the dispensary!
“The city of Centennial cannot use the potential violation of a federal law to order a business legally operating under our state constitution to cease and desist its business,” Cross said. He also reminded the city that local governments CAN’T take it upon themselves to enforce federal law and that in 2000 Colorado voters approved a constitutional amendment legalizing the use of cannabis for medical purposes. He also said the city violated CannaMart’s owners’ and patients’ constitutional rights, which he called “AN IRREPARABLE INJURY TO ALL OF US!”
Interview with Bob Arctor
December 24th, 2009
Dakta Green
An interview with US radio host and author Bob Arctor* for the 4:20 dakumentary currently in production by Redeye Productions.
* not his real name
Cannabis Use Decriminalised While Police Seize Dealers’ Assets
December 24th, 2009
Dakta Green
New asset recovery legislation coming into action today will see Police able to seize unexplained income and assets from drug dealers far more easily, but at the same time a new Police policy of formal warnings for so called minor offences is tantamount to decriminalising possession and use of cannabis according to former Police detective and MethCon Group director Mike Sabin.
“The asset recovery legislation is long over due” stated Mr. Sabin and “with Police able to seize assets under a civil standard of proof, Police will make great inroads into the ill-gotten gains of organised crime that yield multiple billions of dollars from the methamphetamine and cannabis trade in New Zealand.”
This strategy was one of a number of recommendations made to the new National led government by Mr. Sabin, “the thrust of the strategy being to seize finances and assets of dealers and re-invest these funds, via the crown account, into prevention and treatment aimed at driving down demand for the very drugs the criminals profited from.”
“Unfortunately, while the Police will be making the most of this new legislation, at the same time they are effectively waiving a white flag to the customers whose demand supports drug dealers, with a trial of a new policy of warnings for minor offences being widened across Auckland and likely to go nation-wide” said Mr. Sabin. Following a three month pilot on the North Shore in Auckland, Police have announced that they have extended the trial for six months across wider Auckland and will see Police under new ‘formal guidelines’ issuing warnings at their discretion for offences with maximum penalties of 2 years imprisonment or less, including shoplifting, possession of knives, common assault and possession of cannabis.
“Police hierarchy justify what they say is a ‘common sense approach’, by claiming these offences ‘would not get significant sentences anyway’, which not only flies in the face of their own ‘Broken Windows’, New York style policing policies of the late 90s, but sends a clear message to the community that it is very unlikely that using cannabis and possession of smaller amounts of the drug, will attract anything other than a warning” claimed Mr. Sabin. Read the rest of this entry »
BREAKING NEWS – Marijuana Legalization On CA’s 2010 Ballot
December 16th, 2009
Dakta Bourbon
YES WE CANNABIS and YES WE DID! The folks at the The Tax & Regulate Cannabis 2010 here in Oaksterdam California have gathered the 650,000 signatures necessary to put the legalization of marijuana on the November 2010 ballot! This major victory means Californians will be the first in the nation to decide whether they believe marijuana should be legal…taxed and regulated for all adults over 21.
Richard Lee, the president of Oaksterdam University, owner of the famous Coffeeshop Blue Sky, and major financial supporter of the initiative told Stuff Stoners Like, “California voters believe that our laws criminalizing marijuana have failed! 56% of Californian’s support legalization and the time for reform is now.” Read the rest of this entry »
Cannabis vs The Courts
December 14th, 2009
Dakta Green
CANNABIS RIGHTS TRIAL NEXT MONDAY 21st December 2009. Auckland District Court.
In a legal first for New Zealand, The founder of The Daktory, New Zealand’s first Cannabis club will appear in court next Monday to argue that Cannabis laws are a breach of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. The Daktory has been operating openly for the last year and has over two thousand members.
Dakta Green, will appear in court to argue for a stay of criminal proceedings following arrests made during decriminalisation protests held in 2007.
“I want the whole thing thrown out” said Dakta Green. “Alcohol causes more harm than cannabis but alcohol users are protected by law. Cannabis users are persecuted. The laws are discriminatory. They don’t work and they are unjust. Police and the Courts have got better things to do than chase after the likes of me and the 800,000 other people who smoke cannabis each year in New Zealand.”
Dakta Green, an experienced political campaigner, intends to pursue his claims all the way to the Supreme Court if he needs to. “We will never give up fighting for our rights as citizens.”
Arguing that cannabis laws are a breach of civil and human rights have never been tried before in a New Zealand court. If successful with his application, Dakta Green will set a ground breaking legal precedent.