David Futch

Rigo Valdez and Local Union 770 received the Ethical Emerging Industry Award, honoring them as trailblazers in their commitment to marijuana dispensary workers, from the watchdog group Labor 411 at the inaugural Blue Tie Gala, held at the W Hotel in Hollywood....

The state of California requires legal marijuana to be tested in medical laboratories before being sold to the public. And that is what created companies like CannaSafe Laboratories in Van Nuys, with a dozen scientists and researchers, two state-of-the-art chromatographs and 700 clients....

With a little help from City Compassionate Caregivers, in business since 1996 on East Seventh Street in Los Angeles, we have put together the first L.A. Weekly guide to good dispensary manners. You could call it potiquette....

More than 300 showed up to pitch or buy cannabis-based business ideas — everything from LEAF, a plug-and-plant system that automatically grows cannabis and can be controlled by phone, to cannabis edibles from candy maker Goodship of Seattle....

"I've seen cannabis help with pain, anxiety, insomnia, migraines and depression," says Dr. Perry Solomon, a 64-year-old Bay Area anesthesiologist and chief medical officer of HelloMD, an online clearinghouse where patients can get advice, read articles on cannabis effectiveness in treating medical conditions and secure a medical marijuana recommendation. "Using cannabis as an alternative to opioids should be looked at everywhere."...

Legalizing marijuana for recreational use was supposed to deal a death blow to smugglers, cartels and the black market while simultaneously pumping new money into state government coffers. But now, less than a month into the recreational reefer rollout, California consumers could decide to bypass legal dispensaries and head back to the black market in a bid to avoid taxes that could double the price of pot....

A Cookies in Los Angeles was Berner's dream, maybe even three or four dispensaries. But he and his partners were stymied when dealing with officials from Los Angeles, who wanted dispensary owners to jump through too many hoops, he said....

With the Cole Memorandum now dumped into the trash bin, Sessions’ Department of Justice has a new focus: prosecuting people who sell, grow or distribute marijuana. But states are fighting back....

Recreational marijuana is legal as of Jan. 1, but state and local regulators haven’t worked out the details yet....