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Marijuana debate

A collection of CNN stories about the marijuana legalization debate.

Show Description

Opinions

Katherine Grimm

To legalize pot, stop the infighting

Margaret Storey

Epilepsy patients need more than pot

Mike Riggs

Do marijuana prisoners deserve amnesty?

GO WITH AFP STORY by Desiree Martin A picture taken on April 12, 2013 shows plants of marijuana at the plantation of the Sibaratas Med Can association in Mogan on the southwest coast of the island of Gran Canaria. The plants grow from cuttings for approximately two months and then blossom before being harvested, dried, stored in jars for a month and later processed to be consumed on site. Spanish law prohibits the possession of soft drugs like cannabis in public and its growth to be sold for profit is illegal. But the law does tolerate growing cannabis for personal use and its consumption in private. Dozens of private marijuana smoking clubs operate across Spain that take advantage of this legal loophole that serve cannabis users who do not want to get their drugs from the streets. AFP PHOTO / DESIREE MARTIN (Photo credit should read DESIREE MARTIN/AFP/Getty Images)

Marijuana is safer than alcohol

Pot is legal and sky hasn't fallen

Everyone needs a hobby, right? Recreational marijuana users told us it makes them feel more relaxed and creative.

'I like weed, and I'm a good person': fighting stereotypes

BERKELEY, CA - MARCH 25: One-ounce bags of medicinal marijuana are displayed at the Berkeley Patients Group March 25, 2010 in Berkeley, California. California Secretary of State Debra Bowen certified a ballot initiative late Wednesday to legalize the possession and sale of marijuana in the State of California after proponents of the measure submitted over 690,000 signatures. The measure will appear on the November 2 general election ballot. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Minister's daughter: Cannabis is 'a gift from God'

Dr. Sanjay Gupta in the spring of 2010.

Why I changed my mind on weed

Latest news

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 25: Marijuana plants grow at Perennial Holistic Wellness Center medical marijuana dispensary, which opened in 2006, on July 25, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles City Council has unanimously voted to ban storefront medical marijuana dispensaries and to order them to close or face legal action. The council also voted to instruct staff to draw up a separate ordinance for consideration in about three months that might allow dispensaries that existed before a 2007 moratorium on new dispensaries to continue to operate. It is estimated that Los Angeles has about one thousand such facilities. The ban does not prevent patients or cooperatives of two or three people to grow their own in small amounts. Californians voted to legalize medical cannabis use in 1996, clashing with federal drug laws. The state Supreme Court is expected to consider ruling on whether cities can regulate and ban dispensaries. (Photo by David McNew/Getty Images)

Attorney General Holder Talks Marijuana

Janea Cox and her daughter Haleigh fly to Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Girl's seizures spur medical marijuana legislation in Georgia

Your medical marijuana questions answered

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10 diseases where medical marijuana could have impact

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Jason Sudeikis gives lessons on weed strains

DENVER, CO - APRIL 20: A person identifying himself as Jermagisty Tha King of Denver lights up a 28 ounce blunt at exactly 4:20 p.m. as thousands gathered to celebrate the state's medicinal marijuana laws and collectively light up at 4:20 p.m. in Civic Center Park April 20, 2012 in Denver, Colorado. Colorado goes to the polls November 6 to vote on a controversial ballot initiative that would permit possession of up to an ounce of marijuana for those 21 and older. (Photo by Marc Piscotty/Getty Images)

Colorado governor won't rule out banning marijuana again. Here's why

Will Colorado ban marijuana again?

Marijuana plants grow under artificial light at the Green Pearl Organics dispensary on the first day of legal recreational marijuana sales in California, January 1, 2018 at the Green Pearl Organics marijuana dispensary in Desert Hot Springs, California. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

La legalización de la marihuana en Estados Unidos: un laberinto legal

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Potential Democratic 2020 contenders are rushing to back marijuana legalization

A high for marijuana legalization on 4/20

Marijuana convictions thrown out

Schumer to introduce bill to decriminalize marijuana

4/20: Here are some celebs to roll with to honor the day that honors marijuana

Man smoking marijuana cigarette soft drug in Amsterdam, Netherlands

The new 4/20: Beyond legalizing it

Dr. Kalev Freeman, an emergency room physician, and Monique McHenry, a botanist, stand with hemp samples. They helped create classes focused on marijuana at the University of Vermont

Universities meet growing demand with Weed 101

An Israeli agricultural engineer inspects marijuana plants at the BOL (Breath Of Life) Pharma greenhouse in the country's second-largest medical cannabis plantation, near Kfar Pines in northern Israel, on March 9, 2016.
The recreational use of cannabis is illegal in the Jewish state, but for the past 10 years its therapeutic use has not only been permitted but also encouraged. Last year, doctors prescribed the herb to about 25,000 patients suffering from cancer, epilepsy, post-traumatic stress and degenerative diseases. The purpose is not to cure them but to alleviate their symptoms. Forbidden to export its cannabis plants, Israel is concentrating instead on marketing its agronomic, medical and technological expertise in the hope of becoming a world hub in the field.
/ AFP / JACK GUEZ (Photo credit should read JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Why weed is stuck in a legal limbo

Why does smoking pot give you the munchies?

Jonathan Beaver of San Francisco holds a marijuana cigarette at the San Francisco Patients Cooperative, a medical cannabis cooperative, November 29, 2004 in San Francisco, California.

It's time you learned how 4/20 became 'Weed Day'

Marijuana-derived drug for epilepsy gets FDA committee recommendation

Man smoking marijuana cigarette soft drug in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Marijuana's effects on young brains diminish 72 hours after use, research says

Chris Brown

Chris Brown Fast Facts

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner speaks during the first day of Judge Neil Gorsuch's Supreme Court confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill March 20, 2017 in Washington, DC. Gorsuch was nominated by President Donald Trump to fill the vacancy left on the court by the February 2016 death of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.

Trump promises GOP lawmaker to protect states' marijuana rights

Outgoing Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) gives a thumbs up to fellow members of the U.S. House of Representatives on the floor of the House chamber October 29, 2015 in Washington, DC.

Former House Speaker Boehner 'has evolved' on marijuana

House Speaker John Boehner announces his resignation during a press conference on Capitol Hill September 25, 2015 in Washington, D.C.

John Boehner joins board of cannabis company

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 10: Recording artist Willie Nelson performs during the opening night of The Smith Center for the Performing Arts on March 10, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images for The Smith Center)

Willie Nelson Fast Facts

Life-threatening bleeding linked to synthetic cannabinoids, CDC warns

(L to R) Colombian presidential candidates: Sergio Fajardo, for the Colombia Coalition; German Vargas Lleras, for the Cambio Radical Party; Ivan Duque, for the Democratic Center Party and Gustavo Petro for the Colombia Humana Party, take part in a TV debate in Medellin on April 3, 2018.
Colombia will hold presidential elections on May 27. / AFP PHOTO / JOAQUIN SARMIENTO (Photo credit should read JOAQUIN SARMIENTO/AFP/Getty Images)

8 claves del primer debate presidencial en Colombia

Cynthia Nixon visits The Wendy Williams Show on Wednesday, April 4, 2018. (Jason DeCrow/The Wendy Williams Show)

Cynthia Nixon talks politics with Wendy Williams

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 7: A pouch of dried herbal potpourri being called "synthetic marijuana", photographed at The Washington Post via Getty Images in Washington, DC on July 7, 2010. One gram bags of the herbal mix are labeled warning the product is "not for human consumption" and to "burn in a well ventilated area." (Photo by Wendy Galietta/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Fake weed hospitalizations grow to 70, including two fatalities

NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 05: A man prepares to smoke K2 or "Spice", a synthetic marijuana drug, along a street in East Harlem on August 5, 2015 in New York City. New York, along with other cities, is experiencing a deadly epidemic of synthetic marijuana usage including varieties known as K2 or "Spice" which can cause extreme reactions in some users. According to New York's health department, more than 120 people visited an emergency room in the city in just one week in April. While the state banned the ingredients used to make K2 in 2012, distributors have switched to other ingredients and names in an attempt to circumvent the law. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Two deaths, 54 other cases of severe bleeding tied to fake weed in Illinois

The dangers of synthetic marijuana

Marijuana legalization could help offset opioid epidemic, studies find

QIONGHAI, CHINA - APRIL 08: (CHINA OUT) Founder of Soros Fund Management LLC George Soros attends the Boao Forum for Asia on April 8, 2013 in Qionghai, Hainan Province of China. State and government leaders from Asia and other regions have been invited to attend three-days of economic meetings for the annual Boao Forum for Asia in Boao, a coastal town in south China's Hainan Province. (Photo by ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images)

George Soros Fast Facts

Different types of marijuana sit on display at Harborside marijuana dispensary, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Starting New Year's Day, recreational marijuana can be sold legally in California.

Marijuana legalization by the numbers

Hemp leaf (Cannabis sativa) against yellow background (defocussed)

Regular marijuana users have more sex, study says

NEW YORK - MAY 14: Actress Charlize Theron (R) and her mother Gerda Theron attend the Dior 2008 Cruise collection fashion show on May 14, 2007 in New York City. (Photo by Mat Szwajkos/Getty Images.) *** Local Caption *** Gerda Theron;Charlize Theron

Charlize Theron's mom was her weed supplier

Ex-FBI official hoping to blaze a path to Congress as 'cannabis candidate'

History shows we can't arrest our way out of the drug war

Inside the secret lives of functioning heroin addicts

A green marijuana "amnesty box" sits outside an entrance at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.

Leaving Las Vegas? Dump your pot at the airport first

As marijuana use rises, doctors warn pregnant women

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 07: The White House is seen as demonstrators gather outside to protest the recent U.S. missile strike in Syria April 7, 2017 in Washington, DC. The United States has launched a missile strike in Syria after reports that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad allegedly used nerve agent sarin gas in a recent attack in his own country. (Photo by Eric Thayer/Getty Images)

White House official resigns after not getting security clearance over pot use

CA legalizes marijuana Marquez 1012018

Berkeley declares itself a sanctuary city for recreational pot

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Marihuana medicinal "made in Colombia"

Marijuana plants grow under artificial light at the Green Pearl Organics dispensary on the first day of legal recreational marijuana sales in California, January 1, 2018 at the Green Pearl Organics marijuana dispensary in Desert Hot Springs, California. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

San Francisco retroactively tossing thousands of pot convictions

Marijuana plants grow under artificial light at the Green Pearl Organics dispensary on the first day of legal recreational marijuana sales in California, January 1, 2018 at the Green Pearl Organics marijuana dispensary in Desert Hot Springs, California. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

LaCifraDelDía: 669 millones de dólares en marihuana

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Cannabis como tratamiento para el glaucoma

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Polémica propuesta para legalizar la marihuana en México

(FILE) Picture taken in Montevideo on May 8, 2013 of a young man smoking a marijuana joint during a demonstration demanding a new law on cannabis. Despite the bill to legalize the cultivation and production of marijuana has yet to be passed by the Senate, the Uruguayan government is already preparing its regulations which include a sale price of one gram per dollar. AFP PHOTO / Pablo PORCIUNCULA (Photo credit should read PABLO PORCIUNCULA/AFP/Getty Images)

Vermont becomes first state to legalize marijuana through legislature

Surin family

Groundbreaking medical marijuana case lets little girl go back to school

(FILE) Picture taken in Montevideo on May 8, 2013 of a young man smoking a marijuana joint during a demonstration demanding a new law on cannabis. Despite the bill to legalize the cultivation and production of marijuana has yet to be passed by the Senate, the Uruguayan government is already preparing its regulations which include a sale price of one gram per dollar. AFP PHOTO / Pablo PORCIUNCULA (Photo credit should read PABLO PORCIUNCULA/AFP/Getty Images)

Cigarettes and pot linked to teen psychosis

Steve Alford

Lawmaker claims 'character makeup' makes blacks more susceptible to marijuana

La marihuana: ¿peligra el negocio?

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 29: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department November 29, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Jeff Sessions' marijuana move will backfire

Ron Paul: Jeff Sessions should be fired over marijuana decision

Medical marijuana supporters worry in light of Sessions' guidance

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 29: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department November 29, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Sessions just made the opioid war harder to win

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Ron Paul on Sessions' move against legal pot

The California State flag flies outside City Hall, in Los Angeles, California on January 27, 2017.

Is the White House declaring a policy war on California?

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Ron Paul: Mr. President, fire Jeff Sessions

Marijuana for a calming effect is for sale at the Higher Path medical marijuana dispensary in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles, California, December 27, 2017.
At the stroke of midnight on January 1, pot lovers in California may raise a joint, instead of a glass of champagne. America's wealthiest state is legalizing the growth, sale and consumption of recreational marijuana, opening the door to the world's biggest market. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

Esto piensan los latinos sobre la legalización de la marihuana recreacional en California

California pushing back on Sessions' pot memo

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner speaks during the first day of Judge Neil Gorsuch's Supreme Court confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill March 20, 2017 in Washington, DC. Gorsuch was nominated by President Donald Trump to fill the vacancy left on the court by the February 2016 death of Associate Justice Antonin Scalia.

Fiery Senate speech on pot spotlights GOP Sen. Cory Gardner

Marijuana for a calming effect is for sale at the Higher Path medical marijuana dispensary in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles, California, December 27, 2017.
At the stroke of midnight on January 1, pot lovers in California may raise a joint, instead of a glass of champagne. America's wealthiest state is legalizing the growth, sale and consumption of recreational marijuana, opening the door to the world's biggest market. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

Can I buy legal weed today? A Q&A

vermont pot

Vermont moves to legalize pot as feds signal possible crackdown

Marijuana plants are for sale at Harborside marijuana dispensary, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Starting New Year's Day, recreational marijuana can be sold legally in California. (AP Photo/Mathew Sumner)

Will new Justice Dept. guidance affect legal pot?

Marijuana plants are for sale at Harborside marijuana dispensary, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Starting New Year's Day, recreational marijuana can be sold legally in California. (AP Photo/Mathew Sumner)

States unhappy with rollback of hands-off federal guidelines on pot laws

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 20: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media during a Cabinet meeting at the White House December 20, 2017 in Washington, DC. Trump extolled passage of the tax reform package as it nears, called for an end to the immigration visa lottery and celebrated the repeal of the Obamacare individual mandate included in the tax package. Trump did not take questons. (Photo by Chris Kleponis-Pool/Getty Images)

5 things for January 5: Trump book, cybersecurity, marijuana, North Korea

Marijuana plants are for sale at Harborside marijuana dispensary, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Starting New Year's Day, recreational marijuana can be sold legally in California. (AP Photo/Mathew Sumner)

La batalla por la marihuana continúa

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 29: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department November 29, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Sessions nixes Obama-era rules leaving states alone that legalize pot

FLOOR SCHEDULE:

GOP senator fumes over marijuana memo reversal

AG Sessions, Rosenstein, Gore Civil Rights Ceremony

Sessions to rescind Obama-era marijuana policy

Marijuana for a calming effect is for sale at the Higher Path medical marijuana dispensary in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles, California, December 27, 2017.
At the stroke of midnight on January 1, pot lovers in California may raise a joint, instead of a glass of champagne. America's wealthiest state is legalizing the growth, sale and consumption of recreational marijuana, opening the door to the world's biggest market. / AFP PHOTO / Robyn Beck (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images)

Así se vende la marihuana recreativa en California

The California State flag flies outside City Hall, in Los Angeles, California on January 27, 2017.

It's not just pot: California's legislating guns, tampons and diaper changes in 2018

Marijuana plants are for sale at Harborside marijuana dispensary, Monday, Jan. 1, 2018, in Oakland, Calif. Starting New Year's Day, recreational marijuana can be sold legally in California. (AP Photo/Mathew Sumner)

Californians line up to legally buy recreational pot

Who gets the dog in a divorce and other state laws going into effect in 2018

CA legalizes marijuana Marquez 1012018

California legalizes recreational marijuana

The year in political illustrations

More pregnant women are using pot, study finds

cnnee pkg gabriela matute embarazo consumo marihuana fumar embarazadas riesgos bebes_00004021.jpg

Cada vez más mujeres consumen marihuana durante el embarazo en EE.UU.

Will recreational pot become legal in every state?_00000000.jpg

Will America legalize recreational pot?

A man shows two envelopes containing marijuana he just purchased at a pharmacy in Montevideo, on July 19, 2017.
Pharmacies in Uruguay start selling marijuana from Wednesday under the final phase of a four-year-old law that made the small South American country the first in the world to legalize pot from production to sale. / AFP PHOTO / MIGUEL ROJO (Photo credit should read MIGUEL ROJO/AFP/Getty Images)

Marihuana, el experimento uruguayo

Overall teen drug use stable, but marijuana edging up, survey finds

Cannabidiol is 'not likely to be abused,' WHO says

cnnee docufilms marihuana promo uruguay tv klein_00002627.jpg

DocuFilms: Marihuana, el experimiento uruguayo

(FILE) Picture taken in Montevideo on May 8, 2013 of a young man smoking a marijuana joint during a demonstration demanding a new law on cannabis. Despite the bill to legalize the cultivation and production of marijuana has yet to be passed by the Senate, the Uruguayan government is already preparing its regulations which include a sale price of one gram per dollar. AFP PHOTO / Pablo PORCIUNCULA (Photo credit should read PABLO PORCIUNCULA/AFP/Getty Images)

Smokers are 7 times more likely to use marijuana daily, study says

Heavy marijuana use linked to rare vomiting illness

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 14: U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions testifies during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee November 14, 2017 in Washington, DC. Sessions is expected to face questions from lawmakers again on whether he had contacts with Russians during the presidential campaign last year. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Sessions: DOJ looking at 'rational' marijuana policy

An activist smokes a joint during a prostest under the motto "No vamos a pagar, lo vamos a pegar" (something like 'We are not going to pay for it, we are going to get the kick out of it") against the imposing of fines for smoking marijuana by police according to their new code, in Bogota, on August 1, 2017 / AFP PHOTO / Raul Arboleda (Photo credit should read RAUL ARBOLEDA/AFP/Getty Images)

Opioid commission's anti-marijuana argument stirs anger

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Is admin's anti-pot stance hurting opioid fight?

CBD oil hemp products

Only one-third of marijuana extracts accurately labeled, researchers say

FDA cracks down on claims that cannabis can cure cancer

cnnee pkg gabriela matute marihuana pot corona modelo cerveza infusion cannabis constellation brands_00001822.jpg

Fabricantes de la cerveza Corona planean una bebida con marihuana

Jonathan Beaver of San Francisco holds a marijuana cigarette at the San Francisco Patients Cooperative, a medical cannabis cooperative, November 29, 2004 in San Francisco, California.

¿Se debería usar la marihuana en el deporte?

Recreational marijuana goes on sale in Nevada

Deportistas que defienden el uso medicinal de la marihuana

Poll: Majority of Republicans support marijuana legalization

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Last Look: Marijuana to fight opioid epidemic?

cnnee pkg jimena de la quintana cannabis medicinal peru marihuana legal terapeutica ley_00003129.jpg

Madres peruanas celebran la aprobación del uso medicinal de la marihuana

Larache, MOROCCO: View of cannabis plantations in the northern Moroccan Larache region, 16 June 2006. Some 134,000 hectares (330,000 acres) of land in Morocco are given over to growing cannabis, the plant from which hashish is derived. AFP PHOTO/ABDELHAK SENNA (Photo credit should read ABDELHAK SENNA/AFP/Getty Images)

Aquí la marihuana es legal para uso medicinal

#MinutoCNN: Congreso de Perú aprueba el uso del cannabis medicinal

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¡Ya puedes estudiar una carrera en Marihuana!

GO WITH AFP STORY by Desiree Martin A picture taken on April 12, 2013 shows plants of marijuana at the plantation of the Sibaratas Med Can association in Mogan on the southwest coast of the island of Gran Canaria. The plants grow from cuttings for approximately two months and then blossom before being harvested, dried, stored in jars for a month and later processed to be consumed on site. Spanish law prohibits the possession of soft drugs like cannabis in public and its growth to be sold for profit is illegal. But the law does tolerate growing cannabis for personal use and its consumption in private. Dozens of private marijuana smoking clubs operate across Spain that take advantage of this legal loophole that serve cannabis users who do not want to get their drugs from the streets. AFP PHOTO / DESIREE MARTIN (Photo credit should read DESIREE MARTIN/AFP/Getty Images)

The green gold rush: Could Africa be on the verge of a weed race?

The weed distributor fighting 'big marijuana'

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Conservative senator's statement laced with marijuana references