--HIGHlife Livin-(since Dec '09)--

WELL DAYUM: OVER 7,000 POUNDZ OF HIGHlife FOUND OFF THE COAST!!!!

DANA POINT (CBS) — Harbor Patrol agents started receiving calls just after noon Sunday about large bails of marijuana floating off the coast of Dana Point.

About 160 bales were found and confiscated.

In all, officials said the pot totaled more than 7,263 pounds, and counting.

It’s unclear if any arrests were made.

Several boats were involved in the retrieval effort including Coast Guard and Border Patrol.

Edward Lawrence, reporting for CBS2 and KCAL9, says Border Patrol agents said the marijuana has a street value of $3.6 million.

US Border Patrol Agent Supervisor Michael Jimenez released the following statement Sunday evening: “Law enforcement authorities seized marijuana found off the coast of Orange County, California this afternoon. Seizing the narcotics is the result of the joint efforts of federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities working together within one regional coordinating group to stop illegal maritime activity along the Southern California coastline.”

He added, “Shortly before noon on Sunday, May 20, maritime law enforcement authorities received a tip about suspicious bales floating in the water off the coast of Orange County, near Dana Point. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department responded and recovered numerous bales of marijuana, and turned the narcotics over to the U.S. Border Patrol.”

HIGHER LEARNING: STUDENT MARIJUANA USE UP (SURVEY)

The percentage of Henry County Schools high school students who say they smoke marijuana every day has increased dramatically in the last few years, and some other measures of marijuana use also have increased significantly, all mirroring national trends.

But Katie Connelly, community organizer for prevention for Piedmont Community Services, said it’s important to point out that when the drug survey was most recently done early this school year, about two-thirds of students said they did not smoke marijuana. She said that’s a comparatively high percentage for nonuse, and it shows that despite what may be a perception otherwise, not everybody’s doing it. Social norms in the community contribute to the high nonuse percentage, Connelly said. According to Pride Surveys (a drug use survey) statistics provided by Connelly and Bonnie Favero, prevention manager for PCS:

• The percentage of 10th- and 12th-graders in Henry County Schools smoking pot every day was 9.7 percent this school year, compared with 5.1 percent in the 2009-10 school year. That’s a 90 percent increase. • The percentage of 10th- and 12th-graders in the county schools who smoked pot in the past 30 days was 23.5 percent this school year, compared with 16.8 percent in the 2009-10 school year. That’s a 28.5 percent increase.

• The percentage of 10th- and 12th-graders in county schools who had used marijuana in the past year was 33.8 percent this school year compared with 27 percent in the 2009-10 school year. That’s a 20 percent increase. Among high school students, only 10th- and 12th-graders were surveyed. Comparable drug use statistics were not available for Martinsville Schools, but historically, city schools statistics are similar to the county’s, Favero said. The trends for marijuana use among Henry County teens are similar to national trends. A new national report by The Partnership at Drugfree.org (and sponsored by MetLife Foundation) covers the period of 2008-11. According to a news release, the Partnership Attitude Tracking Study (PATS) shows:

• Past-month heavy use of marijuana (at least 20 times) increased 80 percent from 2008-11. In 2011, 9 percent of U.S. high school students (nearly 1.5 million) smoked marijuana heavily.

• Past-month use is up 42 percent (up from 19 percent in 2008 to 27 percent in 2011, which translates to about 4 million teens).

• Past-year use is up 26 percent (up from 31 percent in 2008 to 39 percent in 2011, which translates to about 6 million teens). “The last time marijuana use was this widespread among teens was in 1998, when past-month use of marijuana was at 27 percent,” the release says. Steve Pasierb, president and CEO of The Partnership at Drugfree.org, stated in the release:

“These findings are deeply disturbing as the increases we’re seeing in heavy, regular marijuana use among high school students can spell real trouble for these teens later on. … Heavy use of marijuana — particularly beginning in adolescence — brings the risk of serious problems, and our data show it is linked to involvement with alcohol and other drugs as well.

Kids who begin using drugs or alcohol as teenagers are more likely to struggle with substance use disorders when compared to those who start using after the teenage years.” Connelly and Favero agreed with Pasierb’s comment. Connelly and Favero wrote: “In our area, teens who smoked marijuana were more than twice as likely to engage in other risky behaviors, such as gang involvement, other illegal drug use, thinking of suicide, being in trouble with the police and carrying a gun to school. “According to a 2010 Service to Science survey of local high school students, those students involved with the CHILL program had 0 percent 30-day use of marijuana.”

CHILL is a program for area high school students in which they learn about effects of substance abuse, serve as good role models for their peers and organize drug-free activities, said Connelly, coordinator of CHILL and HEY (Helping Engage Youth) Community Coalition. HEY is an adult group that partners with CHILL, which stands for Communities Helping Improve Local Lives. The news release said the PATS data also found an erosion of anti-marijuana attitudes among teens, with only about half of teens (51 percent) saying they see “great risk” in using marijuana, down significantly from 61 percent in 2005.

Favero said she believes a decline in the perceived harm, or risk of marijuana is the single biggest reason for the increase in marijuana use among Henry County high school students. When the most recent Prides Survey was done early this school year, a little more than half of Henry County Schools 12th-graders (51.5 percent) indicated they perceive marijuana as harmful and 59.7 percent of 10th-graders did, according to statistics Favero and Connelly provided.

Favero said those percentages are down significantly from years past. In fact, the survey early this school year showed that more Henry County students in grades 10 and 12 smoked marijuana (22.9 percent) than cigarettes (18.1 percent), Favero said. “I truly believe more than anything” the local increase in teen marijuana use is due to a decline in “perception of harm. When it goes down, use goes up. That’s a scientific fact,” Favero said. In the survey early this school year, significantly more Henry County 10th- and 12th-graders perceived alcohol and tobacco as harmful, compared with marijuana.

According to statistics Favero and Connelly provided, 81.7 percent of 10th-graders and 82.4 percent of 12th-graders perceived tobacco as harmful; 75.5 percent of 10th-graders and 75.9 percent of 12th-graders perceived alcohol as harmful. Favero and Connelly said they believe the local decline in the perception of marijuana as harmful is due to such factors as discussion about the legalization of medical use of marijuana in a number of states; the entertainment industry’s portrayal of characters smoking pot, making it look cool; and public misperceptions and lack of knowledge about today’s marijuana, which is more potent than marijuana of years past and may be laced with other drugs, such as opium and cocaine. Favero said, for instance, some young children think marijuana is legal because it’s natural.

They also may think it’s legal to smoke it when you’re age 30 or so because they see their parents smoking it, she said. Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry said a school resource officer he talked with had not observed an increase in marijuana use. The SRO indicated “the predominant thing in schools … is still pills,” Perry said. Perry said, “It’s not related to the schools, but marijuana arrests in the general public have increased.” He added there have been more seizures of marijuana locally over the last year or so.

According to information Connelly and Favero provided, a total of more than 800 10th- and 12th-graders in Henry County Schools participated in the Pride Survey drug use survey early this school year. Connelly said the survey has been done annually the last few years and before that was done every other year.

She said most students voluntarily participate in the survey. One way the survey tries to ensure students answer honestly is by asking the same question in a number of slightly different ways, she said. The surveys are administered anonymously and have been found to produce highly reliable information, according to the Pride Surveys webslte.

BURNT OUT: $500,000 MEDICAL MARIJUANA LOAN UP IN SMOKE!!!

Sometimes even the best-laid plans go up in smoke. And sometimes these plans end up costing a lot of money.

That’s what happened to Mark Haile and Michele Hammer, two Arizona businesspeople who in August, 2010, each loaned $250,000 to Today’s Health Care II (THC), a Colorado-based medical marijuana dispensary. The agreements specifically stated that THC was using the loan proceeds for “a retail medical marijuana sales and grow center,” but neither Haile nor Hammer thought that would ever be a problem.

Marijuana is legal in Arizona and Colorado (along with 14 other states and the District of Columbia); patients simply need a physician’s prescription and they are legally allowed to obtain pot for medicinal purposes.

In fact, as far as Haile and Hammer were concerned, it was a smart business move. In California, for example, medical cannabis is an estimated $1.3 billion industry (Colorado is the nation’s second-largest market). Why not get in on a potentially lucrative enterprise?

Talk about a pot of gold.

But in March 12, 2011, THC defaulted on its loan. According to the original terms, THC had five days to re-pay its debt. If it didn’t, Haile and Hammer were entitled to repayment of the principal loan amount at a default interest rate of 21 percent, plus attorney fees.

By March 17, THC still hadn’t paid anything, so Hammer and Haile sued, clearly expecting to win.

But they didn’t. Instead, in his April 17 ruling, Judge Michael McVey, of Maricopa County Superior Court, dismissed the suit, stating that he couldn’t enforce the loan agreement because the money was for an illegal purpose under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act, a federal law. While he recognized his ruling was “harsh,” federal law trumps state law, and THC doesn’t have to repay any part of either loan (although it will have to report the $500,000 as taxable income).

Lawyers for Haile and Hammer could not be reached for comment. But in a Phoenix New Times, story Randy Nussbaum, managing partner of the law firm that represented them, expressed surprise. Haile and Hammer “were provided with what they thought was a legitimate business opportunity, and they entered into this agreement in good faith,” he said.

William Kozub, THC’s lawyer, was not surprised with the verdict. “It’s a classic supremacy issue—federal versus state,” he said. “Take the marijuana out of it. Just make it a regular commercial dispute for something that’s illegal under federal law. It’s that simple. Drug lords from Colombia cannot come to court and say ‘They sold me bad cocaine.’ The Taliban can’t sue in US federal court because they had a kidnapping gone awry. Certain things are just illegal.”

Though the case can’t set legal precedent, it does raise interesting questions for people involved in the medical marijuana industry, or those interested in getting involved: banks, individual investors, landlords, suppliers, medical directors, independent contractors and yes, even patients.

Over the last year, the Drug Enforcement Agency has raided dozens of dispensaries across the country, most notably in California.

THIS IS HIGHlifeLIVIN: RIHANNA ROLLING A BLUNT ON BODYGUARDZ HEAD!!!!!!

HIGHlife EATZ: $100 DOLLA HOT DOG!!!

DougieDog Hot Dogs in Vancouver, Canada now holds the new Guinness World Record for Most Expensive Hot Dog in the World. Dethroning Brockton Rox’s $80 and Serendipity’s $69 variants, the latest entrant is way ahead of the race with a staggering $100 price tag.

The $100 Dragon Dog, which has been on the DougieDog menu since January 23rd 2012 has received the official world record notification and certificate as well. So what does this meal bring to the table? Well, it comes “infused with hundred-year-old cognac and topped with lobster and kobe beef”, the malt here being Louis XIII.

TRAPPIN AINT DEAD: GRANDMA CAUGHT MAKING MAJOR MOVEZ IN OKLAHOMA!!!!!

A 73-year-old Oklahoma grandmother has been busted on charges that she ran a lucrative drug operation that supplied marijuana to drug dealers in four states.

Police said they found about 4 pounds of pot, a semiautomatic pistol and a revolver, and more than $276,000 in cash when they raided Darlene Mayes’ home in rural Craig County.

Investigators say the elderly woman supplied about 40 percent of the pot circulating in the area, including the city of Tulsa and parts of nearby Arkansas, Kansas and Missouri.

“That was quite a surprise,” Bobby Floyd, police chief for the city of Vinita, told The Daily yesterday.

He said authorities had been investigating the drug ring for several years. They only learned the identity of the kingpin around noon Monday. Several hours later, they searched the home and arrested Mayes.

“She is in very good shape for her age,” Floyd said.

The drug ring was a family affair, police said. Mayes’ son, Jerry Dorsey, was arrested Monday on charges of possession with intent to distribute. He was carrying nearly 2 pounds of pot, as well as drug paraphernalia and $2,100 in cash, and driving with a suspended license, authorities said.

Dorsey was one of his mother’s many dealers, Floyd said.

“From what we gathered, there were people running around selling for her,” he said. “Nobody dealt directly with her.”

Mayes kept her supply in her bedroom, which stank of marijuana, Floyd said. Officers found vacuum-sealed bags of marijuana in a black trash bag in the the middle of Mayes’ closet, he said.

In the bathroom, a drug pipe and open quarter-pound bag of marijuana were stowed under the sink, Floyd said.

But the big surprise was the huge amount of cash hidden in the bedroom.

“I raised the mattress up and there was money,” Floyd said. “Our intel didn’t say that she had cash, just product.”

Under the box spring was a vacuum-sealed bundle of bills, labeled: “$15,000.” In fact, when officers counted, the total was $15,020.

In the guest bedroom where Mayes’ grandchildren slept when they visited, police found more vacuum-sealed wads, totaling around $200,000, Floyd said.

More cash was found in the bed of her pickup truck, he said. All told, officers seized $276,580.

Mayes first tried to tell officers that the money was her retirement fund, Floyd said.
He said Mayes may have been trafficking marijuana for as long as two decades.

“From everything I’ve gathered, they’re going to be looking for a new supplier in the area,” he said.

Mayes faces charges including possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, maintaining a dwelling where drugs are kept or sold, and possession of a firearm in commission of a felony.

Mark Woodward, spokesman for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, said he hoped Mayes would not get any sympathy because of her age.

“She knew exactly what she was doing and supplying and exactly who she’s profiting from,” he said. “She’s old enough to know what she’s doing and know that she’s responsible for her actions.”

UNNNNNGHHHH…MR. ICE CREAM MANNN: DUDE WAS SELLING TREE FROM HIS ICE CREAM TRUCK!!!!

A Waldorf, Md., man faces charges after being busted for allegedly selling drugs out of an ice cream truck.

“Ice cream or marijuana, you can take your pick with this guy,” said Diane Richardson, of the Charles County Sheriff’s Office.

Police stopped the truck at Bayswater Court and Sheffield Circle. They found the marijuana and cash in Hoskins’s underwear.

He apparently had been dealing from the truck for some time, according to the Charles County Sheriff’s Office.

“We wish we got that call just a bit sooner so we could have found more drugs, but what we did find was significant enough to show that he had been dealing it, and for us, we’re removing a drug dealer off the streets,” Richardson said.

Hoskins was selling to teens and young adults through word of mouth, authorities said.

He was charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

Hoskins is out on bond and out of business, authorities said. He won’t be selling ice cream again anytime soon.

NO RESPECT FOR THE HIGHlife: MARIJUANA LEAF MASCOT IS KICKED OUT OF BASEBALL GAME!!!!

Pretty ridiculous. Guys just trying to have a good time, repping his swag. The Blue Jays could use a mascot and a funny one at that. This guy is way more representative of the Toronto fan base than a freaking dude rocking a blue oversized birds head. Plus, when you’re playing for fourth place in the AL East every year, you need some entertainment in the stands. Particularly of the high variety.

It’s even more absurdity that security was spending their time dealing with this goofball who wasn’t bothering anyone while this brawl was going on in the stands that day amongst drunk fans. Needless to say, the Rogers Centre would be a much friendlier place if they let their patrons blaze. Make joints, not war.