With a new Democratic majority in the state legislature, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring is hoping to make major reforms to the state's cannabis laws.
Herring, who is hosting a cannabis summit on December 11, told Cheddar on Tuesday he is bringing together legislators and experts in an effort to push forward his calls for reform.
"I'm really encouraged about the prospect of actually passing decriminalization in Virginia and the prospect of actually passing a plan to move to legal and regulated adult use," he said.
Herring is hopeful that by providing lawmakers a space to ask questions and address concerns with experts, as well as individuals from states that have already legalized or decriminalized marijuana use, his state can move towards passing new legislation.
Marijuana arrests in Virginia hit a 20-year high in 2018, and enforcement costs the state more than $80 million annually, Herring said.
"In Virginia, an arrest and a criminal conviction stays with you your whole life … That's not fair," he said, noting the disproportionate number of black Virginians arrested for marijuana possession.
But he says he is confident Virginia can move forward "in a historic way."
Coronavirus cases are rising in nearly half the U.S. states. And while many are chalked up to increased testing or to small, local outbreaks, others are more alarming.
MTA Chairman Pat Foye wants to reassure New York City riders that mass transit is safe amid Phase 1 reopening from the pandemic..
Traditionally around this time of the year, advertisers and agencies attend hours of pitches from media companies featuring their most promising TV shows and marquee events for the upcoming year. Like so many things in 2020, this year is different.
As massive waves of protesters in communities across the U.S. call for fundamental changes in American policing, former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter told Cheddar the nation must find a balance between good policing and civilian safety.
Hundreds of mourners packed a Houston church Tuesday for the funeral of George Floyd, the black man whose death has inspired a worldwide reckoning over racial injustice.
A top World Health Organization expert has tried to clear up “misunderstandings” about comments she made that were widely understood to suggest that people without COVID-19 symptoms rarely transmit the coronavirus.
After three gloomy months and 21,000 deaths that made it the nation's most lethal hot spot, New York City slowly began reopening Monday in the biggest test yet of Americans' ability to keep the coronavirus in check.
Dr. Patrice Harris, speaking to Cheddar the day after her tenure at the American Medical Association ended, leaves the nation’s largest association of physicians at a time of remarkable upheaval for the medical community.
Cheddar followed the ongoing demonstrations in New York City on Thursday as protesters vowed to continue pushing back against police brutality and systemic racism.
Cheikh Mboup, president of Edible Arrangements, said it might be time to engage in sensitive topics in the workplace.
