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An initiative that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California officially took its place on the Nov. 8 ballot on Tuesday as its campaign took a commanding lead in fundraising to battle the measure’s opponents. The Secretary of State’s Office certified that a random sample showed sufficient signatures among the 600,000 turned in to qualify the measure. The initiative is backed by a coalition that includes former Facebook President Sean Parker and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom. (McGreevy, 6/28)

Californians are set to decide whether to make recreational marijuana use legal, as other Western states have done, after the California Secretary of State's office said on Tuesday the issue could be put to voters in the November ballot. (6/29)

Illinois must add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of diseases eligible for medical marijuana treatment, a Cook County judge ordered Tuesday in a sternly worded ruling that also said the state's public health director engaged in a "private investigation" that was "constitutionally inappropriate." (6/28)

Marijuana is legal in Colorado — as long as you're 21 or older. It's still illegal for kids to possess, so juveniles are coming to dominate the marijuana arrests in Colorado. But another startling trend also has developed: Arrest rates have risen dramatically for young blacks and Latinos. (Markus, 6/29)

A group of local doctors plans to open a medical marijuana testing facility in Columbia to ensure product quality as the state prepares to launch its burgeoning therapeutic cannabis industry. Testing is required by state law for cannabis growers, which presented an opportunity for the group of four doctors, led by Dr. Andrew Rosenstein, chief of the division of gastroenterology at University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center. (Cohn, 6/28)