STATE REP. YUKO INTRODUCES MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL

State Rep. Kenny Yuko has a vision for a greener Ohio. And as promised, the Richmond Heights Democrat has introduced a bill in the Ohio House to legalize the growing, distribution and usage of medical marijuana, the Columbus Dispatch reports.

Ohio will become the 15th state to legalize marijuana for medical purposes if Yuko's bill passes — something the Dispatch doesn't think will happen.

If that's the case, then Ohioans may wish to follow Michigan's lead, says Ed Orlett, a former state lawmaker and Ohio representative of the Drug Policy Alliance. In 2008, Michigan voters approved a medical-marijuana ballot measure by 63 percent.

"Ohio voters may elect to take matters into their own hands just as Michigan voters did and leave the legislature out of the process," says Orlett in a press release. Orlett, along with members of Ohio
NORML and Ohio Patients Network, helped Yuko craft the bill. — Damian Guevara