Remember last New Year’s Day, when we all woke up to our Twitter timelines filled with images of the iconic Hollywood sign transformed to “Hollyweed?” Well, the police aren’t having it this year.
According to TMZ, the Los Angeles Police Department is ramping up security detail around Tinseltown’s legendary sign on New Year’s Eve in order to avoid another weed-related prank. Authorities also told the outlet that police will be driving around the sign frequently, along with the occasional helicopter checking in. Seems like a waste of taxpayer dollars, but hey.
It seems like this upcoming New Year’s Day would have been the perfect opportunity to attempt the prank; licensed shops in California will be permitted to sellrecreational marijuana legally to individuals 21 and up. However, it won’t be just that simple. The soon-to-be largest state with a legal marijuana market faces many challenges ahead.
The biggest issue? Individuals that seek to grow or sell marijuana need a local permit in order to apply for a state license, and many California are simply not prepared for the demand.
"I think the state dropped the ball big time. This should have been done by June, July," Donnie Anderson, an Los Angeles-based marijuana grower, told the Associated Press. "I don't think this is going to be ready."
So while some locations may be able to sell legal marijuana on New Year’s Day, the vast majority will not. Los Angeles, which will potentially be one of the largest marijuana markets in California, won’t quite be “Hollyweed” just yet.
