For California patients, Thanksgiving is coming early this year: Melinda Haag, the US Attorney for the Northern District of California and the bane of medical marijuana growers and distributors from Humboldt County to San Jose, will resign her office on September 1st, according to the San Jose Mercury News. Haag announced her resignation after notifying US Attorney General Loretta Lynch.

Haag has drawn withering criticism for her obstinate assault on California patient rights despite broad public support for medical marijuana. Most controversial of all has been Haag’s persistent asset forfeiture actions against Harborside Health Center’s Oakland and San Jose locations, despite guidelines from the Department of Justice advising US Attorneys not to waste resources on prosecuting medical marijuana operations in states where they are legal. Her persistence prompted the City of Oakland to intervene against the loss of one of its leading taxpayers and even a federal appeals court to question why Haag was, essentially, wasting their time....