CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va (WVIR) -

A cash crop banned in Virginia for decades will soon be legally grown in the commonwealth, thanks to some new legislation.

Governor Terry McAuliffe signed a bill this week that will let people legally manufacture industrial hemp products. That law goes into effect July first this year.

The Virginia Industrial Hemp Coalition (VIHC) calls it a historic milestone after years of lobbying for legalization.

State Sen. Louise Lucas has been stymied in an attempt to legalize derivatives of the marijuana plant for treating cancer.

Lucas’ legislation, which sailed through the Senate on a 38-2 vote this month, was rejected Monday by a House of Delegates subcommittee after almost no debate, halting its progress for the year.

Lucas, D-Portsmouth, said afterward that she’ll try again next year.

Lucas’ bill, SB343, would have established a legal defense against prosecution for possession of two non-intoxicating marijuana derivatives, cannabidiol oil and THC-A oil, with a doctor’s certification that it is to be used for treating cancer.

The Virginia Senate passed a bill that will allow the production and manufacturing of two different marijuana oils for patients with epilepsy. It's called the Medical Marijuana Program Improvement bill.    

Last year, two bills gave epilepsy patients a defense if found in possession of cannabis oils. But, the law provided no way for patients to actually obtain the oils without breaking federal and state laws.

That's where this latest bill would change things.

The director of the Virginia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws said she is remaining optimistic in spite of scant political will in the statehouse for the cause.

The Republican-led House Courts of Justice this week tabled various marijuana-related proposals, including one to decriminalize it. But Virginia NORML Director Pam Novy, of Culpeper, said that would not set back the state’s marijuana reform movement.

The family of a young Russell County woman facing up to ten years in prison after using marijuana to treat seizures while pregnant has started a crowdfunding campaign to raise funds for her criminal defense.

Katie Darovitz shared her story with ProPublica and Al.com earlier this year. The 25-year-old suffers from epilepsy so severe that she can't drive safely or hold a job. When she found out she was pregnant, she went off her anti-epilepsy drugs – which have been linked to birth defects – and began using marijuana to prevent seizures.

HARRISONBURG, Va. (WHSV) -- Leaders from the regional drug task force said users often go for synthetic marijuana called "spice" or "K2" because it is cheaper and easier to get than real marijuana. Plus, there's a myth that spice doesn't show up on drug testing.

We checked in with the RUSH Drug Task Force. In 2013, they handled six cases involving spice, seizing nearly 30 grams.

In 2014, there was a big increase. There were 21 cases and more than 8,000 grams. In 2015 (so far) the task force has had 25 cases and nearly 3,500 grams collected.

FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA — Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders went farther than any of his opponents in calling for an end to the war on drugs Wednesday when he told college students at George Mason University it was time to “to remove the federal prohibition on marijuana.”

Sanders said a shift away from criminal prosecutions for marijuana could improve the lives of black Americans he said are unfairly burdened with criminal records for doing something Americans of all races also do.

ew study of Los Angeles-area kids suggests a specific way to reduce the risk that they will drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs as teenagers — challenge their positive beliefs about marijuana, and start doing it as early as sixth grade.

Why? Compared to 12-year-olds who had negative views of marijuana, 12-year-olds who believed marijuana could help them relax or was otherwise beneficial were significantly more likely to drive under the influence when they were 16. They were also significantly more likely to ride with someone else who was buzzed, drunk or high behind the wheel, according to the study, published Monday in the journal Pediatrics.

Williamsburg techie Michael Christopher wants to merge the cannabis industry with the herbal wellness movement and “tea renaissance.” With a name inspired by the Brooklyn loft culture, Loft Teais a line of “natural remedy” teas infused with CBD — a non-psychotropic cannabinoid, or chemical compound found in the cannabis plant. Christopher publicly launched Loft Tea in June.

STEVENSBURG — Members of a non-profit state organization are trying to weed out legislation that criminalizes the possession of marijuana in Virginia.

According to the group’s mission statement, it wants to “represent Virginia’s cannabis community at the General Assembly and throughout the state, and to promote a regulated cannabis market by legalizing the responsible use, cultivation and distribution of cannabis products.”

Established in 1970 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, or NORML, recently started a Culpeper Chapter in August.