The state of Arizona is known to have some of the harshest marijuana laws in the country. However, this November voters in the Grand Canyon state might be able to vote for medical marijuana through a ballot initiative. With the high chances of medical marijuana being legal by the end of the year, Phoenix city leaders held a meeting earlier this week to come up with a plan if medical marijuana is legalized.

ABC News reports that the passage of the ballot initiative would allow patients with serious medical conditions to have two and a half ounces of marijuana every two weeks. Medical marijuana patients would only be allowed to buy marijuana from a limited number of clinics that are regulated by the state. At Monday's Phoenix City Council Meeting, council members discussed the potential requirements of medical marijuana dispensaries in Arizona so that the state would be able to enforce zoning plans. Phoenix Councilwoman Peggy Neely is looking to develop a zoning plan before the Nov. 2 election that ensures buffers for certain neighborhoods, churches, schools, and other sensitive locations.

Most people in Phoenix are aware that possession and distribution of a controlled substance is illegal in Arizona. However, few people may realize that it's also illegal to distribute (or possess with the intent to distribute) or manufacture an imitation of a controlled substance. So, a person in Arizona can actually face serious legal trouble if he or she sells a mixture of fake cocaine that is perhaps comprised of a mixture of salt, sugar, and energy powder. Such a substance would be considered an imitation of a controlled substance.

Arizona Revised Statute 13-3453 states that any person who manufactures, distributes, or possesses with intent to distribute an imitation controlled substance as a controlled substance is guilty of a class 5 felony. In Arizona, class 5 felonies are punishable with up to one and one half years in prison, if the person has no prior convictions.

The first stage of a courtroom-based proceeding in a criminal case is the arraignment. It's common for a defendant to be nervous during the arraignment, but there's no need to be since the process is very simple. Sometimes, the arraignment lasts just a few short minutes in Maricopa County.

During a typical arraignment, a person charged with a crime is called before a criminal court judge. FindLaw states that judge then reads the criminal charges against the defendant and will ask if the defendant is in need of a court-appointed Phoenix criminal defense attorney.

In the state of Arizona, a person commits negligent homicide if there was criminal negligence in a case that resulted in the death of another person. Many Phoenix criminal lawyers find it interesting that negligent homicides in Arizona can apply to an unborn child, even though unborn children are not usually protected under the law in many U.S. states.

Section 13-1102 of the Arizona State Legislature provides a definition of the negligent homicide crime in the Grand Canyon state. A negligent homicide is considered the least severe of murder and manslaughter charges because the killing of another person is usually seen as unintentional in negligent homicide cases.

Albert Guzman, from Scottsdale, was arrested this week after police received phone calls saying that the man was molesting a young girl in public view. However, the Arizona Republic reports that Albert Guzman is a well-known community member  with a good reputation as a father and volunteer at Kiva Elementary School.

The 63-year-old man was booked on one count of sexual conduct with a minor and public sexual indecency after a witness called 911 to report an incident at the Scottsdale greenbelt in which the caller told police that the man had the little girl up in a tree with her underwear and pants off.

Tempe police officers concluded their seven-month long investigation in what they call Operation Dark Carnival, named after the tiny balloons that drug dealers are using to stash one-fourth grams of heroin. The Arizona Republic reports that this time around police were able to arrest 40 people in the heroin sting, including 15 suspected heroin dealers from 10 different trafficking organizations.

Heroin certainly seems to be hot trend on the drug market these days. According to the Arizona Republic, heroin dealing has skyrocketed in the state of Arizona and across the country over the last few years. Since 2007, Arizona heroin seizures have reportedly soared by more than 50 percent. Authorities confiscated 342 pounds of heroin in 2007, compared to 297 pounds in 2008 and 105 pounds in 2007.Across the border, Mexican heroin production has shot up by 342 percent with 8.6 metric tons being produced in 2004 compared to 38 metric tons in 2008.

The man that pistol-whipped two people in a Phoenix apartment complex last Halloween has been sentenced to 20 years behind bars and three years of probation after his release from prison. Perhaps the city of Phoenix can breathe a sigh of relief for Halloween 2010.

Associated Press reports that the sentencing took place on Tuesday after 34-year-old Justin Pare was found guilty of first-degree burglary, aggravated assault and unlawful flight. The man was reportedly wearing a black and white skeleton mask on October 31 when he entered an apartment through a window and demanded money from a man. The victim was struck in the head with a gun once he told the masked man that he did not have any money. The same thing happened again to another victim that was in the courtyard of the Phoenix apartment complex.