North Carolina medical marijuana sales begin at Cherokee store

CHEROKEE, N.C. (AP) — Medical marijuana can now be legally purchased in North Carolina with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians opening its long-planned dispensary this weekend on tribal land. Hundreds of people celebrated Saturday’s historic opening of the Great Smoky Cannabis Co. in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The tribe decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana on tribal lands in 2021 and formed a medical marijuana system to grow cannabis and sell it. The tribe can pass rules permitting cannabis as a sovereign nation and federally recognized tribe. Marijuana use remains illegal in the rest of North Carolina. The tribe is looking at allowing the adult, recreational use of marijuana.