Tennessee Looks for New Execution Drug:  Brian Haas of the Tennessean reports that his state is looking for a replacement drug for its lethal injection process after its stock of sodium thiopental was confiscated by the federal government.  The confiscation was the result of a federal judge's March 2012 order announcing that the drug has been illegally obtained by states which use it as part of their three-drug execution protocol.  The ruling in Cook v. FDA (formerly Beaty v. FDA) has been appealed to the DC Circuit as reported in earlier posts available here.  Death penalty opponents were pleased with the ruling because it has delayed executions in some states.  The state is considering switching to the more widely available drug pentobarbital, which is in use in a single drug execution protocol is several states.   

Get Your Pot from a Vending Machine:  NBC news writer Jeff Black reports that California-based Medbox is gearing up to install vending machines dispensing marijuana for recreational users.  The company, which already has machines in Arizona, Massachusetts and Connecticut for "medial marijuana" users, is negotiating with officials Colorado and Washington, which recently legalized pot for recreational use.  A spokesman for Washington's Liquor Control Board said that their law requires that marijuana be sold within the confines of a retail outlet.  McDonalds, Wal Mart, Rite Aid?