| June 25, 2004 #355 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) US: JUSTICES, IN 5-4 VOTE, RAISE DOUBTS ON SENTENCING RULES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON, -- The Supreme Court invalidated the criminal sentencing
system of the State of Washington on Thursday in a decision that also
cast doubt on whether the 20-year-old federal sentencing guidelines
can survive a constitutional challenge. | ||||||||||||||||||
Bitterly split in a 5-to-4 decision that cut across the court's usual
ideological lines, the justices continued a profound five-year-long
debate over the respective roles of judges and juries in criminal
sentencing. In this case, they ratcheted that debate up to a new level
that left the federal guidelines in constitutional limbo and cast
doubt on the validity of thousands of sentences, at both the state and
federal level. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sentencing in about a dozen states is likely to be affected by the
ruling. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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In the Washington guidelines case, Justice Antonin Scalia's majority
opinion held that the Washington system, permitting judges to make
findings that increase a convicted defendant's sentence beyond the
ordinary range for the crime, violated the right to trial by jury
protected by the Sixth Amendment. The facts supporting increased
sentences must be found by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt, Justice
Scalia said. | ||||||||||||||||||
While the federal system is considerably more complex, it places
judges in much the same role, empowering them to make the factual
findings that determine the ultimate sentence and requiring nothing
more to support those findings than a "preponderance of the evidence."
That is the legal system's lowest standard of proof, while "beyond a
reasonable doubt" is its highest. | ||||||||||||||||||
While Justice Scalia said that "the federal guidelines are not before
us, and we express no opinion on them," that statement appeared to be
simply marking time. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(2) US NJ: CITY COUNCIL OKS NEEDLE EXCHANGE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Camden last night became the second city in New Jersey to defy state
law enforcement officials by adopting a plan to provide clean syringes
to intravenous drug users. | ||||||||||||||||||
City Council passed the needle-exchange ordinance, 4-0, a week after
Atlantic City approved a similar program. On Wednesday, Atlantic
County Prosecutor Jeffrey Blitz filed suit to challenge Atlantic
City's program. | ||||||||||||||||||
Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi said he would review the Camden ordinance before deciding whether to take legal action. | ||||||||||||||||||
The state Attorney General's Office has declared that needle exchanges
violate state law. Some legislators have proposed bills this year to
allow various kinds of needle exchanges, but none of the bills has
become law. | ||||||||||||||||||
Randy Primas, Camden's state-designated chief operating officer, has
veto power over any measure passed by Council, and he has said he
concurs with the attorney general. | ||||||||||||||||||
Primas did not attend last night's meeting, but Council President Angel Fuentes said Primas had agreed not to take action before meeting with a 12-member committee that has studied needle exchanges. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It is a national health issue," Fuentes said. "We hope other
municipalities will do the same thing and have the courage and the
guts to move forward."
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[snip]
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(3) US NV: FORGOTTEN BOX OF POT PETITION SIGNATURES FOUND (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A forgotten box containing 6,000 petition signatures of Clark County
residents might cost voters a chance to decide in November whether to
legalize possession of up to an ounce of marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
Organizers of the ballot question last week said they submitted 66,135
signatures. Out of those, they need 51,337 valid signatures to get the
issue on the ballot. | ||||||||||||||||||
However, Billy Rogers, who works for the Washington D.C.-based Marijuana Project and operates a local political consulting firm, subsequently told the Election Department he found a box with 6,000 more signatures and wanted to turn them in after the June 15 deadline. | ||||||||||||||||||
Clark County Registrar of Voters Larry Lomax said no, citing state law that outlaws signatures from being turned in after the deadline. | ||||||||||||||||||
The marijuana signatures were turned in on June 15, Lomax said, noting
that, under state law, even if they were turned in on June 10, the
additional signatures would not have been accepted if they were turned
in later that day. All signatures must be submitted at one time, he
said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Supporters of the measure, which also would increase penalties for
selling pot to minors and for driving under the influence of the drug,
remain undaunted even with the setback. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We have more than 66,000 signatures statewide, we are confident we
will make it on the ballot," Rogers said today, noting that more than
35,000 signatures from Clark County were turned in where 31,360 were
required. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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Lomax said a general rule of thumb is that during the validation process three of every 10 signatures are tossed out for various reasons, most commonly because the signer is not a registered voter. | ||||||||||||||||||
"They are going to need an unbelievably clean petition," Lomax said
noting that 10 percent of 35,000 -- 3,500 -- would put the petition on
the cusp of failure. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(4) US CA: SUING THE REAPER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A South L.A. Sickle-Cell Patient Had To Sue The LAPD To Stop Pulling
Up Her Legal Pot Harvest. | ||||||||||||||||||
When agents of the DEA came swarming over the garden wall into Sister Somayah Kambui's backyard on October 8, 2003, guns drawn, the snappy, outspoken medical marijuana patient wasn't really surprised. The house she owns in South L.A. had been raided a reported six times since 1996, and usually in September or October - harvest time for marijuana. The agents did not handcuff her, but asked her to step aside so they could pull up 12 healthy plants, one of them the size of a gangly Christmas tree. Kambui, who relies on marijuana to combat debilitating pain from sickle-cell anemia, was in tears. | ||||||||||||||||||
Then her eyes fixed on someone who turned her sorrow to rage: accompanying the federal agents was LAPD Detective Steve McArthur. | ||||||||||||||||||
McArthur had busted Kambui at least four previous autumns, and each
time there had either been no charges filed or, most important, she'd
been acquitted and her grow operation approved under California's 1996
Compassionate Use Act, better known as Proposition 215. Unable to get
an indictment under state law, McArthur had brought in the feds, whose
warrant was based solely on his testimony. After two hours of
questioning, the DEA set Kambui free, and one of the agents even gave
her a hug. | ||||||||||||||||||
Kambui, however, had had enough of Detective McArthur. She filed a
civil suit against McArthur, the LAPD, the City of Los Angeles, and
"John Does 1-50" in January, backed by an increasingly effective
medical cannabis advocacy group, Bay Area-based Americans for Safe
Access. Steph Sherer, ASA' s executive director, says the group spends
most of its time battling federal raids, but this case sends an
important message to the state. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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More information on Kambui's case can be found at:
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy
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COMMENT: (5-8) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Peyote - it's not just for American Indians anymore, according to the
Utah Supreme Court. In a decision handed down this week, the court
ruled that a couple who distributed Peyote during a religious service
were not guilty of felony drug charges. While American Indians had
been allowed to use Peyote during religious ceremonies through
previous court decisions, this was the first time such a right was
recognized for others. | ||||||||||||||||||
Our next story raises mixed feelings in this commentator. Some
elected officials in New Mexico think all legislators should take
drug tests on a voluntary basis, and that results should be
publicized. While it's not right to goad anyone into taking a drug
test, it would be great if politicians finally got a personal
understanding of the indignities and flaws of the process. The
question: If a legislator tests positive for cocaine, will they be
willing to accept a virus into his or her body in order to fight
cocaine cravings? Such a virus may soon be available, according to
reports out of Britain. And finally, some hopeful news out of
California, where a federal court has raised questions about the
appropriateness of a ten-year sentence for a medical marijuana
provider. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) NON-AMERICAN INDIANS CAN USE PEYOTE, COURT RULES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In what is being hailed as a victory for minority religious rights
in Utah, the Utah Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that a Utah County
couple were not guilty of felony drug charges when they distributed
peyote in church ceremonies near Spanish Fork in 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
James Warren "Flaming Eagle" Mooney and his wife, Linda, founded the Utah chapter of the Oklevueha Earthwalks Native American Church in 1997 in Benjamin, near Spanish Fork. In October 2000, Utah County Sheriff's deputies raided the church, saying Mooney was illegally distributing peyote to non-American Indians. Deputies seized nearly 17,500 peyote buttons in addition to the church's computers and records. Mooney and his wife were arrested the next month and posted bond; the Utah chapter of the church has since declared bankruptcy. | ||||||||||||||||||
In 2001, the Mooneys were charged with 10 first-degree felony counts
of operating a controlled substance criminal enterprise, and one
count of racketeering, a second-degree felony. The couple faced life
in prison for the charges. | ||||||||||||||||||
But on Tuesday the Supreme Court reversed that decision. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(6) OFFICIALS SUPPORT VOLUNTARY DRUG TESTING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Most elected officials in eastern New Mexico say they want to learn
more, but they support proposed legislation that calls for voluntary
drug testing for all elected officials in the state. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sen. Steve Komadina, R-Corrales, introduced the legislation on
Wednesday and said results from the voluntary drug tests would be
sent to the Secretary of State and be posted on its Web site. The
proposal will be addressed during next year's legislative session in
Santa Fe. | ||||||||||||||||||
"I want a chance to prove that I am clean," Komadina said.
"Government has the responsibility to prove that it is not being run
by a bunch of druggies."
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Roosevelt County Commissioner Chad Davis said he liked the idea of drug testing elected officials, but thought it should be mandatory. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(7) VIRUS TO CURB COCAINE CRAVINGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Scientists have engineered a virus which may help addicts battle
cocaine addiction. | ||||||||||||||||||
Researchers have already developed proteins that can reduce the
effect of cocaine - but it has proved difficult to slip them past
the body's defences. | ||||||||||||||||||
The new approach uses a virus to bypass these defences, and produce
the proteins where they have most effect. | ||||||||||||||||||
The work, by the U.S. Scripps Research Institute, is published in
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. | ||||||||||||||||||
The researchers injected the virus - known as a phage - into rats'
noses twice a day for three days. On the fourth day, the rats
received a shot of cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||
The cocaine appeared to have less effect on the animals who received
the virus injections than on those who did not. | ||||||||||||||||||
They showed less signs of behaviour typically associated with
exposure to cocaine, such as sniffing and raising themselves on to
their hind legs. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(8) U.S. APPEALS COURT QUESTIONS POT GROWER'S 2002 CONVICTION
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SAN FRANCISCO - A federal appeals court raised serious questions
Wednesday about the pot-growing conviction of Bryan James Epis,
co-founder of the Chico Medical Marijuana Caregivers, but the judges
did not indicate whether they'll order a new trial. | ||||||||||||||||||
Epis is serving a 10-year term for his 2002 conviction for
conspiring to grow marijuana. The sentence came after a stormy trial
in which Sacramento U.S. District Judge Frank C. Damrell Jr.
instructed jurors to disregard evidence of medical use under
California's Proposition 215. However, recent federal court
decisions have barred federal prosecutors from going after medical
marijuana operations that don't involve interstate commerce. The
Supreme Court is expected to announce this month whether it will
review one of those cases. | ||||||||||||||||||
The possible implications for Epis were explored at Wednesday's
hearing by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals. There's no deadline for a decision.
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[snip]
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Law Enforcement & Prisons
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COMMENT: (9-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Ka-ching, ka-ching. That's the sound of corrupt law enforcement
officials being enriched by the drug war while taxpayers are taken to
the cleaners. In Tennessee, corrupt police officials can't account
for millions in drugs and money stolen from an evidence room. Among
those believed to be responsible is a police employee who was hired
specifically to address similar problems four years ago. Meanwhile,
average U.S. citizens paid more than a million dollars for a trial
in which seized drugs weren't even headed for the shores of America.
The trial resulted in no convictions. | ||||||||||||||||||
State officials in Virginia are showing some concern for taxpayers
there by looking at ways to get technical violators, including some
whose parole is revoked for positive drug tests, out of the prison
system. And good news for taxpayers in Oklahoma, where another drug
task force is being dismantled. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) EVIDENCE THEFT NEAR $3 MILLION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Drugs, Guns, Money Went Out Property Room Door; Records Sloppy,
State Auditors Find
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More than $2 million worth of cocaine along with 560 pounds of
marijuana, 66 guns and a small fortune in cash vanished from the
Memphis Police property and evidence room, a state audit released
Tuesday shows. | ||||||||||||||||||
Federal prosecutors say the loot was carted out the property room's
back door and sold. | ||||||||||||||||||
Numerous city workers and accused drug dealers face federal charges. | ||||||||||||||||||
One Memphis lawyer has been charged with laundering profits through
his firm. | ||||||||||||||||||
The comptroller's report found that property room accounting was so
sloppy that the stolen amounts could even be higher than auditors
suggested. | ||||||||||||||||||
A scathing 1999 audit found many of the same lapses and warned of
future problems. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police officials promised reforms and hired Jay Liner to clean up
the operation in December 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
He's since been charged with stealing guns, jewelry, golf clubs and
bottles of champagne from the room. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(10) FIGHT THE DRUG WAR, PAY THE BILL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Yalta Crewmen Are Free To Go Home, But heir Acquittal In Tampa
Comes At A High Price
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TAMPA - A year ago, off the coast of Venezuela, a British war ship
intercepted a freighter bound for Europe and bearing nearly 4 tons
of cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||
Though the vessel was not coming to the United States, in the war on drugs it is U.S. taxpayers who will bear the high cost of the case. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sixteen Lithuanian and Ukrainian crewmen were brought to Tampa and
held nearly a year. This week, after a 11/2-month trial, a federal
jury returned not a single guilty verdict. | ||||||||||||||||||
The cost for all this could top $1-million, according to one of the
16 court-appointed lawyers, some of whom flew to Lithuania, the
Ukraine and Panama to take testimony. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We've become the Big Brother of the drug industry," said defense
attorney Grady C. Irvin Jr. "If we're guarding the Pacific Ocean and
we're intercepting drugs bound for other countries, should that be
the responsibility of U.S. taxpayers? Why should U.S. taxpayers be
footing that bill?"
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"I can't answer that," said the prosecutor, Joseph Ruddy. "That's
really a kind of philosophical, rhetorical question. The law says we
should do it, we did it."
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[snip]
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(11) PRISON TERMS TO BE REVIEWED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Va. To Unveil Program To Address Time Served For Technical
Violations
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On July 1, Virginia will break new ground in an effort to reduce a
prison problem bedeviling much of the nation. | ||||||||||||||||||
At issue is Virginia's share of the hundreds of thousands of men and women imprisoned, or reimprisoned in the United States each year, because they broke rules - not because of new criminal convictions. | ||||||||||||||||||
They are called "technical violators," probationers and parolees who
violated the conditions set for their freedom. Their offenses range
from failing to report to their probation and parole officers on
time, to failing drug tests. | ||||||||||||||||||
And they are a significant part of the reason why the prison
population in Virginia and in the United States has been steadily
breaking records for years. | ||||||||||||||||||
Prison often is imposed on technical violators because there are
strong political or bureaucratic incentives to do so. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(12) DRUG TASK FORCE ANNOUNCES END OF OPERATIONS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
EL RENO -- After six years in operation, the Canadian County Drug
Task Force will call it quits come July 1. | ||||||||||||||||||
Though the agency has been integral in halting hundreds of drug
operations within the county over the years, manpower shortages and
budget cuts are keeping the task force from being feasible, El Reno
police Chief Fred Savage said. Investigators have been able to
significantly curtail crack, heroin, ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana,
psuedoephederine and methamphetamine operations in the county
throughout the duration of the task force, he said. "The task force
has been a very handy tool to have," Canadian County Sheriff Lewis
Hawkins said. "It's been nice to have a team of individuals we can
call on at a moments notice." The multi-agency task force, comprised
of El Reno, Canadian County and Oklahoma County law enforcement
officials, was partially funded by a grant through the Oklahoma
District Attorney's Council with El Reno's police department as the
host agency. Savage said he couldn't rationalize keeping two full-
time detectives on the task force working cases throughout the
county when their manpower was needed to maintain services for
residents of El Reno. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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Cannabis & Hemp-
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COMMENT: (13-17) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
My friends, after a bust, a rally on Parliament Hill, a countless
number of presentations, and a seemingly infinite number of air
miles, it's good to be back editing the hemp/cannabis section once
again! And there's no lack of news to share: this week a group
called the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance turned in over 32,000
signatures to the city Clerk's office in order to get a measure on
the November ballot that would require the city of Oakland to make
cannabis possession by adults the lowest possible police priority.
In addition the Oakland Cannabis Initiative would also require the
city to regulate and tax cannabis if it was ever legalized in
California. | ||||||||||||||||||
In other news from California, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has
ordered lower court judges to reconsider decisions affecting 4
cannabis dispensaries - Oakland, Fairfax, Santa Cruz, and Ukiah - in
light of the Raich/Monson ruling from last December. And in Ann
Arbour, Michigan, enough petitions were turned in last week to give
voters a chance to amend the city's charter in order to protect
medical cannabis users from prosecution during the federal elections
next November. | ||||||||||||||||||
Two stories from Europe this week: GW Pharmaceuticals has announced
that it has gathered yet more clinical data showing the effectiveness
of cannabis in treating the symptoms of MS, causing the company to
once again make anticipatory claims that Sativex - it's whole-plant
cannabis spray - would soon be approved by British regulators. And
lastly this week, a story from Portugal showing that its policy of
allowing visiting Brits to smoke cannabis during the European Cup of
soccer appears to have resulted in less violence and confrontations
between English fans and local authorities. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) PETITIONS IN FOR POT LEGALIZATION MEASURE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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On Monday, members of the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance turned in
more than 32,000 signatures to city election officials to get the
Oakland Cannabis Initiative on the November ballot. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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The measure would not decriminalize pot in Oakland until cannabis is
legalized by state officials, but it would prepare the city for the
possibility, outlining ways to tax and regulate sales when the time
comes. | ||||||||||||||||||
Until that happens, the measure, if passed, would merely direct the
Oakland Police Department to treat the private adult use of marijuana
as its lowest priority. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The measure would ultimately have the city tax and regulate the
private adult use of cannabis in Oakland for people 21 and over,"
DeVries said. "It would help us keep cannabis under control, keep the
city from wasting law-enforcement resources on it and keep cannabis
out of the hands of children."
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[snip]
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(14) REVIEW OF POT CLUB CASES ORDERED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A federal appeals court gave some encouragement Friday to Northern California medical marijuana clubs in their effort to fend off federal enforcement, saying the clubs' cases may be affected by a recent ruling protecting patients from prosecution under federal drug laws. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ordered
federal judges to reconsider their decisions against four medical
marijuana dispensaries - in Oakland, Santa Cruz, Fairfax and Ukiah -
in light of the court's ruling in December. The ruling, the appeals
court said, "may control the outcome" of each case. | ||||||||||||||||||
That ruling said federal drug laws do not apply to patients who obtain marijuana for medical purposes from within the state, without a commercial transaction, under California's 1996 initiative that legalized medical use of the drug to relieve pain and the side effects of therapies for AIDS and cancer. The court said the federal ban on marijuana applied only to acts that affect interstate commerce. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(15) VOTERS TO DECIDE ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Voters will be asked in November whether they wish to amend the city
charter to add language to allow people who use marijuana for medicinal
purposes to avoid prosecution. | ||||||||||||||||||
Final ballot language has not yet been approved, said Ron Olson, acting
city clerk, but a petition with 7,000 signatures was certified by the
city clerk's office on June 11. | ||||||||||||||||||
City council is scheduled to sign off on the ballot language during its
first regular meeting in July. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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(16) GW PHARMA CANNABIS DRUG NEARS APPROVAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
GW Pharmaceuticals on Monday reported more clinical trial data showing
that its cannabis-based treatment helps control symptoms of multiple
sclerosis. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sativex, an oral spray, reduced spasticity, the spasms and stiffness that afflict as many as three-quarters of people with MS. The trials were Phase III, the last stage before a drug is approved for marketing. | ||||||||||||||||||
But British doctors are unlikely to prescribe the purified mixture of
cannabis extracts for some time, because the Medicines and Healthcare
Products Regulation Agency has asked for further data on its safety and
effectiveness. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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Julie Simmonds, analyst at Evolution Beeson Gregory, said the latest
data meant GW had a better chance of getting Sativex approved, although
it would probably be restricted to spasticity, not the broader pain
indication the company had previously been seeking. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) BONG HITS FOR ENGLAND (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Portugal was a little uneasy hosting the European Championship soccer
match between England and France this year, but not because of
terrorist threats. Instead, rowdy English soccer fans-infamous for
rioting-put fear into the hearts of Lisbon's police force. Lisbon's
response? Smoke them out. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police let fans know before the game that no arrests would be made, no
warnings would be issued if fans were found smoking pot. Cops even
promised not to confiscate the ganja. The policy was pretty much smoke
'em if you've got 'em. On the other hand, police swore to lock up
every drunk they could find. | ||||||||||||||||||
Authorities speculated that more pot and less alcohol would lead to
fewer instances of violence. Whether or not the plan was successful is
a matter of perspective. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
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International News
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COMMENT: (18-22) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
In Miami this week, another former Haitian official was indicted for
trafficking drugs. The official, Evintz Brillant, was the latest in a
series of Haitian law enforcement officials accused of smuggling
drugs. Last month Haiti's former national police commander Rudy
Therassan was indicted. Don't expect a few arrests to clean house.
Drug prohibition will always generate the kind of untaxed profits
that regularly corrupt the police tasked with enforcing prohibition
in the first place. | ||||||||||||||||||
Speaking of prohibition-corrupted police, in Mexico, reports are in
this week of a renegade group of former army commandos who have
turned to work, now, for the narco-traffickers. The "Zetas" as they
are known, are said to be a highly-trained special forces unit, and
are considered to be Mexico's most serious security threat,
especially near the U.S. border. Trained and technically capable, the
Zetas' have even staged jailbreaks for their comrades, most recently
in the southwestern Mexican state of Michoacan. | ||||||||||||||||||
Brazilian authorities announced this week they would begin shooting
down aircraft suspected of involvement with drugs. Framing the
shoot-downs as "a necessary measure," Brazil's defense minister
declared that only aircraft that failed to respect the Brazilian
air-force would be shot down. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Indonesia, police are champing at the bit to execute death-row
"drug convicts," according to the Jakarta Post. Police, anxious to
apply their style of justice to drug offenders, say the convicts'
time is up and it is time for police to get on with the task of
executing them. Eager for the treat, police have already picked the
officers to perform the executions. "They must be executed as soon as
possible," crowed National Narcotics Agency director Comr. Gen. Togar
Sianipar, "to show our sincerity."
| ||||||||||||||||||
In Iran, authorities are in a lather over the smoking of traditional
hookah water-pipes, and (predictably) have outlawed them. Said to be
a common sight in Iran, hookahs are smoked in restaurants and parks
with both tobacco and hashish. No longer. The new prohibition takes
effect immediately and will put an end to public water-pipe smoking
across Iran. Unlike the U.S., where owners of water pipes may be
jailed for breaking paraphernalia laws, water-pipe smokers there will
be subject only to a small fine. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(18) FORMER HAITIAN OFFICIAL FACES DRUG CONSPIRACY CHARGE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
MIAMI - One of Haiti's former antidrug chiefs was indicted Friday on a drug conspiracy charge as other former police and traffickers cooperating with U.S. investigators explained how Haitian officials allegedly took payoffs to protect Colombian cocaine heading to Miami. | ||||||||||||||||||
Evintz Brillant was added to an indictment that named former Haitian
national police Cmdr. Rudy Therassan on a conspiracy charge carrying a
possible life sentence. Arraignment is set for Monday.
| ||||||||||||||||||
Therassan's attorney has identified Oriel Jean, ousted Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide's jailed chief of presidential palace security, as an informant in the wide-ranging investigation. | ||||||||||||||||||
Imprisoned Haitian drug kingpin Beaudoin ``Jacques'' Ketant, who has
denounced Aristide as a drug lord, also is helping U.S. investigators.
Therassan has admitted killing Ketant's drug-trafficking brother but
says it was in self-defense. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(19) BETRAYAL ON THE MEXICAN BORDER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Former Army Commandos Joined Drug Dealers to Form Violent Zetas Gang | ||||||||||||||||||
MATAMOROS, Mexico -- Luis Alberto Guerrero was no ordinary outlaw. He
wore a grenade around his neck. | ||||||||||||||||||
When his body was found last month in this border town across from
Brownsville, Tex., state police said his signature grenade was still
dangling over his bloody chest. A bomb squad spent hours extracting
it, as well as another grenade, its pin half removed, in the clutched
hand of Guerrero's dead bodyguard. | ||||||||||||||||||
The unknown assailants who fired more than 100 bullets into Guerrero's silver Jeep on May 10 outside the popular Wild West dance hall also killed three teenage girls, leaving five corpses and two live explosives a mile from the U.S. border and shining a new spotlight on Mexico's most unusual criminal organization, known as the Zetas. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Zetas are former Mexican army commandos who were trained to
capture drug traffickers but joined them instead, around the end of
the 1990s. Armed with AR-15 and AK-47 assault rifles, the 15 or so
Zetas currently at large are considered the number one security threat
on this busy stretch of the border. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
"They are not like other gunmen. They are well trained and have
discipline," said Jorge Chabat, an academic researcher and an expert
on organized crime. Chabat said the Zetas have one other advantage:
They were trained by their pursuers, the Mexican army, which is
Mexico's main anti-narcotics force. While many soldiers have been
accused of protecting drug cartels over the years, the Zetas appear to
be the first sizable group to defect and form their own trafficking
organization. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||
(20) BRAZIL TARGETS AIRCRAFT USED BY DRUG GANGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Brazil will start shooting down aircraft used by drug traffickers under a government policy to be implemented by the end of the month. | ||||||||||||||||||
Peru and Colombia abandoned the controversial practice after the Peruvian air force, with the help of US intelligence in 2001, accidentally shot down an aircraft carrying American missionaries. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
"It is a necessary measure," said Jose Viegas, Brazil's defence
minister, referring to the shoot-down policy. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
The US, which distanced itself from the policy after the 2001 Peru incident, is now giving its tacit support after the region's countries adopted tougher security measures to avoid accidental shoot-downs. | ||||||||||||||||||
In March, General Richard Myers, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Brazil and the US "had a good dialogue" on the issue. | ||||||||||||||||||
As part of Brazil's proposed security measures, Mr Viegas said, only
suspect aircraft lacking proper registration and an official flight
path would be fired at, and only if they failed to respond to radio
and visual contact. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(21) POLICE SEEK GO-AHEAD TO EXECUTE DRUG CONVICTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The National Police announced on Sunday that they were preparing a
firing squad on standby to execute the drug dealers currently on death
row, but the Attorney General's Office (AGO) said it had no immediate
plans regarding their execution. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We have designated officers to carry out the executions. However, we
will have to wait for an order from the prosecutorial authorities ...
We hope they will issue such an instruction soon," National Police
chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said during an antidrug rally in Senayan,
South Jakarta. | ||||||||||||||||||
Separately on Sunday, an AGO spokesman said all convicted drugs
dealers were appealing their sentences. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Our data shows that there are no convicts to be executed in the near
future; they have all appealed to higher courts. We must wait for this
process to end before planning executions," Kemas Yahya Rahman told
The Jakarta Post. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
National Narcotics Agency (BNN) director Comr. Gen. Togar Sianipar
said that four out of the around 30 convicts on death row should have
been executed several months ago after their requests for presidential
pardons were rejected. | ||||||||||||||||||
"They must be executed as soon as possible to show our sincerity in
eradicating drug trafficking. These executions would have a deterrent
effect on other dealers," he told the Post. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
The failure to execute those given the death penalty had caused an
increase in the number of drugs cases over the last three years, Togar
argued. | ||||||||||||||||||
Togar's office and the University of Indonesia have found that around
4 percent of the population or around nine million people, used drugs
in 2003, an increase of almost 400 percent compared to the 2002
figure. "Medication for one addict costs Rp 5 million per month, so
for some nine million addicts mean we have to spend around Rp 45
trillion per month on medication alone," said Togar. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(22) IRAN SEEKS TO EXTINGUISH HUBBLE-BUBBLE PIPES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranian authorities are trying to snuff out one of
the country's favourite pastimes, the smoking of hubble-bubble water
pipes, whose apple and citrus tobaccos waft through most Persian
restaurants. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
Health Ministry official Hassan Azaripour confirmed the ban, however.
"According to Health Ministry directives, the ban on water pipes will
be implemented," he told the Sharq daily on Tuesday. | ||||||||||||||||||
The paper added that restaurant proprietors and patrons risked fines
from Monday if they puffed away on the cool smoke of the long-necked
bottle pipes. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
Young men and women often spend their evenings chatting round a
qalyoun in restaurants or on carpet-decked platforms in parks. The
more rebellious sprinkle hashish among the tobacco on the smouldering
white charcoals. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Darband, a mountain retreat north of Tehran, panicky restaurateurs
were packing all their water pipes into boxes on Tuesday. Waiters
nervously declined to discuss the pipes purge. | ||||||||||||||||||
But in one old-style restaurant in central Tehran, diners smoked away
oblivious to the new rules after a hearty platter of kebabs and
chicken in walnut and pomegranate sauce. | ||||||||||||||||||
When asked why authorities had banned qalyoun, waiter Peiman tapped his forefinger against his temple: "They are mad," he said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
REPORT CALLS FOR END OF MANDATORY SENTENCING
| ||||||||||||||||||
Findings of Influential Lawyers Association Call Terms Unfair | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - Many get-tough approaches to crime don't work and some,
such as mandatory minimum sentences for small-time drug offenders,
are unfair and should be abolished, a report from the American Bar
Association said Wednesday. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip]
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
http://www.abanews.org/nosearch/kencomm/summaryrec.pdf
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
PLAY GOES TO POT
| ||||||||||||||||||
An hour-long special hosted by Jian Ghomeshi, airing June 25th at 11:30pm on CBC TV and on Newsworld June 26th at 7pm ET followed by an hour-long Pot phone-in show live with Jian Ghomeshi. Also on
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW
| ||||||||||||||||||
06/22/04: Dr. Robert Melamede
| ||||||||||||||||||
Dr. Robert J. Melamede Ph.D. Chairman of the Biology Department of the University of Colorado. "The federal government is out of touch with modern, peer-reviewed science. The professional literature clearly shows that marijuana is a miracle drug and not the devil's weed. It is frightening to see the government's incompetence coupled with their disregard for liberty and a complete lack of basic human compassion." | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
THIRD NATIONAL CLINICAL CONFERENCE ON CANNABIS THERAPEUTICS
| ||||||||||||||||||
A beautiful set of 40 photos, along with quotes, from The Third
National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics is now on line
at:
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
NO PATIENT IS SAFE - THE WAR ON PAIN RELIEF
| ||||||||||||||||||
By Preston Peet
| ||||||||||||||||||
posted at DrugWar.com, June 24, 2004
| ||||||||||||||||||
US Drug Czar John Walters attacks pain patients and their doctors | ||||||||||||||||||
The U.S. federal government has launched yet another facet of its War
on Some Drugs and Users, this time against those who depend upon pain
medications. While there are a few who do abuse strong prescription
pain medications, most rely upon these medicines to live a complete
life unencumbered by debilitating agony. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FILL THE HILL 2004
| ||||||||||||||||||
More Speakers from Fill The Hill
| ||||||||||||||||||
Part 1: David Malmo-Levine
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
MARIJUANA MYTHS
| ||||||||||||||||||
The editorial "Dope alarm" (May 12) ended with a caution against the
"notion that marijuana is relatively harmless." That's ridiculous. Pot
is still "relatively harmless" compared to many legal substances and
actions. These activities cause more injuries than those related to
marijuana: gardening, carpentry, bicycling, skating, skiing,
snowboarding, climbing monkey bars, playing basketball, football,
soccer, baseball or petting a dog (which can lead to a painful bite).
Aspirin and acetaminophen kill hundreds every year. The decongestant
psuedoephedrine and the cough suppressant dextromethorophan can induce
hallucinations and death when taken in large doses. In 3,000 years
of recorded use, no one has ever died from a marijuana overdose,
allergic reaction or toxic drug interaction. | ||||||||||||||||||
The most real and severe risk associated with marijuana is
incarceration in one of America's violent prisons - 700,000 arrests a
year, 80 percent for possession alone. | ||||||||||||||||||
The harms of jail might be ameliorated by decriminalization - marijuana distribution would remain illegal, but police and prosecutors would turn a blind eye toward possession or petty sales. However, the principal concern of the editorial - increased potency - can be resolved only after pot prohibition is repealed so that the government could control the purity, potency, availability and cost of marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
Glenn Backes, Sacramento
| ||||||||||||||||||
Director, Drug Policy Alliance
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
President George W. Pusher?
| ||||||||||||||||||
By Stephen Young
| ||||||||||||||||||
Uncle Sam wants you ... to be screened for mental illness. If
standards set by the federal government determine you have a sick
brain, it will be corrected with powerful drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
It may sound, uh, crazy, but a report from the British Medical
Journal entitled "Bush plans to screen whole U.S. population for
mental illness" ( see
| ||||||||||||||||||
Based on recommendations from the appropriately Orwellian "President's
New Freedom Commission on Mental Health," (what was wrong with the old
freedom?) the proposed policy will use public institutions like
schools to routinely check citizens for signs of mental illness. Once
diagnosed, the sick will be drugged back to health with new, expensive
pharmceuticals. | ||||||||||||||||||
Well, the New Freedom Commission makes it sound a bit more
touchy-feely, but that's the basic idea. The British Medical Journal
story said a similar policy has been used in Texas since 1995,
guaranteeing a broad market for pharmaceutical companies specializing
in such products. | ||||||||||||||||||
So that vision of a drug-free America becomes ever more distant. But
don't expect to hear any complaints from drug czar John Walters or
other drug warriors. Big Brother and Dr. Feelgood, Inc. joined forces
long ago. | ||||||||||||||||||
There's a new book out by Douglas Valentine called "The Strength of
the Wolf: The Secret History of America's War on Drugs" which traces
the rise and fall of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. A predecessor of
the DEA, the FBN was responsible for drug control in America from
1930-1968. According to Valentine's book (and others like "The Drug
Hang-Up" by Rufus King) long-time FBN Commissioner Harry Anslinger had
an intimate relationship with American pharmaceutical companies.
Anslinger made sure they were happy with federal policy, and when
Anslinger got into political trouble, the pharmceutical firms helped
bail him out by exerting influence on legislators. | ||||||||||||||||||
A more recent collaboration between the drug warriors and big pharma
came in the form of the profoundly ironic Partnership for a Drug-Free
America. The PDFA, which introduced American TV audiences to 30-second
propaganda pieces promoting the drug war, was initially led by the
former CEO of a major pharmaceutical company. James Burke headed
Johnson & Johnson (the maker of Tylenol) before leaving to take charge
of the PDFA. | ||||||||||||||||||
Burke is still on the board of the PDFA. According to the
organization's web site, among top financial contributors to the PDFA
(those who give more than $25,000), roughly 30 percent are companies
involved in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals. | ||||||||||||||||||
Making legal pharmaceuticals doesn't mean the drug warriors will
automatically ignore you. Just ask Purdue Pharma, which created
OxyContin. However, despite legal challenges and horrible publicity,
that heavy-duty narcotic remains on the market. That's fine by me,
since many pain patients swear by it, and they are not responsible for
others who misuse it. | ||||||||||||||||||
Why can't the drug warriors understand that same principle applies to every drug, legal or not? And why do the pharmaceutical companies happily contribute to the demonization of other drugs when, apparently, there but for the grace of the feds go they? | ||||||||||||||||||
Any drug can be helpful to some people, and any drug can be harmful to
some people. What matters is the manner in which any drug is used. But
I think that reality is a little too hazy for the pharmaceutical
industry's liking. They want the public to believe their products are
good and safe. However, everyone knows even effective medicine can be
dangerous under certain circumstances. | ||||||||||||||||||
Wouldn't it be helpful, from a marketing perspective, if a class of drugs existed that were totally evil and absolutely without redemptive properties? Those "bad" drugs would have to be prohibited. So, as long as a company's drug is legal to sell, it must be "good." If it were bad, surely it would be prohibited, like the other bad drugs, right? | ||||||||||||||||||
Even though Tylenol can be lethal when used in large doses or in
combination with alcohol (for more details see
| ||||||||||||||||||
If your only sources of information about marijuana were the PDFA and the federal government, you might think anyone who used it was insane. | ||||||||||||||||||
Which takes us back to that "New Freedom Commission" created by the
Bush administration, which can't wait to assess your mental health,
whether you want it assessed or not, and then treat you with "good"
drugs, whether you want treatment or not. | ||||||||||||||||||
Those of us who are opposed to prohibition know the drug war isn't about public welfare. It's about control, both social and economic. The drug war is always an excuse for something else, whether it be an intervention into a foreign country (think Colombia), or the curtailing of constitutional rights (think the Fourth Amendment). | ||||||||||||||||||
Many in the drug policy reform movement think strictly in terms of
drugs that aren't allowed, as opposed to those that are allowed. That
perspective is understandable, since prohibition is the cause of many
so-called drug problems. | ||||||||||||||||||
But prohibition isn't the only way to achieve control when it comes
to drugs. After all these years of attempting to coerce people away
from certain drugs, it's only a short step to forcing certain drugs
we may not want right down our throats. | ||||||||||||||||||
Stephen Young is an editor with DrugSense Weekly and author of
"Maximizing Harm" - www.maximizingharm.com
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"Laws to suppress tend to strengthen what they would prohibit. This is
the fine point on which all legal professions of history have based
their job security." -- Frank Herbert
| ||||||||||||||||||
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