| July 15, 2005 #408 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
(1) FILING PROPELS DISPUTE OVER MEDICAL POT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Compassionate Use Law Is Put To The Test | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medical marijuana advocates are mounting a double-barreled attack this
week on what they say is California's reticence to uphold its own
compassionate use law, putting Attorney General Bill Lockyer in the hot
seat. | ||||||||||||||||||||
On one front, Oakland-based Americans For Safe Access filed papers
Wednesday in Alameda County Superior Court seeking an injunction to
halt the California Highway Patrol's policy of seizing marijuana from
qualified patients, even if those patients have county-issued ID cards
or a doctor's recommendation. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The ASA says the CHP blatantly ignores a state Supreme Court decision
that said an officer's probable cause to seize marijuana depends on
facts such as presentation of documents identifying the person as a
qualified patient. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile, two other national groups -- the Drug Policy Alliance and
the American Civil Liberties Union -- wrote to Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger on Tuesday with a threat to sue the state for suspending
the very ID card program the CHP says it's honoring. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(2) FORMER OGILVY EXECUTIVES SENTENCED FOR OVERBILLING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Two former senior executives of the flagship New York office of Ogilvy
& Mather Worldwide, part of the WPP Group, have been sentenced and
fined after being found guilty of overbilling a federal antidrug agency
for advertising work. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Shona Seifert, who had been senior partner and executive group director
at Ogilvy New York, was sentenced yesterday by a federal district judge
in Manhattan to 18 months. She also must pay a $125,000 fine.
Additionally, the judge, Richard Berman, ordered Ms. Seifert to write a
code of ethics for the advertising industry. | ||||||||||||||||||||
On Wednesday, Judge Berman sentenced Ms. Seifert's co-defendant, Thomas
Early, a former senior partner and finance director at Ogilvy New York,
to 14 months and ordered him to pay a $10,000 fine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ms. Seifert and Mr. Early were found guilty in February on all 10 counts against them: one count of conspiracy and nine of making false claims. The charges stemmed from work Ogilvy did for the Office of National Drug Control Policy in 1999 and 2000; the indictment accused them of ordering employees to alter time sheets and other documents to make up for a shortfall in anticipated revenue from the account. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(3) 'PLEASURE DRUGS' BOOM ON WAY, SAYS THINK-TANK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Mind-altering drugs could be as common as coffee within a couple of
decades to boost performance at school and at work, to "unlearn"
addiction and to erase memories of distressing events such as a
terrorist attack, according to a government think-tank. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Society may end up realising Aldous Huxley's vision of a Brave New
World in which people take a supposedly perfect pleasure-drug, Soma -
though the report shies away from discussing whether future governments
will be tempted to encourage the use of "happy pills" for social
control. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Foresight think-tank points out that psychoactive substances have
been part of society for thousands of years. It heralds the development
of new recreational drugs, some of which might be less harmful than
those already costing society around UKP 13 billion annually, mostly
due to crime. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"We have not reached a ceiling for recreational drug use," it said.
"Psychoactive drug use may spread more across the life course and may
become more common than is currently evident in middle-aged or even
older age groups." | ||||||||||||||||||||
One of the team that produced the report, Drugs Futures 2025?, Prof
Gerry Simpson, of Imperial College London, said: "If there is such a
thing as Huxley's Soma, that really does raise crucial questions for
governments around the world about how legitimately to regulate a
substance like that." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sir David King, the Prime Minister's chief scientific adviser, who led
the think-tank, said: "We are on the verge of developments that could
possibly move us into a world where we could take a drug to help us
think faster, relax, sleep more efficiently or even subtly alter our
mood to match that of our friends." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(4) LET A THOUSAND LICENSED POPPIES BLOOM (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Even as Afghanistan's immense opium harvest feeds lawlessness and
instability, finances terrorism and fuels heroin addiction, the
developing world is experiencing a severe shortage of opium-derived
pain medications, according to the World Health Organization.
Developing countries are home to 80 percent of the world's population,
but they consume just 6 percent of the medical opioids. In those
countries, most people with cancer, AIDS and other painful conditions
live and die in agony. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The United States wants Afghanistan to destroy its potentially merciful
crop, which has increased sevenfold since 2002 and now constitutes 60
percent of the country's gross domestic product. But why not bolster
the country's stability and end both the pain and the trafficking
problems by licensing Afghanistan with the International Narcotics
Control Board to sell its opium legally? | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Senlis Council, a European drug-policy research institution, has proposed this truly winning solution. Adopting it would improve the Afghan economy, deprive terrorists of income and keep heroin away from dealers and addicts, all while offering pain relief to the third world. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-9) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Senators from Wisconsin must not have much to do. One might think
James Sensenbrenner would have more important tasks at hand than to
comb through appeals court sentences in individual drug cases to
pressure judges to impose longer sentences. It's not just extreme
micromanagement, it's ethically questionable behavior. The appeals
court appears to be standing its ground. | ||||||||||||||||||||
An official of the ONDCP broke away from the party line this week by
saying that methamphetamine is the nation's biggest drug problem,
not marijuana as the ONDCP has long suggested. Also last week, a
court decided abeer maker can't use secret cameras to catch workers
smoking pot on the job; an anti-drug group takes money from a
notorious pharmaceutical company to write a report about the dangers
of pharmaceutical abuse; and a grand jury in San Diego recommends
needle exchanges. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(5) LAWMAKER PRODS COURT, RAISES BROWS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Demands Longer Term In Chicago Drug Case | ||||||||||||||||||||
In an extraordinary move, the chairman of the House Judiciary
Committee privately demanded last month that the 7th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals in Chicago change its decision in a narcotics case
because he didn't believe a drug courier got a harsh enough prison
term. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.), in a five-page letter dated June
23 to Chief Judge Joel Flaum, asserted that a June 16 decision by a
three-judge appeals court panel was wrong. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He demanded "a prompt response" as to what steps Flaum would take
"to rectify the panel's actions" in a case where a drug courier in a
Chicago police corruption case received a 97-month prison sentence
instead of the at least 120 months required by a drug-conspiracy
statute. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Despite the panel's unambiguous determination that the 97-month
sentence was illegal, it appears to ... justify the sanctioning of
both the illegal sentence and its own failure to [increase the
sentence] by stating `[that the panel's decision] not to take a
cross-appeal [ensures] that the [courier's] sentence cannot be
increased.' The panel cites no authority for this bizarre
proposition and I am aware of none," wrote Sensenbrenner, who cited
a 1992 ruling as precedent for his argument that the longer prison
term should have been imposed. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I ask that all necessary and appropriate measures be taken, whether
by members of the panel and/or by the other judges of the court, to
ensure that the [1992] precedent ... is followed," said the
congressman, who heads a committee with budgetary oversight of the
judiciary. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Jay Apperson, the congressional counsel who brought the ruling to
Sensenbrenner's attention, added: "We can't have judges violating
the law." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Flaum declined comment on the situation, saying he does not publicly
discuss matters pending before the court. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He sent a letter back to Sensenbrenner saying it was inappropriate to comment on a pending case. But the panel amended its ruling to cite a Supreme Court case that showed Sensenbrenner was wrong. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(6) DEPUTY DRUG CZAR SAYS AGENCY MAY SHIFT MORE FOCUS TO METH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The White House official visits Portland, calling meth "the most destructive, dangerous . . . drug that's come along in a long time" | ||||||||||||||||||||
On a two-day tour of Portland, Scott Burns, the White House deputy drug czar, declared methamphetamine the nation's most insidious drug problem and blamed it for destroying about 1.5 million lives. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Burns' visit follows the release Tuesday of results from a survey of 500 sheriff's departments in 45 states that denounced Washington's focus on marijuana rather than enacting laws to target meth. | ||||||||||||||||||||
More than half of those interviewed for the National Association of
Counties survey considered meth the No. 1 drug problem in their
counties. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"We've got something right in our laps that is absolutely the worst
kind of drug the nation has ever seen," Umatilla County Commissioner
Bill Hansell said in a statement Tuesday. "To not address it now
would be a huge mistake." Hansell is president-elect of the National
Association of Counties. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Burns' comments about meth are in contrast to his office's official
position that marijuana remains the nation's most substantial drug
problem. Federal estimates show there are 15 million marijuana users
compared to the 1.5 million meth users. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But Burns said his agency's drug policies may be shifting. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I think we would all agree methamphetamine is the most destructive,
dangerous, terrible drug that's come along in a long time," Burns
told about 70 lawyers Wednesday at the Advanced Community
Prosecution Workshop at the Benson Hotel. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(7) U.S. BEER MAKER IN CAMERA BROUHAHA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - Beer maker Anheuser-Busch Cos. may have to reinstate
several employees fired for using illegal drugs at work because the
company used hidden cameras without informing the employees' union,
a U.S. federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The brewer fired five workers in 1998 after hidden cameras showed
them smoking marijuana in an area where employees sometimes take
breaks at one of its St. Louis brewing facilities. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Four additional workers were suspended for leaving their work areas. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Seven others, observed sleeping or urinating on the building's roof,
had to sign "last-chance" agreements. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Those deals said the workers agreed they could be fired for any
further violation of company rules. | ||||||||||||||||||||
A 2-1 panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia Circuit upheld a finding that the brewer committed an
unfair labour practice when it installed the cameras in 1998 before
bargaining with the union, Brewers and Maltsters, Local Union No. 6,
as required under federal labour laws. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(8) ABUSE OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS WIDESPREAD (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Study Shows Growing Number Of Teenagers Are Using Medications
Illegally | ||||||||||||||||||||
Abuse of prescription drugs is "epidemic," with teenagers the
fastest-growing group of new abusers, yet the problem has not drawn
adequate attention from health and law enforcement agencies,
physicians, pharmacists and parents, according to a study released
yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Abusers of prescription drugs -- 15.1 million people -- exceed the
combined number abusing cocaine, hallucinogens, inhalants and
heroin, the report by the National Center on Addiction and Substance
Abuse at Columbia University said. Of those, 2.3 million are
teenagers, but youngsters turn to prescription drugs at much higher
rates than adults do, the study reports. Teenagers arrange "pharming
parties" where they swap drugs they have spirited from home or
purchased off the streets or online, the report said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Availability is the mother of abuse," said Joseph A. Califano Jr.,
the center's chairman and former U.S. secretary of health, education
and welfare. "When I was young my parents would lock their liquor
cabinet. It may be parents should be thinking of locking their
medicine cabinets." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
The center's study was funded by a $1 million unrestricted grant
from Purdue Pharma, manufacturer of OxyContin, a painkiller
originally intended for end-stage cancer patients. It is now widely
diverted and abused. The study notes that Purdue "aggressively
marketed" the drug for lesser pain, leading to more prescriptions.
The company also formulated OxyContin in a way that easily allowed
abusers to crush and snort the pills, overcoming its time-release
formula and allowing a narcotic rush. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Califano said the center and Purdue had a signed agreement that the
company would not have input into the report. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(9) GRAND JURY LOBBIES FOR NEEDLE EXCHANGE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Fresno Area Tops U.S. In Injection Drug Users, Lacks Legal Program | ||||||||||||||||||||
Fresno ranks No. 1 for injection drug users among metropolitan
cities, but the county doesn't have a legal syringe-exchange program
to reduce the use of dirty needles and help prevent the spread of
the viruses that cause AIDS and hepatitis C. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Fresno County Grand Jury says this should change. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In a report issued late last month, the grand jury recommended that
the county take advantage of state laws to establish a system for
drug users to exchange dirty needles for clean ones and to allow
them to purchase sterile syringes at pharmacies. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The board has been reluctant in the past to create a needle-exchange
program for several reasons, including concern about liability
should someone be stuck by a needle distributed by the county. One
supervisor, contacted about the grand jury report, said liability
remains a sticking point. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"That's my only issue," said Supervisor Bob Waterston. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But this is the first time a grand jury has asked the county Board of Supervisors to establish a needle-exchange program, and proponents hope the supervisors will follow the grand jury's lead. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (10-13) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rogue cops from Tennessee convicted of beating and tormenting a
local drug dealer tried to convince a judge that the victim was the
real criminal. In at least one of the cases, the judge didn't buy
it. Tennessee also appears to be squeezing money out of a illegal
drug taxation (without representation) scheme, unlike some other
states that have attempted such undertakings. And, in New York,
another drug lab technician is found abuse the power he derives from
controlling people's urine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(10) OFFICERS SEEK COURT'S MERCY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Pointing Fingers: Real Criminal Man Behind Their Abuse Of Power | ||||||||||||||||||||
If court records are any indication, when five former lawmen face
judgment this week for beating, torturing and threatening a drug
dealer, there will be lots of finger pointing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
They will accuse each other. They will argue the power of the heat of the moment. They will paint themselves not as criminals but as fallen heroes, whose lives were dedicated to serving others. | ||||||||||||||||||||
They will point to the loss of their jobs and reputations. They will
cite death, mental illness and emotional struggles. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But most of all, they will blame their victim. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Former Campbell County Sheriff's Department deputies Gerald David
Webber, Shayne Green, Joshua Monday, Samuel Franklin and William
Carroll are to be sentenced this week by U.S. District Court Judge
Tom Varlan. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(11) EX-CAMPBELL DEPUTY GETS SIX YEARS FOR BEATING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Others To Receive Sentence Today For Attack On Convicted Drug Dealer | ||||||||||||||||||||
The two young boys likely will never meet, but they share a bond
that will forever link them. | ||||||||||||||||||||
One lost his father - former lawman Joshua Monday - to prison
Tuesday. The other lost his faith in police because Monday
brutalized his father. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It's a tragedy for all concerned," U.S. District Court Judge Tom
Varlan said as he sentenced Monday to six years in prison for his
role in the beating and torture of Lester Eugene Siler. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Monday is the first of five former Campbell County Sheriff's Office
deputies to face sentencing for the attack on Siler last July in his
White Oak community home. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(12) NEW TAX ON ILLEGAL DRUGS NETS $600,000 IN FIRST 6 MONTHS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
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NASHVILLE (AP) - Tennessee's unauthorized substances tax, modeled
after a 13-year-old North Carolina tax aimed at fighting illegal
drugs, has generated more than $600,000 in collections and $15
million in assessments since it took effect Jan. 1. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Based on what North Carolina did, we've collected six times more
than they did in their first six months," Tennessee Department of
Revenue spokeswoman Emily Richard said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
With the new tax, people in possession of illegal drugs must
purchase stamps marked with a number to be affixed to packages
containing the drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
When drugs without the stamp are found, the Tennessee Department of
Revenue taxes the alleged drug possessor and gives them an
opportunity to pay the tax. If it is not paid, agents may seize and
auction off anything of value the person owns. | ||||||||||||||||||||
So far, only 184 stamps have been purchased voluntarily, Richard
said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(13) LAB TECH FLUSHED IN TEST SCAM (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Charged With Taking Bribes To Swap Urine | ||||||||||||||||||||
Armed with heroin-laced urine, authorities busted a Brooklyn lab
worker yesterday for allegedly taking bribes to alter the drug tests
of potential city workers. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The technician, Ada Stephen, 41, tried to destroy evidence against
her - by flushing a $100 bribe down the toilet - when investigators
arrived to arrest her following an unusual sting operation,
authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"All city employees should know that these tests are not a game and
tampering with the results is illegal," said Rose Gill Hearn,
commissioner of the Department of Investigation. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The city began investigating Stephen after getting a tip last week
that a worker at Bay Park Medical/Occupational Health Services in
Park Slope was accepting cash to alter drug-test results,
authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (14-17) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bad news for California's medical cannabis community this week, as the Department of Health Services announced that it has put a stop to a pilot-program to issue identification cards to legal patients. The decision came in response to last months Supreme Court ruling which upheld the right for federal agents to interfere with state-based medical cannabis programs. Sandra Shewry, the state health director, has stated concerns that by issuing I.D. cards, state employees might be at risk of arrest for abetting the use of illegal drugs. The I.D. program will remain suspended pending a legal opinion by State attorney General Lockyer on its legality. | ||||||||||||||||||||
From the world of unsurprising news, Toronto police chief Fantino has deducted that his departments increased emphasis on grow-op raids has drained resources from other areas, resulting in a significant drop in arrests for all other drug offences in Toronto. In light of this information, does the chief want to reconsider his current priorities or policies? Not at all, he just wants more money and resources to continue busting cannabis production facilities. | ||||||||||||||||||||
From the New York Times, an interesting examination of Australia's
incredible fascination with the Corby Schapelle case. And lastly
this week, a well-considered editorial from he Kingston, North
Carolina Free Press criticizing the recent federal/political
hysteria over cannabis-flavoured lollipops, which (and pardon the
weak pun) sound like they would suck pretty badly anyway. What's
next in this era of American neo-Puritanism, a ban on rum cake and
liqueur-flavoured chocolates? Perhaps on these steamy dog days of
summer, it's best to grab a refreshing bowl of Kahlua Haagen-Dazs
and keep these cynical social critiques to myself. Enjoy the sun and
stay out of trouble, y'all! | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(14) CALIFORNIA STOPS ISSUING DRUG ID CARDS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Concerned that state workers might be charged with abetting federal crimes, California health officials announced Friday that they would no longer issue identification cards to medical marijuana patients. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sandra Shewry, the state health director, said the decision came in
response to a United States Supreme Court ruling last month. In a
6-to-3 vote, the court upheld the power of the federal authorities
to prosecute the possession and use of marijuana for medical
purposes, even in states like California that allow such use under
state law. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I am concerned about unintended potential consequences of issuing
medical marijuana ID cards that could affect medical marijuana
users, their families and staff of the California Department of
Health Services," Ms. Shewry said in a statement. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(15) POT RAIDS DRAINING RESOURCES, POLICE SAY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Toronto Police say they are taking down more marijuana grow operations this year than ever before, but Chief Bill Blair warns that the exploding number of pot busts is draining resources. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I don't think we are satisfactorily on top of it," Chief Blair said
yesterday after a Police Services Board meeting. "We know that it's
a problem that continues to grow." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
And while they have had some success, it has come at a cost. Arrests
for other drug offences have plummeted, sinking 77 per cent in the
city's east end and 20 per cent in the west end because drug squad
officers were reassigned to the grow-op squad, the police report
says. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(16) AUSTRALIANS RILED OVER INDONESIAN CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
It would be hard to find an Australian who knows about a woman named
Tran Thi Hong Loan, a 33-year old Australian citizen who is serving
a life sentence in Vietnam for drug trafficking. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But on this vast continent, it would be harder to come across anyone
who does not know about Schapelle Corby, the 27-year-old Australian
who was convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison by an
Indonesian court at the end of May for smuggling nine pounds of
marijuana into Bali in her boogie-board bag. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Australians cannot seem to get enough of the Corby story, and it has
unleashed a torrent of venom unlike almost anything seen in recent
Australian history. There have been calls for a tourist boycott of
Bali, long a favorite holiday destination for Australians, and even
for an end to aid for tsunami victims. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(17) BACKLASH AGAINST HEMP LOLLIPOPS IS MISGUIDED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The next target of the anti-drug hysteria that stems from our
nation's drug war could well be something many Americans have never
heard of: marijuana-flavored lollipops. Marketed by several makers
under names such as "Pot Suckers," the candies contain no THC, the
active ingredient in marijuana. But that doesn't stop rabid drug
warriors and well-meaning activists who worry that pot-flavored
treats will send the wrong message to kids.We believe such
hand-wringing is probably misplaced; many of us grew up "puffing" on
candy cigarettes and bubble-gum cigars, yet aren't addicted to
tobacco. Most people, even children, know there is a difference
between candy that tastes like pot and the real McCoy. Not everyone
is so sure. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Michigan state Rep. Dudley Spade is proposing a state ban on candy
that contains hemp or tastes like hemp. He's one who worries about
sending the wrong message to children. He's obviously one who also
believes that parents are unable to communicate the right message to
their kids, so the state must do it for them. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (18-21) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Police-blacklisted drug suspects keep getting summarily executed in
Cebu City, Philippines, but police are left scratching their heads.
Police claim they can't solve any of the cases, but really, they are
trying. And besides, say police, even though the method is identical
in summary execution after summary execution, that doesn't mean that
only one group is behind all the killings. Witnesses, afraid to
testify due to "suspicions that the killers were a group of
policemen," were encouraged by Cebu police to file a report with the
"Commission on Human Rights." | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Out of control" customs investigators in the U.K. were cited as the
reason a number of heroin convictions have been quashed there, it
was revealed this week. Customs officers paid informants to set up
poor Pakistanis who were flown to the U.K. with drugs, and busted.
Payments to informants caused "significant quantities of heroin were
permitted to be distributed on to UK streets.," said one defense
lawyer of the operation. Courts "were kept in ignorance of the true
role which officers of Customs and Excise and informants were
playing." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Police in Toronto, Canada are complaining pot busts are "draining resources" from other programs. "We know that it's a problem that continues to grow," Chief Bill Blair asserted. While more grow ops have been taken down this year, new grows continue to be set up, swamping police efforts. But going after pot means less time to go after meth, coke, and heroin. Busts "for other drug offences have plummeted, sinking 77 per cent in the city's east end," according to the Globe and Mail newspaper. And from the Canadian province of B.C. this week, a plea from the RCMP to pilots of small planes. If pilots see pot patches from the air, police request airplane pilots denounce the reefer patch to the police. Police did not let on how pilots might distinguish the illicit weed from other plants. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(18) SUMMARY EXECUTIONERS REMAIN UNIDENTIFIED (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
After almost seven months, 66 people have died in vigilante-style
attacks in Cebu City, but the police force has yet to identify their
killers. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Supt. Melvin Gayotin, acting police director, and Insp. Mario
Monilar, homicide section chief, yesterday admitted difficulties in
pinning down the gunmen. | ||||||||||||||||||||
While both officials agreed that the manner the killings were
carried out was the same, they ruled out the possibility that only
one group is behind the murders. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
On suspicions that the killers were a group of policemen-which could
explain the relatives' reluctance to file a complaint with the
police-Gayotin said they could always run to the National Bureau of
Investigation and the Commission on Human Rights. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Gayotin also observed that there appeared to be "public acceptance"
of the rash of killings. Nearly all of the victims were criminal
suspects or convicts. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The latest fatality was Michael Conejos, 25, who died of multiple gunshot wounds in Barangay San Roque, Cebu City last Monday night. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Conejos was jailed thrice at the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center
since 1997 to 2004 for robbery, theft and possession of illegal
drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(19) DRUG WAR CUSTOMS OFFICIALS 'OUT OF CONTROL' (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Five Win Appeals Over Heroin-Case 'Stings' | ||||||||||||||||||||
CUSTOMS officials engaged in the war against heroin in the 1990s were so out of control that they contributed to and even funded the international drugs trade, Appeal Court judges were told yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Five men, including Bradford father-of-eight Hussain Shah, had their
convictions formally quashed after the court heard the facts about
the relationships between drug suppliers, customs officers and paid
informants. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Defence lawyer James Wood QC earlier told the court: "Significant
quantities of heroin were permitted to be distributed on to UK
streets. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Such rewards were paid to informants that the international trade
in heroin was, in part, funded. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"All the while, the courts of the UK, and the authorities in
Pakistan, were kept in ignorance of the true role which officers of
Customs and Excise and informants were playing." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Yesterday, appeal judge Lord Justice Hooper ruled that Customs and
Excise in London were well aware of the dangers of someone being
"set up" in this country by those involved in the | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Three major drug-smuggling cases, involving heroin worth more than
5m, collapsed after Mr Shah offered to give inside information about
the controlled delivery system to defence lawyers. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(20) POT RAIDS DRAINING RESOURCES, POLICE SAY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Toronto Police say they are taking down more marijuana grow operations this year than ever before, but Chief Bill Blair warns that the exploding number of pot busts is draining resources. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I don't think we are satisfactorily on top of it," Chief Blair said
yesterday after a Police Services Board meeting. "We know that it's
a problem that continues to grow." | ||||||||||||||||||||
According to a report presented to the board yesterday, police broke
up 169 grow operations this year as of June 1. The tally represents
an 18-per-cent increase over the same period in 2004. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Earlier this year, former chief Julian Fantino had requested funding
for a multimillion-dollar grow-op task force. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The plan included a shopping list for high-tech equipment, such as
an additional $40,000 infrared device to detect the excessive heat
grow-ops give off. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But that plan went nowhere, given the city's financial constraints. Instead, the police went ahead with a 15-member ad-hoc marijuana squad -- called Project Growstop -- using drug squad investigators and police from the divisions in suburban northern Scarborough, North York and Etobicoke, and existing staff and equipment. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And while they have had some success, it has come at a cost. Arrests
for other drug offences have plummeted, sinking 77 per cent in the
city's east end and 20 per cent in the west end because drug squad
officers were reassigned to the grow-op squad, the police report
says. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(21) PILOTS ASKED TO SPOT POT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Whistler and Pemberton RCMP want pilots to spot outdoor pot
plantations. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The detachment issued a plea yesterday for pilots to give them the
co-ordinates of sites that look like they're being used to grow
marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
RICHARD COWAN ON THE DEATH OF STEVE MCWILLIAMS | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
OGILVY & MATHER'S FRAUDSTER SENTENCED | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Libby Spencer at Last One Speaks - | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://lastonespeaks.blogspot.com/2005_07_10_lastonespeaks_archive.html#112135865573809010 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
WAL-MART JUST SAYS "NO" (KINDA SORTA) | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Nikos A. Leverenz at D'Alliance - http://blog.drugpolicy.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://blog.drugpolicy.org/2005/07/wal-mart-just-says-no-kinda-sorta.html | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
MYCOHERBICIDE REDUX | ||||||||||||||||||||
U.S. Congressmen Declare Biological War on South America in New
Antidrug Proposal | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Jeremy Bigwood, Special to The Narco News Bulletin | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
NPR - JUSTICE TALKING: MEDICAL MARIJUANA | ||||||||||||||||||||
(Audio Only). An excellent US public radio program on the current
medical marijuana debate in the US, features discussion from Rob
Kampia (Marijuana Policy Project), Retired DEA Agent Robert Stutman,
med-pot patient Angel Raich, Sativex spokesperson Andrea Barthwell
and others. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
A FIFTEEN YEAR OLD PAPER | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Dr. Tom O'Connell | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
MEDICAL MARIJUANA ON THE SCOTT SLOAN RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Ohio Patient Network and medical marijuana was the three hour feature on the Scott Sloan show from 9PM to Midnight. Besides Tonya Davis, Rob Ryan and Lynne Wilson in the studio, OPN folks calling in included Mary Jane Borden, Dee Dee Zoretic and John Precup. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
MARIJUANA NEWS WORLD REPORT | ||||||||||||||||||||
with Richard Cowan | ||||||||||||||||||||
Pain Just for the Poor? War On Patients; A Conversation with Allen
St. Pierre of NORML About Meth, Marijuana and the Economics of
Prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
LISTEN Live Fridays 8:00 PM, ET, 7:00 CT, 6:00 MT & 5:00 PT at
www.KPFT.org | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
NDIC NATIONAL DRUG THREAT ASSESSMENT | ||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic Pot Production Up, Cannabis Not Linked To Violence,
Federal Report Says | ||||||||||||||||||||
July 14, 2005 - Washington, DC, USA | ||||||||||||||||||||
Washington, DC: Domestic cultivation of cannabis is rising and is
responsible for the majority of marijuana available in the United
States, according to the National Drug Intelligence Center's (NDIC)
latest "National Drug Threat Assessment" report. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
DrugSense Virtual Conference | ||||||||||||||||||||
Another DrugSense Virtual Conference will be held Sunday, July 17 at
9 p.m. EDT. See how other activists are making headway in their
communities. | ||||||||||||||||||||
For details on how to join the conference, see | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Join us in memoriam of a life-long activist and patient | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Who: You! We are calling on patients and advocates nationwide to
organize these vigils in your hometown. If you are planning on holding
one, email or call 510-251-1856 and we will
send you visual and text materials to hand out. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rebecca Saltzman | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
REAL PROBLEM | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Clifford Schaffer | ||||||||||||||||||||
Dear Editor, | ||||||||||||||||||||
The response of Owen McPhillips perfectly illustrates the real drug
problem in the U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||
First, he starts with false assumptions. Let me assure Mr.
McPhillips that I do not earn my living as an activist on any issue.
In fact, I work a regular job like anyone else. Some of us just have
an honest interest in a better approach to a major social problem,
and we are willing to put some of our own time and money into the
effort. | ||||||||||||||||||||
My particular effort was to go to university libraries and find the
best research available and put it on the web, in full text, where
everyone could read it and make their own decisions about what it
meant. Nobody paid me to do it. I just figured that education is a
good thing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Mr. McPhillips response is typical of those who support prohibition.
He isn't interested in reading anything and, when confronted with
facts, he resorts to schoolyard name-calling. This kind of mindless
bigotry is the real heart of prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In 1973, President Nixon's U.S. National Commission on Marijuana and
Drug Abuse completed the largest study of the drug laws ever done.
At the end of their study they said that the real drug problem was
not marijuana, or heroin, or cocaine. The real drug problem, they
said, was the ignorance of the people who had never bothered to read
the most basic research. In a perfect illustration of their point,
Nixon refused to read his own report. | ||||||||||||||||||||
More than 30 years later, Owen McPhillips proves their point is
still true -- and that's the real drug problem. | ||||||||||||||||||||
CLIFFORD SCHAFFER | ||||||||||||||||||||
Director, DRCNet Online Library of Drug Policy | ||||||||||||||||||||
Agua Dulce, Calif. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Cannabis No Stronger, British Medical Journal Says | ||||||||||||||||||||
By NORML | ||||||||||||||||||||
Lisbon, Portugal: The average strength of European cannabis has not
increased dramatically despite recent legal changes in several
European nations liberalizing its use, according to an editorial in
the July issue of the journal Addiction. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"[T]he evidence available suggest[s] that the potencies of resin and
herbal cannabis that have been imported into Europe have shown
little or no change, at least over the past ten years," authors
determined. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The editorial further noted that cannabis potency was not linked to increased drug treatment demands, and questioned the claim that stronger cannabis necessarily poses a greater health risk to users. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Overall, European cannabis potency averaged between 2 percent and 8 percent THC, authors wrote. By contrast, the average potency of cannabis available in the U.S. is between 4 and 5 percent THC. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Since 2000, several European nations - including Belgium, Great
Britain, and Portugal - have downgraded penalties for the possession
and use of cannabis. | ||||||||||||||||||||
For more information about NORML, see http://www.norml.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The free man is the one who does not fear to go to the end of his
thought." - Leon Blum | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
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