| Sept. 16, 2005 #417 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
(1) DA'S NARCOTICS DIVISION COSTS TAXPAYERS 'ABSOLUTELY NOTHING' (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
All Citizens Within The 81st Judicial District Benefit | ||||||||||||||||||||
FLORESVILLE - In addition to the numerous approaches and judicial tools he uses to aggressively pursue convictions for criminals who commit various crimes, District Attorney Rene Pena is very proud of a particular strategy to track down and arrest drug violators. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The reference is to the drug-enforcement program operated within his
office, which Pena calls the District Attorney's Narcotics Division. It
is one of only four such programs in the state. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Aside from its success in nailing drug dealers and other drug
violators, its operation costs taxpayers throughout the 81st Judicial
District "absolutely nothing." The jurisdiction covers Wilson,
Atascosa, Frio, Karnes, and La Salle counties. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The financing of the program is really simple," Pena said. "We use the
funds generated by drug dealers to combat them in their illegal
actions." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Pena explained that the money seized through the judicial process from
the drug violator, who later is convicted, is awarded to the state,
which is then returned to his program. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The in-house entity employs Danny Dawson as its only enforcement officer. His job is that of an interdiction patrolman and investigator. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Dawson discussed the mindset of many of those he stops. "It's like
nothing else matters for them but the money," he said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(2) MISDEMEANOR CHARGE - POT MAY COST HOMEOWNER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Boulder City Takes Steps to Seize House After Woman Admits Possessing
Six Marijuana Plants | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Boulder City woman who pleaded no contest to possession of six
marijuana plants could lose her house over the case. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Officials in the small town, which prides itself on being the only
community in the state that doesn't allow gambling, said their move to
seize Cynthia Warren's home is intended to send a message that drugs
won't be tolerated in Boulder City. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"In the drug world, this thing is probably nothing," said City Attorney
Dave Olsen. "But in a town of 15,000 people where we have one or two
children die every year because of controlled substances, it is a big
deal to us." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Olsen, who pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor drunken driving charge
in 2004, further defended the attempt to take Warren's residence using
drug seizure laws, saying police suspected the home was being used for
drug dealing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
However, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada said the
attempted seizure is disturbing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The police ... get to eat what they kill," said Allen Lichtenstein, an ACLU attorney. "They have an incentive to fund themselves through these seizures, and it can be very disproportionate (to the crime). A misdemeanor, yet a fine that takes away the entire property?" | ||||||||||||||||||||
Warren wouldn't comment, but her attorney, John Lusk, said, "I think in
this particular case, whatever the allegations are, they (Boulder City
authorities) have overstepped their discretion." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Warren's case is not the first time an attempt to seize property in a
drug case has come under scrutiny in Boulder City. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In February 2000, the Review-Journal reported on attempts by Boulder City officials to confiscate a house belonging to Ila Clements-Davey. The house, on Avenue L, was the subject of a seizure attempt after Clements-Davey's son was arrested on drug charges at the residence. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(3) RASTA LENDS ITS NAME TO A THIRD TYPE OF CANNABIS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
AS POLICE and dope smokers know, there are two types of cannabis.
Cannabis sativa is mainly used to make hemp, while the indica
subspecies is prized for its tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content, which
produces the "high". But now Australian researchers have discovered a
third type of cannabis, called rasta. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Simon Gilmore of the Canberra Institute of Technology catagorised 196 sample plants according to the DNA in their mitochondria and chloroplasts. The samples included plants grown for drugs and hemp as well as wild varieties from Europe, Asia, Africa, Mexico and Jamaica. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The results showed three distinct "races" of cannabis. In central Asia
the THC-rich indica predominated, while in western Europe sativa was
more common. In India, south-east Asia, Africa, Mexico and Jamaica the
rasta variant predominated. It looks similar to the sativa subspecies,
but generally contains higher levels of THC. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Since the study was of DNA rather than a formal taxonomic study,
Cannabis sativa rasta is not yet an official new subspecies: the name
was the result of a competition in Gilmore's lab. Their work is
expected to appear in the journal Forensic Science International later
this year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(4) U.S. SAYS VENEZUELA NO LONGER ALLY IN WAR ON DRUGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bush stops short of cutting aid to the nation because money helps
fund democracy efforts | ||||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - President Bush has taken Venezuela off his list of allies
in the war on drugs, saying that President Hugo Chavez spurned anti-
drug cooperation with U.S. officials and fired its effective law
enforcement officers. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But the White House waived the cuts in U.S. foreign aid usually attached to the "decertification" so that it can continue to support pro-democracy groups in Venezuela that oppose the leftist Chavez. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bush's decision is expected to sharply exacerbate already bitter U.S.-
Venezuelan relations roiled by Washington's charges that Chavez is
promoting subversion around the hemisphere and the Venezuelan
president's allegations that Bush is out to kill him. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Venezuela provides 12 to 15 percent of U.S. oil imports. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The U.S. State Department's No. 3 official, Nicholas Burns, announced the Bush administration decision Thursday in New York City about the time Chavez was arriving there for a U.N. summit gathering. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Accompanying Burns, U.S. drug czar John Walters said that in the past
Venezuelan cooperation on drugs was "quite successful" but that Chavez
now "no longer wants a productive relationship." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said of the annual
certification process required by U.S. law, "We reject it. ... it's
infantile." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-9) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Will support for tough drug laws become a political liability in New
York? The challenger for Manhattan's District Attorney spot accused
the incumbent of stopping efforts to reform the state's tough drug
laws last week. Elsewhere in New York, in race of Mayor of
Rochester, one candidate is also openly talking about ending
marijuana prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Still, in other places in the country, politicians can't imagine
anything other than getting tougher on drugs, especially when they
consider meth. Also, some media outlets, including the Chicago
Tribune, took a closer look at how the hurricane disaster on the
gulf coast impacted habitual drug users. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(5) SNYDER FAULTS MORGENTHAU ON DRUG LAWS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
In her latest salvo against Robert M. Morgenthau, the Manhattan
district attorney, his Democratic primary opponent, Leslie Crocker
Snyder, unveiled a new advertisement yesterday that contends that
his office thwarted efforts to change the Rockefeller-era drug laws.
These laws, enacted in 1973, impose long mandatory prison sentences
on anyone, even a first-time offender, who is caught with a certain
amount of drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Last year, the State Legislature reduced the minimum sentences for
drug offenders. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It also allowed those who had been convicted of the most serious
felonies and sentenced to the longest prison terms to ask a judge
for a new sentence. The commercial, called "Anonymous," is running
on Time Warner Cable. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(6) 'TRYING TO GET IDEAS OUT THERE,' CHRIS MAJ SAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
'Rookie' Adds Unconventional Flavor To Mayoral Faceoff | ||||||||||||||||||||
Chris Maj, at 26, is the youngest candidate for mayor in the
Democratic primary. He also is the hardest to define. | ||||||||||||||||||||
For sure, he's not your father's - or your mother's - Democrat. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He's an Eagle Scout who got invited to leave Rochester Institute of
Technology for an especially vociferous protest. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He's a high-tech computer programmer who gets around on a low-tech
bicycle. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He's a hunter and fisherman and probably the only candidate in the
race who would like the endorsement of the National Rifle
Association. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And he's a longtime advocate for the legalization (and regulation)
of drugs such as marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He's also a political candidate who seems to have little interest in
raising or spending money. As of Sept. 2, he had spent $750, more
than he wanted. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(7) SENATE VOTES TO RESTRICT SALE OF KEY INGREDIENT IN METH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON - The Senate unanimously approved a far-reaching bill Friday that would impose tight limits on the sale of cold remedies containing a key ingredient used to make methamphetamine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The bill - opposed by some retailers and drug makers - passed as an
amendment to a spending bill that funds federal science, justice and
other programs. The House passed a different version of that bill
earlier this year, without the meth provisions. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The proposal would limit access to Sudafed and other cold pills that
contain pseudoephedrine, a primary ingredient in meth, by requiring
retailers to put such products behind a pharmacy counter. Consumers
would have to sign a log and show an ID to buy them, and sales
information would be put into a database to help police track large
purchases. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The federal government needs to get aggressively and | ||||||||||||||||||||
In addiction to the pharmacy restriction, under the Talent-Feinstein
bill, consumers would be able to buy only 7.5 grams of | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(8) CITY APPROVES METH LAW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
After three hours of debate, the City Commission passed a methamphetamine ordinance with a 6-2 vote at Thursday's meeting. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The ordinance was previously approved by the Portales City Commission, Roosevelt County Commission and Curry County Commission. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Commissioners Randy Crowder and Isidro Garcia voted against the
ordinance, which will restrict the display and sale of cold and
sinus medication that can be used to manufacture meth. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Crowder said he didn't expect to see meth use go down if this
ordinance was passed. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"That would be pie-in-the-sky thinking," Crowder said. "I want with
all my heart to pass this," Crowder said, "but I am not comfortable
with this ordinance." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Crowder said he would be more comfortable if the ordinance more closely matched the one already in place by the State of New Mexico. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Commissioner Robert Sandoval also had problems with the ordinance.
Sandoval said he was afraid it would raise the police liability
insurance, which jumped $400,000 last year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ninth Judicial District Attorney Matt Chandler addressed Sandoval's
fears, telling the commission the ordinance had been "looked at" by
the Attorney General's office. Chandler said they found the
ordinance to be "a permissible and proactive approach" to the
matter. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sandoval also expressed concerns over a section of the ordinance
that requires consumers to show identification and sign a log before
purchasing powder of tablet forms or medicine containing
pseudoephedrine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Commissioner Fred Van Soelen responded by saying the ordinance
"loses its teeth" without the log. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"The ordinance does not keep people from making multiple purchases,"
Van Soelen said. "They will just be required to put their name down
again." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Van Soelen, who works in the district attorney's office, said the
list can only be used for law enforcement and will be kept behind
the counter. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(9) STORM CHAOS CUTS HELP FOR ADDICTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Recovery Programs, Clinics Jammed By Patients Set Adrift | ||||||||||||||||||||
At the Baton Rouge Treatment Center, people suffering a unique,
hurricane-related misery have poured in by the hundreds, waiting as
long as two hours each day for relief. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The center is one of the few places remaining in Louisiana where they can get methadone, a medication given to those addicted to heroin or other opiate drugs. Without it, they face a harrowing withdrawal certain to compound their already considerable despair. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The suffering of drug addicts might not garner much public sympathy
in the face of the overwhelming agony stirred by Hurricane Katrina,
but some say it's a plight not to be ignored. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"They're people. Don't we care about the people?" said Kathleen Kane-Willis, a Roosevelt University researcher who has pushed for greater aid for displaced heroin addicts. "Why should we make a judgment that the people who use drugs aren't deserving of care?" | ||||||||||||||||||||
Among the estimated 1 million people left homeless by Katrina are thousands of drug abusers and alcoholics, some who have never been in treatment but many who have been torn from recovery programs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (10-13) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Despite what's presented as television entertainment about the astonishing accuracy of crime-fighting technology, sometimes the technology just isn't that reliable. That's what a California man learned recently after a lab mistakenly pegged a diet supplement he possessed as methamphetamine. Elsewhere, the problems aren't mistakes; they are there thanks to the opportunities which drug prohibition presents for corruption. And, sadly, once again, marijuana doesn't kill, but marijuana prohibition does. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(10) LAB MIX-UP ALARMS ATTORNEYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The director of the state crime laboratory in Ripon is investigating how one of his staffers mistook diet supplement for methamphetamine in capsules taken from a man arrested in Lodi earlier this year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
A contrite John Yoshida, director of the California Department of
Justice's laboratory, said he's struggling to understand the gaffe
so the mistake isn't repeated. The lab has no record of erring like
this before, he said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"We are looking at every possibility under the sun," to figure out
how the mistake occurred, Yoshida said. "Regrettably, it did
happen." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Defense attorneys in San Joaquin County said the shoddy analysis
raises doubt about the lab's credibility. The lab analyzes DNA,
fingerprints and firearms that form the bedrock evidence used to put
away scores of criminals. | ||||||||||||||||||||
For Lodi resident Ryan Tetz, the lab's work could have brought him
up to four years in state prison that he didn't deserve, said his
attorney Kristine Eagle. She hopes other attorneys will be skeptical
of the lab's results. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I think they have something to prove here," Eagle said. "I think
they have a problem." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(11) DEPUTY IN STING HAD MEXICO TICKET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Denver deputy sheriff who authorities say spent months smuggling
contraband to inmates in the Denver County Jail had bought a ticket
to fly to Mexico today. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The deputy, Solomon Mikael, 34, was arrested Wednesday after an
extensive investigation. The probe began in April after prosecutors,
police and sheriff's officials heard that a deputy was bringing
contraband to the jail to sell to inmates. | ||||||||||||||||||||
On Sept. 1, Mikael met an undercover agent and received marijuana,
tobacco and $250 in marked money, court records say. Officers said
Mikael then smuggled the drugs and tobacco into the jail and sold
them to an inmate. | ||||||||||||||||||||
On Wednesday, Mikael met with an undercover agent and received
marijuana, tobacco and $600, authorities said. Before he could take
the items to the jail, he was arrested. The documents say that after
his arrest, Mikael confessed that he sold contraband to an inmate
Sept. 1. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Investigators asked for a high bail. They said Mikael has no family
here and is going through a divorce. They also noted that in a
search of his home, a Sept. 9 plane ticket to Mexico was found. Bail
was set at $100,000. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(12) VETERAN OF STATE POLICE IS CHARGED IN DRUG CASE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
ELIZABETH, N.J. - A highly decorated New Jersey State Police trooper
was indicted on Monday on charges of divulging confidential
information to members of a reputed Colombia drug ring who were
under investigation for distributing heroin and cocaine, according
to authorities. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Detective Moises Hernandez, 39, of Union, who has 19 years on the
force, was indicted along with 20 others in what the authorities
described as one the biggest drug rings in Union County. The group
distributed drugs throughout New Jersey and New York and around the
Pittsburgh area, the authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"He knew that he jeopardized the safety of other state troopers and
also law enforcement officers when he provided that information to a
person involved in a drug conspiracy," said Theodore J. Romankow,
the Union County prosecutor. "He violated the trust, and put
officers' lives at risk." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(13) DRUG DEAL TURNED DEADLY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Suspect Describes In Police Statement Killing Andrew Van Wie, 19, In
Disagreement Over Pot | ||||||||||||||||||||
ALBANY -- Marty Higgins told police he was just trying to keep his
drug dealer honest on May 13 when he accidentally shot him five
times in the head with a .22-caliber rifle. | ||||||||||||||||||||
He said he liked doing business with Andrew Van Wie because, like a
pizza shop, he delivered. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But the 19-year-old Hudson Valley Community College student had a
habit of shorting his marijuana orders while at the same time
jacking up the price, Higgins claimed in the statement taken by city
Detective Michael Kelly. | ||||||||||||||||||||
At about 4 that morning, Higgins decided things were going to
change. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I told him it didn't look right ... and he kept playing with the
scale," Higgins said of the 2 ounces he'd paid $440 for. "I told him
I was sick of this (expletive) and he said he was going to leave
with the money. That's when I took the gun out and told him he
wasn't going to get away with this." | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I just wanted to get my money back," Higgins stressed. "... I
thought the safety was on." | ||||||||||||||||||||
Yet he described a scene in which he wrangled with the youth from the kitchen of the 761 Myrtle Ave. apartment to the living room, where Van Wie collapsed and died between the TV and the door. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (14-18) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
We begin this week with a study showing that the rates of teen
cannabis use in states that have legalized its medical use have
actually gone down. The study, which was funded by the Marijuana
Policy Project, found that 10 of 13 med-cannabis states have a
higher decline in teen use rates than other states, with California
leading the way with a 47% decline since it passed its medical
cannabis law in 1996. Our second story is a comprehensive look at
the U.S. federal war on cannabis from Alternet. Author Silja J. A.
Talvi sites numerous studies and reports that directly contradict
the ONDCP's official position and public statements in regards to
cannabis. Our third story this week is a Santa Cruz Sentinel report
on this year's WAMMfest, a yearly celebration/protest organized by
the Wo/Mans Alliance for Medical Marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And from Canada this week, news that the Liberal government's federal cannabis decriminalization bill has been shelved until after the next election, which is expected in the spring of 2006. The controversial bill, which would make possession of small amounts by adults a finable offense but double the penalties for cultivation, has the distinction of being disliked by both sides of the legalization debate, and has been in limbo for over two years. Lastly this week, a story from the Globe and Mail on last week's protest in front of the U.S. Consulate in support of cannabis activist Marc Emery. The rally was but one of many international actions protesting the DEA's attempts to extradite Emery and two business associates to the U.S. to be tried on conspiracy charges. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(14) MARIJUANA STUDY FINDS TEEN USE IN MEDICAL MARIJUANA STATES IS (Top)DOWN | ||||||||||||||||||||
Countering ominous predictions by anti-drug advocates, the 10 states
that passed medical marijuana laws over the last decade have seen
sharp declines in pot use among teenagers, according to a new survey
by a marijuana advocacy organization. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In California, usage among ninth-graders has plummeted 47 percent since 1996, the year the state became the first to legalize medical marijuana. The study, released by the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C. this week, is based on data from national and state studies, which show a general drop in marijuana use by teens. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Although debate around medical marijuana is frequently colored by
worries over increasing drug abuse by youth, the report found the
opposite to be true. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Legal approval of medical cannabis has not increased recreational
use of marijuana among teens, the organization concluded. More
notably, especially for Ukiah residents, the decline in many of the
states with medical marijuana laws is "slightly more favorable" than
nationwide trends, it reported. California, Colorado and Washington
have all experienced significantly greater drops in marijuana usage
than the national rate. Only three states with medical marijuana
laws have lagged behind the nationwide drop in adolescent marijuana
use, the report said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(15) SMOKED OUT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The 'war on drugs' has evolved into a war on weed. Billions of
dollars spent, tens of thousands incarcerated, and marijuana is
still as popular as ever. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In a November 2002 letter to the nation's prosecutors, the White
House's Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) didn't bother
beating around the proverbial bush. "No drug matches the threat
posed by marijuana," began the letter from Scott Burns, deputy
director for state and local affairs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Yet these truths about marijuana hearken back to the absurdity of
the Reefer Madness era of the 1930s, when marijuana use was linked
to sexual promiscuity and violence, to say nothing of the imagined
hordes of Mexicans and Blacks waiting to lure white women into
pot-induced sinful acts. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(16) GREEN IS THE SCENE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Beyond the cemetery of paper gravestones set up by the festival's
organizers to represent deceased members, less grave aspects of the
festival were in evidence. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Get laid by a WAMM member: only $5" read a sign advertising
Hawaiian-style leis of strung plastic cannabis leaves. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
WAMM co-founder Valerie Corral dismisses purely recreational users
who try to associate themselves with her group. | ||||||||||||||||||||
More pressing issues are at hand, she said. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court did away with protections
for marijuana cooperatives. Drug Enforcement Agency raids are a
reality once again. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But eventually, she said, medical necessity will overcome politics. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"Everybody faces death - we're all future skulls," she said. And keeping marijuana illegal "hasn't saved or extended a single life." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(17) POT BILL SHELVED UNTIL AFTER NEXT ELECTION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The Liberal government's controversial bill to decriminalize
marijuana will be shelved until after the next election, CTV News
has learned. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The contentious cannabis bill has been sitting in legislative limbo
for more than two years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
While the Conservatives oppose the proposed marijuana legislation,
the NDP and Bloc Quebecois support decriminalization but they want
major amendments, including an amnesty. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"It's been estimated about 600,000 Canadians have a criminal record as a result of personal possession," says NDP MP Libby Davies. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The government now concedes the bill will likely be put off until
after the next federal election. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(18) POT ACTIVIST RALLIES SUPPORT (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Marc Emery took a quick hit from a joint as his fans smoked and screamed for his freedom in front of the U.S. consulate. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The self-proclaimed Prince of Pot, faces extradition for seed sales
-- a crime that isn't prosecuted in Canada -- and up to life in
prison if convicted by a U.S. court. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In the same breath, supporters gathered around him demanded sovereignty for Canada and the world-wide legalization of pot under a billowing cloud of smoke from spliffs being waved in the air. | ||||||||||||||||||||
People everywhere are outraged and scared it could happened to them,
declared Mr. Emery, 47. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"I want to tell you," he shouted above the yells, "you are part of a
great awareness. Today, 40 cities around the world, from Warsaw,
Moscow, Russia, London, Paris, Madrid, Italy, they are rallying at
Canadian consulates around the world. In Melbourne, Australia, and
Sydney, Canadian embassies are being picketed!" | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (19-22) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
While drug police in every other nation on earth do little save to pack prisons with petty drug users (usually just for the "crime" of using drugs), police in Kenya trumpeted many glorious successes in drug prohibition last week. Their proud accomplishment, according to the East African Standard newspaper? Prohibitionists are "ahead of the drug barons" asserted Police Commissioner Maj Gen Hussein Ali, because "there were 559 cases last month compared to 732 in July." Reports did not explain how decreased police "cases" translated into preventing people from obtaining and using prohibited drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Another casualty of prohibition this week, this time a cop in
Ontario, Canada. The officer, who had given over 15 years of service
to the community as a constable, was accused of possession of crack
cocaine. Police public-relations spokesmen quickly emphasized "the
public has no reason to lose 'confidence' in the force," which is
exactly the effect of such arrests. Similar corruption of police was
noted during the U.S. prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s, and was
cited as a reason to repeal prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In the Philippines, as in many prohibitionist nations, jails are packed with people who have been jailed for drugs and nothing else. A report in the Manila Bulletin last week admitted that in the Dumaguete City prison, about two-thirds (64%) of the prisoners there are "drug offenders." (Read: marijuana users.) In prohibitionist regimes, officials are often reluctant to admit how many people are in jail simply for using prohibited plants and substances. | ||||||||||||||||||||
In Scotland last week, Former High Court judge Lord McCluskey urged
government to legalize heroin. McCluskey confessed drug policy is a
"massive failure." "If people are addicted to heroin, give them
heroin. I'm not suggesting you sell it at newsagents, but if you
were to offer it to addicts in a medically controlled setting, there
would be no criminal market." Scottish prohibitionists were
predictably enraged at the senior judge's comments. Prohibition must
be continued because "people who use drugs will use as much as they
can as often as they can get it," according to prohibitionist
campaigner Alistair Ramsay. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
(19) WE ARE AHEAD OF DRUG BARONS, POLICE SAY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
The handling of illicit drugs dropped last month | ||||||||||||||||||||
A police report says there were 559 cases last month compared to 732
in July compared to 569 in June. | ||||||||||||||||||||
There were 449 and 475 drug cases reported in May and April
respectively. | ||||||||||||||||||||
And Police Commissioner Maj Gen Hussein Ali said his men were ahead
of the drug barons. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ali commended the Anti-Narcotics Unit, which he said was one step
ahead of the issues. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Comparatively, there were 5,300 cases in 2001, 4,467 in 2002, 4,742
in 2003 and 4,627 last year. The most handled drug was marijuana
followed by madrax, heroine and cocaine. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(20) CONSTABLE ARRESTED FOR CRACK COCAINE POSSESSION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
17-Year Veteran Of St. Thomas Police Service Held In | ||||||||||||||||||||
A 17-year-veteran of the St. Thomas Police Service has been charged
with possession of crack cocaine and remains in custody pending a
bail hearing. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Police Chief Bill Lynch told the Times-Journal the charges against Const. Bruce Armstrong "are a sad day" for the police service, but stressed the public has no reason to lose "confidence" in the force because of the arrest of the 42-year-old Malahide resident. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(21) D'GUETE INMATES MOSTLY DRUG OFFENDERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
DUMAGUETE CITY (PNA) - Suspected drug users and pushers make up more
than half of the inmates at the congested Dumaguete City Detention
and Rehabilitation Center (DCDRC). | ||||||||||||||||||||
SJO3 Rustom Friolanita, a paralegal officer of the Bureau of Jail
Management and Penology (BJMP), noted during a recent forum that 64
percent of the total number of inmates at the city jail are either
charged with, or convicted of, drug-related cases. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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(22) HEROIN MUST BE LEGALISED, SAYS FORMER JUDGE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
A FORMER High Court judge has called for heroin to be legalised, branding current drugs policy in Scotland a "massive failure". | ||||||||||||||||||||
In an interview in The Scotsman today, Lord McCluskey says the link
between drugs and crime is even closer than people are led to
believe. "If people are addicted to heroin, give them heroin," he
declares. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Lord McCluskey is one of the most senior legal figures in Scotland
to advocate the legalisation of heroin and the latest high-profile
name to demand a radical change in drugs policy. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Last year, 356 drug-related deaths were recorded in Scotland - 39 more than in 2003. Heroin was involved in two-thirds of the deaths, while methadone, a subscribed heroin substitute, was involved in 80. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Lord McCluskey said: "That is a massive failure of the current way
of doing things. Yet we prescribe more of the same. If you want a
simple measure of the failure of the present drugs policy, count the
number of deaths, year by year. It has gone from zero in the 1970s
to one a day. | ||||||||||||||||||||
"If people are addicted to heroin, give them heroin. I'm not
suggesting you sell it at newsagents, but if you were to offer it to
addicts in a medically controlled setting, there would be no
criminal market. | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Alistair Ramsay, director of Scotland Against Drugs, said there was "a clear academic argument" for legalising heroin on the basis that it ensures people receive purer, less harmful substances. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But he added: "If you take someone with a drug problem out of
prison, they will often go over the top and take much higher doses.
That suggests that people who use drugs will use as much as they can
as often as they can get it. If you make heroin readily available,
the amount people will use will go up." | ||||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
MARIJUANA REALLY MIGHT MAKE YOU COOL | ||||||||||||||||||||
Marijuana use may confer health benefits by lowering overall body
temperature, according to Tod Mikuriya, MD. It has been observed by his
office staff -and confirmed anecdotally by colleagues-that people
seeking physician approval to medicate with cannabis usually register
body temperatures markedly below 98.6. Just as lower calorie
consumption is associated with greater longevity, lower temperature
could confer an advantage by slowing down metabolism! | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| ||||||||||||||||||||
HEALTH CANADA REVISITS PROPOSAL TO DISTRIBUTE CANNABIS IN PHARMACIES | ||||||||||||||||||||
September 15, 2005 - Ottawa, ON, Canada | ||||||||||||||||||||
Ottawa, Ontario: Health Canada may resurrect a proposal to make
government grown medicinal cannabis available in licensed pharmacies,
according to Canadian press reports. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Listen Live Fridays 8:00 PM, ET, 7:00 CT, 6:00 MT & 5:00 PT at
http://www.KPFT.org/ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DRUG WAR DEADLOCK : THE POLICY BATTLE CONTINUES | ||||||||||||||||||||
A Foundation for Inquiry into the Drug Debate in America | ||||||||||||||||||||
The dynamics of our drug policies in the United States are a complex
puzzle to which there are no simplistic solutions. Drug War Deadlock
presents a diverse collection of readings from scholarly journals,
government reports, think tank studies, newspapers, and books that
offer a comprehensive look at the drug debate. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
HALLUCINATING STARS AND STRIPES | ||||||||||||||||||||
Forty years after Timothy Leary advised everybody to turn on, tune in
and drop out, and despite the most punitive drug laws of any Western
society, America is getting as stoned as ever. Alex Kershaw enjoys a
former addict's "clear-headed examination of Americans' love-hate
relationship with intoxication" | ||||||||||||||||||||
Alex Kershaw reviews Can't Find My Way Home by Martin Torgoff. | ||||||||||||||||||||
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2005/09/11/botor11.xml | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
WHAT YOU CAN DO THIS WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
WRITE A LETTER TO SHOW HOW DRUG REFORM CAN REDUCE TEEN USE | ||||||||||||||||||||
Help explain to your local media why medical marijuana does not
increase teen use with this DrugSense Focus Alert. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
16TH ANNUAL BOSTON FREEDOM RALLY TO TAKE PLACE THIS SATURDAY | ||||||||||||||||||||
Boston, MA - Event organizers are expecting nearly 50,000 attendees at this Saturday's 16th annual Boston Freedom Rally, sponsored by the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition (MASS CANN/NORML). | ||||||||||||||||||||
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LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
END THE PAIN OF PROHIBITION | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Kay Lee | ||||||||||||||||||||
Before age 50 I didn't question the laws, nor the people who make and enforce them. Mine was a late-in-life rude and painful awakening. | ||||||||||||||||||||
The truth that set me on my path was a simple one: Bad laws hurt good
people. Tonight I cannot sleep because someone I love is in great pain
and is being denied relief by those around her because they are afraid
of the enforcers of a very bad law. | ||||||||||||||||||||
She's only in her 30s but her fingers are swollen and twisting
painfully with advancing crippling arthritis. She cries, I cry because
I know there is a plant that eases her pain without the side effects
she fears from manmade medicines. A tiny amount can make her feel
better, loosens her joints and elevates her mind above the pain so that
she can enjoy life, and may slow or halt the progress of the ravaging
disease. | ||||||||||||||||||||
But her husband refuses to let her use it because dangerous men
could come into their home and take his child. He felt forced to
make a choice between his child's future or his wife's which will
give him no comfort in a few years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Bible verses lead me to believe that everything we need to sustain
life, to ease our pain and heal ourselves is already here - created
for the use of mankind, woven right into nature by some wonderful
force that obviously intended plants to ease suffering. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Everyone knows our medicines are culled from plants. | ||||||||||||||||||||
How can a small group of people claim total ownership over portions of
a nature they didn't create and can't even come close to imitating? I
weep because they stand waiting to destroy a very good person and the
people she loves should she dare to reach in her anguish for one of
those plants. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Grown men dress up like toy soldiers to wage war, not on evil human beings, but on medicinal plants. My gosh, even manmade alcohol wasn't denied to doctors and patients for medical use during that prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||||
I don't care about immoral laws, drug wars, pharmaceutical profits or an imaginary drug free utopia! What I do care about is people, particularly one beautiful lady who fears the deformity of her hands in coming years, and her husband, who should never feel pressured to make such a choice between his son's security and his wife's pain. | ||||||||||||||||||||
It doesn't even matter how a group of men slunk in and used awful lies
to take total dominion over the plants of the field. What matters is
that the masses, meaning you and I, continue to allow them to hurt good
people, continue to feed their never ending lies to our children,
continue to finance such absurdity as a war on plants, and continue to
believe that liars, cheats, and underhanded profiteers are going to
create a perfect world for us with their guns and handcuffs and
prisons. To heck with the drug warriors! | ||||||||||||||||||||
END THE PAIN OF PROHIBITION NOW! | ||||||||||||||||||||
GREATGRANDMA KAY LEE | ||||||||||||||||||||
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FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sniffing Out The Truth About Drug Dogs: An Interview With Rex Curry | ||||||||||||||||||||
By Stephen Young | ||||||||||||||||||||
How good are drug dogs at their jobs? Attorney Rex Curry has been
looking at that question for years. | ||||||||||||||||||||
Back in 2003, Curry argued a case in Florida challenging the reliability of a police drug dog. The dog had signalled drugs on Curry's client, but Curry showed that the dog didn't have adequate training, and if it did, police should have kept records proving that the dog was reliable for a decent wrap-up of the case, check this news story - http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v03/n1194/a04.html | ||||||||||||||||||||
Curry's argument prevailed, and the charges were thrown out. Police
appealed, so far unsuccessfully. But the Attorney General of Florida
is trying to get the U.S. Supreme Court to take the case. Curry has
archived the court documents at his website - | ||||||||||||||||||||
DrugSense Weekly interviewed Curry recently about the where the case
is going, and drug-sniffing dogs in general. | ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: What is the status of the Florida v. Matheson case you detail at your site? Is the case headed for the U.S. Supreme Court? | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rex Curry: You are in luck because you are one of the first to learn
that the court has asked for a response (this is also visible from
the court's docket entry) and I have been told the court asked for
transcripts. This is peaking interest in the case. Of course, it is
already AT the Supreme Court, the only question is whether the Court
will "bite" at the dog case and decide to hear oral arguments and
issue a written opinion. | ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: How did you get involved with that case? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: It seems from information at your website that drug-sniffing dog training, quality and testing varies widely. Is that correct? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: How wide is the variation - for example, what is the success
rate of the best dogs vs. the success rate of the worst dogs? How
wide is the variation in the way success is defined in dog training
programs? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: I've read that dogs are most competent when they've trained on,
at most, five different drug scents, and that attempts to train them
on a higher number of scents just confuses dogs. Does that sound
accurate? If so, does this play into court cases? For example, can you
as an attorney find out what specific drugs the dogs were trained to
detect? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: I'm told (ahem) that the scent of marijuana can vary widely
between different strains. Does this present a problem for the dog, or
is there some basic component of cannabis that they will always
recognize if they are competently trained? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
DSW: Given the problems with drug dogs explored at your website, why
do you think they are so popular with police departments and municipal
government? | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Stephen Young is an editor with DrugSense Weekly. A new edition of his book Maximizing Harm is scheduled for release next year. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||||
"To die for an idea is to place a pretty high price on conjectures." | ||||||||||||||||||||
-- Anatole France | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
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Policy and Law Enforcement/Prison content selection and analysis by
Stephen Young (), Cannabis/Hemp content selection
and analysis by Philippe Lucas (), International
content selection and analysis by Doug Snead (),
Layout by Matt Elrod () | ||||||||||||||||||||
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