| January 20, 1999 #082 | ||||||||||||||||||
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A DrugSense publication | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Open Letter to Bill Lockyer Newly elected California A.G. | ||||||||||||||||||
Honorable Bill Lockyer | ||||||||||||||||||
Dear Mr. Lockyer: | ||||||||||||||||||
As a physician who had been distressed for years by our irrational national policy of Cannabis (marijuana) prohibition, I was elated by the passage of Proposition 215 in 1996. To an even greater degree, I have subsequently been sickened by the determined attacks of local law enforcement in many California venues against patients and especially against distributors of medical marijuana.. As you know, your predecessor, encouraged such prosecutions as a matter of policy. I was, therefore gratified to read that you are committed to making Proposition 215 work as voters intended: to allow bona-fide patients to have access to medicinal Cannabis without fear of arrest. | ||||||||||||||||||
Several residual injustices from the harassing prosecutions undertaken
before your election are still with us: significantly, in the wake of
your favorable commentary about medical marijuana, the trial of Peter
Baez has just started in San Jose, while Marvin Chavez and Jack
Schacter were recently convicted of felony sale of marijuana in Orange
County and await sentence on January 29. In all these cases, the
alleged "criminals" had made no secret of their intention to operate
under the provisions of the new law and had sought the cooperation of
local law enforcement; nevertheless, the same police had clearly made
disruption of the medical marijuana distribution centers a high
priority, had employed undercover agents and "sting" tactics, and
(successfully) demanded access to patient records. | ||||||||||||||||||
Lamentable as these cases may be, the injustice they represent is still
potentially reversible, since Schacter and Chavez haven’t yet been
sentenced and Baez’trial is still underway. The most egregious case is
that of David Herrick, a Viet Nam war veteran, ex-paramedic and former
deputy sheriff who was arrested in May, 1997 while working with Marvin
Chavez in Orange County. He has been continuously confined for nineteen
months; Held initially in the Orange County Jail until July 1998, he
was later transferred to Wasco State Prison following sentencing. His
"trial," can easily be recognized as a travesty from local press
accounts; even though the small amount of marijuana he was arrested for
possessing with "intent to sell" was clearly labeled for specific
individual patients, the trial judge willingly granted the District
Attorney’s motion to bar all mention of medical marijuana and
Proposition 215 from the testimony heard by the jury! Herrick was
unjustly tried as an ordinary street dealer. | ||||||||||||||||||
David Herrick remained at "Reception" in Wasco until Christmas day,
when he was finally transferred to a lower security facility (Salinas
Valley State Prison). Even if paroled in the Spring, he will have spent
nearly two years in confinement, will have very limited civil rights as
a parolee, and will face a high statistical possibility of being
returned to prison for a "violation" at the caprice of a parole
officer. Even when his parole is successfully completed, he will always
carry the burden of being a convicted felon. | ||||||||||||||||||
All of these cases represent flagrant violations of human decency as well as the spirit, and probably the letter, of California law. They are enduring injustices. I urge you to make their correction or mitigation one of your highest priorities as Attorney General. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sincerely, | ||||||||||||||||||
Thomas J. O'Connell, MD | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Despite continuing media preoccupation with impeachment, last week's
drug policy news was eventful; two potentially landmark releases were
accompanied by a host of other developments. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (1-3) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
One potential landmark was publication of Ernest Drucker's brilliant
paper which uses the government's own statistics to show the damage
done by prohibition. | ||||||||||||||||||
Although the article was noted by both Reuters and UPI, the wire
stories were (predictably) slighted by major US media; | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) DRUG PROHIBITION AND PUBLIC HEALTH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
S Y N O P S I S | ||||||||||||||||||
FOR THE PAST 25 YEARS, the US has pursued a drug policy based on
prohibition and the vigorous application of criminal sanctions for the
use and sale of illicit drugs. The relationship of a prohibition-based
drug policy to prevalence patterns and health consequences of drug use
has never been fully evaluated. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Despite an overall decline in the prevalence of drug use since 1979, we
have seen dramatic increases in drug-related emergency department
visits and drug-related deaths coinciding with this period of increased
enforcement. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
African Americans are more than 20 times as likely as whites to be
incarcerated for drug offenses, and drug-related emergency department
visits, overdose deaths, and new HIV infections related to injecting
drugs are many times higher for blacks than whites. | ||||||||||||||||||
These outcomes may be understood as public health consequences of
policies that criminalize and marginalize drug users and increase
drug-related risks to life and health. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) WIRE: US DRUG POLICY FAILING, REPORT SAYS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
WASHINGTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. policy of outlawing
recreational drugs and actively going after those who use them is
failing to protect users, with deaths and illness due to overdoses
increasing, a report published on Monday finds. | ||||||||||||||||||
Despite declines in drug use, visits to hospital emergency rooms related to cocaine and heroin use have increased sharply, Ernest Drucker of the Montefiore Medical Centre in New York said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) WIRE: JOURNAL BLASTS U.S. DRUG POLICY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
NEW YORK, Jan. 13 (UPI) - The latest issue of Public Health Reports harshly criticizes U.S. drug policy, arguing that increased U.S. drug enforcement has fueled overdose deaths and drug-related emergencies. | ||||||||||||||||||
In its January/February issue, the official journal of the U.S. Public
Health Service, lead article reveals how U.S. policies have led to
dramatic increases in drug-related overdose deaths and emergency room
visits. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (4) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The next op-ed is also devastating (and eloquent) criticism of our
drug policy, particularly when you consider its source- the Boise
Weekly. The sheriff referred to has just became infamous for his use
of drug sniffing dogs in private parking lots. | ||||||||||||||||||
(4) A DRUG SNIFFING SOCIETY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
'I suspect that some of these cars they are going to pick up on are going
to have merchandise with no receipts.' --Sheriff George Nourse,
anticipating an incidental benefit to the use of drug-detecting dogs in
Canyon County parking lots. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Or maybe we could discuss decriminalizing the stuff--regulating the trade, cleansing the poisons from the substance, stripping profits from the dealers, offering treatment instead of jail time, looking for medical answers instead of prison space. That, too, might work--if we're willing to accept a certain level of dependency. Or we could continue along as we are--pouring good billions upon bad, building a prison nation, enriching the crime cartels, and watching people die. We already know it doesn't work, but it does keep the dogs busy. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (5) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Rolling Stone's William Greider again demonstrated his impressive
mastery of the political nuances of drug policy in a wide-ranging
discussion of medical marijuana. This is one of those articles you have
to read completely. | ||||||||||||||||||
(5) MEDICAL MARIJUANA - The Six-State Sweep (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The American people want marijuana Legalized for medical use.
Why isn't W A S H I N G T 0 N listening? | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
If the federal government does not rethink its hard-line policy against
medical marijuana, then the campaign will move on to more states and
collect more victories. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (6-7) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The other major media event of the week was the airing of "Snitch," a
program regarded by many as the most effective TV documentary on the
excesses of drug prohibition to date. This review appeared in the
Chicago Tribune. | ||||||||||||||||||
Eric Sterling, who as a young lawyer played a role in developing mandatory minimum legislation, figures prominently in the documentary; an informative interview with him was published on-line. | ||||||||||||||||||
(6) CHANNEL SURFING: SNITCHES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"Frontline: Snitches": If ever a TV program is going to make you decide
to stop hanging out with crack dealers, this is the one. Producer Ofra
Bikel,who has done lengthy debunkings of child-sex-abuse prosecutions
for "Frontline," returns to the hysteria beat. This time (9 p.m.,
WTTW-Ch. 11), she examines the way the federal "drug war" brought in
illogical and inflexible sentencing rules that, she argues, have taken
power in the judicial system away from judges and handed it to
prosecutors. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
In this chilling context, the defenders of mandatory minimum sentences,
such as Sen. Orrin Hatch (R., Utah), sound like they are merely
offering simplistic platitudes about protecting kids. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) INTERVIEW WITH ERIC STERLING FOR 'SNITCH' (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Eric E. Sterling was counsel to the U.S. House Committee on the
Judiciary, 1979-1989 and participated in the passage of the mandatory
minimum sentencing laws. Currently, he is President of The Criminal
Justice Policy Foundation, Washington, DC and Co-Chair of the American
Bar Association, Committee on Criminal Justice, Section of Individual
Rights and Responsibilities. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Eric Sterling: The work that I was involved in in enacting these mandatory sentences is probably the greatest tragedy of my professional life. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The Criminal Justice Policy Foundation website is at: http://www.cjpf.org/
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COMMENT: (8-9) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Dissatisfaction with the direction taken by federal courts was
expressed in other quarters, as well: the following editorial is from
the conservative Des Moines Register; even Midwestern willingness to
believe federal propaganda has its limits. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Massachusetts, by contrast, the fact that the DEA was looking for
office space was viewed in a generally positive light. Local
enforcement officials seemed to view their burgeoning heroin market
almost as a business opportunity- which , of course, is just what it
is. | ||||||||||||||||||
(8) FEDERALIZING CRIME, IRONICALLY, CONSERVATIVES ARE EXPANDING FEDERAL POWER. (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
You don't have to make a federal case out of it." | ||||||||||||||||||
That old saw pays respect to the elevated status of cases that come before the federal judiciary, which was provided for in the Constitution to tend to the legal business of the national government. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Ironically, this expansion of federal-court jurisdiction comes from a Congress ruled by conservatives who allegedly believe in a limited federal government. And it comes at the very time that Congress refuses to give the federal judiciary adequate resources: Despite increasing caseloads, Congress has authorized no new trial judges in eight years. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) FEDERAL DRUG FIGHTERS TO OPEN OFFICE IN CITY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
NEW BEDFORD -- The federal Drug Enforcement Agency hopes to open a
permanent office in the city within six months to combat what agents
describe as a serious trafficking problem in the area. | ||||||||||||||||||
Special Agent Pamela Mersky said last week the agency is looking for
office space in the city. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
She cited an influx of cheap, fairly pure heroin as the area's biggest
problem. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Out of 1,150 arrests last year in New Bedford, close to 95 percent were
drug-related, Lt. Wotton said. Of those, more involved larger
quantities of drugs than in the past, he noted. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Drugs | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (10-12) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Although hard pressed to find space for intelligent coverage of drug policy
issues, the nation's newspapers maintain an insatiable appetite for the
latest "drug scare," the same old story- endlessly recycled; changing only
the name of the latest demon drug and the list of its always-titillating
effects. With free advertising like this, what need has the criminal market
for Madison Avenue? | ||||||||||||||||||
(10) SIXTIES DRUG IS IN AGAIN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Ben Thomas put hallucinogenic mushrooms on his pepperoni pizza. He
mixed them into Lipton tea, or ate the nasty-tasting drugs with loads
of potato chips. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) NEW MARIJUANA STRAIN BOOSTS DRUG TRADE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A new grade of marijuana grown in British Columbia is so potent it is
being traded pound-for-pound for cocaine in the United States, U.S. and
Canadian authorities say. | ||||||||||||||||||
The drug trade is prompting concerns among law enforcement officials
who have seen drug seizures and arrests soar. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) BLUE NITRO WORRIES POISON EXPERTS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Touted by its promoters as a euphoric elixir that can boost your mood, burn fat, rev up your sex life and even send you off into blissful slumber, a trendy new brew known as Blue Nitro has hit San Francisco. | ||||||||||||||||||
But even as phones at vitamin stores and sex shops ring with requests for the potion, police and medical professionals are warning that the chemical composition of the liquid creates more risks than benefits. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (13) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The orderly quest of Geoffrey Guy for a marketable form of cannabis
continues; it's interesting to speculate on how this news is being
received at ONDCP and NIDA | ||||||||||||||||||
(13) DOCTORS VOLUNTEER TO TEST CANNABIS | ||||||||||||||||||
THE therapeutic effects of cannabis are to be tested by two doctors who have volunteered to run the first official patient trials. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Three hundred patients will take part in the post-operative pain trial
and 600 in the MS trial. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
An initial crop of 5,000 plants was sown in August at a secure
glasshouse in the south of England. The mature, 8ft plants are now
being cut off just above the stem and hung up to dry before being
transferred to a laboratory. | ||||||||||||||||||
The aim of the trials is to obtain results that will be accepted by the
World Health Organisation. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (14) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Inevitable consequences of the global glut of illegal drugs produced for our market are increased availability and lower prices all along the pipeline. Thus, increased addiction rates in poor countries are part of the legacy American policy leaves to the rest of the world. | ||||||||||||||||||
(14) FIGHTING RISING DRUG ABUSE INSIDE MEXICO'S BORDERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
MEXICO CITY, Jan. 11, 1999 -- If he could take control of the millions of dollars Mexico spends each year to combat drug trafficking, Miguel Gonzalez Espinosa would spend a little less of it on high-tech, heavily armed operations at airports and along the border, aimed at stopping the flow of drugs from Colombia on their way to the United States. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
He sees first hand the toll taken by a less-talked-about, but increasingly
damaging problem:the rise in drug abuse - especially cocaine and crack -
among Mexican youth. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (15-16) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
As the scope of MAP news coverage increases, we are reminded that the lure of the illegal drug market created by US policy really is global; it kills and corrupts people every day in nations we rarely think about. | ||||||||||||||||||
That concept is reinforced by the next article from Takijistan which prove that no place is too small or unimportant to participate in the drug war. | ||||||||||||||||||
(15) KENYA RIVALS COLOMBIA IN DRUG TRAFFICKING (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
NAIROBI (AANA) January 11 - Kenya's drug problem has been compared to that
of Columbia as large forest lands are cleared and planted with bhang
(canabis sativa) while the plantations are protected by guards armed with
bows and arrows. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Apart from being a major grower of bhang, Kenya has become a major staging point for traffickers while domestic consumption has escalated in recent times, according to an International Narcotics Control Strategy report. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) TAJIKISTAN RAKHMONOV TO SPEAK ON DRUGS PROBLEM. | ||||||||||||||||||
DUSHANBE, - Tajik President Emomali Rakhmonov will address the nation
on Friday on the problem of illegal drugs which has acquired immense
scope in the Central Asian republic. | ||||||||||||||||||
The address is to be made at the conference "Drug-free Tajikistan" in
Dushanbe which is organised by the state commission on drugs control
and the special UNO programme. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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COMMENT: (17) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
While there is no political stability in any drug producing nation;
the most rapidly deteriorating situation is in Colombia, where last
week's killings, though easily three times the number in Kosovo,
attracted far less notice from the US press. | ||||||||||||||||||
(17) COLOMBIAN DEATH SQUADS ENDANGERING PEACE TALKS, ANALYSTS SAY (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
BOGOTA, Colombia, Jan. 12, 1999 - After a three-day rampage by paramilitary death squads that killed at least 139 people, | ||||||||||||||||||
Colombians are demanding that their government either negotiate with
the outlawed militias or fight back. The massacres began just a day
after peace talks opened last week between the government and the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, Colombia's largest
Marxist guerrilla group. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
"At some point, the government has to decide: either they attack the
paramilitaries with the possibility that it divides the army, or they
accept that the paramilitaries continue and break off the talks with
the FARC,'' (sociologist Alberto) Molano said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Thanks to Art Sobey for this heads up: | ||||||||||||||||||
Steve Kubby Arrested | ||||||||||||||||||
Medical cannabis patients Steve and Michele Kubby were arrested early
on January 19 at their home near Lake Tahoe, California. Mr. Kubby, who
suffers from a rare form of cancer, credits the very fact that he is
alive to medical cannabis. He was growing the medicine in his home for
his own use. Because he is being denied access to his medicine, he
fears he will suffer a stroke tonight while in custody. | ||||||||||||||||||
Steve and Michele were marched through the snow and thrown in freezing
cold cells, where their jailers have refused their requests blankets
and medical care. As of this writing, Steve has already experienced
three hypertensive episodes in jail, and his blood pressure is
dangerously high. | ||||||||||||||||||
Though they were arrested near Lake Tahoe, they were transferred to
Placer County Jail in Auburn. Bail has been set at $100,000 even though
the Kubbys own their home, have a small child, and present absolutely
no flight risk. Steve was the Libertarian Party's candidate for
governor in the November, 1998 election. | ||||||||||||||||||
Before they were taken into custody, Steve and Michele presented the officers with their patient credentials and notes from their physicians. Nevertheless, a deputy district attorney on the scene personally ordered the Kubbys arrested. Police and sheriff's deputies also seized the Kubbys' computers, which are their source of income. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Kubbys are exactly the kind of people for whom Proposition 215 was
enacted. Nevertheless, Steve overheard his arresting officers say,
"That 215 doesn't apply here. Maybe it'll work in San Francisco, but
not out here." | ||||||||||||||||||
"It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong."
-- Voltaire | ||||||||||||||||||
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TIP OF THE WEEK | ||||||||||||||||||
Reading the DrugSense Weekly on-line just got even easier. For those
who choose to read their subscription on-line we have added a feature
that enables you to scan the table of contents and click on items of
interest. This greatly simplifies moving around throughout the
publication. You can of course still click on the URL of any news item
to read the article in full. | ||||||||||||||||||
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"One of the saddest lessons of history is this: If we've been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We're no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It is simply too painful to acknowledge -- even to ourselves -- that we've been so credulous. (So the old bamboozles tend to persist as the new bamboozles rise.)" -Carl Sagan, "The Fine Art of Baloney Detection," Parade, February 1, 1987 | ||||||||||||||||||
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FACT OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
From the impressive collection of Drug War Facts at: | ||||||||||||||||||
In 1985, our incarceration rate was 313 per 100,000 population. Now it
is 645 per 100,000, which is three to 10 times higher than rates of the
other modern democratic societies. The largest single factor
contributing to this imprisonment wave is an eight-fold rise in drug
arrests. In 1980, when illicit drug use was peaking, there were about
50,000 men and women in prison for violating drug laws. Last year,
there were about 400,000. | ||||||||||||||||||
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