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DrugSense Weekly
March 17, 2000, #141


Table of Contents

* Breaking News (04/20/24)


* Feature Article


What if...  Marijuana Was Legal? / by Anne Wills

* Weekly News in Review


Drug Policy-

COMMENT: (1-3)
(1) US: Panel Back Drug Interdiction, Snubs Treatment
(2) Editorial: Are We Fools Rushing into Colombia?
(3) Fungus Could Destroy Cocaine Plants
COMMENT: (4-5)
(4) Heroin Use, Arrests Way Up
(5) Feds Put Ecstasy in Crosshairs
COMMENT: (6)
(6) Strawberry's Cocaine Struggles Say Much About Life
COMMENT: (7-9)
(7) X-Rated Airport Scanners
(8) Drug Test Case May be Heard by Supreme Court
(9) ACLU Files Lawsuit Against Lockney Schools Over Drug

Law Enforcement & Prisons-

COMMENT: (10-11)
(10) Study Says Drug Offenders Spending Less Time Behind Bars
(11) No-Knocks Net Little Jail Time
COMMENT: (12-15)
(12) Editorial: LAPD's Unlearned Lessons
(13) L.A. Police Mired in Misconduct Scandal
(14) Sparks Fly Over Rampart Cost
(15) U.S. Begins Rampart Civil Rights Inquiry

Cannabis & Hemp-

COMMENT: (16)
(16) Marijuana Trial Put Off Until May
COMMENT: (17-18)
(17) Legislators Approve Marijuana Proposals Cayetano Favors
(18) Panel Kills Drug Bill

International News-

COMMENT: (19-21)
(19) Indonesia: Police to Get Tough on Drugs
(20) Canada: Officer is Held Over Bogus Drug Raids
(21) 2 Cops Suspected of Ordering Killing of Tijuana's Chief
COMMENT: (22)
(22) UK: Blair Calls for Global War on Drug Dealers
COMMENT: (23)
(23) Australia: All the Rave

* Hot Off The 'Net


    TRAC Web Site Reveals Some Surprising Data
    "Dump Judge Judy" Web Site Announced
    If You Need a Laugh - Transcript of Phone Calls to ONDCP and Other
    Prohibitionist Offices
    A Site That Automatically Sends A Letter To 350 Government Offices.

* Quote of the Week


    Gregory J. Boyle


FEATURE ARTICLE    (Top)

What if...  Marijuana Was Legal? / by Anne Wills

What would our world be like? Would we all be drugged out pot smokers on the road to hard drugs and death? No, but if you really believe that, maybe you should read on.  (And if you don't, you're welcome to continue also).

A world where marijuana is legal is not the dark and dreary world of crime and rampant drug use that many imagine it to be.  Actually, that world is the America we live in now, and the War on Drugs is doing nothing to abate it.  In a world where marijuana is legal adults would have the right to smoke marijuana, just like they drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes.  The civil liberties of pot smokers and nonsmokers alike would be a tad less oppressed, they would lose less money out of each paycheck for taxes, and there would be less of a possibility of being the victim of a violent crime.  Doesn't sound so terrible to me.

So let's just take a look at what that futuristic world might be like.

An important point to make first is that marijuana would not be legal everywhere.  When the 21st Amendment was passed, it didn't make alcohol legal again, it simply gave the power to outlaw alcohol back to the states, which just happens to be the Constitutionally correct way of doing things.  So, pot would most likely be legal in some states and not in others; states could even let individual counties or towns make the decision for themselves.

One benefit of this is that it's a lot easier to make reform happen at a local level than at a national one, so if you can convince your town of the benefits of legalized marijuana, you are more likely to get a response than if you tried to persuade Congress.

Also, if you really wanted to be able to smoke pot legally, you could simply move.  This is a lot easier and safer than taking the risk of doing something illegal and facing years in prison.  Either you'd be happy in your new location, or maybe there will be such a large migration into areas that allow pot, your old home will be forced to make marijuana legal just to get people to live in their area! Getting what you want from government? How revolutionary!

I also have to explain how marijuana would be sold.  No one wants kids doing drugs (except for kids), so it would only be legal for adults to buy marijuana, at sanctioned stores, with an ID, just like liquor.  It would actually be harder for kids to get pot than it is now.

It would still be illegal to drive while high DUI and DWI laws will apply the same to alcohol and pot.  Just like with drinking, you won't be able to go to work or school high; just try to show up to work after a few shots of tequila it ain't gonna cut it with the boss.  What's more employers would still be able to conduct drug tests and reject applicants if they test positive.  Also, you probably won't be able to smoke in public places, just like you can't walk down the street with a beer.  Crime would go down. Right now most drug related crime is committed by either users to support their habit, or by dealers in disputes that can't be resolved in courts and end up killing or injuring each other or innocent bystanders.  Criminals aren't committing crimes because of they are high, they do so because the drug is illegal.

Despite this however, being a drug dealer is really a great job if you think about it.  Thanks to many well trained police dogs, their product is artificially scarce and so the prices they can charge are astronomical.  Any businessman would like to make the profits they do.

In our hypothetical future world, however, marijuana would be sold in stores with little barriers to entry.  Dealers would go out of business, and the price of pot would drop because the supply is not limited, and because there would be competition between vendors.

Marijuana would also be safer for the consumer.  Right now, pot smokers don't know what's really in the substance they're inhaling.  If it were legal, marijuana would be tested and labeled letting the user know just what they're getting themselves into.

And, (the list just keeps going), jobs would be created.  True, they would probably take the place of jobs lost by Drug War workers and drug dealers, but they will be productive rather than destructive jobs. There would be numerous jobs in agriculture, shipping, production, every level of management, and retail.  The mainstream economy would benefit rather than hurt.

Taxes would go down.  Right now we have nothing to show for the enormous sums heaped at the failed War on Drugs; that money is basically wasted.  Lower taxes mean Americans would have more control over their own money and lives.  It would also lead to more spending and yet another boost to the economy.  Politicians will probably also cook up a tax on marijuana, which could be used for any number of state programs and would only be paid by the users.

In a marijuana decriminalized world a civil liberty will be returned to the American people.  Smoking marijuana harms no one other than the user, and this person should have the right to do whatever he or she wants to do with her body.  Who is the government to say what individuals can do to themselves?

Another benefit is that the police would have more time to combat violent crimes, the courts would be more free to prosecute them, and expensive and overpopulated prisons would open up.

Last but certainly not least, marijuana would be used for the medicinal purposes.  This will benefit many ill persons who now have to break the law to stave off pain.

Would be an increase in drug use after marijuana became legal? Well, there might be a small blip, but it most likely wouldn't last, and probably wouldn't cause any permanent effects.  Plus, with the crime gone, who's to say using drugs is necessarily such a bad thing.  In reality, most people that would want to use marijuana are probably doing it right now.

So, all in all, when you ask, What if marijuana were legal? I would simply say that our world would be a more prosperous, safer and freer place to live.

Anne Wills is an undergraduate majoring in rhetoric at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigne.


WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW    (Top)


Domestic News- Policy


COMMENT: (1-3)    (Top)

Consistent with their tough-on-drugs rhetoric, Congress said yes to war and no to treatment; however, the Chicago Tribune disagreed in no uncertain terms, and a British publication revealed additional US plans for the annihilation of coca.

(1) US: PANEL BACK DRUG INTERDICTION, SNUBS TREATMENT    (Top)

WASHINGTON - Backing President Clinton, House Republicans on a powerful committee Thursday gave their prescription for the war on drugs: yes for $2 billion to fight drugs at their source in Colombia, no for $1.3 billion to treat addicts at home.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 10 Mar 2000
Source:   Tampa Tribune (FL)
Copyright:   2000, The Tribune Co.
Address:   P.O.  Box 191, Tampa, FL 33601
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.tampatrib.com/
Forum:   http://tampabayonline.net/interact/welcome.htm
Section:   Nation/World p.17
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n344/a06.html


(2) EDITORIAL: ARE WE FOOLS RUSHING INTO COLOMBIA?    (Top)

The Clinton White House and the Republican leadership in Congress seem hell bent on opening up the American money spigot full wide to help the Colombian government fight neurotransmitters--and presumably reduce the flow of illegal drugs into the U.S.

[snip]

Far better than that, Congress and the Clinton administration ought to reconsider the upside-down priorities of this country's war on drugs. The additional billions poured into foreign interdiction ought to be used fighting the enemy within--drug addiction--by funding additional treatment and education programs to reduce demand right here at home.

Pubdate:   Sun, 12 Mar 2000
Source:   Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright:   2000 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact:  
Address:   435 N.  Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611-4066
Website:   http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Forum:   http://www.chicagotribune.com/interact/boards/
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n353/a09.html


(3) FUNGUS COULD DESTROY COCAINE PLANTS    (Top)

The latest weapon in the war against drugs may soon be spread on the coca fields of Colombia.  The UN International Drug Control Programme is negotiating with the government of Colombia to conduct open field trials of a strain of the fungus Fusarium oxysporum that attacks coca plants, the source of cocaine.

The funding, about $23 million, would come from the US and the UN.  But activists say the fungus could damage the environment and harm Colombia's economy.

[snip]

Pubdate:   11 Mar 2000
Source:   New Scientist (UK)
Copyright:   New Scientist, RBI Limited 2000
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.newscientist.com/
Author:   Kurt Kleiner
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n334/a01.html


COMMENT: (4-5)    (Top)

Meanwhile, reports from the domestic drug war front weren't encouraging; heroin use continues to surge and one wonders if the idea of drug prohibition can survive yet another drug "threat", especially one primarily affecting the white middle class.

(4) HEROIN USE, ARRESTS WAY UP    (Top)

Heroin use and sales are surging in the Cincinnati area, with the number of arrests involving the illicit drug climbing from less than 20 in 1990 to more than 400 last year, according to a city drug enforcement officer.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Mon, 6 Mar 2000
Source:   Times, The (UK)
Copyright:   2000 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact:  
Address:   PO Box 496, London E1 9XN, United Kingdom
Fax:   +44-(0)171-782 5046
Website:   http://www.the-times.co.uk/
Author:   John O'leary, Education Editor
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n344/a05.html


(5) FEDS PUT ECSTASY IN CROSSHAIRS    (Top)

In tablet form it often comes stamped with the symbol of a luxury car or the image of a Buddha, and it provides a blast of euphoria and energy that override the body's need to sleep, eat or drink, sometimes with lethal consequences.

The powerful mood-enhancing drug Ecstasy, favored among suburban teenagers, is now flowing into the United States in record amounts, with New Jersey one of the key distribution centers, authorities say.

Yesterday, U.S.  Customs officials formally declared war against the drug, warning that trafficking in Ecstasy is rising at an alarming rate.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 14 Mar 2000
Source:   Star-Ledger (NJ)
Copyright:   2000 Newark Morning Ledger Co.
Contact:  
Address:   1 Star-Ledger Plaza, Newark, N.J., 07102-1200
Website:   http://www.nj.com/starledger/
Forum:   http://forums.nj.com/
Author:   Robert Rudolph
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n361/a02.html


COMMENT: (6)    (Top)

While Darryl Strawberry's plight generated some thoughtful essays on addiction; Ethan Nadelmann was the only author to note an obvious contradiction: poor drug users go to prison; the rich and famous to rehab.

(6) STRAWBERRY'S COCAINE STRUGGLES SAY MUCH ABOUT LIFE IN THE PUBLIC    (Top)

Darryl Strawberry seems to have a hard time just saying no to cocaine.

My first thought was: what's the matter with him? Can't he just say no, if only for the few more years that his knees hold out? He sure must like cocaine a lot.

My second thought was: Gee, Strawberry sure is lucky he's rich and famous and that all sorts of people like George Steinbrenner care about him, because if he were poor and not famous, odds are that he'd be sitting behind bars right now, probably for violating probation or parole.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Thu, 09 Mar 2000
Source:   Philadelphia Daily News (PA)
Copyright:   2000 Philadelphia Newspapers Inc.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.phillynews.com/
Forum:   http://interactive.phillynews.com/talk-show/
Author:   Ethan A.  Nadelmann
Ethan A.  Nadelmann is director of the Lindesmith Center
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n346/a04.html
For other Strawberry Op-Eds, see:
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n345/a10.html
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n359/a07.html


COMMENT: (7-9)    (Top)

Testing and related intrusions remain in the news, an example of drug warriors responding to criticism in the only way they know.

An intrusive new scanner made news in Britain; last week it was Canada; the American press has yet to notice.

Details in the Georgia case suggest that the teacher was set up for remarks she made during a speech; the Lockney case is a more pure challenge- but years away from the Supreme Court.

(7) X-RATED AIRPORT SCANNERS    (Top)

NEW X-ray machines that reveal the naked truth are appearing at American airports.

They can see through passengers' clothing and are being used to search for drugs and weapons.

[snip]

Gregory Nojeim, counsel for the ACLU, complained that the scanners not only show body parts clearly, they can also be enlarged.

ACLU is asking Congress to ban the scanner as a violation of the US Constitution's protection against unreasonable search and seizure.

However, Raymond Kelly, the US Customs Commissioner, said: "People object to being physically touched.  That was why we brought in the scanners."

Pubdate:   Sat, 11 Mar 2000
Source:   Times, The (UK)
Copyright:   2000 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact:  
Address:   PO Box 496, London E1 9XN, United Kingdom
Fax:   +44-(0)171-782 5046
Website:   http://www.the-times.co.uk/
Author:   Ian Brodie in Washington
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n345/a03.html


(8) DRUG TEST CASE MAY BE HEARD BY SUPREME COURT    (Top)

Civil rights organization takes up cause of former teacher Sherry Hearn.

During a drug search at Windsor Forest High School, a police officer said he found the remains of a marijuana joint in teacher Sherry Hearn's car.

The school ordered her to take a urinalysis test within two hours of the discovery.  Hearn, a social studies teacher, refused, calling the search unconstitutional.  So the veteran educator was fired for insubordination.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 10 Mar 2000
Source:   Savannah Morning News (GA)
Copyright:   2000 Savannah Morning News
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.savannahnow.com/
Forum:   http://chat.savannahnow.com:90/eshare/
Author:   Erik Tryggestad
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n342/a09.html


(9) ACLU FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST LOCKNEY SCHOOLS OVER DRUG TESTING CASE    (Top)

The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the Lockney school district after the parents of a 12-year-old refused to allow their son to be subjected to a new mandatory drug testing policy, an ACLU spokesperson said Tuesday.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Wed, 08 Mar 2000
Source:   Lubbock Avalanche-Journal (TX)
Copyright:   2000 The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Contact:  
Feedback:   http://www.lubbockonline.com/interactive/edit.shtml
Website:   http://www.lubbockonline.com/
Forum:   http://chat.lubbockonline.com:90/eshare/
Author:   Linda Kane
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n332/a04.html


Law Enforcement & Prisons
---------

COMMENT: (10-11)    (Top)

After all the publicity over two million prisoners, many were surprised to learn that average federal sentences have declined rather steeply since 1992.  Although it's a complex issue, one obvious conclusion is that few "kingpins" are punished.

A report from Denver revealed that dramatic (and dangerous) "no-knock" raids are highly inefficient at producing convictions.

(10) STUDY SAYS DRUG OFFENDERS SPENDING LESS TIME BEHIND BARS    (Top)

WASHINGTON - Despite a massive expansion of the nation's drug war, narcotics traffickers and users busted by federal law-enforcement agencies are serving far less time in prison than in past years, according to interviews and new data released yesterday.

Researchers at Syracuse University said startling new statistics suggest that federal authorities are failing to target the most dangerous drug kingpins and the most drug-infested areas, focusing instead on lower-level marijuana crimes.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Mon, 13 Mar 2000
Source:   Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright:   2000 The Seattle Times Company
Contact:  
Address:   P.O.  Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111
Fax:   (206) 382-6760
Website:   http://www.seattletimes.com/
Author:   Eric Lichtblau and Josh Meyer, Los Angeles Times
Note:   Information from The Associated Press and Knight Ridder Newspapers is
included in this report.
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n357/a05.html


(11) NO-KNOCKS NET LITTLE JAIL TIME    (Top)

Of suspects arrested in drug raids last year, only two felons went to prison, statistics show

Denver police targeted 146 suspects in no-knock drug raids last year.

A third of those suspects ended up facing felony charges.

And, of those, two were sent to prison.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Sun, 12 Mar 2000
Source:   Denver Rocky Mountain News (CO)
Copyright:   2000 Denver Publishing Co.
Contact:  
Address:   400 W.  Colfax, Denver, CO 80204
Website:   http://www.denver-rmn.com/
Author:   Kevin Flynn and Lou Kilzer
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n348/a08.html


COMMENT: (12-15)    (Top)

In LA, the Rampart mess worsened: two separate analyses- one by the Times, the other by its Eastern sister- concluded that the mayor and police chief are still in denial.

As if that weren't bad enough, there's wrangling over how to pay for the damage and the FBI just announced its own investigation.

(12) EDITORIAL: LAPD'S UNLEARNED LESSONS    (Top)

How could anyone, much less Chief Parks, insist that the Christopher Commission's recommendations are essentially all in place? The facts prove otherwise.

[snip]

Much of what still ails the LAPD was laid out more than nine years ago by the Christopher Commission.

[snip]

Police Chief Bernard C.  Parks, seemingly unable to hear what his own investigative team has told him, declares that his department has surpassed the changes called for in 1991.  Mayor Richard Riordan hasn't helped, failing to use more than $163,000 in federal money for a computer tracking system that would help identify problem officers.

Pubdate:   Mon, 13 Mar 2000
Source:   Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright:   2000 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  
Address:   Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053
Fax:   (213) 237-4712
Website:   http://www.latimes.com/
Forum:   http://www.latimes.com/home/discuss/
Section:   Los Angeles Metro
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n356/a08.html


(13) L.A. POLICE MIRED IN MISCONDUCT SCANDAL    (Top)

Mexican-Americans Numb To The Violence

LOS ANGELES - Police bullets crashed into the spine of Javier Francisco Ovando, and only the judge who sent the paralyzed 19-year-old to prison had any harsh words about the shooting.  He admonished Ovando for being a danger to society.

When police shot Juan Salana, officers left him unattended long enough that he bled to death.

The events weren't big news in East Los Angeles, a poor, immigrant-populated area just a five-minute bus ride from the high-rises that mark the city's skyline.

[snip]

The officer whose actions led to the exposure of Rampart has completed his plea bargain with prosecutors for stealing the cocaine.  Perez was sentenced to five years in prison.  He could be out in two. He will not be prosecuted for the cover-ups, evidence plantings or unjustifiable shootings he has admitted.

Pubdate:   Mon, 13 Mar 2000
Source:   Baltimore Sun (MD)
Copyright:   2000 The Baltimore Sun, a Times Mirror Newspaper.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.sunspot.net/
Forum:   http://www.sunspot.net/cgi-bin/ultbb/Ultimate.cgi?actionintro
Author:   Todd Richissin
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n354/a08.html


(14) SPARKS FLY OVER RAMPART COST    (Top)

Mayor Richard Riordan's office and the City Council clashed sharply Wednesday over how to pay hundreds of millions of dollars the city could owe from judgments and settlements arising from the L.A.  police corruption scandal.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Thu, 09 Mar 2000
Source:   Daily News of Los Angeles (CA)
Copyright:   2000 Daily News of Los Angeles
Address:   P.O.  Box 4200, Woodland Hills, CA 91365
Fax:   (818)713-3723
Feedback:   http://www.DailyNews.com/contact/letters.asp
Website:   http://www.DailyNews.com/
Author:   Rick Orlov
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n337/a07.html


(15) U.S. BEGINS RAMPART CIVIL RIGHTS INQUIRY    (Top)

Corruption:   Federal lawyers arrive in L.A.  to question why LAPD failed
to implement promised changes and how it plans to move forward with reforms, sources say.

Concerned about civil rights violations arising from the Police Department's Rampart Division corruption scandal, high-ranking U.S. Justice Department officials flew to Los Angeles Sunday to meet today with LAPD Chief Bernard C.  Parks and other top city leaders.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Mon, 13 Mar 2000
Source:   Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright:   2000 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  
Address:   Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053
Fax:   (213) 237-4712
Website:   http://www.latimes.com/
Forum:   http://www.latimes.com/home/discuss/
Author:   Eric Lichtblau, Matt Lait, Times Staff Writers
Note:   Times staff writer Jim Newton contributed to this story.
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n357/a03.html


Cannabis & Hemp-


COMMENT: (16)    (Top)

The Kubbys received an important delay from the judge after turning down a plea bargain.  This should be the last delay and cleared the way for Tony Serra to defend them.

(16) MARIJUANA TRIAL PUT OFF UNTIL MAY    (Top)

Steve and Michele Kubby, on trial for possession and conspiracy to cultivate and sell marijuana and possession of controlled substances, fired their attorneys this week.

Superior Court Judge James L.  Roeder on Tuesday ruled in favor of the Kubbys' petition to relieve their attorneys from the case.

According to Steve Kubby, the attorneys - Dale Wood and Joseph Farina - are potential witnesses in the medical marijuana trial that is now expected to start on May 1.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Thu, 09 Mar 2000
Source:   Auburn Journal
Copyright:   2000 Auburn Journal
Contact:  
Address:   1030 High St., Auburn, CA 95603
Website:   http://www.auburnjournal.com/
Author:   Jessica R.  Towhey, Journal Staff Writer
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n338/a07.html


COMMENT: (17-18)    (Top)

On the legislative front, Hawaii should become the first state to allow medical use without requiring an initiative.  In Maryland, a similar bill (one introduced in a flurry of good publicity) couldn't survive its first committee.

(17) LEGISLATORS APPROVE MARIJUANA PROPOSALS; CAYETANO FAVORS MEDICAL USE    (Top)

Both the state House and Senate yesterday approved bills legalizing marijuana use for medical purposes, which means such a measure is extremely likely to become law.

This is the first time measures authorizing medical marijuana have cleared both houses of the Legislature.

Gov.  Ben Cayetano has said he favors allowing marijuana to be used for medical purposes, so a veto is unlikely.  The state Department of Health has said marijuana should be available to treat symptoms associated with cancer, AIDS and other conditions.

Pubdate:   Wed, 8 Mar 2000
Source:   Honolulu Advertiser (HI)
Copyright:   2000 The Honolulu Advertiser, a division of Gannett Co.  Inc.
Contact:  
Address:   P.O.  Box 3110 Honolulu, HI 96802
Fax:   (808) 525-8037
Website:   http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/
Author:   Lynda Arakawa and Kevin Dayton, Advertiser Capitol Bureau
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n332/a07.html


(18) PANEL KILLS DRUG BILL    (Top)

Move To Legalize Medicinal Use Of Marijuana Fails; Relief Sought For Sick; Supporters Speak Of Compassion While Foes Point To The Law

A bill that would have permitted patients with cancer and other diseases to use marijuana to relieve their symptoms and side effects of treatment was defeated last night after an emotional debate in a House of Delegates committee.

Turning aside its sponsor's plea for more time to craft a broadly acceptable bill, the House Judiciary Committee voted 11-7, with one abstention, to keep the bill from going to the full House.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Sat, 11 Mar 2000
Source:   Baltimore Sun (MD)
Copyright:   2000 The Baltimore Sun, a Times Mirror Newspaper.
Contact:  
Website:   http://www.sunspot.net/
Forum:   http://www.sunspot.net/cgi-bin/ultbb/Ultimate.cgi?actionintro
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n345/a06.html


International News


COMMENT: (19-21)    (Top)

Almost as if providing solace to Americans over the LAPD debacle, law enforcement agents in 3 other countries illustrated how easily prohibition laws can corrupt police.

(19) INDONESIA: POLICE TO GET TOUGH ON DRUGS    (Top)

JAKARTA (JP): Marking its massive campaign against illegal drugs, the National Police have taken initial internal law-enforcement measures against its low-ranking officers allegedly involved in drug abuse and trafficking.

[snip]

Rusdihardjo said the number of police involved in drug cases had reached an alarming level.

"The national campaign against drugs will never be a success if the law enforcers, including police officers, are involved in taking drugs and trafficking," he said.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Mon, 13 Mar 2000
Pubdate:   Mon, 13 March 2000
Source:   Jakarta Post (Indonesia)
Copyright:   The Jakarta Post
Contact:  
Address:   P.O.  Box 85 Palmerah Jakarta 11001
Fax:   (62) (21) 5492685
Website:   http://www.thejakartapost.com
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n353/a04.html


(20) CANADA: OFFICER IS HELD OVER BOGUS DRUG RAIDS    (Top)

Real And Fake Police ID Seized With Guns, Cash

A Toronto police officer and six other men face a slew of charges stemming from a series of fake police drug shakedowns and home invasion robberies in Toronto and York Region.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Sat, 11 Mar 2000
Source:   Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright:   2000 The Toronto Star
Contact:  
Address:   One Yonge St., Toronto ON, M5E 1E6
Fax:   (416) 869-4322
Website:   http://www.thestar.com/
Forum:   http://www.thestar.com/editorial/disc_board/
Author:   Jim Rankin and Cal Millar
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n351/a06.html


(21) 2 COPS SUSPECTED OF ORDERING KILLING OF TIJUANA'S CHIEF    (Top)

TIJUANA, MEXICO -- The gangland-style assassination of Tijuana's police chief may have been ordered by two of his officers, prosecutors said Thursday.

Baja California Atty.  Gen. Juan Manuel Salazar had said earlier that the six people arrested in the Feb.  27 murder of Alfredo de la Torre were suspected of carrying out the killing for a drug lord.

But he said Thursday that their testimony had led investigators to believe that an assistant police chief and a police officer orchestrated the shooting, then fled to the U.S.

The suspects, arrested Wednesday, include a former city official and a ex-policeman.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 10 Mar 2000
Source:   Chicago Tribune (IL)
Copyright:   2000 Chicago Tribune Company
Contact:  
Address:   435 N.  Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611-4066
Website:   http://www.chicagotribune.com/
Forum:   http://www.chicagotribune.com/interact/boards/
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n340/a07.html


COMMENT: (22)    (Top)

There was no suggestion that concern over police corruption gave Tony Blair any pause in pursuit of his (lonely) role as designated European drug war hawk.

(22) UK: BLAIR CALLS FOR GLOBAL WAR ON DRUG DEALERS    (Top)

A GLOBAL war on drugs, with minimum set penalties for drug traffickers across the European Union, was called for by Tony Blair last night.

The Prime Minister said that, as a parent, he was "terrified" about the threat posed by the deadly substances and has moved to ensure that the issue is raised at an EU summit in Portugal.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Fri, 10 Mar 2000
Source:   Times, The (UK)
Copyright:   2000 Times Newspapers Ltd
Contact:  
Address:   PO Box 496, London E1 9XN, United Kingdom
Fax:   +44-(0)171-782 5046
Website:   http://www.the-times.co.uk/
Author:   Jason Allardyce and Stewart Tendler
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n343/a10.html


COMMENT: (23)    (Top)

Australia's Age printed a fairly balanced analysis of the emerging "rave" culture; one that- sadly- won't be read by many US reporters now being fed a diet of ecstasy scare stories by the DEA.

(23) AUSTRALIA: ALL THE RAVE    (Top)

Rave Culture Has Raised Controversy Since Its Conception.

Spawned in the late 1980s from the hordes of disenfranchised fringe dwellers in Thatcher's England, Rave culture has grown to become globally one of the most far-reaching cultural movements of a generation.

The rave scene is characterised by colorful costuming, vibrant decor, live performance, sculptural art, high-tech projection gadgetry, a general sense of unity.

[snip]

Yet, increasingly with every new media report of the perils of raves, the public understanding of the culture is skewed.

[snip]

Pubdate:   Tue, 07 Mar 2000
Source:   Age, The (Australia)
Copyright:   2000 David Syme & Co Ltd
Contact:  
Address:   250 Spencer Street, Melbourne, 3000, Australia
Website:   http://www.theage.com.au/
Author:   James Norman
URL:   http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n338/a01.html


HOT OFF THE 'NET    (Top)

TRAC Web Site Shows Some Surprising Data

Some surprising findings.  The average prison sentence for federal drug offenders has substantially declined, after many many years of moving in the opposite direction.  Marijuana is involved in more federal drug convictions than any other drug.  Customs Service is now the second most active federal investigative agency when it comes to drugs.  Go to http://trac.syr.edu to view TRAC's updated DEA site and its new Customs Service site.  Numerous graphs, charts and tables, all based on data from the Justice Department, the federal court, the U.S.  Sentencing Commission and numerous other sources.  Data also show wide and sometimes hard-to-explain regional variations in the enforcement activities and sentencing decisions found among the 90 federal judicial districts.


"Dump Judge Judy" Web Site Announced

Your help is urgently needed on the "Dump Judge Judy" campaign.  DRCNet has launched a web site, http://www.dumpjudgejudy.com , to enhance the campaign and build political support for needle exchange.

Submitted by David Borden


If You Need a Laugh - Transcript of Phone Calls to ONDCP and Other Prohibitionist Offices

http://www.theavclub.com/avclubarchive/drugwar.html

Submitted by Peter J Christ


A Site That Automatically Sends A Letter To 350 Government Offices. http://www.legalize.com/petition/petition.htm

Submitted by John Smith


QUOTE OF THE WEEK    (Top)

"The truest measure of ourselves as compassionate and civilized human beings is not how lavishly we honor our heroes, nor how tenderly we nurture our children, nor how politely we select our leaders.  The real test comes precisely in our treatment of the criminal."

-- Gregory J.  Boyle

Perhaps the word criminal should be in quotes - Ed


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