| Feb. 27, 2004 #339 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Table of Contents
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THIS JUST IN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
(1) COURT ALLOWS MEDICINAL USE OF MARIJUANA (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
San Francisco - The federal appeals court here has refused to
reconsider its ruling that allows Californians to grow and use
marijuana to treat their illnesses. | ||||||||||||||||||
The Bush administration had asked the court, for the Ninth Circuit, to
hold a new hearing on that ruling, issued by a three-judge panel in
December on a lawsuit filed by two women with chronic illnesses. But
in an order issued Wednesday and made public on Thursday, the court
denied the request. | ||||||||||||||||||
Justice Department officials declined to comment on the order or whether it would be appealed to the Supreme Court. Medicinal-marijuana advocates said it would allow tens of thousands of people in California and six other Western states with laws that permit such marijuana use to continue it without fearing federal prosecution. | ||||||||||||||||||
The new order "means medical marijuana patients throughout the Western states can sleep easier tonight," Steph Sherer, executive director of the advocacy group Americans for Safe Access, said in a statement. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(2) COMMITTEE SAYS YES TO SMALL AMOUNTS OF GANJA FOR PRIVATE USE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
THE Joint Select Committee examining the report of the National
Commission on Ganja has recommended there be no criminal charge for
use of the drug in small quantities, by adults in private, and that
the law be amended to reflect the changes. | ||||||||||||||||||
However, the committee, which had its final meeting at Gordon House
on Tuesday, insisted that the use of marijuana in public spaces
remains illegal, and that children especially should be discouraged
from using the drug. | ||||||||||||||||||
Also, the use of marijuana as a sacrament in religious rites was not
endorsed by the committee as both government and opposition members
felt that such use was not in a private space and could therefore
violate the rights of others who could be exposed to second-hand
smoke. | ||||||||||||||||||
The committee's positions, based on the seven major recommendations
and findings of the National Commission on Ganja, will now be sent
to Parliament for a vote. | ||||||||||||||||||
Professor Barry Chevannes, who chaired the commission, had
recommended that "the relevant laws be amended so that Ganja be
decriminalised for the private, personal use of small quantities
by adults". | ||||||||||||||||||
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(3) VIEWS AIRED ON FORFEITURE PROPOSAL (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
SALT LAKE CITY - Ogden resident Bert Smith said differences between
proponents and opponents of the asset forfeiture bill could have been
solved a year ago if both sides had done what they did Wednesday
night - talk. | ||||||||||||||||||
"This was a fair and honest discussion," Smith said. "The first one
we've had." | ||||||||||||||||||
The discussion, moderated by House Speaker Marty Stephens, picked apart the differences Initiative B proponents have with a legislative attempt to reform the controversial law, which keeps law enforcement agencies from keeping seized property for their own use. | ||||||||||||||||||
The law, a citizen's initiative that passed in 2000 with 69 percent
voter approval, requires forfeited property to go to the state's
school fund. The law also requires law enforcement officers to prove
a person's guilt before taking property. | ||||||||||||||||||
Some, however, said the law went too far and robs the state of
millions of dollars collected in federal seizures. | ||||||||||||||||||
Senate Bill 175, which has passed the Senate and is headed for the
House, corrects those problems by allowing law enforcement agencies
access to the seized funds with legislative oversight. It also
opens the door for agencies to receive federal money. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Opponent Arnold Gaunt, of Forfeiture Endangers American Rights, said
the bill would open the door to allowing police to self-fund their
policing activities as they did in the past -- creating a conflict
of interest. | ||||||||||||||||||
Gaunt said the bill would also encourage Utah police to go through
federal agencies rather than local forfeiture because federal law
requires that 80 percent of the proceeds from forfeited assets go
back to the local law enforcement agency while the state provision
would put it in a dedicated law enforcement fund where agencies
would have to apply for the money. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(4) CANDLELIGHT VIGIL HELD IN SAN JOSE FOR SLAIN MAN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
More than 80 people gathered in downtown San Jose on Tuesday night for
a candlelight vigil demanding an open inquiry into the Feb. 17
shooting death of Rodolfo "Rudy" Cardenas by a state drug agent who
mistook him for a fugitive parolee. | ||||||||||||||||||
Cardenas, a 43-year-old father of five, was shot while running from a Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement agent who chased him from the home of a fugitive parolee who was considered dangerous. Cardenas was unarmed, but police said the drug agent feared he was about to be shot. | ||||||||||||||||||
"This is my blood on the ground," Jesse Villarreal, 27, told the crowd as he stood with a candle in the spot in an alley at St. James and Fourth streets where his uncle collapsed in the shooting. "We can't be letting innocent people die. It hurts me inside because I can't see my uncle any more. They say, 'We understand.' But they don't understand." | ||||||||||||||||||
The crowd held a moment of silence, prayed and sang the Latin-American folk song "De Colores," "Amazing Grace" and "We Shall Overcome." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Domestic News- Policy | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (5-9) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Public officials continually display contempt for the will of the
people they serve when it comes to the drug war. Our first example
comes out of Kansas City, Missouri, where a county executive
abandoned guidelines about how to distribute the surplus money from a
local "anti-drug" tax. Most of the surplus money went to law
enforcement. In Utah, the legislative march to ignore voters while
indulging police and prosecutors moves ahead. By a vote of 20-7, the
state senate voted to approve a bill that would undo a voter
initiative to curb the use of asset forfeiture laws. | ||||||||||||||||||
In Alabama, the federal anti-drug money keeps flowing, much to the pleasure of politicians and police in the state. But, in a rare burst of candor, at least one newspaper seems to recognize that more money won't impact the drug trade at all. Also this week, a man is jailed for selling drug-free urine; and with all the recent excitement over so-called drugged driving laws in the U.S., it will be interesting to see how much attention is paid to a report out of the U.K. suggesting that current roadside drug testing methods are unreliable. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(5) TAX ALLOCATION BYPASSED GUIDELINES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Jackson County Executive Katheryn Shields acknowledged Friday that
she has spent millions of dollars in surplus anti-drug sales tax
money without following voter-approved guidelines. | ||||||||||||||||||
The quarter-cent COMBAT tax specifies a formula to allocate the
money among police, prosecutors, corrections, drug treatment, courts
and drug prevention. That was done for an estimated $19.5 million
expected to be collected this year. | ||||||||||||||||||
But Shields said she did not follow that formula in allocating $6.4
million of the surplus tax money this year. She said the money
primarily went to law enforcement agencies, but she did not know the
exact percentage. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Friday's development follows a week of turmoil in the county
courthouse. | ||||||||||||||||||
County Prosecutor Mike Sanders called for an audit and announced a
criminal investigation into possible conflict of interests regarding
the county's anti-drug tax. Sanders subpoenaed records for county
officials and employees. | ||||||||||||||||||
Shields said the investigation was politically motivated. | ||||||||||||||||||
Earlier this year, agencies that receive the tax money were told
revenues were down, no extra money was available and cuts were made
in some programs. | ||||||||||||||||||
Yet records provided Friday showed the discretionary spending of the
surplus has gone on for years. The county has spent or appropriated
$12.4 million of the surplus since 2002, records show. | ||||||||||||||||||
Since 1996, the largest amounts of surplus funds went to police and
prosecutors, giving them money well above their allotted percentages
of 9.5 percent each. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(6) POLICE AGAIN MAY GET TO SEIZE ASSETS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The Senate Gives a Preliminary OK to Forfeiture Bill | ||||||||||||||||||
Utah's law enforcement agencies will again be allowed to seize and
sell the ill-gotten gains of criminals under a bill moving through
the Utah Senate. | ||||||||||||||||||
SB175 reworks the state law that curbed the practice of asset
forfeiture by police. The bill received preliminary approval in
Senate on a 20-7 vote Wednesday, after a handful of minor
amendments. | ||||||||||||||||||
Should SB175 become law, it would substantially change a state
ballot initiative that made it illegal for law enforcement to keep
forfeiture funds. The initiative passed with 69 percent of the vote
in 2000. | ||||||||||||||||||
The bill would increase protections for innocent property owners and lien holders and fix the "unintended consequence" of cutting police off from state and federal money to help them fight the war on drugs, sponsoring Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Sen. Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City, said he could not cast a vote
against Utah's electorate. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Sixty-nine percent of people out there who worry about the police,
who worry about the judicial system ending up with the materials
that they forfeited . . . they worried enough about it that they
passed Initiative B," Jenkins said. "We are substantially changing
Initiative B. I don't think that it's right that we're doing this.
Everybody's got a good reason why we should be doing it, but I don't
buy all those reasons." | ||||||||||||||||||
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(7) EDITORIAL: DRUGS, MONEY & PLANS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
A New State Program May Sound Good, But It Won't Do Much | ||||||||||||||||||
Alabama is getting a federal grant to fight drugs. It will use the
money to develop a prevention plan. A 23-member committee will
spearhead that development. The plan will help state, regional and
local groups work as a coalition. Blah, blah, blah. | ||||||||||||||||||
If this were 1970 or thereabouts, news of a synergistic anti-drug
campaign might count as a creative approach to fighting drug use
among children from 12 to 17 years old - the age group this program
has targeted. | ||||||||||||||||||
As it is, no amount of forced optimism would lead a rational person
to conclude that the $9 million federal grant, which will pay for a
three-year project, is going to do much to impede, much less
prevent, drug experimentation by youngsters. | ||||||||||||||||||
Instead, the major forces driving this umpteenth | ||||||||||||||||||
The state learned there was $9 million in grants it could get from
the feds if it jumped through the right bureaucratic hoops. So it
did. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(8) MAN WHO SOLD URINE SENT TO PRISON (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Kenneth Curtis shook hands with his attorneys, turned around and
then walked out the door of the courtroom to serve six months in
jail for distributing urine. It brings an end to a six-year battle
over Curtis' urine selling business. | ||||||||||||||||||
Curtis maintains he sold the product because he felt random urine
testing by companies was an invasion of privacy. The state contends
he sold it to help people defraud drug tests. | ||||||||||||||||||
Curtis was sentenced to three years in prison in December 2001, suspended to six months, after an undercover officer purchased one of his kits containing urine, a heating pack and tubing. Curtis had been out on $30,000 cash bond as he appealed the decision. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(9) ROADSIDE DRUGS TESTS 'COULD BE FLAWED' SAY RESEARCHERS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
ROADSIDE tests that are the only way of catching people driving
under the influence of drugs may be fatally flawed, it was revealed
last night. | ||||||||||||||||||
Research in Glasgow has cast doubt on the mental and physical tasks
that police have been using for three years to try to crack down on
what is feared to be an epidemic of drug driving. | ||||||||||||||||||
The problem could put traffic officers, who admit the tests are "not
scientific" compared with breathalysers, back to square one in the
search for an effective way of finding grounds to arrest and charge
a drug-driving suspect. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
The tests include a series of physical and mental tasks, such as balancing on one leg while counting, walking heel to toe along a straight line and touching the tip of the nose with a finger. | ||||||||||||||||||
Skett said early results of research at Glasgow were "worrying",
however, because volunteers with no drugs in their system have been
testing positive after carrying out the tasks, sometimes simply
because they are tired. | ||||||||||||||||||
In another case a driver taken to a police station after failing the
tests turned out to have had a mild stroke. | ||||||||||||||||||
Skett said there "may or may not" be any scientific basis for the
tests, which he said had been copied from the U.S. without analysis
of their efficacy. "I think the legislation will have to be
tightened up." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Law Enforcement & Prisons | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (10-13) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Whenever a drug bust is made, no matter how small, police justify
the vast amount of resources used by saying that the drugs have been
taken off the street. In Florida, it seems, there's no guarantee
confiscated drugs won't return to the streets. Police say they don't
know how it happened, and they're not making any apologies. Of
course, fighting the drug war means never having to say you're
sorry, even if it costs thousands for taxpayers. The city of Orlando
was ordered to pay $169,000 to a man who was terrorized by police
during a mistaken drug raid. The man's lawyer said it would have
been less expensive for everyone if the city had accepted a lesser
settlement and offered an apology. | ||||||||||||||||||
Also in Florida, some local police are trying to justify their seizure of a car in return for not filing drug charges against the car's owner as a misstep. Lawyers for the owner of the car didn't call it a mistake; they saw it as extortion. And, while prohibition proponents argue that locking people in prison will keep them away from drugs, organized drug cartels in the U.K. reportedly see the high concentration of drug users as a marketing opportunity. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(10) INVESTIGATORS SAY DRUGS SEIZED, SOLD, SEIZED AGAIN (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
DELAND -- Volusia County sheriff's investigators seized bricks of
marijuana during several drug busts. | ||||||||||||||||||
Then they seized the marijuana again. | ||||||||||||||||||
It's the first time Florida law enforcement officials have
investigated a case where seized drugs were put back on the street,
they say. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sheriff's officials learned during the criminal investigation into
the theft of half a million dollars' worth of drugs from their
evidence compound that they seized the same narcotics more than
once. | ||||||||||||||||||
How many times it may have happened isn't known. But the situation was already turning up before the evidence compound bust in an April investigation into an Oak Hill home growing operation. Investigators "hadn't quite connected the dots yet," spokesman Gary Davidson said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(11) ORLANDO PAYS $169,000 TO SETTLE WRONGFUL ARREST (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
D. Uriyah Ajamu Was Hospitalized After Orlando Police Mistakenly
Dragged Him From His Duplex | ||||||||||||||||||
The city of Orlando has paid nearly $170,000 in damages and
attorneys fees after a wrongful-arrest and excessive-force trial
involving city police officers. | ||||||||||||||||||
The settlement agreement reached this week stems from the case of D.
Uriyah Ajamu, who lives in the Parramore area and alleged that his
civil rights were violated when police stormed his duplex apartment
by mistake in August 1999. | ||||||||||||||||||
Ajamu's lawyer, Howard Marks, who collected almost $150,000 of the settlement, said the city could have settled the case for $50,000 or less, plus an apology, if it had not taken the case to trial. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(12) PINELLAS WOMAN OFFERED NO POT CHARGES IN RETURN FOR 1968 BUICK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - A woman says deputies made a her a deal
after finding a pound of marijuana in her car: If she turned over
the car, she wouldn't be charged with a felony. | ||||||||||||||||||
Pinellas sheriff's officials deny that they offered Tomeca L. Demps
that choice, but her signature appears on an agreement to hand over
her 1968 Buick Skylark to deputies. | ||||||||||||||||||
Demps, 31, said she stores the car away from her home and didn't
notice it missing when it was seized in a Feb. 13 drug | ||||||||||||||||||
"They told me the best thing I could do was just sign the paper, and
I wouldn't get charged with anything," she said. "What could I do? I
signed." After questions from the St. Petersburg Times Monday, the
Sheriff's Office gave the car back to Demps, saying no links had
been found between her and the marijuana. The car would have been
given back even without the paper's questions, sheriff's spokeswoman
Marianne Pasha said. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(13) DRUG GANGS TURN TO JAILS FOR A NEW SALES PUSH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Prisons Offer Bigger Profits After Fall In Street Prices | ||||||||||||||||||
DRUG barons are targeting jails in England and Wales to offload a
flood of cheap, hard drugs. The increasing sophistication of gangs
outside jails is now being matched by greater organisation among
drug dealers feeding a growing market inside the jails. | ||||||||||||||||||
Gangs have focused on prisons in the North West, particularly
Liverpool, Manchester and Forest Bank in Salford, where they know
that they can gain greater profits than on the streets. | ||||||||||||||||||
The plentiful supply of Class A drugs has resulted in a fall in
street prices. Heroin now costs an average UKP61 a gram compared
with UKP74 in 1997. In Manchester it is as little as UKP40 a gram
and in Birmingham UKP30. | ||||||||||||||||||
Similarly, the price of a gram of cocaine has fallen from UKP71 in
1997 to UKP55 last September. Crack cocaine sells at between UKP5
and UKP25 a rock in Manchester and between UKP5 and UKP10 in
Birmingham. | ||||||||||||||||||
Phil Wheatley, Director- General of the Prison Service, told the annual prison service conference this month that the 138 jails were facing significant operational challenges in the next year. | ||||||||||||||||||
"These centre particularly around drug dealing in prisons, which
appears to be becoming much more organised," he said. "We will have
to find ways of responding to this increased determination and
sophistication on the part of drug dealers in prison." | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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Cannabis & Hemp- | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (14-18) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
The city of San Francisco may soon engage in an incredible social
experiment; a report released last week suggests that the city might
be willing to get involved in the co-op, non-profit distribution of
cannabis to legitimate medical users. City officials have expressed
that this might be the best way to counter the continued threat of
federal raids on San Francisco's current suppliers of medicinal
cannabis. Meanwhile there's no lack of action across the bay: the
Oakland Civil Liberties Association has announced that they are
beginning a signature drive to get a question on the November ballot
that would implement a city-wide "tax and regulate" scheme for adult
cannabis use. The initiative - which would need 20,000 signatures to
get on the ballot - would not legalize cannabis use, but rather
would ask the Oakland police to make it the lowest possible priority
of enforcement. | ||||||||||||||||||
And from Michigan, the incredible story of a South Haven High School
vice-principal who has been busted planting cannabis in a student's
locker with the intention of getting him expelled. We'll just slot
this one in our "higher education" file along with the Goose Creek
police raid. From Canada this week, the release of a government
report showing that the major increase in possession of cannabis
charges has made 2002 a record year for drug arrests in Canada.
93,000 drug charges were laid in 2002, over 50% of which were for
the simple possession of cannabis. | ||||||||||||||||||
Lastly this week, a Washington Times article looks at where the
major U.S. presidential candidates stand on the use of cannabis. In
this long election cycle, this is neither the first nor the last
article of this kind that we'll see this year, but it is worth
comparing where folks like Kerry stand now, versus what position
they may take as the election nears. With federal elections taking
place in both Canada and the U.S. this year, cannabis is sure to
stay in the headlines; the challenge will be keeping this important
debate rooted in science, compassion and common sense, rather than
fear and misinformation. | ||||||||||||||||||
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(14) SAN FRANCISCO MAY HELP ESTABLISH MARIJUANA COOPERATIVES (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Buoyed by a recent federal court decision and changes in state law, this sanctuary for the medical marijuana movement might soon try to help establish nonprofit cooperatives to grow pot for the ill. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It's looking better and better," said San Francisco Supervisor Tom
Ammiano. | ||||||||||||||||||
"We've always had the inclination for the public policy and a lot of
cooperation from the police, the Department of Public Health, the
city attorney and district attorneys. The public sentiment is there.
I think San Francisco is in a pivotal position to push this forward.
It's up to us elected officials to find a way." | ||||||||||||||||||
But a push by city leaders to back medical cannabis dispensaries
might prompt swift retaliation by the federal government, a recent
city staff report warned. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(15) VOTERS ASKED TO ADOPT MARIJUANA REGULATION (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Advocates for the legalization of marijuana plan to ask voters to
adopt an initiative in November that aims to tax and regulate the
sale of pot in Oakland. | ||||||||||||||||||
While the measure, to be submitted to City Attorney John Russo
today, would not decriminalize pot, it would direct the Oakland
Police Department to treat the private use of marijuana by adults as
its lowest priority until cannabis is legalized by California
officials. | ||||||||||||||||||
"It is possible to keep cannabis out of the hands of street dealers and away from children, if we tax and regulate it," said Dale Gieringer, a member of the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(16) POLICE SAY SCHOOL OFFICIAL PUT DRUGS IN LOCKER (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Assistant South Haven High School Principal Pat Conroy told police
he placed marijuana in the locker of a student he suspected was a
drug dealer last year, but the plan to get the boy expelled didn't
work because the city's police drug dog failed to find the
contraband during a school search. | ||||||||||||||||||
After Conroy told South Haven police the planted evidence story
earlier this month, police raided his high school office Feb. 9 and
found a drawer full of numerous packets of marijuana and assorted
pills, according to a police report. The district placed Conroy on
paid administrative leave that day, according to Superintendent Dave
Myers, who read a statement at Wednesday night's school board
meeting about Conroy's suspension. | ||||||||||||||||||
Now Conroy is facing a potential charge of possession of marijuana, still under review by the Van Buren County prosecutor's office. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(17) DRUG CRIME RATE AT A 20-YEAR HIGH (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Canada's drug-crime rate, as reported by police, now stands at a
20-year high, an increase of 42 per cent between 1992 and 2002,
Statistics Canada reported yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Much of the increase can be attributed to a rise in offences for
possession of cannabis, researchers Norm Desjardins and Tina Hotton
found. | ||||||||||||||||||
Police statistics show that cannabis offences increased by 81 per
cent over the decade, the researchers state in a report issue by the
Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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(18) MARIJUANA TAINTS PRESIDENTIAL BIDS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
If either of the two top Democratic presidential contenders defeats
President Bush in November, he will become the first American
president to openly acknowledge having smoked marijuana - and
inhaled. | ||||||||||||||||||
Sens. John Kerry and John Edwards both have admitted publicly to
using marijuana as younger men. Mr. Bush - a product of the same
generation - - refuses to say whether he has. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
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International News | ||||||||||||||||||
COMMENT: (19-22) (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Gung ho prohibitionism seems to hold great appeal for Philippine
politicians, as we follow events in that nation with three articles
this week. While Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's
latest anti-drug ballyhoo was painted as helping families fight
against the enemy of "drugs," local police were ordered to create
blacklists of drug users. Speaking to a friendly crowd of some 50,000
police and government workers, Arroyo thundered against drugs in a
showy ceremony which ended the "Caravan Against Drugs" campaign last
week. Arroyo was dutifully presented with an anti-drugs manifesto
signed by over 5 million Filipinos. In the manifesto, signers
"expressed their indignation against the drug menace," and obediently
vowed to never try illegal drugs. As part of the campaign, officials
reported that in over half the barangays (neighborhoods) police have
drawn up blacklists of "suspected users and pushers." | ||||||||||||||||||
Prohibitionists like to keep their cause in the eye of the media. One trick to do that is to dress up some standard practice as "news," and then hold a press conference. This makes it seem as if officials are constantly working to devise new tools in the crusade against "drugs." Last week, Secretary Jose Lina of the Philippine Department of the Interior proclaimed he had a new idea. What was this new idea? The new approach would be that "drug pushers and users" caught with "a small but substantial amount" of illicit drugs would be offered leniency in exchange for testimony against their supposed "drug lord" suppliers. The secretary did not explain how this differed in any way from standard police practice. | ||||||||||||||||||
Meanwhile in the Philippines, production of pot is soaring. The
province of Davao del Sur -- home to an anti-drug death squad which
has been praised by the mayor -- grows so much cannabis that the
weed is replacing crops such as corn as the "main cash crop,"
according to reports. While officials have a tough time getting to
pot crops due to the rough terrain, marijuana exporters report that
the quality of the crop there was excellent. | ||||||||||||||||||
And finally this week, Tony Blair's government backed down in its
quest to mandate drug testing in UK public schools. Following a
backlash from school officials, Blair decided that random drugs test
on students would not be made "compulsory," but school officials
would be allowed to impose such tests if they chose. The latest
outcry against the forced drug testing of students follows the
retraction of an earlier government plan to put police officers in
UK schools. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(19) ARROYO RALLIES RP FAMILIES TO HELP IN FIGHT VS DRUGS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo rallied last night all Filipino
families to unite and help the government in its campaign to
eliminate the drug menace as Interior and Local Government Secretary
Jose Lina Jr., Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman, presented to
the Chief Executive the more than five million signatures in the
'Pirma Kontra Droga' manifesto. | ||||||||||||||||||
The signatures were gathered during the nationwide "Lakbay Kontra
Droga" caravan. | ||||||||||||||||||
Mrs. Arroyo made the call before a crowd of more than 50,000 that
gathered at the Liwasang Ipil-Ipil, Cultural Center of the
Philippines (CCP) Complex, Pasay City for the culmination of the
anti-drugs caravan that kicked off Monday, Feb. 16. | ||||||||||||||||||
The crowd that started to converge as early as noon yesterday was
composed of contingents from different parts of the country. They
were representatives from the youth sector, non-government
organizations (NGOs), athletes, as well as members of the Philippine
National Police (PNP), the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency
(PDEA), government organizations, and agencies. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
In the event, Lina reported to the President the success of the caravan, which he said was attended by at least 10 million Filipinos who expressed their indignation against the drug menace. | ||||||||||||||||||
At the same time, he presented to Mrs. Arroyo the bulk of the Pirma
Kontra Droga documents containing the signature of some 5,622,664
Filipinos who vowed never to use or even try illegal drugs and at
the same help the government in the campaign against the social
menace. | ||||||||||||||||||
The caravan, according to Lina, reached all 16 regions in the
country. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Aside from the manifesto, Lina said that 52 percent of the total
number of barangays in the country submitted their watchlist of
suspected users and pushers. The other barangays, he said, are still
processing their watchlist. | ||||||||||||||||||
Lina said that the caravan has strengthened the government's fight
against the drug menace as it was able to explain to almost every
Filipino the ill-effects of illegal drugs. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(20) GOV'T TO USE 'SMALL FRY' TO CATCH DRUG LORDS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
THIS TIME it will be the small fish catching the whales and the
sharks in the illegal drug trade. | ||||||||||||||||||
Secretary Jose Lina Jr. of the Department of the Interior and Local
Government (DILG) disclosed Saturday that drug pushers and users
caught with a small but substantial amount of drugs would be given a
chance to save themselves. | ||||||||||||||||||
"Those who will tell us where the drugs are coming from will be cleared of the charges and be made state witnesses," Lina said. | ||||||||||||||||||
He made the statement in front of 143 drug suspects arrested all
over Metro Manila over the past week. | ||||||||||||||||||
The drug suspects were presented to media by the National Capital
Region Police Command, which is leading the anti-drug campaign in
the metropolis. | ||||||||||||||||||
Lina explained that tips from street-level drug pushers might lead
them to busting big-time drug suppliers, warehouses and laboratories
in the country. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(21) MJ REPLACING CORN AS DAVAO SUR CASH CROP (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
DAVAO CITY -- Marijuana is reportedly replacing corn as the main
cash crop in Davao del Sur, authorities said. | ||||||||||||||||||
Lt. Col. Hernando Iriberri, chief of the Army's 25th Infantry
Battalion, said the drug problem in Davao del Sur has to be
addressed by the government by providing farmers better livelihood
programs. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Authorities were alarmed of developments that farmers in the upland,
and even the natives, have shifted their produce from corn to
marijuana. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Police said marijuana has become a multi-million business in the
province, with exporters luring B'laan natives in the hinterlands to
plant marijuana, instead of corn. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Authorities are having a difficult time running after these plantations because of the "rough terrain of these areas." | ||||||||||||||||||
Most of those marijuana exporters arrested by police admitted the
excellent quality of marijuana plants in the province. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
(22) GOVERNMENT BACKS DOWN ON RANDOM DRUG TESTS IN SCHOOLS (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Random drug tests on school pupils will not be compulsory, Tony
Blair said yesterday. | ||||||||||||||||||
Downing Street was forced on the defensive after teachers' leaders and anti-drug campaigners claimed the plan was unworkable. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Francis Wilkinson, the former head of Gwent Police and current
patron of the drugs charity Transform, said they would have to get
consent from pupils and parents to carry out any tests. | ||||||||||||||||||
The scheme would effectively be a test for cannabis, because more harmful drugs are flushed out of users' systems much more quickly. | ||||||||||||||||||
Mr Wilkinson told Radio 4's Today programme: "It is a non-starter.
You can't do it without consent, and a child can't give informed
consent, so you would get consent from parents. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
Mr Blair later defended the plan, describing it as a sensible power
to give head teachers. | ||||||||||||||||||
He said the Government had faced the same backlash when it suggested
posting police officers in some schools. Both experiments had been
tried successfully in American schools. | ||||||||||||||||||
[snip] | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
HOT OFF THE 'NET (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
ISTOOK'S ILLEGAL AMENDMENT | ||||||||||||||||||
By Steve Fox, AlterNet, February 25, 2004 | ||||||||||||||||||
On February 18, the Marijuana Policy Project joined with three other
national organizations in a lawsuit aimed at overturning one of the
most egregious attacks on free speech in decades. Anyone who values
our democracy - Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal -
should hope we succeed. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
ECSTASY RECONSIDERED | ||||||||||||||||||
A study by a prominent researcher warning of the dangers of Ecstasy
was retracted last September after it was revealed that primates in
the study had been injected with a different drug. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
What does this mean for the future of Ecstasy research? What are
the implications for U.S. drug policy? | ||||||||||||||||||
Rick Doblin, president of the Multidisciplinary Association for
Psychedelic Studies, responded to questions on Wednesday,
February 25. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
PDFA PARTNERSHIP ATTITUDE TRACKING STUDY (PATS) 2003 | ||||||||||||||||||
NEW YORK, Feb. 25 - Teen drug use continues declining in America, and use of Ecstasy (3-4 methylenedioxymethamphetamine or MDMA) is down by 25 percent in two years, according to new national data released today by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America. | ||||||||||||||||||
http://drugfreeamerica.org/acrobat/Full_Report_PATS_Teens_2003.pdf | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
A ROADMAP TO COMPASSION | ||||||||||||||||||
The Implementation of a Working Medicinal Cannabis Program in Canada | ||||||||||||||||||
By the Canadians for Safe Access, the B.C. Compassion Club Society,
and the Victoria Island Compassion Society: Philippe Lucas, Hilary
Black, and Rielle Capler | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
STATE OF ALABAMA VS LORETTA NALL CASE NO: DC2002-1006-1007 | ||||||||||||||||||
http://www.cannabisculture.com/cgi/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Number=821462 | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
BATTLE FOR CANADA #16 | ||||||||||||||||||
Has Harry Anslinger Returned From Hell? | ||||||||||||||||||
Analysis by Richard Cowan | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
INTERVIEW WITH CANADIAN MED-POT ACTIVIST ALISON MYRDEN | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
JACK COLE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PROHIBITION ON NPR | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
CULTURAL BAGGAGE RADIO SHOW | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Executive director of ReconsiDer, an organization dedicated to
studying drug policy and looking at alternatives to the current
U.S. drug policy. | ||||||||||||||||||
MP3: http://www.cultural-baggage.com/Audio/FDBCB_022404.MP3
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
Three anonymous medical marijuana patients tell us what it is like in the Gulag City of Planet Earth. To find medical support and medical marijuana in the "hometown" of George Bush Sr. | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
"CRACK BABY" TERM CONDEMNED IN OPEN LETTER | ||||||||||||||||||
Signatories from Leading Hospitals and Research Institutes in U.S.
and Canada Agree That Term Lacks Scientific Basis and Is Dangerous
to Children | ||||||||||||||||||
Letter Sent to Washington Post, Arizona Republic, LA Weekly,
Charleston Post and Courier, Amarillo Globe-News and Other Media
Using These Terms | ||||||||||||||||||
The full text of this letter with a complete list of signatories
is available at: | ||||||||||||||||||
http://www.jointogether.org/sa/files/pdf/sciencenotstigma.pdf | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FILL THE HILL WEBSITE LAUNCHED | ||||||||||||||||||
I'm proud to announce that the website for the largest drug reform
rally in Canadian history has launched. | ||||||||||||||||||
Fill the Hill 2004 now has a home on the internet at fillthehill.ca | ||||||||||||||||||
Fill the Hill 2004 will feature a broad cross-section of Canada's
leading political actors and activists in the fight for a sensible
drug policy. | ||||||||||||||||||
Submitted by Jody Pressman | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
CANADIAN CANNABIS BILL C-10 PASSES THIRD READING | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
LETTER OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Marijuana Serves Medicinal Purposes | ||||||||||||||||||
By George McMahon | ||||||||||||||||||
In your Feb. 18 article, "Official tackles marijuana myths," Sgt.
Brad Fojtik claims there's "no medicinal value in (marijuana),
period." | ||||||||||||||||||
I am one of several patients who use legal medical marijuana, grown and distributed by the United States government through the National Institute of Drug Abuse's Investigational New Drug program. I use my medicine to treat symptoms of pain, spasms, and nausea related to years of pharmaceutical and surgical maltreatment, repeated injuries, and a rare genetic condition called nail patella syndrome. | ||||||||||||||||||
Prior to being admitted to the federal program, I survived 19 major surgeries, was taking 17 pharmaceutical substances daily and was dependent on a wheelchair. Since my admission to the program 13 years ago, I've had no surgeries or hospitalizations, I've stopped taking pharmaceuticals and I ride a bike. I've spent the past decade traveling across the nation to educate legislators, health care professionals, and patients about the medical value of cannabis. | ||||||||||||||||||
Like all other substances, marijuana can be used in ways that harm
and ways that heal. We should not criminalize sick and dying people
who use cannabis with a doctor's recommendation. | ||||||||||||||||||
To quote Robert Randall, the first recipient of federal marijuana,
"History indicates the most trivial of facts can implode the most
powerful dogma." | ||||||||||||||||||
George McMahon, | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
FEATURE ARTICLE (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
Criminal Justice System Drives Marijuana "Treatment" Admissions,
Federal Study Says | ||||||||||||||||||
Fewer than one in five people admitted to drug treatment for
marijuana in 2001 did so voluntarily, and more than half were
referred by the criminal justice system, according to statistics
released recently by the Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS). | ||||||||||||||||||
Among the 255,000 individuals admitted to treatment in 2001 (the
last year for which data is available) primarily for marijuana, 57
percent were referred by the criminal justice system. In many cases,
these were first-time offenders arrested for marijuana possession,
and given the option by a judge or drug court of entering drug
treatment as an alternative to jail. | ||||||||||||||||||
"The HHS data indicate that the dramatic rise in marijuana 'treatment' admissions over the past decade is primarily because of a proportional increase in individuals arrested on marijuana charges and referred to drug treatment in lieu of incarceration," NORML Foundation Executive Director Allen St. Pierre explained, noting that annual arrests for pot increased from 289,000 in 1991 to 724,000 in 2001. "This increase in marijuana 'treatment' admissions is not attributable to any significant changes in the number of individuals checking themselves into drug treatment because they are experiencing social or health consequences from their marijuana use, or exhibiting clinical symptoms of dependence from cannabis." | ||||||||||||||||||
According to HHS, only 17.5 percent of those admitted for marijuana
treatment in 2001 did so voluntarily, compared to 65 percent for
heroin and 40 percent for cocaine. Other sources of marijuana
treatment referrals included "substance abuse or other health care
provider" (11 percent), "school" (4 percent), and "employer" (1.2
percent). | ||||||||||||||||||
Among youth aged 12-17, well over 60 percent of those in drug
treatment in 2001 were referred by the criminal justice system, up
from approximately 37 percent in 1992. Among adolescents admitted to
drug treatment primarily for marijuana, 54 percent were referred by
the criminal justice system. | ||||||||||||||||||
St. Pierre said that he is troubled by the dramatic rise in criminal justice referrals, stating that the increase in marijuana arrests is forcing judges to inappropriately use drug treatment clinics as temporary repositories for low-level marijuana offenders. | ||||||||||||||||||
"A disturbing percentage of America's drug treatment resources are
being siphoned off by recreational pot smokers who don't meet any
scientific criteria for dependence, but instead have been mandated
to attend treatment in lieu of jail," he said. "At a time when tens
of thousands of hard drug addicts are being denied access to drug
treatment due to a lack of bed space and federal funding, it is
unconscionable that America's drug treatment centers are bursting at
the seams by needlessly housing marijuana smokers." | ||||||||||||||||||
Treatment data for marijuana and other drugs is available online:
http://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/teds01/TEDS2K1Index.htm | ||||||||||||||||||
From NORML's Weekly News Bulletin - | ||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||
QUOTE OF THE WEEK (Top) | ||||||||||||||||||
"I hope we never live to see the day when a thing is as bad as some
of our newspapers make it." - Will Rodgers | ||||||||||||||||||
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