In March, the Supreme Court
ruled that federally funded public housing authorities could evict tenants
for any drug violation of a renter, family member, or guest -- no matter
how minor and no matter whether the offense occurred on or off the property
(http://www.drcnet.org/wol/230.html#supremefailure).
That ruling has begun to bear fruit, and strange fruit it is.
Among the first victims of
the Supreme Court ruling is Marisa Perez, 34, mother of three, employee
at a Santa Clara, CA, software firm and resident in the federally subsidized
Elena Gardens Apartments in North San Jose. She won't be a resident
long. Her 17-year-old son was arrested outside the apartment with
a marijuana pipe last month. The apartment managers responded by
serving her an eviction notice. She was supposed to be out on Monday,
but told the San Jose Mercury News she would stay and fight for her home
in court. Her $700 a month rent would soar to $2,000 in non-subsidized
housing, she said.
Not that Perez was a negligent
parent. She had called police on two occasions last year to turn
her son in to a drug treatment program which he was supposed to be attending.
He had gotten into trouble with the law for burning a horse trailer, did
eight months at a youth camp, but then kept running afoul of authorities
with repeated positive drug tests for marijuana. Fed up with his
behavior, she had kicked him out of the house months earlier, but he would
sneak back to the apartment during the day. On May 2, police arrested
him on a probation violation warrant, then found the pipe. The eviction
letter arrived May 10.
Ironically, young Perez must
serve a 90-day house arrest sentence for the marijuana pipe -- at his mother's
apartment. His mother said she is making him spend his days calling
landlords to inquire about available apartments.
-- END --
|
Issue #241, 6/14/02
Federal Judge Issues Injunction Against California Cannabis Clubs | The June 6th Medical Marijuana Actions: One Week Later | With Competing Drug Reform Bills Passed, NY Governor and Assembly Have One Week to Reach Compromise | Border Governors to Discuss Chihuahua Marijuana Legalization | Dan Forbes Goes After Ad Age for McCarthyite Smear | London Borough Proposes De Facto Hard Drug Decrim | Philippines Enacts Death Penalty for Drug Dealing, Possession of a Pound of Marijuana or Tens Grams of Ecstasy | Colombian Paramilitary Leader Again Admits Links with Cocaine Traffic, Calls for Tactical Retreat from the Trade | Newsbrief: Mexico Drug Trade Helps Prevent Social Explosion, Says Researcher | Newsbrief: DARE Dropped in Toledo | Newsbrief: Maryland GOP Governor Candidate Talks Treatment Not Jail | Newsbrief: Supreme Court Ruling Leads to Public Housing Eviction for Son's Marijuana Pipe | Newsbrief: Addicts Vote with Their Feet on Vietnam's New, Lengthy Mandatory Drug Rehab | Newsbrief: Louisiana Judge Busted in Dope-Planting Scheme | Newsbrief: Life for Brownies? California Man Faces Three-Strikes Penalty | Grant Program: Tides Foundation RFPs for Latin America, Prop. 36 Implementation and Overdose Prevention | New DRCNet/StopTheDrugWar.org Merchandise Out -- Discounted Purchase Available | The Reformer's Calendar
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