FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 30, 2010
CONTACT: Margaret Dooley-Sammuli at 213-291-4190 or Tommy McDonald 510-229-5215

US Supreme Court Hears California Prison Crowding Case

Advocates Urge California to Focus on Resolving Crisis, Including Ending Prison as Response to Drug Use

10,000 in Prison for Drug Possession at Cost of $500 Million a Year

WASHINGTON - November 30 - The United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments today in Schwarzenegger v. Plata, a landmark prison rights case in which a federal court found the unconstitutional conditions of California's prisons were caused primarily by overcrowding and ordered California to reduce prison overcrowding from over 200% of design capacity down (by about 40,000 people) to 137.5% of capacity within two years. California has conceded that the state's prison conditions are unconstitutional but has nonetheless asked the Supreme Court to put the states' right to administer its prisons before the constitutional rights of individuals who are wards of the state.

"One of the primary reasons that the state's prisons are dangerously overcrowded is that California continues to lock up thousands of people each year for low-level drug possession. There is no basis in evidence or principle to expose people to this dangerous environment simply for the possession of a small amount of illicit substances," says Margaret Dooley-Sammuli, deputy state director for the Drug Policy Alliance in Southern California. "California must follow the lead of other states like Texas and New York and stop sending people to state prison for drug possession, which can be handled as a health issue safely, effectively and affordably in the community."

"The state currently spends $500 million a year to incarcerate 10,000 people for nothing more than personal drug possession," Dooley-Sammuli continued. "That does not include the unknown number of parolees who have been returned to prison for a few months based on the results of a drug test. This is a terrible waste of scarce resources. Treatment in the community is effective and affordable. Unfortunately, California this year eliminated funding for community-based treatment for drug possession arrestees."

"People who use drugs do not belong in the state's cruel and costly prisons simply for that personal use. We urge California to take the logical step of ending incarceration as a response to drug possession, while expanding opportunities for drug treatment in the community," continued Dooley-Sammuli.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 23, 2010

Business Leaders Roll Out National Trade Association for Legal Marijuana Industry

Organization is the first of its kind in United States

CONTACT: Aaron Smith, NCIA executive director at (707) 291-0076 or [email protected]

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) stepped forward today as the first national trade group representing the interests of the cannabis industry and its consumers. More than twenty professionals from various sectors of the cannabis industry comprise the initial board of directors of NCIA, which was formed with the express purpose of improving business conditions for the industry.

The association’s formation comes at the heels of the decision by Arizona voters to become the 15^th state to legalize medical marijuana. “The ever-expanding list of state-sanctioned medical cannabis providers and ancillary businesses have easily become a multi-billion dollar industry in the United States, generating thousands of good jobs and paying tens – if not hundreds  – of millions in taxes,” said NCIA executive director Aaron Smith. “These businesses have clearly earned the right to strong representation on the national stage and recognition as a true force for economic growth.”

As reported by the New York Times today, the NCIA board of directors includes some of the most preeminent figures in the cannabis industry. Collectively, they have already been featured in Fortune magazine, The New York Times, Business Week, CNBC, Fox Business News and countless other media outlets.

Becky DeKeuster is CEO of Northeast Patients Group, which will operate four state-licensed, non-profit medical cannabis dispensaries in Maine. DeKeuster joined the NCIA board of directors and hopes to encourage others in the medical cannabis community to support the fledgling trade association. “I’m proud to be one of NCIA’s founding members,” DeKeuster said. “This organization will be a great step forward not only for the medical cannabis industry, but also for the interests of the countless patients nationwide who rely on us to provide safe and effective natural medicine.”

Another NCIA board member, Kush Magazine CEO Bob Selan, says that the trade association will be the force that finally unifies an extremely diverse industry. “In my years working for a top cannabis culture publication, I’ve met an astonishing number of talented individuals who are experts in their particular field. From cannabis cultivators to pipe manufacturers to crop insurance brokers, all will benefit from being collectively represented by the national industry association,” stated Selan.

The trade association will ensure that the interests of the burgeoning cannabis industry are represented in the halls of Congress and in the national media. In addition to working to repeal the federal prohibition of marijuana, NCIA is already focusing on more immediate policy goals for the industry such as ensuring that the nation’s revenue and banking policies are not out of step with state laws allowing medical cannabis sales.

For more information, please visit TheCannabisIndustry.org.

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For Immediate Release: November,19 2010

Contact: Hiedi Handford at 406-594-7932 or Irv Rosenfeld at 954-536-9011

Patient Starts 29^th Year in Federal Medical Cannabis Program (11/20/2010)

{Fort Lauderdale, FL} -- Irvin Rosenfeld is one of only four medical cannabis patients in the country that receive cannabis legally from the federal government.  Irv will celebrate his 28^th anniversary in this unique program on Saturday, November 20, 2010.

Irv is a 57 year-old successful stockbroker from South Florida.  Irv uses medical cannabis to relieve chronic pain and muscle spasms caused by a rare bone disease. When he was 10, doctors discovered that his skeleton was riddled with more than 200 tumors, due to a condition known as Multiple Congenital Cartilaginous Exostosis.  Despite six operations, he still lives with scores of tumors in his bones.

After a long struggle with the federal government, Irv Rosenfeld won the right to access medical cannabis in 1982. Thirteen people with debilitating conditions were allowed into the Compassionate Investigative New Drug (IND) Program to receive federally-grown medical cannabis.  In 1992, President George Bush discontinued the program, but Irv still receives 9 ounces of cannabis rolled into cigarettes every 25 days from the federal government. The cannabis is grown by NIDA at the University of Mississippi.  Over the 29 years in the program, Irv has received more than 120,000 medical cannabis cigarettes and is in good health because of it.

Irv will be speaking about the federal program and his participation in it at KushCon2 in Denver, CO December 17-19, 2010.

Irv's book is called "My Medicine: How I Convinced the Federal Government to Provide My Marijuana and Helped Launch a National Movement".  Copies of the book may be purchased by visiting www.mymedicinethebook.com.  Proceeds from the book help to cover expenses while traveling to educate people about medical cannabis.

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*MORE INFORMATION ON IRV ROSENFELD*
http://www.mymedicinethebook.com/

*MEDIA CONTACT*
Irv is available for press interviews.  Please contact Hiedi Handford: [email protected]

For Immediate Release:November 15, 2010
Contact: Alan Barber, (571) 306-2526

Washington, D.C.- Three decades of harsh criminal justice policies have created a large population of ex-offenders that struggle in the labor market long after they have paid their debts to society, according to a new report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR). Because prison records and felony convictions greatly lower ex-offenders' chances of finding work, the United States loses between $57 billion and $65 billion a year in lost output.

“It isn't just that we have the highest incarceration rate in the world, we have created a situation over the last 30 years where about one in eight men is an ex-offender,” said John Schmitt, a Senior Economist at CEPR and a co-author of the report.

The new report, “Ex-offenders and the Labor Market,” found that in 2008 there were between 5.4 million and 6.1 million ex-prisoners and between 12.3 million and 13.9 million ex-felons in the United States. Over 90 percent were men.

In 2008, about one in 33 working-age adults was an ex-prisoner, and about one in 15 working-age adults was an ex-felon. Among working-age men in that same year, about one in 17 was an ex-prisoner and one in eight was an ex-felon.

Because ex-offenders face substantial barriers to employment, the authors estimate that the large ex-offender population in 2008 lowered employment that year by the equivalent of 1.5 million to 1.7 million workers.

"The rise in the ex-offender population overwhelmingly reflects changes in the U.S. criminal Justice system, not changes in underlying criminal activity," says Schmitt. "We incarcerate an astonishing share of non-violent offenders, particularly for drug-related offenses. We have far better ways to handle these kinds of offenses, but so far common sense has not prevailed."

The report warns that in the absence of reforms to the criminal justice system, the share of ex-offenders in the working-age population will rise substantially in coming years, increasing the magnitude of employment and output losses estimated for 2008.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 16, 2010

CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or [email protected]

Pro-Legalization Police Group Asks Senate to Vote Against Obama's DEA Nominee

Judiciary Committee to Hold Confirmation Hearing on Wednesday

WASHINGTON, DC -- A group of police officers, judges and prosecutors who support legalizing and regulating marijuana and other drugs has sent a letter to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee opposing President Obama's nominee to head the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). The nominee, Michele Leonhart, has overseen numerous DEA raids of medical marijuana clinics operating in accordance with state laws during her tenure as acting DEA administrator. This is in direction violation of President Obama's campaign pledges and a Justice Department directive urging the DEA not to waste scarce law enforcement resources undermining the will of voters who have made medical marijuana legal in their states.

"As a police officer, I made arrests of drug users because I was held accountable for enforcing the law whether I agreed with it or not," wrote Neill Franklin, a former Baltimore narcotics cop, in his testimony on behalf of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), which he leads as executive director.  "Ms. Leonhart should be held similarly accountable for her actions which were inconsistent with guidance from the Department of Justice, as well as President Obama’s clear intentions based on his popular campaign pledges."

The criminal justice professionals of LEAP are also concerned with Leonhart's apparent disregard for the value of human life, having once called the gruesome violence in Mexico's illegal drug market a sign of "success" for U.S. drug policy. 

"The tens of thousands of civilian deaths, which have continued to skyrocket since Ms. Leonhart’s statement, should not be measured as a sign of success," Franklin wrote. "Former Mexican president Vicente Fox and at least three additional former Latin American presidents have pointed out the failure of the US-led war on drugs and called for drastic change. The situation is Mexico is grave and escalating rapidly, putting US citizens in danger. Before the spillover violence gets any worse, the DEA needs a director who can engage world leaders in this debate and come to a solution."

Leonhart has served as acting administrator of the DEA for two years.  The hearing to confirm her as administrator takes place before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday at 2:30 PM in 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building.

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Senator Patrick Leahy, Chairman

Senate Committee on the Judiciary

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Statement of Major Neill Franklin on behalf of LAW ENFORCEMENT AGAINST PROHIBITION (LEAP) in opposition to the nomination of Ms. Michele Leonhart

Mr. Chairman and distinguished Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) in opposition to the nomination of Michele Leonhart for the position of Director of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

After a 33-year career as a police officer, I became the executive director of LEAP, an association of current and former law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges, and criminal justice professionals at every level of government who are speaking out about the failure of our drug policy. 

Our members are deeply concerned about drug abuse and illicit drug market violence, and we have spent our careers fighting the drug war. Several of our members, including Russ Jones of Texas, Matthew Fogg of Washington, D.C., and Richard Amos of Florida, served as DEA agents or on DEA task forces. And as a police officer with the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police Department, I too made my share of drug arrests in addition to commanding multi-jurisdictional drug task forces.

We oppose Ms. Leonhart’s nomination because her statements and actions demonstrate questionable judgment.  Ms. Leonhart held a press conference regarding Mexican drug prohibition violence last year.  Since 2006, more than 28,000 people have died in Mexico as a result of the illegal drug market violence.  At the press conference, Ms. Leonhart indicated that such violence was a good sign. “Our view is that the violence we have been seeing is a signpost of the success our very courageous Mexican counterparts are having,” she said. “The cartels are acting out like caged animals, because they are caged animals.”

The tens of thousands of civilian deaths, which have continued to skyrocket since Ms. Leonhart’s statement, should not be measured as a sign of success. Former Mexican president Vicente Fox and at least three additional former Latin American presidents have pointed out the failure of the US-led war on drugs and called for drastic change. The situation is Mexico is grave and escalating rapidly, putting US citizens in danger. Before the spillover violence gets any worse, the DEA needs a director who can engage world leaders in this debate and come to a solution.

Ms. Leonhart’s judgment in allocating resources is questionable. Since her appointment by President Bush, she has overseen more than 200 federal raids in California and other medical marijuana states.  When Ms. Leonhart became interim director, these raids continued even after the issuance of the October 19, 2009 Department of Justice memo which recommended federal officials shift resources away from targeting those individuals and organizations operating in compliance with state laws related to medical marijuana. 

As a police officer, I made arrests of drug users because I was held accountable for enforcing the law whether I agreed with it or not.  Ms. Leonhart should be held similarly accountable for her actions which were inconsistent with guidance from the Department of Justice, as well as President Obama’s clear intentions based on his popular campaign pledges. Under her supervision, a DEA agent raiding a marijuana grower who was operating with the support of the sheriff in Mendocino County, CA, said, “I don’t care what the sheriff says.” This attitude is counterproductive. Given the grave problems associated with illegal drug market violence, we feel that conducting raids on individuals and caretakers acting in compliance with state and local law may not be the best use of the DEA’s limited resources.

The DEA needs a director whose decisions are guided by the best interests of our citizens. Despite calls by the American Medical Association, Ms. Leonhart has failed to respond to a petition calling for hearings to review the scheduling of marijuana. Despite the DEA’s own administrative law judge’s ruling that the University of Massachusetts should be able to cultivate marijuana for FDA-approved research, Ms. Leonhart has blocked such research. We encourage the nomination of a director who supports engaging in dialogue and the use of research to shape the best possible policies.

Ultimately, we feel Ms. Leonhart is not ready for the job of DEA director and qualified candidates are available.  In your confirmation hearings, the members of the Judiciary Committee should ask the difficult questions which will determine how she would intend to handle the changing nature of US drug laws. Voters across the country have created a gap between federal policy and state law that is steadily widening. In fifteen states, plus Washington D.C., the medical use of marijuana has been recognized. Several other states may choose to legalize marijuana in the next few years. The director of the DEA must be able to appropriately bridge this divide without wasting resources or causing unnecessary harm.

In the meantime, the criminal justice professionals of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition urge a no vote on Ms. Leonhart’s confirmation as DEA director.

MEDIA ADVISORY                                                                                                                                               

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

Marijuana is the Biggest Issue on Tomorrow’s Ballot

Win or Lose, Progress in 2010, As Well As Recent National Polling, Indicates That Marijuana Prohibition’s Days Are Numbered

MPP Spokespeople Available in California and Washington, D.C. to Discuss Various Initiatives and Provide National Perspective on the Future of Marijuana Policy Reform

CONTACT: Mike Meno, MPP director of communications: 202-905-2030, 202-905-2031 or 443-927-6400

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As voters in four states prepare to weigh in on statewide marijuana reform ballot measures, a new Gallup poll released last week shows that national support for making marijuana legal has reached an all-time high of 46% while support for current policies continued a gradual erosion to its lowest level on record. According to the poll, “If the trend of the past decade continues at a similar pace, majority support could be a reality within the next few years.” 

         “No matter what happens tomorrow, it’s now undeniable that national public sentiment is increasingly turning against the idea that responsible adults should be criminalized for using a substance less harmful than alcohol,” said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project. “Support for ending marijuana prohibition is not only growing among the populace, but we are also seeing prominent organizations coming out in support of reform. Thanks to initiatives like Proposition 19 in California, advocates for marijuana policy reform are gaining allies, from labor unions to the NAACP to Democratic Party committees, who will stand with us during future battles. So as we await tomorrow’s results, we are already looking forward to achieving major victories in 2012.”

On Election Day tomorrow, Californians will vote on Proposition 19, a potentially historic ballot measure that would make marijuana legal for all adults and allow localities to regulate its sale.

In Arizona and South Dakota, voters will consider medical marijuana ballot initiatives.

In Oregon, voters will decide whether to expand the state’s current medical marijuana law by authorizing state-licensed dispensaries.

         MPP has spokespeople available in California and Washington, D.C. to discuss the various initiatives and provide a national perspective on the future of marijuana policy reform.

         With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 25, 2010
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or [email protected]
                 Amber Langston - (573) 239-8149 or [email protected]

Yes On 19 Campaign Releases TV Advertisement 

Former San Jose Police Chief Says Marijuana Initiative Will Improve Public Safety

Law Enforcement Supporters to Hold Teleconference for Reporters on Tuesday

OAKLAND, CA -- The campaign to pass Proposition 19, the California ballot measure to control and tax marijuana, released a television ad today featuring former San Jose police chief Joseph McNamara, who makes a strong public safety case for ending the current prohibition laws.

The ad can be viewed online at http://www.YesOn19.com/ad

"Let's be honest: The war against marijuana has failed," Chief McNamara says in the ad. "I know from 35 years in law enforcement. Today, it's easier for a teenager to buy pot than beer. Proposition 19 will tax and control marijuana just like alcohol. It will generate billions of dollars for local communities, allow police to focus on violent crimes, and put drug cartels out of business. Join me and many others in law enforcement. Vote YES on Proposition 19!"

McNamara, who served as San Jose's chief of police for 15 years, is now a research fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.  He previously served as chief of police in Kansas City and as a beat officer in New York City

McNamara is just one of the many veteran law enforcers who have endorsed Prop. 19. A letter signed by dozens of police officers, judges and prosecutors who support ending prohibition can be read at: http://www.YesOn19.com/endorse/enforcement/text

Several of those law enforcers will be available on a telephone press conference call Tuesday at 11:00 AM PDT.  Reporters who would like the call-in info should contact Amber Langston at (573) 239-8149 or [email protected].

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 25, 2010
CONTACT: (212) 549-2666; [email protected]

Continued Criminalization of Marijuana Wastes Scarce Resources and Has Disproportionate Impact on Communities of Color

WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union and its three California affiliates today sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Gil Kerlikowske, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), arguing that there would be no legal basis for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to sue to overturn Proposition 19 should it be approved next month by California voters, and urging the Justice Department to not change its current law enforcement focus on major criminal activity in favor of new enforcement activities against California marijuana users.

The letter asks Holder and Kerlikowske to stop threatening costly litigation and the deployment of federal drug police to arrest individuals who might use marijuana if the state enacts the proposition, which would allow adults 21 and older to possess and grow small amounts of marijuana for their personal use and allow cities and counties to regulate and tax commercial sales. The letter calls such rhetoric "unnecessarily alarmist" and says it does little to foster a balanced discussion of a legitimate policy issue.

"Proposition 19 would remove state criminal penalties for certain adult marijuana use," says the ACLU's letter. "The new law would not require anyone to do anything in violation of federal law. There would be no positive conflict."

News reports have indicated that federal officials have not ruled out following a recommendation by nine former Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) chiefs to sue to overturn Proposition 19 under a wrongly-held belief that it would violate the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. In a letter to the nine former DEA chiefs made public earlier this month, Holder said he will "vigorously enforce" federal laws against marijuana in California, even if Proposition 19 is approved.

The ACLU's letter argues that states do not have to march in lockstep with the federal government's prohibition of marijuana possession and that California can decide for itself whether it wishes to remove state criminal law penalties for adult marijuana use. An explicit clause of the Controlled Substances Act, passed by Congress in 1970, holds that preemption of state drug laws is limited to a narrow set of circumstances where there is a "positive conflict" between state and federal law "so that the two cannot consistently stand together."

The ACLU's letter also highlights the fact that African Americans and Latinos are disproportionately arrested for low-level marijuana possession in California and across the nation even though their usage rates are the same as or lower than those of whites.
 
"The ACLU took heart from Director Kerlikowske's acknowledgement that the 'war on drugs' has failed," states the ACLU's letter. "But instead of scaling back the rhetoric associated with that ineffective and out-of-date campaign, it appears the administration would resist California's modest attempt to begin dismantling one of the defining injustices of our failed drug policies: that the war on drugs has become a war on minorities."

A new report released last week shows that from 2006 to 2008, police in 25 of California's major cities arrested blacks at four to 12 times the rate of whites.

"The historical and racially disparate enforcement of marijuana laws is a primary reason why [the ACLU of Northern California, the ACLU of Southern California and the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties] have endorsed Proposition 19," the ACLU's letter reads.

The ACLU's letter to Holder also questions why the federal government's response to the enactment of Proposition 19 should be any different than its approach to the existence in California and 13 other states of laws allowing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

"We commend DOJ's instruction last year to U.S. attorneys that prosecuting medical marijuana patients who comply with state laws should not be a federal law enforcement priority," the ACLU's letter reads. "The very same standards should apply if Proposition 19 is enacted. Regardless of the federal government's disagreement with California's choice to amend state criminal law, it makes no more sense for the federal government to waste scarce resources policing low-level, non-violent marijuana offenses after Proposition 19 passes, than before."

Californians have every right to enact Proposition 19, the ACLU's letter asserts, in an effort to curtail the wasting of criminal justice resources on the policing of low-level adult marijuana offenses and to help end the selective enforcement of drug laws.

"This is about priorities," the ACLU's letter reads. "Given the state of the economy, record unemployment and foreclosure rates, and thousands of troops deployed abroad, should voters enact Proposition 19, we hope the federal government will re-evaluate its priorities and use scarce federal enforcement resources wisely."

A copy of the ACLU's letter to Attorney General Holder is available online at: www.aclu.org/drug-law-reform/aclu-letter-holder-arguing-there-no-basis-challenging-californias-prop-19.The letter is signed by Laura W. Murphy, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office, Jennifer Bellamy, ACLU Criminal Justice Legislative Counsel, Jay Rorty, Director of the ACLU Criminal Law Reform Project and Allen Hopper, Police Practices Director for the ACLU of Northern California.