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(renamed "Drug War Chronicle" effective issue #300, August 2003) Issue #283, 4/18/03
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition" Phillip S. Smith, Editor
subscribe for FREE now! ---- make a donation ---- search Note: This issue is shorter than usual due to staff attendance at the NORML conference as well as the Jewish holidays. But there is good information within nonetheless, so read on! TABLE OF CONTENTS
(visit
the Week Online archives)
1. DRCNet Interview: David Bronner Note: This interview was conducted before the Ninth Circuit ruled again to block the DEA rule pending its final decision. The US hemp industry is under frontal attack from misguided drug warriors. At immediate issue is a DEA "final rule" that would effectively bar the consumption, possession or sale of foods that containing hemp oils. Under the proposed rule, the presence of even infinitesimal amounts of THC in foods containing hemp would make them Schedule 1 controlled substances under the Controlled Substances Act. The hemp industry, unsurprisingly,
is not going down without a fight. Having battled the DEA over the
issue for nearly a decade, the industry has now challenged the proposed
rule in the federal courts. DRCNet spoke Monday with a leader in
the effort, David Bronner, current president of the famous Dr. Bronner's
Magic Soaps (http://www.drbronner.com)
and chairman of the Hemp Industry Association's Food and Oil Committee
(http://www.thehia.org).
Disclosure: DRCNet has received financial compensation from Dr. Bronner's for an upcoming hemp food-related promotion.
2. Ninth Circuit Court Blocks DEA Hemp Rule (news release from Vote Hemp, http://www.VoteHemp.com) Late Wednesday (4/16) the Ninth Circuit federal court granted the hemp industry's Motion to Stay the US Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA's) "Final Rule," which was issued March 21, 2003 and would have banned the sale of nutritious hemp foods containing harmless trace amounts of naturally-occurring THC under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970. This "Final Rule" is virtually identical to an "Interpretive Rule" issued on October 9, 2001 that never went into effect because of a Ninth Circuit Court Stay issued on March 7, 2002. Both Motions to Stay were brought jointly by the Hemp Industries Association (HIA) and several major hemp food companies in the US and Canada. The court is currently hearing a substantive challenge to the Final Rule, and in light of today's ruling, the hemp industry is optimistic that the Court will ultimately invalidate the DEA's rule. One of the prime criteria in granting the Stay was whether the hemp industry is likely to ultimately prevail on the merits of the case. Because trace infinitesimal THC in hemp seed is non-psychoactive and insignificant, the US Congress exempted non-viable hemp seed and oil from control under the CSA, just as Congress exempted poppy seeds from the CSA, although they contain trace opiates otherwise subject to control. The hemp industry is assuring retailers and consumers that hemp food products should continue to be stocked, sold and consumed. Joe Sandler, counsel for the HIA, stated: "The Court's order effectively prevents DEA from enforcing its 'Final Rule.' With this stay in effect, all those who sell, import, manufacture, distribute and retail edible hemp oil and seed, and oil and seed products, can continue those activities secure in the knowledge that such products remain perfectly lawful." Hemp seed has a well-balanced protein content and the highest content of essential fatty acids (EFAs) of any oil in nature: EFAs are the "good fats" that, like vitamins, the body does not produce and requires for good health. Dr. Udo Erasmus, an internationally recognized nutritional authority on fats and oils, writes in Fats that Heal -- Fats that Kill: "Hemp seed oil may be nature's most perfectly balanced oil." Not surprisingly, shelled hemp seed and oil are increasingly used in natural food products, such as corn chips, nutrition bars, hummus, nondairy milks, breads and cereals. In the last few years, the hemp foods industry has grown from less than $1 million a year to over $5 million in retail sales. North American hemp food companies voluntarily observe reasonable THC limits similar to those adopted by European nations as well as Canada and Australia. These limits protect consumers with a wide margin of safety from any psychoactive effects or workplace drug-testing interference (http://www.testpledge.com). The DEA has hypocritically not targeted food manufacturers for using poppy seeds (in bagels and muffins, for example) even though they contain far higher levels of trace opiates. The recently-revived global hemp market, with retail sales of over $250 million worldwide, is a thriving commercial success. Unfortunately, because the DEA's drug war paranoia has confused non-psychoactive industrial hemp varieties of cannabis with psychoactive "marihuana" varieties, the US is the only major industrialized nation to prohibit the growing of industrial hemp. Visit http://www.votehemp.com/stay_granted_2003.pdf to view or download a PDF copy of the Court's order staying DEA's rule.
3. The Week Online Still Needs Your Help! Donations have continued to come in to keep The Week Online going until our next grant, so thanks to these generous supporters we continue! DRCNet still needs help from more of you to complete this publication's budget for the next few months, when we are hopeful that more grant funding will arrive. Large or small, your donations count -- if you can give $100 or you can give $5, it all adds up and makes a difference. So please visit http://www.drcnet.org/donate/wol.html and make a donation to support the Week Online -- or send your check or money order to DRCNet, P.O. Box 18402, Washington, DC 20036 -- or visit http://www.drcnet.org/donate/monthly.html to sign up for a monthly credit card donation.
Donations to the DRCNet Foundation are tax-deductible under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations to the Drug Reform Coordination Network would support our lobbying work and are not deductible. We can also accept donations of stock: Our broker is Ameritrade, phone: (800) 669-3900, account number: 772973012, DTC number: 0188. Or send your check or money order to: DRCNet, P.O. Box 18402, Washington, DC 20036. Thank you in advance for your support.
4. Newsbrief: California Appeals Court Just Says No to "Hippie Profiling" The California Court of Appeals has overturned the marijuana convictions of two persons arrested after a California Highway Patrol (CHP) officer stopped and searched their vehicle because they looked like hippies. CHP Officer Doug Mertz, notorious as an anti-drug hotdog in Humboldt County, violated the constitutional rights of Jason Fishbain and Chris White when he used a pretext to pull them over after his suspicions were aroused by their stereotypically hippie appearance, the court ruled. The court overturned prison and probation sentences for the pair. Officer Mertz tailed Fishbain's vehicle for miles on US Highway 101 before stopping them for having no front license plate (the vehicle was licensed in Arizona, where no front plate is required) and for having an air freshener hanging from the rear view mirror. Mertz then claimed to smell the odor of burning marijuana and conducted a search without the consent of the vehicle's driver or passengers. He found five pounds of marijuana and nearly $10,000 in cash. After a lengthy legal battle, Fishbain and White were convicted of marijuana offenses. White was sentenced to three years at Pelican Bay State Prison, while Fishbain received probation. But on February 27, the Court of Appeal vacated the convictions, ruling that Mertz had unlawfully stopped and searched the vehicle. The single license plate and the hanging air freshener were not traffic violations, the court said, and Mertz thus had no legal authority to stop the vehicle, detain its occupants or conduct the search. The search and its fruits were therefore "unreasonable and unlawful," the court held. In so doing, the court hewed to the legal arguments presented by attorney David Crane, who represented Fishbain and filed the appeal. "Subsequent to the unlawful stop and during the illegal and unlawful, prolonged detention, Officer Mertz began a fishing expedition and conducted an investigation without probable cause, performing an unlawful and unwarranted and unnecessarily intrusive search," Crane wrote in the appeal. The ruling will help rein in out-of-control troopers, Crane told the McKinleyville Press. "It certainly draws a brighter line for police behavior," he said. "I don't see how (Mertz) could continue making stops like this one. It seems easy to justify them based on their results, but this time, the results are different." The two men, who maintained from the beginning that the marijuana was for medical purposes, have said through their lawyers that they are now considering civil lawsuits against the California Highway Patrol. But that doesn't mean they are especially impressed with the state's legal system. "I guess if you spend enough money and you're able to stick with it, maybe you'll get justice," Fishbain said. "But if you're an average person in Humboldt County who doesn't have much money, you're pretty much screwed -- unless you have the money to play the game. That's what I've learned."
5. Newsbrief: House GOP Leadership Gives Cold Shoulder to "Truth in Trials" Medical Marijuana Bill The Oakland Tribune has reported that House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) will not support legislation introduced last week that would protect medical marijuana users and suppliers. The legislation, inspired by the case of Oakland medical marijuana supplier Ed Rosenthal and others arrested under federal law in California, would allow people from states that have legalized medical marijuana to introduce evidence in federal court that they had complied with those state laws. Current practice in the federal courts makes no provision for telling jurors that defendants charged by the Justice Department were operating within state laws. This state of affairs has led to fiascos like the Ed Rosenthal verdict, in which jurors convicted Rosenthal of federal marijuana cultivation offenses, but then responded with shock, outrage and demands for a new trial for Rosenthal once they emerged from the courthouse and became aware that Rosenthal was operating within California law and with the express approval of Oakland municipal authorities. Introduced by California US Reps. Sam Farr (D-Monterey) and Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) along with 23 cosponsors, the "Truth in Trials" bill seeks to act as a brake on the aggressive enforcement efforts of the John Ashcroft Justice Department, which in the last year and a half conducted raids on California medical marijuana providers and prosecuted them in the federal courts. "This is about due process," Farr said at an introductory press conference last week in Washington. "It's not about pot." Hastert has a different take, according to spokesman John Feehery. "I doubt very seriously that the speaker would support that kind of provision," he told the Tribune. "Anti-drug laws should be strengthened, not weakened." And when asked by the Tribune if allowing California and other states to experiment with medical marijuana laws was a states' right issue, Feehery replied, "not necessarily." In this case, he said, the state laws are wrong.
6. Newsbrief: Indiana Ponders Early Prisoner Release, Drug Possessors Included Faced with a looming state budget crisis and the General Assembly's failure so far to provide funding for 1,600 new prison cells, the administration of Indiana Gov. Frank O'Bannon (R) is preparing plans for the early release of almost 700 prisoners. The plan would apply to Class C and D felony offenders -- the least serious felonies -- which includes people imprisoned for drug possession, as well as drunk drivers, forgers, burglars and other low-level felons. State Budget Director Marilyn Schultz has presented two different early release proposals to state lawmakers meeting in conference committee to resolve budget differences between the state's upper and lower legislative chambers. A one-time early release program allowing Class C felons to get out 60 days early and Class D felons to get out 30 days early would result in the early release of 673 inmates, Schultz reported. A continuing early release program for Class C and D offenders would also result in significant prisoner releases, Shultz said, but provided no numbers. Under the one-time proposal, the state's prison population would continue to increase, while the continuing early release proposal would begin to slow that rate, Schultz said. As of July 1, 2002, Indiana held some 21,500 prisoners, nearly 20% of whom were drug offenders. Five years earlier, the state held 17,500 prisoners, 16% of whom were doing time for drug offenses. While the early release proposal could be a bargaining chip in budget talks -- threatening legislators with having to vote for releasing prisoners if they fail to ante up for more prison spending -- some legislators are inclined to support such a move anyway. Faced with an $800 million budget deficit, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Crawford (R), expressed interest. The state prisons are a "vacuum that sucks up all our state dollars," he told the Louisville Courier-Herald. "If we continue to go down this road, it's going to burst some budgets." Indiana currently spends almost $600 million per year on prisons, nearly 5% of the total state budget. Gov. O'Bannon requested an additional $27 million to build 1,600 new beds, but the legislature balked. Now the conference committee will review the competing proposals. The legislature is also pondering whether to create a state sentencing commission to review sentencing policy.
7. Newsbrief: Legal Swiss Marijuana to Be Heavily Taxed, Black Market Profits Will Instead Be Windfall for Government A committee of the Swiss Nationalrat (lower house of parliament) late last month passed its version of a bill that will legalize the consumption and possession of marijuana for private use for persons above 16 years of age, but the bill passed by the Nationalrat committee levies such stiff taxes on the herb that it will cost more than it does under the current grey market operating in Switzerland. Under the Nationalrat committee bill, pot with a THC content of less than 10% will be taxed at a rate of slightly over $6 per gram, while higher-octane weed will be taxed at a rate of $10.75 per gram. At those rates, an ounce of primo marijuana will have a tax burden of around $300, making it as expensive as black market marijuana in the United States -- and that's before any other charges are included in the sale price. The tax scheme is not yet a done deal -- the entire Nationalrat will discuss the bill next month -- but if it stays in place, it could be a prescription for failure, according to at least one observer. Dale Gieringer, Europe-watcher and head of California NORML (http://www.canorml.org), said, "This is certainly no way to end criminal trafficking -- it's an open-ended invitation to smuggling. Let's hope the Swiss come to their senses. Like Zurich's Needle Park, this is a plan begging to fail."
8. Newsbrief: CIA Propaganda Radio Rap Song Links Saddam to Demon Weed Ah, those wacky guys at the CIA! According to BBC Monitoring, which selects and translates information from media sources worldwide, a Kuwait-based, CIA-sponsored radio station has been playing a rap-style parody of deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in which the US's demon du jour brags about smoking pot. To the tune of Coolio's "Gangsta's Paradise," a Saddam impersonator raps a message from the missing leader in English and Arabic: "Bush wanna kick me, I don't know why and if I call him, he does me goodbye. "Smoking weed and getting high. I know the devil is by my side. "My days are finished and I will die -- all I need is chili fries." The parody, being broadcast on so-called Radio Tikrit, also has Hussein proclaiming such bon mots as "If you don't like me I will kill you, I am Saddam," and "I am so dead, I am so bad, I am big daddy, this is my game, I don't have any feelings, I don't have any shame." Your tax dollars at work.
9. Media Scan: Cato, Sojourners, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Criminal Justice Journalists "Bad Neighbor Policy," review
of new Cato Institute book in the Washington Times:
"The War At Home," article
by Sanho Tree in Sojourners magazine:
"Drug Laws Unfair and Costly,"
editorial by King County Superior Court Judge Deborah Fleck:
Criminal Justice Journalists
new daily news summary:
10. Harm Reduction Jobs in Pittsburgh and New York Prevention Point Pittsburgh (PPP) is a small, newly legalized syringe access program with eight years of experience in providing clean injection equipment, education and advocacy for injection drug users. PPP's programs and policies reflect a strong commitment to harm reduction and public health-based models of promoting health and reducing drug-related harm to individuals and communities. PPP is seeking an Executive Director with experience in syringe access, harm reduction interventions and running nonprofit organizations and programs. This person must be able to coordinate the operations of a growing, volunteer-based organization in a stable political environment. The Executive Director position will include the following areas of responsibility: community organizing and policy work to establish and maintain relationships with community, service providers and governmental entities; collaboration with community agencies and service providers to expand syringe access, harm reduction interventions, and other services to PPP's participants; media and public relations; policy development at the local and state level to further the expansion and legalization of syringe access; fundraising and development, grants management, and fiscal planning; office management; coordination and management of syringe distribution sites, in conjunction with other staff and volunteers; volunteer recruitment, training and retention; and staff supervision. Competitive Salary with excellent benefits, please contact: Alice Bell, LSW, Coordinator, Prevention Point Pittsburgh, 907 West Street, 5th Floor, Pittsburgh, PA 15221, phone: (412) 247-3404, fax: (412) 247-1640 (fax), [email protected]. The Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center seeks an experienced leader to direct a dynamic and culturally diverse community-based nonprofit organization with a $1.2 million dollar operating budget. LESHRC's mission is to reduce the spread of HIV infection among injection drug users and their community. LESHRC accomplishes this goal with a harm reduction philosophy that informs all community programming and internal activities. This non-judgmental approach towards drug users creates a unique work environment in which program participants are integral to programmatic and organizational success. The Executive Director is the chief administrator of the organization with overall responsibilities for planning, administration and management of all programs and internal systems. The Executive Director is responsible to, supervised by, and serves at the pleasure of the Board of Directors for all areas of agency operation and policy implementation. Responsibilities include but are not limited to: Governance Support &
Compliance:
Staff Leadership:
Fundraising:
Public Relations and Education:
Qualifications include three to five years successful administrative & supervisory experience; three to five years successful fundraising & revenue generating experience; experience working in community-based nonprofit and/or public sector. LESHRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer; women, people of color and people with HIV are encouraged to apply. Send resume, cover letter & salary history to [email protected] or Elvira Sherifova, LESHRC, 25 Allen Street, New York, NY 10002.
(Please submit listings of events concerning drug policy and related topics to [email protected].)
April 17-19, San Francisco, CA, "Back to Basics: Stop Arresting Marijuana Smokers," 2003 NORML Conference. At the Hyatt Regency, 5 Embarcadero Center, registration $150 or $100 for students. Call 888-67-NORML, e-mail [email protected] or visit http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=5524 for information.
April 20, noon, Atlanta, GA, "10th Annual Great Atlanta Pot Festival." Speakers and entertainment, sponsored by Coalition for the Abolition of Marijuana Prohibition, at Piedmont Park, $10 donation requested. Call (404) 522-2267 or visit http://www.worldcamp.org/local.htm for further information.
April 21, 5:30-7:30pm, Honolulu, HI, "Ending the Failed Drug War: A Ten Year Progress Report," Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii event featuring Ethan Nadelmann. At Alan Wong's Pineapple Room, Macy's 3rd Floor, Ala Moana Center, fee and registration required. RSVP by April 18 to Darlene at (808) 384-7794 or [email protected], or visit http://www.dpfhi.org for further information.
April 22, 6:30-8:30pm, Berkeley, CA, "What D.A.R.E. Didn't Teach You: from Absolut to Zima," evening of education on alcohol. At the Drug Resource Center, UC Berkeley, cosponsored by University Health Services and the US Department of Education, contact Scarlett Swerdlow at [email protected] for information.
April 26, 11:00am-11:00pm, Kingston, RI, "5th Annual Day for HOPE Hempfest," festival at the University of Rhode Island Quadrangle. Featuring music and speeches, admission free, visit http://members.cox.net/urissdp/ or e-mail [email protected] for further information.
May 1, 7:30am, Randolph, MA, "The Beginning of the End," presentation by Jack Cole of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. Sponsored by the Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce, at Lombardo's Function Hall, Route 28, contact Mike Smithson at (315) 488-3630 or [email protected] for further information.
May 3-5, many cities worldwide, "Million Marijuana March." Visit http://www.cures-not-wars.org/cities.htm for local contact info.
May 8, 10:00am-evening, New York, NY, "Educate Don't Incarcerate," youth demonstration on the 30th anniversary of the Rockefeller Drug Laws. March from Rockefeller Center to Gov. Pataki's office, noon rally in front of Gov. Pataki's office, 4:00pm youth speak out, party to follow. Call (718) 838-7881, e-mail [email protected] or visit http://www.droptherock.org for further information.
May 15, 7:00pm, Rochester, NY, "Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed," dinner discussion with Judge James P. Gray, Superior Court of Orange County, California. Sponsored by the Monroe County Libertarian Party, restaurant to be determined, contact Steve Healy at [email protected] or Mike Smithson at [email protected] for further information.
May 17, 1:00pm, DeWitt, NY, ReconsiDer: Forum on Drug Policy Annual Meeting. Featured speaker Judge James P. Gray, Superior Court of Orange County, California. At May Memorial Church, 3800 Genesee Street, contact Mike Smithson at [email protected] for further information.
May 17-20, Indian Wells, CA, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers 2003 Annual Conference. At the Renaissance Esmeralda Resort, see http://www.naatp.org/PDF/Conference2003.pdf for further information.
May 26-28, Wellington, New Zealand, 4th International Conference on Drugs and Young People. At the Wellington Convention Centre, call +61 (03) 9278 8101 or +61 (03) 9278 8137, e-mail [email protected] or visit http://www.adf.org.au for information.
June 1-13, Witness For Peace Drug Policy Delegation to Colombia. Contact Alex Volberding at [email protected] or visit http://www.witnessforpeace.org/pdf/drugdelflyer.pdf for info.
June 6-7, Milwaukee, WI, "Breaking the Chains: Communities of Color and the War on Drugs," Midwest Regional Conference. Sponsored by Drug Policy Alliance and WISDOM, a Wisconsin-based coalition of community and religious leaders for public policy reform. Admission $25 adult or $10 youth, visit http://www.breakingthechains.info for further information.
June 7-11, Denver, CO, 23rd National Convocation of Jail and Prison Ministry. Visit http://www.travel.to/theconvocation/ or contact Sr. Carleen Reck at [email protected] for information.
August 16-17, 10:00am-8:00pm, Seattle, WA, "12th Annual Seattle Hempfest." At Myrtle Edwards Park, call (206) 781-5734 or visit http://www.hempfest.org for further information.
November 5-8, East Rutherford, NJ, biennial conference of Drug Policy Alliance. At the Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel and Conference Center, 2 Meadowlands Plaza, visit http://www.drugpolicy.org for further information.
November 7-9, Paris, "Fourth Hemp and Eco-Technologies Exhibition." At the Cité de Sciences et de L'Industrie, call +33(0) 1 48 58 31 37, e-mail [email protected] or visit http://www.festival-du-chanvre.com for further information.
If you like what you see here and want to get these bulletins by e-mail, please fill out our quick signup form at https://stopthedrugwar.org/WOLSignup.shtml. PERMISSION to reprint or redistribute any or all of the contents of Drug War Chronicle is hereby granted. We ask that any use of these materials include proper credit and, where appropriate, a link to one or more of our web sites. If your publication customarily pays for publication, DRCNet requests checks payable to the organization. If your publication does not pay for materials, you are free to use the materials gratis. In all cases, we request notification for our records, including physical copies where material has appeared in print. Contact: StoptheDrugWar.org: the Drug Reform Coordination Network, P.O. Box 18402, Washington, DC 20036, (202) 293-8340 (voice), (202) 293-8344 (fax), e-mail [email protected]. Thank you. Articles of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of the DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.
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