TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. EDITORIAL: A TRAGEDY IN THE CAPITAL
   Jonathan Magbie's death at the hands of DC's court and jail should not be quickly forgotten.
2. MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACTIVISTS BESIEGE HHS, DEMAND RESCHEDULING
   Medical marijuana activists from around the country converged on Washington, DC, over the weekend for actions culminating in a Tuesday demonstration with civil disobedience.
3. DRUG POLICY AND THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION -- INTRODUCTION
   Drug War Chronicle this week runs a feature overview of drug policy and the presidential election campaigns.
4. THE ELECTION I: BUSH AND KERRY ON DRUGS: PAST RECORDS AND PLATFORM PLANKS
   As part of our coverage of drug policy in the presidential campaign, we here examine the respective records of President George W. Bush and his challenger, Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts.
5. THE ELECTION II: DRUG REFORMERS ON KERRY AND BUSH, NADER AND BADNARIK
   As usual, the drug reform community faces the questions: Do you support the candidate who best represents your views as a reformer -- presumably Libertarian Gary Badnarik or independent Ralph Nader -- despite knowing neither has a chance of winning? Or are the differences between Bush and Kerry on drug policy sufficient to support one of them instead?
6. THE ELECTION III: DRCNET INTERVIEW: INDEPENDENT PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE RALPH NADER
   As part of a package of articles this week covering drug policy in the presidential election campaign, we present an interview with Ralph Nader, the controversial independent progressive candidate.
7. THE ELECTION IV: DRCNET INTERVIEW: MICHAEL BADNARIK, LIBERTARIAN PARTY PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (repeat)
   Carrying the Libertarian Party banner in this year's election is Michael Badnarik, a computer consultant and constitutional scholar living in Austin, Texas. The Libertarian Party has for years been a staunch advocate of ending drug prohibition.
8. NEWSBRIEF: SUPREME COURT HEARS ORAL ARGUMENTS IN CRITICAL FEDERAL SENTENCING CASES
   The fallout from the Supreme Court's explosive June ruling in Blakely v. Washington, which threatens to invalidate the 17-year-old federal sentencing structure, came back to the Court Monday as the nine justices heard oral arguments in two cases seeking to apply the Blakely decision to the federal sentencing system.
9. NEWSBRIEF: NEEDLE EXCHANGE BILL PASSES NEW JERSEY ASSEMBLY
   Just weeks after departing Gov. Scott McGreevey signaled his approval of needle exchange program (NEP) legislation, a bill that would permit Garden State cities to operate such programs has been approved by two committees and was passed by New Jersey Assembly in a Thursday afternoon vote.
10. NEWSBRIEF: PROTESTS RISE OVER AWARD AS THAI PRIME MINISTER PREPARES FOR NEW ROUND OF DRUG WAR
    Led by the human rights advocacy group Human Rights Watch, more than 50 organizations have called for Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to be stripped of the "International Forgiveness Award" granted in September by an Italian group, the Istituzione Perdonanza Celestiniana. Thaksin's government has been accused of complicity in the murders of thousands of Thai drug users.
11. NEWSBRIEF: BOLIVIA'S CHAPARE COCALEROS SIGN HISTORIC AGREEMENT WITH GOVERNMENT
    At a Sunday meeting, representatives of the Bolivian government and coca growers (cocaleros) in the Chapare region signed an agreement permitting approximately 8,000 acres (3,200 hectares) of coca to be grown in the region this year.
12. NEWSBRIEF: DEA PULLS PRESCRIPTION PAIN MEDICINE FAQS WITHOUT EXPLANATION
    In a so-far unexplained move, the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) Diversion Control Program has removed a set of frequently asked questions and responses designed to ease doctors' fears of persecution by the agency for prescribing opioid pain relievers.
13. NEWSBRIEF: HEMP CROPS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA STYMIED BY LICENSING REQUIREMENTS
    The state's Industrial Hemp Act came into effect on March 19, making hemp cultivation legal, but no one is growing it yet -- because state authorities are refusing to grant licenses to potential hemp growers who have cannabis-related criminal records.
14. NEWSBRIEF: ATLANTA COPS USE FORFEITED FUNDS TO BUY BIGGER GUNS
    The Atlanta Police Department is spending more than $545,000 in funds seized from drug suspects to replace its guns with a newer, more deadly model.
15. NEWSBRIEF: NO ASSET FORFEITURE FOR MISDEMEANOR DRUG CHARGES, TENNESSEE SAYS
    For years, Tennessee law enforcement officers routinely seized the vehicles and other property of people possessing even small amounts of drugs. But a July 9 opinion by the state's Attorney General Paul has put a stop to that practice, and the law enforcement establishment is grumbling.
16. NEWSBRIEF: TEXAS DA SAYS DOCTORS MUST TURN IN DRUG-USING PREGNANT WOMEN
    Citing a Texas statute passed last year that classifies fetuses as individuals, one Texas district attorney is threatening to prosecute doctors if they fail to tell authorities about illegal drug use by pregnant women.
17. NEWSBRIEF: ANOTHER KILLER COP WALKS FREE
    Former Louisville police detective McKenzie Mattingly, 31, was acquitted of murder charges in the killing of black Louisville teenager Michael Newby. Working an undercover drug buy operation, Mattingly shot Newby, 19, three times in the back as Newby attempted to flee after the pair scuffled.
18. NEWSBRIEF: THIS WEEK'S CORRUPT COPS STORIES
    Drug prohibition-related law enforcement corruption continues apace. This week's cases range from the silly to the subversive, with "good cops gone bad" breaking out all over the place.
19. THIS WEEK IN HISTORY
    Laws, Raids, Quotes of Note
20. ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: PART-TIME JOB OPPORTUNITY AT DRCNET
    DRCNet is seeking a part-time Administrative Assistant to work with the Executive and Associate Directors and the Member Coordinator. The Administrative Assistant will assist with all manner of clerical and administrative tasks.
21. THE REFORMER'S CALENDAR
    Showing up at an event can be the best way to get involved! Check out this week's calendar for events from today through next year, across the US and around the world!

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