Chronicle AM: UT Defelonization Proposed, TX Pot Bills Coming, Afghan Opium Fiasco, More (10/22/14)

Texas will see marijuana reform legislation next year, "Brownie Mary" Democratic Clubs come to California's East Bay, Utah will consider drug defelonization, Afghan poppy fiasco, and more. Let's get to it:

In Afghan fields, the poppies grow... (unodc.org)

Marijuana Policy Project Takes Aim at Texas. The Marijuana Policy Project is working with legislators in Austin to craft a trio of marijuana reform bills to be pre-filed next month. One would decriminalize pot possession, one would allow medical marijuana, and one would be a tax and regulate legalization bill. Click on the title for more details.

California "Brownie Mary" Democratic Clubs Spread to East Bay. Pro-marijuana legalization Democrats have organized the first "Brownie Mary" Democratic Club in the East Bay area. "Brownie Mary" Rathbun was a pioneering medical marijuana activist in San Francisco in the days before Prop 215, and the clubs are a means to articulate a marijuana reform agenda in Democratic Party circles. Now, Alameda County has one. There are others in Los Angeles, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, and San Francisco counties.

Sentencing

Utah Could Defelonize Drug Possession, Make Other Sentencing Reforms. The Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice Wednesday unveiled a sweeping series of proposed criminal justice reforms, including reducing simple drug possession from a felony to a misdemeanor. Other proposals would make drug sales the lowest degree felony and rework "drug free zone" statutes to focus on crimes where children are present. The proposals are expected to go before the legislature in January.

Law Enforcement

A Tale of Two Texas SWAT Drug Raids Where Officers Were Killed. Mother Jones magazine examines the results in two recent Texas SWAT drug raids that left police officers dead. In one case, the shooter was a white marijuana grower. In the other, the shooter was a black man who had a glass pipe. Guess which one got charged with murder and which one didn't. A good, provocative read; check it out at the link.

International

US Spent $7.6 Billion to Fight Afghan Opium Poppy Cultivation, But It's Now at An All-Time High. The US special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction has called into question US drug policy there after finding that, despite the US spending $7.6 billion to fight the opium trade since it invaded in 2001, the amount of land dedicated to poppy cultivation is at an all-time high of 523,000 acres. "In past years, surges in opium poppy cultivation have been met by a coordinated response from the US government and coalition partners, which has led to a temporary decline in levels of opium production," John Sopko said in a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, and other top US officials. "The recent record-high level of poppy cultivation calls into question the long-term effectiveness and sustainability of those prior efforts,"he said on Tuesday. "With deteriorating security in many parts of Afghanistan and low levels of eradication of poppy fields, further increases in cultivation are likely in 2014," he added.