Chronicle AM: LatAm Drug Prisoner Numbers Up, UNODC Sends Adviser to Philippines, More... (4/18/17)

They don't even want to think about legalization in Montana, Rhode Island's governor would rather think about it next year, two GOP governors sign CBD cannabis oil bills, Latin American drug incarceration is on the increase, the UNODC sends an advisor to the Philippines, and more.

Two more states edge toward medical marijuana by passing CBD cannabis oil bills. (marijuanagames.org)

Florida Decriminalization Bill Gets Hearing, Gets Killed. The state Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on a marijuana decriminalization bill Monday, then voted to "temporarily postpone" the bill, effectively killing it for the year. The bill, which would have made small-time pot possession a civil infraction, was Senate Bill 1682.

Montana Bill to Study Legalization Dies in House. A bill that would have created an interim legislative committee to study marijuana legalization died Monday in the House. House Joint Resolution 35 failed on a vote of 45-55. Nine Republicans voted to approve the bill, but five Democrats voted against it.

Rhode Island Governor Wants to Study Legalization, Not Pass it This Year. The administration of Gov. Gina Raimundo (D) has sent a letter to the House Judiciary Committee saying it has "concerns" with legalization bills under consideration and would instead support creating a commission to study the issue. "The Governor's primary concerns are safety and proper regulation, and she will give strong consideration to legalization legislation that adequately addresses these concerns, whether a bill reaches her desk this year or in the future," she said, leaving the door just slightly open for this year.

Medical Marijuana

Oklahoma Governor Signs CBD Cannabis Oil Bill. Gov. Mary Fallin (R) on Monday signed into law House Bill 1559, which exempts CBD cannabis oil products from the state's definition of marijuana if they are approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration. No such medicines have been approved by the FDA. The move is the latest baby step toward actually approving the use of CBD cannabis oil; last year, Fallin signed a bill that allowed clinical trials by researchers to take place.

Wisconsin Governor Signs CBD Cannabis Oil Bill. Gov. Scott Walker (R) on Monday signed into law Senate Bill 10, which would make it easier to acquire CBD cannabis oil. Two years ago, Walker signed a bill to allow the use of CBD in extremely limited cases, but the limits it contains are so restrictive that families and patients haven't been able to actually use CBD. This bill will ease those limits, allowing patients to possess CBD for any medical condition with an annual physician's approval.

Sentencing

US Sentencing Commission Hearing Today on Ecstasy, New Psychoactives. The US Sentencing Commission will take up reconsideration of the federal sentencing guidelines for ecstasy (MDMA) and a handful of new psychoactive substances. This is the first step in a two-year review process that could result in sentencing reductions for people caught with those drugs. One factor driving the Sentencing Commission to take up the issue is two major federal court cases where judges ruled that they did not have to follow the current MDMA sentencing guidelines, since they were so out of touch with science and public health.

International

Canada Marijuana Legalization Won't Include Pardons, Amnesty, Liberals Say. The Trudeau government is not considering a blanket pardon for people who have criminal records for marijuana possession as part of its marijuana legalization plan, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said Monday. "That's not an item that's on the agenda at the moment," he said. The government is facing pressure both from people who want to move immediately to some sort of decriminalization and from people who want some sort of pardon scheme, but the Liberals are holding firm. "It is important to note that as the bill moves through the legislative process, existing laws prohibiting possession and use of cannabis remain in place, and they need to be respected," Goodale said. "This must be an orderly transition. It is not a free-for-all."

Study Reveals a Disproportionate Increase in Number of People Jailed for Low-Level Drug Offenses in Latin America. The Research Consortium on Drugs and the Law (CEDD), a network of drug policy experts from 10 countries in the Americas, has published a new report which reveals that despite the debate surrounding drug policy reform, the rate of incarceration for low-level, non-violent drug offenses continues to increase across Latin America. The CEDD Report, Irrational Punishment: Drug Laws and Incarceration in the Americas, includes research on ten countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the United States, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay. In all of the Latin American countries studied, with the exception of Bolivia, the population imprisoned for drug offenses increased at a rate of 8 to 33 times faster than that of the general prison population over the last 15 years, with some variation depending on the country. In Brazil, while the prison population increased 55% between 2006 and 2014, the population incarcerated for drug offenses rose by 267%, a rate about five times greater. In Colombia, between 2000 and 2015, the prison population rose by 141%, but the population incarcerated for drug offenses increased by 289%.

UNODC to Send Adviser to Philippines, Promote Alternatives. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime announced Monday that it will soon send a drug policy advisor to the Philippines to work with the government there on alternatives to its bloody-handed crackdown on drug users. The UNODC adviser will press both the Dangerous Drugs Board and the Department of Health to adopt treatment-based approaches to combat substance abuse in the country. Those programs are likely to take the form of community-based models that will more effectively encourage users to minimize their substance dependencies. The advisor is expected to arrive in June and serve for two years.