Drug War Chronicle #563 - December 5, 2008

Feature: On the 75th Anniversary of the Repeal of Prohibition, Reformers Ponder the Past and Look to the Future

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the repeal of alcohol Prohibition, when Utah -- Utah!--became the 38th state to ratify the 21st Amendment to the Constitution, repealing the 18th Amendment and the Volstead Act and drawing the curtain on America's failed experiment with social engineering. Repeal of Prohibition seemed unthinkable in 1930, but three years later it was history. Perhaps there are lessons to be learned as we commemorate that day.

Prohibition engendered many of the same ills identified as plaguing drug prohibition today -- huge economic costs of enforcement, the criminalization of otherwise law-abiding citizens, the growth of criminal trafficking groups, corruption, deleterious public health consequences (bathtub gin, anyone?) -- and its repeal may be instructive for people working to end the drug war now. It is certainly an occasion worthy of note by anti-prohibitionists, and at least two groups, LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition) and the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, used the anniversary to call this week for an end to drug prohibition.

At a Tuesday press conference in Washington, DC, LEAP unveiled a new project, We Can Do It Again!, where people are invited to send the anti-prohibitionist message to their federal representatives, and a report with the same title detailing and comparing the ills of Prohibition and current day drug prohibition. In its recommendations to policymakers, the report called for a national commission to study the true costs of drug prohibition, called on state and local legislatures and executive branches to reevaluate drug war spending, and urged "incremental reforms" and harm reduction measures in the short-term.

"In 1932, a majority of Congress realized that prohibition was ineffective," recalled Eric Sterling, head of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, at the press conference, "In 1933, more than two thirds of Congress sent prohibition repeal to the States for ratification. We ended prohibition's ineffective approach to alcohol control then, and we can do it again for drug prohibition now."

The parallels between Prohibition and today's drug prohibition are many, said Sterling. "Congress embraced the term 'war on drugs' in the early 1980s as the Colombians drove the Cubans out of control of the cocaine traffic with machine gun battles on South Florida streets and shopping malls. The violence mimicked the street battles to dominate the beer and liquor trade in American cities in the 1920s, exemplified by the 1929 Valentine's Day massacre in Chicago," he noted. "In 1929 the ruthless violence of Al Capone was fueled by alcohol prohibition profits. Maintaining our current approach, in 2009, the violence of al Qaeda will be financed by drug prohibition profits. We have to stop this violence, as we did 75 years ago. In Colombia, for more than two decades, I have observed drug prohibition finance terror -- by both the enemies and the allies of the government -- that undermines the institutions of their society. Seventy-five years ago, we ended the violence of alcohol prohibition, and we must do it again. We can do it again."

"We believe there are significant similarities between alcohol Prohibition and the drug war prohibition we have going on right now," Richard Van Winkler, LEAP member and superintendent of a New Hampshire correctional facility, told the Chronicle Thursday. "Prohibition doesn't stop Americans from using any substance they choose to. We tried that in the 1920s, and it failed, and now we are trying it again. We advocate for drug legalization not because we advocate for drug use, but because as those drugs are prohibited, we will continue to fund a significant criminal element that is getting larger and more powerful every day."

Sterling and LEAP weren't the only people musing about the end of Prohibition this week. "There are significant parallels, but also dissimilarities," said Dale Gieringer, head of California NORML. "Both Prohibition and drug prohibition are products of the same Progressive Era, an era of intense temperance agitation on all levels, with a lot of religious fervor behind it. One lasted 13 years, the other is with us still."

Long-time marijuana activist Dana Beal of Cures Not Wars saw little reason for optimism in the end of Prohibition. "I think you're dreaming if you think you can apply to marijuana the experience of repeal of prohibition of the psychoactive sacrament of the Catholic Church," he said. "Think outside the box. The end of alcohol prohibition has almost zero lessons for how we get out of pot prohibition."

But his was a decidedly minority view. "One lesson we can draw from Prohibition is that it did not work very well," said Aaron Houston director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project, "and we're seeing parallels to that today. In Mexico, the drug trade violence is spectacularly awful and increasingly vicious. Heads are rolling onto playgrounds there, and the cartels are coming to the US and kidnapping American citizens. By maintaining prohibition, we are giving our money to some very, very bad people, and there is a lesson there for our current prohibition policy; I call it the Al Capone lesson," he said.

"I think what many people don't realize is that what gave the Prohibition repeal movement muscle in 1930 was the Great Depression," said Houston. "Federal income tax revenues were declining significantly. Now, we are seeing similar economic problems. I think reformers should focus on the cost of marijuana prohibition. We have 13 states that are spending more than a billion dollars a year each on prisons, and what's the payoff?"

One big difference between Prohibition and drug prohibition is the level of debate, Gieringer said. "There was a huge public debate about Prohibition, it was a dominant issue for years, but there was very little debate about drug prohibition. Even now, drug prohibition is not that much of an issue. There is a lot of very ugly stuff going on in foreign countries, but that's not here. The last time drugs were a big issue here was 20 years ago, with the crack violence in the streets of America, and that got people riled up and not in an anti-prohibitionist way."

Some of the sunnier views of both the status quo and the prospects for change come from California, where the state's loosely-written medical marijuana law has created a sort of de facto personal legalization for anyone with a little initiative and $150 for a visit to the doctor's office for a recommendation. The state's network of dispensaries, now in the hundreds, has flourished despite the DEA's best efforts, creating a real world vision of what retail marijuana sales could look like. And now, the incoming president has promised to call off the dogs.

"After being involved in this issue since 1994, I think we're seeing a need for a lot of things to shift around to end prohibition, and the perfect storm may have arrived this year," said Jeff Jones, founder of the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Club. "We have the alignment of a Democratic Congress and a Democratic president who has said he has used drugs, both soft and hard, and an economic recession. This could trigger a turn similar to that which we saw with the Great Depression and Prohibition."

Facts on the ground are creating a new reality, Jones said. "An end to prohibition is knocking at the door. There are new tax revenue streams being identified here, and public officials are starting to rethink this whole issue. And the Supreme Court's refusal to overturn the Kha case [where a California appeals court ruled that state and local police need not enforce federal drug laws; see story here] means it's over. We won with no fanfare. We don't get a badge or a checkered flag, but by default, we have won this week. It doesn't matter what the feds do. We're going to create infrastructure, jobs, and tax dollars, and we're going to change minds. The medicalization of cannabis has changed things forever, and there's no going back now," Jones prophesied.

"I think with marijuana prohibition, developments on the ground can drive the lawmakers faster than anything else," said Gieringer. "We had medical marijuana in California before we ever passed Proposition 215, thanks to people like Dennis Peron. And now you have Oaksterdam and the efforts to promote that. Although that is still in embryonic form, the more we have it out there on the ground, the more people will come to accept it."

Coming out of the closet is both desirable and necessary, said Gieringer. "Most people are happy as long as drugs stay out of sight and mind, but as we've seen with the LA cannabis clubs, people have learned to be comfortable having them around. We need more of this. Drugs in general need more public visibility to gain more public acceptance," Gieringer argued. "People need to know the world isn't going to collapse, because they've forgotten what it was like a hundred years ago, when our 19th Century legal drug market worked very well."

"With alcohol Prohibition, people had living memories of life before Prohibition," agreed LEAP's Van Wickler. "The generation taking power now doesn't know life without drug prohibition. That makes the paradigm shift all the more difficult."

But even with what's going on in California, there is a long way to go, said Gieringer. Federal legalization of marijuana is unlikely, he said, and thus, so is outright legalization in the states. "I don't see any state passing legalization, in part because of the harsh federal response to medical marijuana. What we need to do is first create de facto, on the ground legalization," as is arguably or partially the case in Gieringer's home state.

The United States has pinned itself to perpetual prohibition through the UN Single Convention, Gieringer noted. Federal legalization would require modifying the convention, and that would require a two-thirds vote in the Senate. "That's a major project, given that we don't have even one senator who even supports medical marijuana, much less decriminalization," he noted dryly.

If the federal government appears unmovable in the near term, then it is going to be up to the states to push the envelope, despite the obstacles. "I think the end of marijuana prohibition is going to come with the states taking action first," said Dr. Mitch Earleywine, a leading academic marijuana expert and editor of Pot Politics. "As a number of states not only have good experiences, but also start bringing in the tax revenues, the cogs will begin to turn at the federal level. We're already seeing this in California, where the rough economic times are being buffered by medical marijuana cash."

But despite all the cautious prognostications, there is one final lesson of Prohibition that may warm reformers hearts. "One of the most cheering things about Prohibition was that even though it looked impossible to end for so long, it collapsed so quickly," Gieringer said. "In 1930, the prohibitionists said there was as much chance of ending it as a bird flying to the moon with the Washington monument tied to its tail, but within three years it was gone. The conventional wisdom of 1930 about Prohibition is the same as the conventional wisdom about repealing the drug laws now, but as we saw, things can happen very quickly."

So, tonight, toss down a cold one as you commemorate Repeal Day and hope we don't have to wait another 75 years to celebrate the end of drug prohibition. How about 7.5 years instead?

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Feature: South Dakota Medical Marijuana Backers Take Aim at the Statehouse

In 2006, South Dakota gained the dubious distinction of being the only state to defeat an initiative that would have legalized the medicinal use of marijuana. That effort failed narrowly, garnering 48% of the popular vote. But now, South Dakota marijuana reform activists are back, and they are hoping to move a bill through the state legislature in the session beginning next month.

According to Bob Newland, spokesman for South Dakotans for Safe Access, a proposed bill that would allow qualifying patients to cultivate, possess, and use medical marijuana has been drafted, and the hunt is on for sponsors. The legislative session begins next month, and any bill to be considered must be introduced by early February.

Newland said the group is also considering other legislation, including a bill to reschedule marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule IV and a bill that would allow an affirmative defense for medical marijuana patients.

"Everything is moving much faster than we thought it would," said Newland. "We've lined up a couple of stellar medical witnesses and may get a couple more, and I think we have a good doctor lined up, too. There has been lots of email and phone support in the couple of weeks since we announced we were moving ahead, and lots of donations, too. Now, we need to find sponsors."

Newland said he was working on that this week, holding meetings in the state capital, Pierre, on Thursday and talking to Democratic Party members in Sioux Falls, the state's largest city, today.

A change in the state's approach to medical marijuana couldn't come early enough for patients. Not only does South Dakota not recognize medical marijuana, it is a state where people actually go to jail for simple possession -- and to prison for growing even a pair of plants.

"We absolutely need a medical marijuana law, and not just for AIDS patients, but for cancer, glaucoma, you name it," said Western South Dakota rancher Tom Faltynowicz, an AIDS sufferer. "It would make a huge difference not having to worry about being busted for something that's keeping me alive. The law needs to change."

Faltynowicz speaks from personal experience. While he has being using medical marijuana with his doctor's knowledge and approval for nearly 20 years, that didn't stop him from being arrested and prosecuted for growing his own medicine. Earlier this year, Faltynowicz pleaded guilty to possession of more than two ounces but less than a pound of marijuana, a felony under South Dakota law.

Fortunately for him, and thanks to letter-writing efforts to his sentencing judge, Faltynowicz was sentenced only to probation, including drug testing, and was specifically allowed to use Marinol during his probation. (Since drug tests only detect the presence of THC, they cannot distinguish between Marinol and marijuana.)

"We need it as much as ever, not only for the people suffering within the state, but to show the rest of America that a red state like South Dakota can accept this," said medical marijuana patient Valerie Hannah, who served as a spokesperson for the 2006 initiative. "If someplace like South Dakota can pass medical marijuana legislation, that should be a huge wakeup call for the federal government to stop prosecuting patients as criminals," she said.

But it won't be easy. Republicans dominate both houses of the state legislature, where earlier bills went nowhere. The Republican attorney general, Larry Long, spearheaded law enforcement opposition to the 2006 initiative and appears ready to reprise that role in the coming months.

"Long had some complaints about the wording of the 2006 initiative," said Newland. "I am telling Long that South Dakotans for Safe Access is willing to work with the attorney general's office in drafting a law all of us can live with."

According to his spokesperson, Sara Rabern, Long remains opposed to medical marijuana. "His stance is still the same," she said Thursday. Long was traveling, and Rabern did not know whether he would be amenable to working with the bill's sponsors to address law enforcement concerns.

"It will be an uphill battle in the legislature," Hannah predicted. "We need someone with clout to carry our message in Pierre, and we need to get some real grassroots support going," Hannah said. "I fear they will throw it out again, but if we can get out of committee and make it to a floor vote, that would be real progress."

Another key constituency in medical marijuana battles is the medical profession. In several states that have had successful medical marijuana campaigns, state nursing and/or medical associations have publicly supported the therapeutic use of marijuana. That's not the case in South Dakota.

"We haven't looked at this issue for awhile," said Brittany Novotny, head of the South Dakota Nurses Association. "We do not take a formal stance for or against. If this comes up in the next session, our government relations committee will have to decide whether this is a fight we want to be part of or not."

The South Dakota State Medical Association did not return calls seeking comment.

One factor that may be working in favor of the legislation is the closeness of the 2006 vote, which demonstrated significant, if not quite majority support for medical marijuana, and the threat of another effort to go direct to the voters in 2010. "Maybe the fear of leaving this to the people will prod them into action," said Hannah. "One of the big concerns here is how this will affect illegal drug use in South Dakota, but if crafted correctly, the bill could be a boon to law enforcement. If they are willing to sit down and work with us, we could come up with a bill that could address their concerns."

Newland said he is hard at work on endorsements from medical professionals, as well as working with some churches to garner support. While the effort faces long odds, Newland remains optimistic. "The last time we went to the legislature, we didn't have 48% of the people voting for medical marijuana two years earlier. We had always bargained from a position of weakness, but now we have a club to carry into the hearing rooms."

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Fun Feature: Pictures from Alcohol Prohibition

Postcards, posters and photos from alcohol prohibition days -- enforcers, activists, and violators -- courtesy the Hagley Museum and Library, Wilmington, Delaware:

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Appeal: New Times Bring New Opportunities for Drug Policy Reform

Dear drug law reformer:

New times bring new opportunities.

StoptheDrugWar.org (DRCNet) is a nonpartisan organization, and no major US party presidential nominee has supported enough of our mission to date for this to change. That said, the views on drug policy and criminal justice expressed by President-Elect Obama in his books, speeches, and campaign appearances add up to a platform that is mostly positive, and which if enacted would make a major difference in our issue helping many thousands of people.

These include causes near and dear to the hearts of drug reformers: Stopping the raids on medical marijuana clinics; Repealing unjust mandatory minimum sentences, including the infamous crack cocaine penalties; Decriminalizing marijuana (sort of); Ending racial profiling; Lifting the federal needle exchange funding ban; Eliminating barriers to integration faced by ex-offenders, to name several.

Changes like these can happen if, but only if, people like you and I take action to work for change. Please make a generous donation to support StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying programs, and please stay tuned for the crucial action alerts we will be sending you over the coming months. Your non-deductible donations will help us hire lobbying staff and purchase tools to be able to efficiently communicate with Congressional staffers.

If you need or strongly prefer to make a tax-deductible donation, or if doing so will enable you to donate much more generously, select "tax-deductible donation" on our donation form to support our educational work. StoptheDrugWar.org web site traffic has grown at 60% per year for the past two years, as the chart to the left shows, bringing our average number of visitors to more than 150,000 per month. Nearly two hundred thousand people are verified to have read election-related drug policy coverage on our web site since the primaries began in earnest last year, and that doesn't include the most numerous number of our readers, those who read the content on our daily blog on our home page.

We continue to offer a wide range of books, videos and StoptheDrugWar.org gift items to members donating over certain levels -- visit our donation page to read the full list. Also, everyone donating this week will receive a complimentary StoptheDrugWar.org "Truth Campaign" notepad folder, and all donors will receive a StoptheDrugWar.org bumper sticker and a square StoptheDrugWar.org stop sign sticker, both being reprinted this month.

Drug policy reform is such an important issue, but it's an important issue that needs your help. We at StoptheDrugWar.org need you to ensure that this time of change, will bring needed change, for a disadvantaged, demonized and under-represented group in our society, the targets of the brutal War on Drugs. Please donate today, and together we will make things happen.

Thank you very much for working to change this country’s drug policies and for continuing to be part of StoptheDrugWar.org. And thank you for giving your support to our efforts at this important hour. Your contribution has never been more important.

David Borden
Executive Director, StoptheDrugWar.org (DRCNet)
News & Activism Promoting Sensible Reform

P.S. Every day that goes by, 4,000 people are arrested for drug offenses, the vast majority of them minor, and half a million nonviolent drug offenders languish yet another day in the staggering number of prisons and jails the government has very unwisely built. It's time to stop this senseless tragedy and shocking injustice. Please increase your commitment to ending the drug war by donating to StoptheDrugWar.org today. Thank you!

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Appeal: Tax-Deductible Donations Needed for StoptheDrugWar.org's Educational Work

Early last month we wrote seeking support for StoptheDrugWar.org (DRCNet)'s lobbying programs, to help us lobby the Obama administration and Congress on causes near and dear to the hearts of drug reformers with which the President-Elect has said he agrees.

We are also seeking tax deductible donations to our educational programs, especially our web site, on which readership continues to go up and up.

StoptheDrugWar.org web site traffic has grown at 60% per year for the past two years, as the chart to the left shows, bringing our average number of visitors to more than 150,000 per month. Over two hundred thousand people are verified to have read election-related drug policy coverage on our web site since the primaries began in earnest last year, and that doesn't include the most numerous number of our readers, those who read the content on our daily blog on our home page.

notepad folder: one book we offer:

As our thanks for your support, we continue to offer a wide range of books, videos and StoptheDrugWar.org gift items to members donating over certain levels -- visit our donation page to read the full list. Also, everyone donating this week will receive a complimentary StoptheDrugWar.org "Truth Campaign" notepad folder, and all donors will receive a StoptheDrugWar.org bumper sticker and a square StoptheDrugWar.org stop sign sticker, both being reprinted this month.

Drug policy reform is such an important issue, but it's an important issue that needs your help. We at StoptheDrugWar.org need you to ensure that this time of change, will bring needed change, for a disadvantaged, demonized and under-represented group in our society, the targets of the brutal War on Drugs. Please donate today, and together we will make things happen.

Thank you very much for working to change this country's drug policies and for continuing to be part of StoptheDrugWar.org. And thank you for giving your support to our efforts at this important hour. Your contribution has never been more important.

David Borden
Executive Director, StoptheDrugWar.org (DRCNet)
News & Activism Promoting Sensible Reform

P.S. Every day that goes by, 4,000 people are arrested for drug offenses, the vast majority of them minor, and half a million nonviolent drug offenders languish yet another day in the staggering number of prisons and jails the government has very unwisely built. It's time to stop this senseless tragedy and shocking injustice. Please increase your commitment to ending the drug war by donating to StoptheDrugWar.org today. Thank you!

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Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

A big corruption bust in Chicago, an ugly story out of upstate New York, and a sticky-fingered narc in Michigan, plus a former Schenectady police chief cuts a deal and heads for prison. Let's get to it:

In Chicago, 15 police officers and two men who posed as police officers were indicted Tuesday on charges of conspiracy to possess and distribute large amounts of cocaine and heroin. The indictments were the result of an FBI sting that had crooked police officers and sheriff's deputies delivering cocaine shipments, acting as armed guards, and advising drug dealers about the availability of marked police cars for drug deliveries. Those charged included 10 Cook County sheriff's correctional officers, four suburban Harvey police officers and one Chicago police officer. The two others claimed to be law enforcement officers but were not, federal officials said. Fourteen were arrested or surrendered Tuesday, and were being immediately brought before US Magistrate Judge Michael Mason. Two -- Ahyetoro Taylor, 28, of Joliet and Jermaine Bell, 37, of Lynwood, both Cook County sheriff's officers -- are on active duty with Army National Guard units in Afghanistan. Warrants were issued for their arrest. If convicted on the federal charges, each faces a mandatory minimum 10-year sentence and a maximum of life.

In Buffalo, New York, a Niagara Falls police officer was arrested Tuesday on charges he sexually assaulted two women and trafficked in cocaine, sometimes while in uniform. Officer Ryan Warme, 27, faces federal civil rights and narcotics conspiracy charges. According to a criminal complaint filed Tuesday, Warme forced one woman to perform oral sex on him when he came to her apartment after she called police about an abusive ex-boyfriend. A second woman reported that Warme broke into her apartment in 2006 while she was sleeping and raped her. She told investigators she saw him walk back to a police car after the assault. In between sex crimes, Warme was apparently busy dealing in cocaine. Investigators said he bought coke at least five times while in uniform.

In Benton Harbor, Michigan, a former Benton Harbor narcotics officer was arrested November 30 for stealing drugs he seized while on duty. Andrew Collins, 26, is charged with one count of cocaine possession and one charge of possession with the intent to distribute more than five grams of crack cocaine. Collins is also accused of reporting false "controlled purchase" drug buys to improperly obtain search warrants and to embezzle funds from the police department. He resigned in February, when police seized cocaine from him. He now faces between five and 20 years in federal prison.

In Schenectady, New York, former Schenectady police chief Gregory Kaczmarek pleaded guilty Tuesday to being part of a sprawling cocaine and heroin distribution ring. Kaczmarek was able to cop a plea to cocaine possession and is now looking at two years in prison, instead of the 25 he could have received. Kaczmarek and his wife, Lisa, were part of a ring that regularly shipped drugs from Long Island to Schenectady. Lisa Kaczmarek also copped a plea to attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance and will do six months in the local jail.

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Medical Marijuana: US Supreme Court Declines to Hear Challenge to Appeals Court Ruling Protecting State Medical Marijuana Laws

The US Supreme Court Monday declined to review a lower court decision that ordered Garden Grove, California, police to return marijuana seized from a medical marijuana patient. In November 2007, the California Fourth District Court of Appeal had ordered the marijuana returned, finding that "it is not the job of local police to enforce federal drug laws."

The case was that of Felix Kha, who was pulled over by Garden Grove police in 2005 and cited for marijuana possession despite showing officers his medical marijuana documentation. The possession case against Kha was subsequently dismissed, and the Orange County Superior Court ordered the police to return Kha's wrongfully seized quarter-ounce of marijuana. Police and the city of Garden Grove refused to return the pot, and appealed the ruling, but lost in the state appeals court last year.

The California Supreme Court refused to review the case in March. Now, the US Supreme Court has followed suit. The refusals to hear the appeal means the two high courts have accepted the state appeals court's reasoning that California's medical marijuana law is not preempted by federal law, said medical marijuana advocates.

"It's now settled that state law enforcement officers cannot arrest medical marijuana patients or seize their medicine simply because they prefer the contrary federal law," said Joe Elford, chief counsel with Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the medical marijuana advocacy organization that represented Kha. "Perhaps, in the future local government will think twice about expending significant time and resources to defy a law that is overwhelmingly supported by the people of our state."

But Lois Bobak, a private attorney whose firm represents the city on a contract basis, said the issue in the case was a narrow one. "The US Supreme Court didn't issue any kind of ruling, it just failed to review a lower-court decision," Bobak told NBC Los Angeles. "You can't read too much into that fact. The city felt it was important to pursue the legal principle that police shouldn't be put in a position of returning a substance that is contraband under federal law."

It's federal law that needs to change, said ASA spokesman Kris Hermes. "The source of local law enforcement's resistance to upholding state law is an outdated, harmful federal policy with regard to medical marijuana," he said. "This should send a message to the federal government that it's time to establish a compassionate policy more consistent with the 13 states that have adopted medical marijuana laws."

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Marijuana: "Substantial" Settlement in Lawsuit in Case of DC Quadriplegic Who Died in Jail While Serving 10-Day Sentence for a Joint

The mother of a quadriplegic inmate who died after suffering breathing problems in the District of Columbia Jail has reached a settlement with the DC government and care providers. While Jonathan Magbie's mother declined to reveal a dollar figure, the ACLU National Prison Project, which helped litigate the case, called the sum "substantial."

Magbie, 27, a resident of nearby Maryland, was paralyzed from the neck down and used a mouth-operated wheelchair to get around. He was arrested in April 2003 when DC police found a gun and a small amount of marijuana in his pocket after they pulled over a vehicle driven by his cousin. In September 2004, DC Superior Court Judge Judith Retchin sentenced him to 10 days in jail after he pleaded guilty to marijuana possession. Although it was Magbie's first offense, Retchin later told a judicial review committee she sentenced him to jail because he said he would continue to smoke marijuana to relieve his pain.

Magbie died before making it halfway through his sentence. He needed a ventilator to breathe at night, but the DC jail infirmary didn't have one. Investigations after his death determined that he was taken to a hospital for "respiratory distress," but later returned to the infirmary. Jail doctors did not perform a follow-up exam, nor did they regularly conduct rounds to check on patients, including Magbie.

"DC's jail system had a duty to care for Jonathan Magbie's serious medical needs," said Elizabeth Alexander, director of the ACLU National Prison Project. "The jail and the Greater Southeast Community Hospital failed to live up to that obligation and it resulted in an agonizing and unnecessary death."

As part of the settlement, correctional officials have agreed to modify a number of policies in order to protect prisoners with severe medical problems and physical disabilities, including modifying the medical screening forms for incoming prisoners and spelling out medical conditions too severe to be treated at the jail's infirmary. Also, prisoners with medical needs that can't be met by correctional staff must be transferred to a facility that can provide an appropriate level of medical care.

"The family's concern was to make certain that, to the extent anyone can prevent it, that this terrible type of event never happens again," said Alexander. "A series of people dealt with this young man, and every single place where something could go wrong, it did go wrong."

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Marijuana: Chicago Heights Decriminalizes

The far south Chicago suburb of Chicago Heights, Illinois, has hopped on the marijuana decriminalization bandwagon. The town of just over 30,000 people acted Monday night to craft a local ordinance that it will use instead of prosecuting people under state law.

Under the ordinance approved under the city's home rule authority, people caught with less than 30 grams of marijuana will not face criminal charges, but will instead be ticketed and go through an administrative hearing in city court.

Making simple marijuana possession an ordinance violation rather than a crime will help "unclog" the criminal justice system, said City Attorney TJ Somer. It will also provide extra revenue to the city because the city does not have to share revenue from fines with the Cook County Circuit Court system, as it would have to do if it handled them under state law.

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Europe: Swiss Vote to Make Heroin Prescription Permanent, But Reject Marijuana Legalization

Voters in Switzerland Sunday gave overwhelming approval to a proposal to make the country's pioneering heroin prescription program legal, but at the same time rejected an initiative that would have legalized and regulated the use and sale of marijuana. The heroin program won with 69% of the vote, while the marijuana initiative got only 37% support.

Begun in 1994, the Swiss heroin prescription program has been proven to reduce crime among participants and improve the health and daily lives of addicts. It is currently offered in 23 centers across the country, where users who have not responded to other therapies inject carefully measured doses of heroin under medical supervision. The program also provides access to psychiatrists and social workers in its bid to help users function in society.

Making heroin prescription permanent was approved by parliament in March. But conservative forces balked at that decision and forced a national referendum.

The United States and the UN's International Narcotics Control Board have criticized the program as potentially fueling drug abuse, but other governments have started or are considering their own programs modeled on the system. The Netherlands has been offering prescribed heroin since 2006, with nearly 600 patients in the program, and in May of this year, Denmark approved a law making heroin prescribing a permanent program. Great Britain, Belgium, Germany, and Spain are also carrying out heroin prescription trials, and one just finished up in Canada.

While Swiss voters were okay with providing heroin to addicts, they were not okay with allowing pot-smokers to go unmolested. The Hemp Initiative went down in flames, despite the wide acceptance of marijuana use in the country. Some 44% of Swiss 13-to-29-year-olds have smoked pot at least once, and 9% said they smoke almost daily.

The Hemp Initiative would have decriminalized the possession and cultivation of marijuana for personal use. It made the ballot after more than 100,000 Swiss signed petitions to place it before the voters.

But the initiative incited an organized opposition, which included part of the governing coalition. Despite the seeming paradox of approving the distribution of heroin while barring the use of marijuana, the Swiss seemed concerned that relaxing the marijuana laws would increase drug tourism and encourage drug use.

"That could lead to a situation where you have some sort of cannabis tourism in Switzerland because something that is illegal in the EU would be legal in Switzerland," government spokesman Oswald Sigg told the Associated Press.

"We would have to fear Switzerland becoming a European drug hub," Hans Fehr, a People's Party lawmaker, told the AP. "There'll be more consumers, unforeseeable, costs and a wider drug trade."

Olivier Borer, 35, a musician from Solothurn, told the AP he welcomed the vote's outcome because the state needed to help heroin addicts, but not encourage pot smoking. "I think it's very important to help these people, but not to facilitate the using of drugs. You can just see in the Netherlands how it's going. People just go there to smoke," Borer said.

But Jo Lang, a Green Party member of parliament said the marijuana vote result was disappointing because it meant 600,000 Swiss pot smokers will continue to be treated as criminals. "People have died from alcohol and heroin, but not from cannabis," Lang said.

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Europe: Dutch Magic Mushroom Ban Clears Final Hurdle, Now In Effect

As of Monday, it is no longer legal to sell or cultivate hallucinogenic mushrooms in the Netherlands. The Dutch government had imposed the ban in April, and a court in the Hague rejected a final challenge to it last Friday.

Previously, magic mushrooms had been a staple of Dutch "smart shops" and coffee shops, where they were sold alongside marijuana and hashish. But a spate of mushroom-related incidents, most of them involving teenage British tourists, led to successful calls to ban them. The incident that most galvanized public opinion against the 'shrooms was the April 2007 death of an attractive French female teen who jumped off a bridge while under the influence.

Selling dried magic mushrooms had already been illegal. The new law extends that ban to fresh ones as well.

While the Dutch government cited the risks associated with magic mushrooms, former mushroom purveyors said the ban would put users at even greater risk. "People will just go picking in the forest, and that can be dangerous. Or they will go to street dealers and get mixed up with hard drugs," Tatanka smart shop owner David Hendricks told the London newspaper The Independent.

Magic mushrooms gone. Coffee shops contracting. Government rumblings about shutting down the rest of them. What has happened to Holland?

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Death Penalty: Another Month of Drug War Extremism, and America's Hands Are Bloody

The resort to the ultimate sanction for drug offenders continued apace last month, thanks to the usual suspects in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. And it continues despite a UN General Assembly call a year ago to end the death penalty for all offenses and an international campaign to end it for drug offenses that began earlier this year.

Here, thanks to the anti-death penalty group Hands Off Cain are the latest victims of drug war extremism. Of particular note and concern to Americans should be two cases -- November 14 in Yemen and November 25 in Thailand -- where the American military or American anti-drug personnel helped send drug suspects to their likely deaths:

Indonesia -- November 6: The News Agency of Nigeria reported that eighteen Nigerians sentenced to death for drug trafficking in Indonesia have opted for the review of their cases. Sources at the Nigerian embassy say that their lawyers have filed the appeals with the prosecutor. "They opted for the review of their cases instead of seeking for clemency for fear of being denied the clemency by the authority. "The Indonesian President hardly grants clemency for drug convicts. Once he turns down pleas for clemency on behalf of convicts twice execution is imminent and automatic,'' the source said. And by filing for a review of their cases, "they can still prolong the finality of their conviction and buy some time." The Nigerian Ambassador to Indonesia, Alhaji Ibrahim Mai-Sule, said he is optimistic about the visit of the Special Envoy to President Yar'Adua, Chief Ojo Maduekwe who came to seek clemency for the convicted Nigerians.

Yemen -- November 14: A court in Sanaa, Yemen, sentenced an Iranian to death for drug trafficking and imposed 25-year prison sentences each on 11 other Iranians and a Pakistani, officials said. Ayub Mohamed Houd, 33, who faces the death penalty, and his 12 accomplices were found guilty of bringing 1.5 tons of hashish into Yemeni territorial waters, hidden in the hold of a ship coming from Iran. The prosecution said the 13 men were interdicted by a US navy warship, which found the drugs on board their boat. They were handed over to the Yemeni authorities after the destruction of all but 20kg of drugs. At the opening of the trial on October 12, the men, whose statements in Farsi were translated into Arabic, denied the charges and said the US sailors threw a large quantity of fish into the sea from the hold.

Malaysia -- November 15: A Malaysian court sentenced two Indonesians, Mohamad Idris and Jainuddin, to death for drug trafficking, Antara newswire reported. The Kuala Lumpur based court found the two defendants guilty of distributing marijuana and were found to be in a possession of 5.7 kilogram of marijuana when they were arrested in September 2002. The two claimed that they were innocent and did not know the content of a package that they were then delivering to a person they identified as Tengku Yan, but they were never able to prove the existence of Yan.

Iran -- November 22: An Iranian man convicted of drug trafficking was hanged in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, a newspaper reported. The man, identified only by his first name Majid, was hanged for smuggling more than 300 kilos of morphine, Etemad newspaper said, without specifying when the execution took place.

Iran--November 24: Iran hanged three men convicted of drug trafficking in a prison in the Iranian southeastern city of Zahedan, the official IRNA news agency reports. The men, identified as Hossein Nahtani, Abdollah Dahmardeh and Mohammad Barahoui, were all found guilty of smuggling heroin, the report adds. Nahtani was convicted of trafficking 1.09-kilograms [2.4 pounds] of heroin, while Dahmardeh and Barahoui were sentenced for smuggling 3.8-kg [8.3 pounds] and 5.5-kg [12 pounds], respectively.

Thailand -- November 25: Two Israelis convicted of drug trafficking were sentenced to death by a Thai court. The two men plan to appeal the sentence. The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem confirmed the report. Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni announced that she may intervene in the affair should the sentences not be changed. The two Israelis, 34-year-old Vladimir Akronik and 37-year-old Alon Mahluf, were detained in the vicinity of Bangkok's Kao San Road in possession of 23,000 ecstasy pills about a year ago. Thai media reported that the two arrived in Thailand from Europe and were detained after authorities received information about them from American officials.

Saudi Arabia -- November 28: A Saudi Arabian man and a stateless Arab convicted of drug trafficking were beheaded by the sword in Riyadh. Mohammad bin Karim al-Anzi, the Saudi, and Sadok al-Khalidi were found to have introduced large quantities of hallucinogenic pills on the Saudi market, the Interior Ministry said, quoted by the state news agency SPA.

Iran -- November 29: Iran hanged two men convicted of drug trafficking in a prison in the southeastern city of Zahedan, Fars news agency reported. The report identified the two as H.F. and A.N., and said they were found guilty of smuggling 11kgs of heroin and 387kgs of opium respectively.

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Weekly: Blogging @ the Speakeasy

Along with our weekly in-depth Chronicle reporting, DRCNet also provides daily content in the way of blogging in the Stop the Drug War Speakeasy -- huge numbers of people have been reading it recently -- as well as Latest News links (upper right-hand corner of most web pages), event listings (lower right-hand corner) and other info. Check out DRCNet every day to stay on top of the drug reform game! Check out the Speakeasy main page at http://stopthedrugwar.org/speakeasy.

Since last issue:

Scott Morgan writes: "DC Pays Dearly After Letting a Medical Marijuana Patient Die in Jail," "Not Arresting Marijuana Users is Too Confusing For Police," "Medical Marijuana Debate: MPP vs. ONDCP," "LEAP Celebrates the Repeal of Alcohol Prohibition," "Tainted Cocaine is a Consequence of Drug Prohibition," "Random Drug Testing Won't Save the Children From Heroin," "Swiss Voters Approve Heroin Prescriptions, But Reject Marijuana Decriminalization," "Police Use Newspaper Ads to Recruit Snitches."

David Guard posts numerous press releases, action alerts and other organizational announcements in the In the Trenches blog.

Please join us in the Reader Blogs too.

Again, http://stopthedrugwar.org/speakeasy is the online place to stay in the loop for the fight to stop the war on drugs. Thanks for reading, and writing...

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Weekly: This Week in History

December 8, 1929: Col. Levi G. Nutt, Head of the Narcotics Division of the US Treasury Dept., declares, "I'd rather see my children up against a wall and see them shot down before my eyes than to know that any one of them was going to be a drug slave."

December 5, 1933: The passage of the 21st Amendment repeals prohibition of alcohol. Prohibition ends a little after 5:00pm EST when Utah becomes the 36th state to ratify the amendment.

December 11, 1942: The Opium Poppy Control Act is enacted, making possession of the opium poppy plant or seeds illegal.

December 7, 1993: During a speech at the National Press Club, US Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders says: "I do feel that we would markedly reduce our crime rate if drugs were legalized, but I don't know all the ramifications of this... I do feel that we need to do some studies. In some of the countries that have legalized drugs, they certainly have shown that there has been a reduction in their crime rate and that there has been no increase in the drug use rate."

December 6, 2000: Belgium's parliament decriminalizes possession, consumption and trade in up to five grams of marijuana or hashish

December 7, 2001: John P. Walters is sworn in as head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

December 7, 2001: The Long Beach Press-Telegram (CA) reports that a Poly High School senior who played bass in the school orchestra committed suicide by shooting himself in the head after being booked on marijuana possession charges. His aunt said he was humiliated by his arrest. "All he repeated to his mother on the way home was 'they treated me like a common criminal,'" she said.

December 9, 2002: The Canadian House of Commons Special Committee on Non-medical Use of Drugs releases reports that call for safe injection sites, pilot heroin maintenance programs, decriminalization of cannabis, among other reforms.

December 9, 2004: Rep. Barney Frank keynotes DRCNet Foundation's John W. Perry Fund reception in Boston, MA, delivering a humorous yet passionate address. He says repeal of the Higher Education Act's "drug provision" could be achieved, even in a Republican-controlled Congress, if his bill to do just that could actually get to the floor. He mentions, "This issue is ripe... My colleagues in Congress are ready to move on this and other issues." Also addressing larger national drug policy, Frank notes, "The damage done by this mindless assault on drug users is a terrible, terrible problem."

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Job Opportunity: Communications Assistant, Marijuana Policy Project, Washington, DC

The Marijuana Policy Project, the nation's largest marijuana policy reform organization, is seeking a Communications Assistant, to be based in the organization's main office in Washington, DC. This position is an excellent opportunity to play an integral role in a fast-paced, well-respected advocacy organization.

The Communications Assistant works in MPP's Communications Department, which is responsible for effectively communicating MPP's message to the media and the public through written materials and media relations. The Communications Assistant reports to the Assistant Director of Communications, who in turn reports to the Director of Communications.

Applicants should have excellent oral communications skills and strong writing and should be meticulous, organized, and detail-oriented.

The Communications Assistant is not a spokesperson position; rather, he or she is responsible for maintaining MPP's media database, including making corrections or additions to existing press lists and developing new lists as needed; monitoring all marijuana-related news and research, disseminating such information to relevant MPP staffers, and posting key news stories to MPP's Web site; tracking MPP's news coverage, including locating and/or ordering certain print articles, radio interviews, and TV interviews; contacting media outlets to confirm contact information; locating and obtaining copies of reports or studies that are of interest; preparing press kits; tackling small research projects aimed at identifying potential media opportunities or obtaining useful data; organizing and filing press clips and other documents; and accomplishing other tasks as assigned. Proofreading ability would be a plus, but is not required.

The salary for the position is $30,000, plus full health insurance and a retirement plan.

To apply, please see MPP's application guidelines at http://www.mpp.org/jobs/process.html and follow the instructions there. Interviews are being conducted on a rolling basis, so interested candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

ABOUT MPP

With 40 employees, 26,000 members and 100,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, MPP is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP works to minimize the harm associated with marijuana -- both the consumption of marijuana and the laws that are intended to prohibit its use -- and believes that the greatest harm associated with marijuana is imprisonment.

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Volunteers Needed: Phone Campaign in DC, Writers from Anywhere

StoptheDrugWar.org (DRCNet) is seeking enthusiastic volunteers for two important purposes:

Membership Drive: Do you live in Washington, DC or nearby? We need help from friendly drug reform enthusiasts who are willing to spend a couple of hours on one or more evenings working the phones for DRCNet's membership fundraising drive. This effort is taking place on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Volunteers are calling previous DRCNet contributors. Come on out, enjoy free pizza and other snacks, make new friends, and help raise needed funds for the cause while gaining valuable phone-banking experience. E-mail [email protected] or call us at (202) 293-8340 ext. 301 for further information or to sign up.

Writers: StoptheDrugWar.org is carrying out an ambitious week-long writing-based campaign dealing with the mainstream media's coverage of drug issues -- preparatory work is now underway with the help of volunteers -- and we are seeking to expand our team of volunteer writers who want to be part of it. Along with writing skills, volunteers for this project should have a fairly good understanding of the effects of drug prohibition -- visit our Site Map page and scroll down to the "Consequences of Prohibition" section to get an idea of what we mean by that. Contact David Borden at [email protected] or by replying to a Chronicle email, or by phone at (202) 293-8340 ext. 301, for further information about this very exciting effort.

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Students: Intern at DRCNet and Help Stop the Drug War!

Want to help end the "war on drugs," while earning college credit too? Apply for a DRCNet internship for this spring or summer semester and you could come join the team and help us fight the fight!

DRCNet (also known as "Stop the Drug War") has a strong record of providing substantive work experience to our interns -- you won't spend the summer doing filing or running errands, you will play an integral role in one or more of our exciting programs. Options for work you can do with us include coalition outreach as part of the campaign to repeal the drug provision of the Higher Education Act, and to expand that effort to encompass other bad drug laws like the similar provisions in welfare and public housing law; blogosphere/web outreach; media research and outreach; web site work (research, writing, technical); possibly other areas. If you are chosen for an internship, we will strive to match your interests and abilities to whichever area is the best fit for you.

While our internships are unpaid, we will reimburse you for metro fare, and DRCNet is a fun and rewarding place to work. To apply, please send your resume to David Guard at [email protected], and feel free to contact us at (202) 293-8340. We hope to hear from you! Check out our web site at http://stopthedrugwar.org to learn more about our organization.

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