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Drug War Chronicle #716 - January 12, 2012

Phillip S. Smith, Editor - David Borden, Executive Director
600px-Seal_of_the_United_States_Supreme_Court_svg_0.png
600px-Seal_of_the_United_States_Supreme_Court_svg_0.png

Supreme Court Will Hear Florida Drug Dog Case

The US Supreme Court has agreed to take up the question of having a drug dog sniff the front door of one's home without a warrant is an unconstitutional search.
MMJ leaf and stethoscope KY ODCP_11.jpg
MMJ leaf and stethoscope KY ODCP_11.jpg

Medical Marijuana Update

Here's the latest medical marijuana news from around the country. There's a whole lot going on.
Cash and guns Mexico_23.jpg
Cash and guns Mexico_23.jpg

Mexico Drug War Update

The murders, raids, and arrests continue, without making any apparent difference in anything.
Time for an attitude adjustment? (Image: Barton County Sheriff's Office, Kansas)
Time for an attitude adjustment? (Image: Barton County Sheriff's Office, Kansas)

Time to Rethink Drug Raids, Police Trainers Say

An increase in police deaths by gunfire last year and the bloody Ogden, Utah, drug raid that left one officer dead last week are causing some police to think again about the utility of aggressive drug raids.
Rachel Hoffman (facebook.com)
Rachel Hoffman (facebook.com)

Tallahassee to Pay in Death of Informant Rachel Hoffman

The city of Tallahassee has agreed to a $2.6 million settlement in the killing of Rachel Hoffman, a collegiate drug scenester whom police sent to snitch on hardened criminals after a small-time drug bust. A similar case has just popped up in Detroit, too.
Mississippi State House
Mississippi State House

Mississippi Public Benefits Drug Test Bill Proposed

The mania for drug testing people on welfare, unemployment, or Medicaid continues this year. A Mississippi solon wants to drug test anyone receiving public benefits, and other states are moving ahead, too.
Florida Decides activist Catherine Jordan
Florida Decides activist Catherine Jordan

Florida Medical Marijuana Bills Filed

A pair of bills introduced in Florida ask the legislature to okay a referendum on marijuana in November. Activists are petitioning the governor, too.
Man chewing khat, Sanaa, Yemen, 2009 (wikimedia.org)
Man chewing khat, Sanaa, Yemen, 2009 (wikimedia.org)

Dutch to Ban Khat

The Dutch government will ban khat, a plant favored by Somali and Yemeni immigrants for its mild stimulative properties.
statues of coca leaves adorn a small town plaza in Peru (photo by author)
statues of coca leaves adorn a small town plaza in Peru (photo by author)

Peru Fires Reformist Drug Czar

Peru's drug czar has been fired for being insufficiently enthusiastic about eradicating coca crops.
Agent Jared Francom
Agent Jared Francom

Five Utah Police Wounded, One Killed in Drug Raid

A man with "mental difficulties" who was apparently growing marijuana to self-medicate with, opened fire when a police drug task force entered his Ogden, Utah, home Wednesday night. Six police were shot; one is dead.
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pile-of-cash_49.jpg

This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

Cops continue to have problems keeping their hands off the drugs they come across. And they're developing problems with prescription pills, too.
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parthenon_60.gif

This Week in History

Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.
Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.