Drug War Chronicle #455 - September 29, 2006
1. Documentary: Waiting to Inhale
This important new documentary about the medical marijuana movement is DRCNet's latest membership premium.2. Feature: Nevada Marijuana Initiative Organizers See Tight But Winnable Race Going Into Final Stretch
Will Nevada be the first state to vote to end marijuana prohibition? It's a very tight race.3. Feature: Colorado Marijuana Legalization Initiative Trails, But the Fight Is On
A Colorado initiative that would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana is in a tough battle to win in November.4. Book Review: "Pot Politics: Marijuana and the Costs of Prohibition," Mitchell Earleywine, ed. (Oxford University Press, $45.00 HB)
"Pot Politics" is an important new addition to the marijuana policy knowledge base and the reformer's arsenal.5. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
The lucrative cross-border drug traffic draws another Border Patrol agent into trouble, a New Jersey cop's forgetfulness gets him in trouble, and two more greedy prison guards get themselves in trouble.6. Southwest Asia: Leading Scholar Takes Senate Foreign Relations Committee to School on Afghan Drug Trade
Professor Barnett Rubin gives the Senate Foreign Relations Committee a tutorial on the economic and political consequences of prohibition when it comes to Afghan opium.7. Sentencing: No Retroactive Relief for Rockefeller Drug Law Prisoners, New York Appeals Court Rules
Mid-level Rockefeller drug law prisoners arrested before January 2005 will not be able to seek retroactive sentence cuts, New York's highest court has ruled.8. Hemp: North Carolina Governor Signs Bill to Study Industrial Use
North Carolina has become the latest state to lay the groundwork for industrial hemp farming.9. Marijuana: Arkansas Town Joins List of Locales With Lowest Law Enforcement Priority Initiatives This November
Eureka Springs, Arkansas, now joins Missoula, Montana, and three California cities as locales with initiatives on the November ballot making marijuana the lowest law enforcement priority.10. Web Scan
The new drug scare, meth registries, drug prohibition timeline, more...11. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.12. Part-Time Opportunity: Interviewers, NY State's Expanded Syringe Access Program
Part-time interviewing work for people familiar with the injecting drug scene.13. Take a Look: Extensive New Daily News, Commentary and More on DRCNet
Now you can get new DRCNet info on our web site every day!14. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.Drug War Chronicle #454 - September 22, 2006
1. Editorial: Now They Care About What's Right?
Prosecutor TV personalities want justice for Dog Chapman. Why not for the rest of us too?2. Feature: Drug Arrests Hit Another Record High, More than 786,000 Marijuana Arrests Alone in 2005
Drug arrests in general and marijuana arrests in particular continue to rise.3. Feature: House Votes to Require School Districts to Allow Random, Warrantless Mass Search Policies
The House voted Tuesday to force local school districts to gut student privacy protections.4. Feature: US Uses Annual Drug Certification Report to Attack Bolivia, Venezuela
The Bush administration used its annual drug certification exercise to lash out at Bolivia and Venezuela, and those two countries returned the favor.5. Take a Look: Extensive New Daily News, Commentary and More on DRCNet
Now you can get new DRCNet info on our web site every day!6. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
A pair of crooked prison guards and an emerging scandal in Baltimore make the radar this week.7. Law Enforcement: Cops Used Hidden High-Tech Surveillance on Kansas Rock Festival-Goers
A hi-tech surveillance company's bragging about its secret demonstration during a music festival has drawn criticism for police about the operation.8. Medical Marijuana: Rhode Island Program Begins to Kick In
Rhode Island passed its medical marijuana law in January, the program went into effect in April, and now more than 250 patients and caregivers are registered.9. Law Enforcement: Jackson, Mississippi's Mad Mayor Melton Indicted for Drug Enforcement Crimes
Jackson, Mississippi, Mayor Frank Melton has been playing drug warrior since day one. Now he finds himself on the other side of the law.10. Europe: London Police More Likely to Arrest Blacks Than Whites for Marijuana Possession
A new report from Scotland Yard finds racial profiling in marijuana enforcement, but the police won't say it's racism.11. Southwest Asia: Proposal for Turning Afghan Opium Into Legal Morphine Gains Support
A proposal to turn Afghanistan's burgeoning opium crop into morphine for the legal medicinal market is gaining more support.12. Web Scan
Pregnancy and drug use, Maryland criminal justice, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, reformers on air.13. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.14. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.Drug War Chronicle #453 - September 15, 2006
1. Take a Look: Extensive New Daily News, Commentary and More on DRCNet
Now you can get new DRCNet info on our web site every day!2. Feature: The DEA's New Proposed Policy Statement on Pain Prescribing -- What Does It Mean?
The DEA last week issued a new policy statement on prescribing opioid pain medications, and we try to figure out what it means.3. Feature: California Activists Look for Triple Play in November
"Lowest law enforcement priority" marijuana initiatives are on the ballot in three California cities, and organizers say the prospects for victory look good.4. Callout: Please Submit Blog Posts, News and Events on New DRCNet Web Site!
Our new web site has many new interactive features...5. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.6. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
The rotten odor of drug war-related police corruption wafts across Tennessee from the banks of the Mississippi to the hazy hills of the Great Smoky Mountains, and that's just half of our corrupt cops this week.7. Sentencing: US 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals Throws out Crack Cocaine Sentence
A federal appeals court has thrown out a long crack cocaine sentence, saying the sentencing guidelines that call for tougher sentences for crack than cocaine are no longer mandatory, but only advisory since last year's US Supreme Court ruling in Booker.8. ONDCP: Senate Panel Recommends Cutting Salaries at Drug Czar's Office
In a heads-up to drug czar John Walters, a Senate panel has voted to slash funding for salaries and expenses at his office by more than half.9. Marijuana: Texas Gubernatorial Candidate Kinky Friedman Says Legalize It
One Texas gubernatorial candidate wants to legalize marijuana. Is anyone surprised that candidate is Kinky Friedman?10. Europe: Portugal Approves Safe Injection Sites, Moves to Start Prison Needle Exchange Programs
Portugal continues down a progressive path toward harm reduction with moves to open a safe injection site and establish a needle exchange program in the prisons.11. Latin America: In Break With Campaign Promises, Peru's New Government Will Accelerate Coca Eradication
Peruvian President Alain Garcia campaigned on a promise to stop coca eradication. Now, he's changing his tune -- and his policies.12. Latin America: In Southern Colombia, It's Aid Out, Soldiers In
US AID is pulling out of southern Colombia and the Colombian army is rolling in, as Washington and Bogota give up on the province of Caqueta.13. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.14. Latin America: Colombia's FARC Guerrillas Say End Drug Prohibition
In an unusual communique, Colombia's leftist FARC guerrillas called for the global legalization of drugs.15. Job Opportunities: Three Positions at Drug Policy Alliance
DPA's Washington, DC office is hiring a Deputy Director of National Affairs, a Legislative Assistant, and a part-time Office Manager/Receptionist.16. Job Opportunities: Marijuana Policy Project, DC & LA
Positions include an Assistant Director of Communications in Washington and a Director of VIP Relations in LA.17. Errata: Will the Real UISCE Please Stand Up?
Getting the right acronymic organization is sometimes difficult.Drug War Chronicle #452 - September 8, 2006
For daily info and insights from Drug War Chronicle editor Phil Smith, read Phil's Chronicle Blog in the Stop the Drug War Speakeasy!
1. Editorial: Call It What You Want
Each day that passes, Louisiana's Heroin Lifers languish behind bars, unjustly denied their freedom.2. Appeal: Please Support DRCNet's New Web Campaign!
We believe you'll be excited and impressed when you see our new web site and what it can do. But it needs your help.3. Feature: Afghan Opium Crop Hits Record as Violence Increases
The West faces a crisis in Afghanistan, as opium cultivation rises to all-time record levels and a reinvigorated Taliban insurgency takes on NATO and the US.4. Feature: Vancouver's Safe Injection Site Gets Only Limited Continuing Exemption
Insite, Vancouver's pioneering safe injection site, has won a temporary reprieve from the Canadian government, but now the government wants more research and is refusing to pay for it.5. Feature: Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Stirs the Waters in Ireland
LEAP member former Florida police chief Jerry Cameron went to Ireland and managed to really roil the waters.6. Callout: Please Submit Blog Posts, News and Events on New DRCNet Web Site!
Our new web site has many new interactive features...7. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
The temptations of the border tarnish another Texas lawman's badge, a Tulsa cop is convicted of being too helpful to a drug dealer, and a pair of Newark's finest plea to a pill-pushing scheme.8. Pain Medicine: DEA Set to Ease Restrictions on Schedule II Prescriptions
The DEA has issued new "proposed rules" to again allow doctors to prescribe Schedule II pain relieving drugs for up to 90 days on one prescription instead of the current 30 days.9. Harm Reduction: Pittsburgh Needle Exchange Wins Health Board Approval for Continued Operation
Pittsburgh's sole needle exchange program is one step closer to being formalized after its legality was challenged earlier this year.10. Marijuana: In Annual Harvest Roundup, 98% of All Marijuana Seizures Are Ditchweed
Law enforcement authorities seized a whopping 233 million marijuana plants last year under a DEA program. Too bad 98% of them were ditchweed.11. Europe: Scottish Police Move Toward Warnings for Simple Marijuana Possession
Scottish police have embarked on a pilot program where people caught with small amounts of marijuana are warned, not arrested.12. Southeast Asia: Australian Foreign Minister "Grateful" for Indonesia's Tough Drug Stance After Four Australians Sentenced to Death for Smuggling
With six young Australians now facing the death penalty for drug smuggling in Indonesia, Australia's foreign minister pronounces himself "grateful" for the Indonesians' tough stance.13. South Asia: India Rebels Threaten to Kill Drug Traffickers, Tobacco Dealers
Separatist rebels in the Indian state of Manipur are threatening to execute drug traffickers and have already done so.14. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.15. Job Opportunies: Drug Policy Alliance, NYC & Sacramento
DPA is hiring a public affairs director in New York and a director for their California state capital office.16. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.Drug War Chronicle #451 - September 1, 2006
1. Feature: Living on Katrina Time -- Lost in Louisiana's Gumbo Gulag
A national scandal is brewing in the Big Easy over thousands of people imprisoned without access to lawyers or the courts.2. Feature: Medical Marijuana Victory in South Dakota Court Battle Over Ballot Language
A South Dakota judge has thrown out the attorney general's medical marijuana initiative ballot summary as biased and unfair and replaced it with language of his own crafting.3. Feature: Brazilian President Signs New Drug Law -- No Jail for Users
Brazilian President "Lula" da Silva signed into law a bill that will keep most drug users out of jail last week. Is the glass half-full or half-empty?4. Introducing: The Stop the Drug War Speakeasy
Presenting a major web site upgrade and new direction at Stop the Drug War (DRCNet).5. Callout: Please Submit Blog Posts, News and Events on New DRCNet Web Site!
Our new web site has many new interactive features...6. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
An encore performance by an Alabama judge with a serious bad habit, some Chicago cops copping pleas for robbing drug dealers, a pair of US air marshals being sentenced for acting as drug couriers, and a small-town Texas police chief looking for work after there were too many questions about where some drug money went.7. Law Enforcement: Drug War Takes Another Officer's Life
Another police officer has been killed fighting the war on drugs.8. Marijuana: DEA Steps in Deep Doo-doo in Denver With Abortive Bid to Defeat November Legalization Initiative
The DEA has managed to make itself the issue this week in the Colorado marijuana legalization initative campaign.9. ONCDP Media Campaign: Drug Czar's Anti-Drug Ads a Flop, GAO Says
The drug czar's office wants $120 million more this year for its much criticized Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign -- but the GAO says it doesn't work and is a waste of money.10. First Amendment: Kenneth Starr Joins Appeal of 9th US Circuit Ruling in "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" Case
Former Whitewater prosecutor Kenneth Starr is joining forces with an Alaska school district in hopes they can get the US Supreme Court to overturn an appeals court decision upholding the First Amendment rights of a high school student.11. Latin America: Guatemala Imposes "State of Prevention" in Drug Crackdown
Guatemalan authorities declared a form of martial law in San Marcos province this week in a bid to crack down on opium growing and drug trafficking.12. Web Scan: Mark Fiore, Tony Papa, Dean Kuipers
US of Incarceration Animation, Tony Papa Knocks DA Report, Dean Kuipers on Tommy Chong13. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.14. Announcement: ASA Seeking Patients Who Did Not Use Medical Marijuana Because of Government's Claims
Patients who have been hurt by the government's prohibition of medical marijuana may be able to help with an important research project.15. Job Listing: Administrative Assistant, NORML
Opportunity for a job working in the movement!16. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.Drug War Chronicle #450 - August 25, 2006
Introducing the Stop the Drug War Speakeasy!
1. Introducing: The Stop the Drug War Speakeasy
Presenting a major web site upgrade and new direction at Stop the Drug War (DRCNet).2. Feature: Pain Doctor William Hurwitz to Get New Trial
In a case with national implications, a prominent pain physician jailed as a drug dealer has won a right to a new trial.3. Asset Forfeiture: Federal Appeal Upholds Seizure of Cash Despite Lack of Drugs
Got cash in your car? A federal appeals court just made it easier for the police to seize it as drug money even if there are no drugs around.4. Feature: Seattle's Hempfest Going Strong at 15
The world's largest pro-marijuana rally celebrated its 15th birthday in Seattle last weekend.5. Appeal: A Glowing Testimonial for Drug War Chronicle
A long-time drug reform activist opines on Drug War Chronicle's inspirational value.6. DRCNet on MySpace
Nearly 1,800 people have already signed up as DRCNet "friends" on MySpace even though this is the first public announcement about it.7. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
We have a Southern trifecta this week, with missing evidence in Alabama, a rogue task force in Mississippi, and a drug-dealing jail guard in Louisiana.8. Medical Marijuana: No More Prison Threat for Renee Boje After Feds Accept Symbolic Plea
The federal case against medical marijuana refugee Renee Boje has ended not with a bang but with a whimper as, after eight years, the feds let her cop to a plea for possession of a 1/2 gram of pot.9. Industrial Hemp: California Assembly Passes Hemp Bill, Will Schwarzenegger Sign It?
A bill that would allow legal hemp production in California has passed both houses and now awaits the governor's signature.10. Sentencing: Illinois Drug War at Full Throttle, Study Finds
Illinois may be only #2 when it comes to locking up drug offenders, but it is trying hard.11. Marijuana: "Lowest Priority" Local Initiatives Make Ballot in Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Santa Monica, and Missoula
Local initiatives that would make adult marijuana offenses the lowest law enforcement priority have made the ballot in Missoula, Montana, and three California cities.12. Asia: China Begins Debate on First Comprehensive Drug Law
The Chinese government this week began discussing what would be that country's first law aimed specifically at controlling drug abuse.13. Latin America: Brazilians Oppose Marijuana Legalization By Wide Margin, Poll Finds
A poll done by one of Brazil's leading newspapers suggests that marijuana legalization has a long way to go.14. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.15. Announcement: New Format for the Reformer's Calendar
Visit our new web site each day to see a running countdown to the events coming up the soonest, and more.Drug War Chronicle #449 - August 18, 2006
1. Editorial: There's Always Another Drug Cartel...
The capture of cartel leader Javier Arellano-Felix made a lucky day for the US DEA. But even they don't think anything's really going to change from it.2. Feature: Colorado Marijuana Possession Legalization Initiative Makes the Ballot
An initiative that would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults in Colorado has been certified for the November ballot. Now the campaign gets underway.3. Feature: "Beyond Zero Tolerance" Conference Aims to Provide New Paradigm for Educators
For the past two decades, school districts across the land have adopted zero tolerance policies for drug use and other misbehavior. In October, a conference in San Francisco will point to a better approach.4. Feature: SSDP, Drug War Rant Blog Score Media Hit with Attack on DEA Drug-Terror Exhibit
The DEA got more than it bargained for when it brought its drug-terror traveling exhibit to Chicago last week.5. Law Enforcement: This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories
It's an unusual week for the corrupt cops stories, with a narc caught thieving, a cop caught making false arrests, a jail guard caught trafficking in a big way, and a state judge caught with methamphetamine and precursors.6. Latin America: US Feds Bust Major Mexican Trafficker, Expect Violence, Continued Drug Trafficking as Result
Federal law enforcement officials risked serious injury from all the back-patting going on at their Thursday press conference celebrating the capture of drug lord Javier Arellano-Felix. But they also acknowledged his arrest would ultimately amount to little.7. Harm Reduction: Global Harm Reductionists Issue Urgent Declaration Calling for Action on Drug Use and HIV
With governments slow to adopt harm reduction measures to fight the spread of injection drug use-related HIV and some UN agencies acting more as obstacles than as assets, 19 international and regional harm reduction and other groups issued a joint declaration this week seeking to incite some movement.8. Methamphetamine: One Month in One Texas County Courthouse Opens a Window on the Drug War Version 2.006
Grayson County, Texas, is nothing special, just your average heartland county. That's what makes a review of its court cases so revealing.9. Methamphetamine: Third Murder Trial For Woman in California Meth Poisoning Infant Death Case
California prosecutors hope the third time is the charm in their effort to secure a murder conviction against a woman whose infant son had methamphetamine in his blood when he died. She's already serving 10 years for child endangerment.10. Southwest Asia: Afghan Opium Cultivation Jumps to Record Level
Preliminary reports suggest the Afghan opium crop will be at record levels and 40% larger than last year, despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent to suppress it.11. Europe: British Public Supports More Rational Drug Policies, Survey Says
A new survey of British attitudes toward drug policy reform suggests a new realism and pragmatism. Will the politicians follow the wisdom of the voters?12. Weekly: This Week in History
Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.13. Weekly: The Reformer's Calendar
Please click here to submit listings for events concerning drug policy and related topics
[inline:appointmentbook.jpg" align=right]August 19-20, Seattle, WA, Seattle Hempfest, visit http://www.hempfest.org for further information.
August 22, 9:30-11:30am, Chicago, IL, "Intersecting Voices: Impacts of Illinois' Drug Policies," forum by the Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy. At the Institute for Metropolitan Affairs, Roosevelt University, Congress Lounge, 2nd Floor, 430 S. Michigan Avenue, call (312) 341-2457 by August 18 to RSVP. For further information, contact Kathleen Kane-Willis at...
