Drug War Chronicle

Marijuana law reform is headed in the wrong direction in Western Australia under the leadership of the "tough on drugs" Liberal-National Party government.

The possession of up to a quarter ounce of marijuana is now decriminalized in La Crosse, Wisconsin. But police can still charge you with a criminal misdemeanor under state law, if they so choose.

A Bronx teenager was shot dead by an NYPD undercover narc as he allegedly tried to rob the officer during a crack cocaine sale.

The drug czar has released the 2011 National Drug Control Strategy, and there's little new there but a renewed attack on medical marijuana and legalization. Otherwise, it's pretty much business as usual.

If you care at all about what's going on in Afghanistan, The Wars of Afghanistan is a must read.

Miami Beach could become the first city in Florida to decriminalize pot possession after campaigners handed in more than double the number of voter signatures they needed to put a measure on the ballot.

At an absolute minimum, at least 74 people were killed in prohibition-related violence in Mexico in the last week. Sad to say, there's nothing unusual about the death toll.

Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.

A former Border Patrol agent goes to prison, a former deputy police chief cops a plea, a sticky-fingered former cop gets sent away, too, and a deputy and three jail guards get busted.

Marc Emery smoked pot for years without any health problems, but has now come down with the antibiotic-resistant MRSA superbug while imprisoned in the US.