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Dear Friend,

In this second episode of The Drew Carey Project, released on Reason.tv, Drew interviews ASA Executive Director Steph Sherer and takes a look at federal interference with medical cannabis dispensing in California.

Check out the video at: www.AmericansForSafeAccess.org/DrewCarey

The video is the second episode of a joint project between Drew and Reason, The Drew Carey Project. Its mission is to create “a series of video documentaries that take a hard look at the variety of threats to our liberties -- and celebrate what it really means to be free.”

In the video, Steph shares her story with Drew and talks about how her own experiences led to her founding of Americans for Safe Access. Drew also visits a Los Angeles dispensary and goes on to interview Steve Whitmore, spokesperson for the LA County Sheriff’s Department, as well as Bill Leahy, Vietnam vet and medical marijuana patient.

Share this episode of the Drew Carey Project with your friends and family! We know medical cannabis improves the lives of millions of people and we know that the federal interference with state medical marijuana laws is outrageous. But unless we share Drew's report with friends and family who might not support our views or who might not feel as passionately as we do, we will lose a great opportunity to reach out and educate people about medical cannabis and the threats facing patients nationwide. So please forward this email and share Drew Carey’s report on Medical Marijuana!

Enjoy watching Drew’s report at www.AmericansForSafeAccess.org/DrewCarey and please remember to share it!

Thank you,

Rebecca Saltzman
Chief of Staff
Americans for Safe Access

 

 

P.S. The only way we can continue our work and educate people about medical cannabis is with support from people like you. Please visit www.AmericansforSafeAccesss.org/Donate today to become a member of ASA.

[Courtesy of The Sentencing Project] Friends, At a time of growing national concern about unequal treatment within the justice system, the United States Sentencing Commission today lowered the Guideline sentences for offenses involving crack cocaine, likely impacting 3,500 federally sentenced defendants each year. Commission concerns about the excessive penalty structure for crack cocaine offenses prompted the change that on average will reduce defendants' sentences by 15 months. The Commission sets an advisory guideline range that federal judges use when sentencing defendants. Under the old range, average sentences for crack cocaine offenses were 121 months. Now the estimated average sentence will be 106 months. In May the Commission recommended statutory reforms and proposed to Congress the amendment to decrease the guideline offense level for crack cocaine offenses. The amendment went unchallenged by Congress and therefore takes effect today. According to Commission analysis, the modification would reduce the size of the federal prison population by 3,800 in 15 years. Such a reduction would result in savings of over $87 million, according to The Sentencing Project. This change, however, only addresses one aspect of the controversy surrounding crack cocaine sentencing. The Commission is currently considering whether to apply the amendment retroactively - a move that would make approximately 19,500 persons in prison eligible for a reduced sentence. The Commission will hear testimony on this issue at a Nov. 13 public hearing at which I will testify in favor of retroactivity. In a submission to the Commission, The Sentencing Project argues that "the Commission, courts, and commentators all have recognized the undue disparity caused by the Guidelines since their inception. Thus, defendants who were incarcerated when the problems with the crack Guidelines first became evident should also be granted an opportunity to pursue the benefit of this long overdue remedy." The new policy comes on the heels of oral arguments before the U.S. Supreme Court in Kimbrough v. the United States. The high court is being asked to uphold the authority of federal judges to depart from the sentencing guidelines in crack cocaine cases when they disagree with sentencing policy. Furthermore, bipartisan reform legislation is pending in Congress and hearings addressing the statutory mandatory minimum sentences are expected this fall. Use the following links to read The Sentencing Project's letter to the Commission urging retroactivity, and learn more about the momentum to end the sentencing disparity at: www.sentencingproject.org/crackreform. Regards, Marc Mauer

[Courtesy of Prisons Foundation] The Prisons Foundation, in conjunction with the England based Jail Guitar Doors project (http://www.jailguitardoors.org.uk/), has received funding to purchase guitars to be sent to prisons and jails in the United States where they will be utilized by prisoners. If you know of any jail or prison whose prisoners could benefit from participation in this program, please ask a representative of that institution to email Joe Shade, coordinator of the program at [email protected] Thank you for your interest in this program.

Drug Truth Network Update: Cultural Baggage + Century of Lies + Doctor calls for legal LSD, MDMA video Half Hour Programs, Live Tuesdays & Wednesdays... at 90.1 FM in Houston & on the web at www.kpft.org. Cultural Baggage for 10/31/07 Eric Sterling of Criminal Justice Policy Foundation, Dr. Rick Doblin of MAPS and Drug War Facts MP3 MP3 LINK: http://www.drugtruth.net/007DTNaudio/FDBCB_103107.mp3 Century of Lies for 10/30/07 Phil Smith of StopTheDrugWar + Poppygate MP3 MP3 Link: http://www.drugtruth.net/007DTNaudio/COL_103007.mp3 Next Week - Century of Lies on Tues, Cutural Baggage on Wed: - Cultural Baggage 12:30 PM ET, 11:20 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: TBD - Century of Lies 12:30 PM ET, 11:20 AM CT, 10:30 AM MT & 9:30 AM PT: TBD Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net. We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada., ck out our latest videos via www.drugtruth.net/dtnvideo.htm 1 video: "Prohibition is Evil" + 2 from townhall meeting on racial disparity. Please become part of the solution, visit our website: www.endprohibition.org for links to the best of reform. Dr. Rick Doblin of Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS.org) calls for legal LSD, MDMA & Marijuana, Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMBwPToKdOc "The money that has been frittered away on this drug war would fill a string of boxcars nine miles long stuffed with hundred dollar bills. How much more?" - Reverend Dean Becker, Drug Truth Network Producer http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/5243274.html Dean Becker 713-849-6869 www.drugtruth.net