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Hemp House Going Up at North Carolina's Lake Junaluska

If you’re looking for a strong, green, energy-efficient building material that’s resistant to pretty much everything, hemp might be your best choice. This is the concept being pitched by Greg Flavall and David Madera, owners of a business called Hemp Technologies. They’re some of the first to build with the material in the United States, where industrial hemp hasn’t seen the rise in popularity it enjoys in other countries, thanks to a federal ban on U.S. production.
Chronicle
Who would have thunk it? Corrections reform is moving in Oklahoma. (Image via Wikimedia)
Who would have thunk it? Corrections reform is moving in Oklahoma. (Image via Wikimedia)

Oklahoma House Passes Corrections Reform Bill

One might have thought the Sooner state would start thinking about letting people out of prison only later, but a bill to reduce imprisonment is moving in Oklahoma City.
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This Week in History

Events and quotes of note from this week's drug policy events of years past.
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Blog
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Obama's DEA Needs to Stop Raiding Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

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By now, you've probably heard about the DEA's full-scale assault on medical marijuana dispensaries in Montana on Monday. You're probably asking yourself what the hell happened to Obama's promise that state laws allowing medical marijuana would be respected, and I'm going to answer that question as best I can.

Chronicle

Did You Know? Pharmaceutical Drugs Based on Cannabis, on ProCon.org

MedicalMarijuana.ProCon.org, part of the ProCon.org family, is an in-depth web site presenting information and views from a variety of perspectives on the medical marijuana issue. The Chronicle is running a six-part series of info items from ProCon.org, and we encourage you to check it out.
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In The Trenches

Make Nonviolent Marijuana Offenses the Lowest Police Priority (Action Alert)

Dear Friends,

On March 15, a new report was released on the steps of New York City Hall documenting the crushing costs of the 50,383 marijuana possession arrests that occurred in 2010 in that city alone, costing New York City $75 million. Released by the Drug Policy Alliance and co-authored by Queens College sociology professor Dr. Harry Levine, the report reveals the police, judicial, and human costs of New York City’s marijuana arrest crusade.

Every single day, 140 people are arrested for marijuana offenses in New York City, making it the leading cause of arrest. A full 87% of those arrested are Black or Latino, a particularly outrageous number since people of color do not use marijuana at higher rates than the rest of the population. Incredibly, the NYPD has quietly made marijuana infractions their top law enforcement priority without even a pretense of public input or debate.

Although New York decriminalized possession of under 25 grams of marijuana, possession that is "open to public view" remains a crime.  Police officers have learned to ask vulnerable people they believe to be in possession to empty their pockets so they can then make an arrest.

The “suspects” do not have to be using, buying, or selling marijuana, nor do they have to be acting out in any way at all. They simply have to be “suspects.”

This flagrant abuse of state power is a tightly held secret. Please help us expose it. Stand with LEAP in supporting a more rational plan for drug policy. Our speakers are law enforcement professionals who know firsthand that the “war on drugs” is a waste of police resources. They speak out against our current drug policy in order to put police priorities back where they belong. 

Help us send the message to NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg, that using already strained police and judicial resources in this way is not acceptable and that the overwhelming racial disparity of these arrests is appalling. Please sign our petition, and please make a contribution today to support LEAP as the voice of law enforcement in drug policy reform.

Thank you,

Major Neill Franklin (Ret.)
Executive Director
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition


Your donation puts LEAP speakers in front of audiences. To support LEAP's work by making a contribution, please click here.

           

121 Mystic Ave. Suites 7-9
Medford, MA 02155
(781) 393-6985 [email protected]

We need help growing our all-encompassing movement of citizens who want to end the failed "war on drugs," so please invite your family and friends to learn about LEAP.
 

 

 
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Inhaled Marijuana May Keep Brain Cancer in Remission

A recent medical case-report highlights a striking association between inhaled Cannabis and anti-tumor effects in young adults with brain cancer. This gives scientists new evidence that the chemical compounds from the Cannabis plant (known as cannabinoids) may have significant anti-cancer effects in humans.
In The Trenches
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Prohibition's filthy lucre is hard for some to resist. (Image via Wikimedia)
Prohibition's filthy lucre is hard for some to resist. (Image via Wikimedia)

This Week's Corrupt Cops Stories

A federal judge gone wild now goes to jail, more gun running arrests pop up, and more of the same old run of the mill law enforcement corruption.
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Three Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Chosen to Operate in Rhode Island

The long-awaited decision on medical marijuana dispensaries was announced with the Department of Health selecting three applicants, the maximum permitted under state law. They are: Summit Medical Compassion Center in Warwick, The Thomas C. Slater Compassion Center in Providence, and Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center in Portsmouth.
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Latest News

New York Spends $75 Million a Year on Marijuana Arrests Though It's Not Technically a Crime

New York spends $75 million a year to lock up people caught with marijuana, a new study says, even though it's not technically a crime. The report by the Drug Policy Alliance says the NYPD spends that much on 50,000 annual marijuana arrests, in which 86% of those arrested are black or Latino. State law requires people carrying small amounts of marijuana to receive the equivalent of a traffic ticket, but critics say the NYPD arrests and jails them anyway - hurting their job and life prospects.
Chronicle
drug arrest scene, "10 Rules for Dealing with Police," flexyourrights.org
drug arrest scene, "10 Rules for Dealing with Police," flexyourrights.org

Mass Marijuana Arrest Policy Costs NYC Big Bucks

New York City has earned the dubious distinction of being the world's marijuana arrest capital. But such (dis)honors come at a price. A big price.
In The Trenches

Marijuana Reform Hearings at Rhode Island State House Tomorrow (Press Release)

MEDIA ADVISORY: March 15, 2011

Marijuana Reform Hearings at State House Tomorrow

Bills Would Remove Criminal Penalties for Marijuana Possession and Save Money for Rhode Island

CONTACT: Robert Capecchi, MPP legislative analyst……………………202-905-2007 or [email protected]

PROVIDENCE – Hearings are taking place at the State House tomorrow on bills that would reform the state’s marijuana laws. H 5031 would remove criminal penalties for possession of up to an ounce of marijuana and replace them with a civil penalty of $150. The bill is sponsored by Rep. John G. Edwards (D-Tiverton) and others, and would make marijuana possession similar to a traffic violation, allowing people who are convicted of simple, non-violent marijuana possession charges to avoid the life-long stigma of a criminal record. This measure would also save the state millions of dollars on police and court time.

            What:    Hearing on RI H 5031, Decriminalization of Marijuana Possession

            When:  “Rise of the House” (~4:30 p.m.), Wednesday, March 16

            Where:  Room 313, Rhode Island State House

Marijuana Policy Project legislative analyst Robert Capecchi will be present and available for comment. Mr. Capecchi will also be presenting testimony to the House Finance Committee at an earlier hearing to discuss the benefits of H5591, which would remove criminal penalties for adults who use marijuana and establish a taxed and regulated system for its distribution. This is the second year in a row that Rep. Edith Ajello (D-Providence) has introduced this bill. This hearing will take place in the Trainor Hearing Room (Room 35) at 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 16.

The bill would create a system for the regulation and distribution of marijuana to responsible adults in Rhode Island. It would remove the lucrative marijuana market from criminal organizations and allow the state to regulate the sale of marijuana. Taxing and regulating marijuana sales would take away profits from the criminal market, while creating jobs and producing tens of millions of dollars in savings and revenue, according to a report by Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron.

With more than 124,000 members and supporters nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. For more information, please visit www.mpp.org.

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