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Bloody Culiacan
As we reported on Friday, Culiacan, the capital of the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa, was the scene of a two-day forum last week, the International Forum on Illicit Drugs, where there was much criticism of the Mexican drug war and the planned escalation of it envisaged by Plan Merida, the $1.4 anti-drug aid package cooked up by the Bush and Calderon administrations. The so-called "narco-violence," which might more accurately be called "prohibition-related violence," was, unsurprisingly, a central concern of presenters at the forum. In the year and a half since President Calderon took office and unleashed the Mexican military on the narcos, some 4,000 people have been killed. As if to punctuate that concern, just as the conference was wrapping up Wednesday, a series of armed confrontations broke out in central Culiacan. Sparked by a joint military-federal police sweep that was attacked by AK-47-wielding narcos in a Chevy Tahoe, gun battles broke out across the city as narcos swooped in to lend aid to their colleagues being harassed and captured by the law and other, rival narcos intervened. In one shoot-out between rival narco factions, two men were killed. In another shoot-out, between narcos and state police, two cops were killed. The military and police arrested 13 presumed cartel gun-men and seized a huge arsenal of heavy weapons, cash, and drugs. Thursday morning, military pick-ups and Hummers were cruising the streets of Culiacan, soldiers at their posts in back with heavy machine guns. Military helicopters buzzed over the city, although it was unclear whether they were supporting urban ground operations or were on their way to search for marijuana and poppy fields in the nearby mountains. (I apologize for not having any photos of this stuff. My camera battery went dead Tuesday morning, and having brought with me the wrong bag of electronic stuff, I couldn't recharge it. I went to five different camera stores in Culiacan looking for either a new battery or a charger, to no avail. I finally found a store in Mexico City Friday that charged it for me, so I have lots of photos of Saturday's Global Marijuana March in Mexico City. They will show up in a blog post later today.) The heavy military and law enforcement presence didnât do much good. Friday night, the narcos struck back, ambushing a federal police patrol in the heart of Culican, killing four officers and leaving three other seriously wounded. But it wasn't just narcos vs. cops and soldiers Friday night. As reported by the Mexican news agency Notimex, a little after 11 Friday night, at least 60 armed men broke into three houses in a city neighborhood and seized five men, then took off in a 15-vehicle convoy, which was in turn attacked, leaving one man dead at that scene. At the same time, two other shoot-outs erupted in different neighborhoods of the city, while simultaneously, on the outskirts of town, presumed narcos shot and killed two Culiacan city police. It's not always easy to figure out who is killing whom. There are local, state, and federal police, any one of whom could be working for the cartels. There's the army. Then there are the competing cartels themselves. In Culiacan, long controlled by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman and his Sinaloa cartel, Guzman and his group are being challenged by the Arrellano Felix Juarez cartel, which wants to take over "la plaza," or the franchise, as the local drug connection is known. Just to complicate things further, the Juarez cartel is allegedly being aided by the Zetas, the former elite anti-drug soldiers turned cartel hit-men, who usually work for the Gulf cartel. And this is just in Culiacan. There are other prohibition-related killings every day, soldiers and police being assassinated every day. On Saturday, the Mexican secretary of public security held a ceremony to honor the nine federal police killed by the narcos in the last few days. Another was gunned down in the Mexico City suburb of Coyoacan Friday night, too. All of this pathology, of course, is a direct result of prohibitionist drug polices aggressively pursued by Washington and Mexico City. And what is their response? Let's have more of the same, only more so.
What are our laws based on?
In a wonderfully informative primer, Why is Marijuana Illegal? A brief history of the criminalization of cannabis, Pete Guither writes:
From the Supreme Court opinions: Justice Stevens tells it like it is
Year after year, the Supreme Court persisted in completely ignoring the real-life, when confronted with a drug policy issue. Of course, I can't back it up in one post, but - I reviewed dozens of Supreme Court opinions that relate to drug policy and that's the impression that I got. Either Justices preferred to hide their heads in the sand and confine their discussions to arcane legal issues or they professed the same ignorance about the subject matter as, alas, so many Americans - ignorance that is the product of decades of misinformation.
Pot as Prescription Drug: Where it Stands Today with the Health System
Patients who need medical marijuana are constantly caught in the crossfire between the State and the Feds. In early 2008, the battle intensified yet again. The DEA, which had been after medical marijuana dispensaries and clubs throughout California, closed 7 of 28 clubs in San Francisco, and threatened action against others. The city of Berkeley declared itself a “medical marijuana sanctuary” which would not cooperate with the Feds in the event that they went after dispensaries there. At the same time, Marijuana vending machines were placed in Los Angeles to ease access for dispensary users there, with the Feds threatening closure. Since 1996, 12 states have legalized medical marijuana use, placing them at odds with federal law. The science of medical marijuana is also still controversial, despite strong evidence of benefits under certain circumstances. Still, some researchers and health insurance providers have contended that medical marijuana causes cancer.
Free judiciary
Here in Canada we have a free and independent Judiciary that is appointed by members of the bar and they serve till they retire.Recent decisions by the courts have sent a message to the police that th
British Prime Minister Claims Marijuana Can Kill You
As British PM Gordon Browne prepares to ignore the recommendation of his own Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs and increase penalties for marijuana, he reveals once again how little he actually knows about the subject:"I don't think that the previous studies took into account that so much of the cannabis on the streets is now of a lethal quality and we really have got to send out a message to young people -- this is not acceptable," Brown said. [Reuters]Any way you look at it, this is just a total lie. The word "lethal" as defined by dictionary.com means the following:âadjective1. of, pertaining to, or causing death; deadly; fatal: a lethal weapon; a lethal dose.2. made to cause death: a lethal chamber; a lethal attack.3. causing great harm or destruction: The disclosures were lethal to his candidacy.Even the 3rd definition, which may be the one Browne intends, is essentially figurative and is only used to describe non-living things, in this case a political campaign. The word is derived from the latin letalis, meaning death. It's just an incredibly poor adjective to describe a substance that has never killed anyone in human history. He says he wants to "send out a message to young people," but his message is just a big lie.Thus, Browne is now expected to move forward with a plan to upgrade the criminal status of marijuana based on his own ignorant and wrong understanding of what the drug does, while disregarding the contrary advice of a whole council of experts who might actually know something about this.This, my friends, is precisely how bad public policy gets made.
NYPD's Mindless Response to Accusations of Overzealous Marijuana Enforcement
Let's revisit once again this week's excellent NYCLU study of marijuana arrests in New York City. It illuminates several embarrassing facts, which the architects of this disgusting policy would prefer to keep concealed. Among them:*A shocking increase in arrests from 45,300 between 1988 and 1997 up to 374,000 between 1998 and 2007*A sustained violation of the spirit of New York's marijuana laws, which hold that citizens should not be arrested for small amounts of concealed marijuana*Stark and unexplainable racial disparities. 83% of arrestees were black or Latino even though whites are more likely to use marijuana*Similarly disturbing gender disparities. 90% of arrestees were male, even though women and men use marijuana at similar rates*The appalling hypocrisy of NY mayor Michael Bloomberg who presides over these arrests despite his admission that he's enjoyed marijuana in the past*A profit motive behind the arrests wherein police deliberately make marijuana collars at the end of their shift so that they can collect overtime pay while processing the offenderNow that these ugly revelations have been exposed, what does NYPD have to say in its defense? Exactly what one might expect:In an official comment on the study, the Police Department was critical of the role played by the New York Civil Liberties Union in publicizing the report and noted that the research had been backed, in part, by the Marijuana Policy Project, which supports legalization. [NY Times]Um, pardon me, but what the hell does that have to do with anything? The report is accurate. Complaining that it was publicized by its authors and that it was funded by supporters of marijuana policy reform is irrelevant. Of course police are angry that this went public. It's embarrassing. And of course it was funded by critics of marijuana laws. Who else would fund it? The Heritage Foundation? I donât think so.So the Marijuana Policy Project is biased, they say, but NYPD sees no conflict of interest when defending the same laws that its officers are paid overtime to enforce? The arrogance of this couldnât possibly be overstated, but I guess there wasn't much else to say. If everything in the report is true, all you can really do is call the author a jerk. So in order to avoid ridiculously dumb drug policy debate tactics in the future, let's just get one thing straight once and for all: if people who oppose marijuana laws aren't allowed to criticize marijuana enforcement, then people who support marijuana laws shouldn't be allowed to defend it. Does that sound fair?
Marijuana...more than just medicine
Its time for change ! the only reason the canibus plant was outlawed was because of crooked politicians and some major corperations that didn't want to compete with all the benefits the canibus could provide they started their fraud of the plant in the 30's with the numberous prapaganda movie shorts claiming it was a drug that made users violent...fact of the matter..people were growing the plant for rope and clothing and medical purposes for centuries ...they even were using hemp seed oil to burn in the oil lamps they used did you know that clothes made from hemp last longer?...the history channel has several series about drugs and how they became illegal and marijuana was one of them the history channel is the only one out there along with some indy potumentaries that bring you the facts and truth ....it is time for a change the goverment rather you be hooked on THEIR drugs...ones that people overdose and die on or cause worse side effects or even the same symptom that they are trying to help on top of that some of those drugs will do more damage to your body than the disease you are trying to treat or you end up a pill junkie (most of those pill junkies will get violent for their fix as will an alcoholic that starts to get the shakes from the lack of their fire water!...there has NEVER been a marijuana overdose but you can die from alcohol via drunk driving or drinking too much there are no withdrawls if you stopped using canibus for a little bit...(at least none for me) only thing that bothered me was my pain management..
New York City's Marijuana Arrest Rate is Wildly Out of Control
Two of my colleagues, Deborah Small and Prof. Harry Levine, have analyzed New York City's marijuana policy in a major report released Wednesday the New York Civil Liberties Union. The chart appearing above pretty makes the central point, but check out Jacob Sullum's piece in Reason for a good general discussion of the report's findings and implications. Also, Scott wrote here last night about an important side angle, why it's a bad idea to take out your marijuana to give it to police. Yesterday's is a must-read too. The report itself, and the authors' summary, are online here
Don't Give Your Marijuana to the Police
This remarkable New York Times piece exposes New York City's out of control marijuana policy, which has produced 374,900 misdemeanor marijuana arrests since 1998, despite a decrim law that's been in effect for 30 years. This is a rare example of professional-quality drug war coverage from the mainstream media and should be read in its entirety, as it raises several interesting issues.I found this passage, which describes one particular arrest, quite revealing:"I came out of the building, and this unmarked car, no light, no indication it was police, was right on me," said the man, a Latino who asked that his name not be used because he was concerned about his job. "Right on my tail. An officer got out, he said, 'I saw you walking from that building, I know you bought weed, give me the weed.' He made it an option: 'Give me the weed now and I will give you a summons, or we can search your vehicle and can take you in.' " He opened the console and handed them his marijuana â making it "open to public view.""I was duped," he said. But the deception was legal, and his pot wasnât.The officers escorted him in handcuffs to the unmarked car.Amazingly, police must actually trick citizens into displaying their marijuana in order to make an arrest, since the decrim law requires plain view discovery. NYPD officers have become quite adept at initiating this through the typical threats and coercion that have long been the hallmark of petty drug war police practices.Fortunately, the most obvious and effective antidote to New York's overzealous marijuana policing is really pretty simple: don't give them your marijuana. Don't admit having marijuana. Don't give them consent to search you or your vehicle. Ask if you're free to go.Ending this obscene spectacle, which violates the spirit of New York's marijuana laws and wastes precious law-enforcement resources, is vitally important. But until that happens, citizens can protect themselves by not idiotically turning over their illegal drugs to the police. Seriously, stop giving them your drugs.
At the Shrine to San Malverde, Mexico's Narco-Saint
You don't find Culiacan, the capital city of Sinaloa, in the tourist guide books for some reason. But it is a thriving city of more than a million, and it is the home of one of the stranger manifestations of the drug wars of the last few decades: The shrine to San Malverde, (unofficial) patron saint of bandits, and now, drug traffickers. shrine to San Malverde, patron saint of the narcos (and others), Culiacan, Sinaloa -- plaque thanking God, the Virgin of Guadalupe, and San Malverde for keeping the roads cleans -- from "the indigenous people from Angostura to Arizona" (more pictures below the fold) I visited the shine in the heat of the afternoon sun today. During the half hour or so I was there, a few dozen people came to light candles to the santo, pay their respects, or otherwise recognize his alleged powers of protection. A handful of musicians for hire hung around, waiting for someone to pay them to play a tune to the saint, and about a dozen vendors sold San Malverde memorabilia--candles, plaques, good luck amulets, prayer cards, and the like. (Hmmm, do I feel an idea for a StoptheDrugWar.org premium gestating?) The vendors told me that dozens, sometimes hundreds, of people arrive each day, some to pray, some to light candles, some to make donations, some to put up plaques: "Thanks to God and San Malverde for favors received." "Thanks to God, the Virgin of Guadalupe, and San Malverde for helping us move forward." "O miraculous Malverde, O, Malverde my Lord, Concede me this favor, And fill my heart with happiness." Given the way Mexico's drug war is raging these days, I would imagine the good saint is getting a real work-out. Mexicans are so inured to the daily drug war death toll that the newspapers generally relegate it to box score-type accounts, but when you or a friend or a family member is working in the trade, you probably figure some supernatural help can't hurt. I'll spend the next few days here in Culiacan. I had wanted to go up to the drug-producing areas in the mountains nearby, but so far, everyone is demurring--it's too dangerous, they say. Nonetheless, I'll keep working that and see what happens. On Tuesday and Wednesday, I'll be attending and "International Forum on Illicit Drugs: The Merida Initiative and the Experiences of Decriminalization," organized by the brave journalists of the Culiacan news weekly Riodoce. While the other Sinaloa papers have largely gone silent in the face of threats and killings, Riodoce keeps plugging away. I'll be meeting with some of the Riodoce staff tomorrow, right after I meet with Mercedes Murillo, head of the local human rights organization the Sinaloa Civic Front, which just a couple of days ago filed what could be a historic court motion to have military personnel accused of crimes against civilians tried in civilian--not military--court. There have been several nasty incidents of soldiers killing civilians here since Calderon sent in the troops, and under current Mexican law, they seem to get away with it. Stay tuned. It should be an interesting week. And then it's back to Mexico City to visit Saint Death and attend the Global Marijuana Day demonstration at the Alameda. (more pictures below the fold)
Denying Organ Transplants to Medical Marijuana Patients is Evil
Remember when John McCain said we never arrest dying patients for medical marijuana? He asked for documentation and here it is. This man wasn't just arrested, he is now also being denied a liver transplant, without which he will die:SEATTLE (AP) â Timothy Garon's face and arms are hauntingly skeletal, but the fluid building up in his abdomen makes the 56-year-old musician look eight months pregnant.His liver, ravaged by hepatitis C, is failing. Without a new one, his doctors tell him, he will be dead in days.But Garon's been refused a spot on the transplant list, largely because he has used marijuana, even though it was legally approved for medical reasons.This is the legacy of the government's political war on medical marijuana. Patients are dying simply because some of our political leaders are afraid that showing compassion for the sick will lead to marijuana legalization. Healthcare and employment discrimination are the inevitable symptoms of our flawed federal policy, yet those who defend the war on patients couldn't be more oblivious to the brutal consequences of their intransigence.Meanwhile, U.S. News & World Report covers new research aimed at developing cannabinoid-based medicines that won't produce intoxication. The very existence of this research demonstrates once again that marijuana has long been understood to have remarkable medical potential. Now that even the drug warriors have conceded that point, and the scientific community has stopped debating and initiated product development, what justification exists for continuing to persecute patients who are already using this plant to treat their own illnesses? This controversy should be over now. Instead, patients are still dying in the war over medical marijuana and politicians are still pretending not to notice.
Dr. Albert Hofmann, Father of LSD, Dead at 102
Internet rumors of his passing have been confirmed for us by a friend of Dr. Hofmann's. Dr. Albert Hofmann died of a heart attack this morning at his home in Basel, Switzerland. Hofmann inadvertently discovered the effects of LSD while researching the substance in 1943. He subsequently self-administered the drug deliberately and produced the first accounts of its powerful psychedelic effects. If you think 102 is old, just imagine how long he might have lived if he never did drugs!Update: The above line is sarcasm. Before posting it, I asked a couple smart people if they thought anyone might misunderstand and we decided it probably wouldn't be a problem. Well, it was, and a few commenters have come away with the incorrect impression that I think Dr. Hofmann would be better off if he never used drugs. This comment explains what I really meant. I won't stop cracking jokes in the blog, but I do apologize for this one.Â
If Marijuana is Dangerous, How Come No One Gets Hurt at These Huge 4/20 Parties?
This year's 4/20 holiday was bigger and bolder than ever before, generating big headlines, big web traffic, and really really big pot parties. Even the Drug Czar participated by suggesting the holiday is dangerous and warning parents to keep a close eye on their children. But for all the fanfare, no one got hurt on 4/20.I don't think one could possibly overstate how revealing that simple fact really is. Scanning the 4/20 news coverage, one fails utterly to find examples of the sort of negative outcomes we've been told to expect when people use this drug. Last week, more people got more stoned more publicly than any other day of the year. If pot is dangerous, this would be the time to learn that lesson in stark terms. So where are the hospitalizations? The fights? The car accidents? In Boulder, CO a turnout of 10,000 produced no arrests or mishaps. This means not only that police were ignoring open marijuana use, but that the users were remarkably well behaved under the influence of the drug. They didn't fight, steal, damage property, or do anything else that would have forced the police to take action. Out of 10,000 people at a completely disorganized marijuana-themed event, nothing went wrong at all. Similarly, at UC Santa Cruz a crowd of 6,000 led police to express embarrassment at their failure to suppress marijuana culture. And again, there were no arrests made for any offenses of any kind. Arrests and injuries are typical at sporting events, but not these giant impromptu 4/20 pot parties. This quote from the Santa Cruz Sentinel illustrates that point nicely:Monday, some readers and callers to the Sentinel expressed shock that police knew what was going on and yet nobody was arrested as they drove away from the gathering, apparently under the influence of marijuana.Grant Boles, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol in Aptos, said the CHP made no arrests Sundayâ¦Amazingly, the California Highway Patrol had an uneventful afternoon on the biggest pot-smoking day of the year. I guess no hippies crashed their cars that day. No one swerved over the yellow line and got pinched for DUI. You can bet we'd know about it if they had. I'm not saying people should get stoned and drive. I'm asking where to find the carnage we've been told to expect from stoned drivers.So often, we're told that if we change our marijuana laws, everyone will get stoned and it will be horrible. Yet, when marijuana is used gratuitously by massive crowds at unsanctioned events, negative outcomes are extraordinarily rare. The drug is simply not effective at hurting people.The whole "marijuana is harmless" argument for reforming marijuana laws certainly has its limitations, but damn, look how amazingly safe marijuana is! Wow!
Man denied transplant because hes use's medical pot
U.W has denied him the kidney that would save his life, but because he use's medical pot for the pain, they won't even put him on the list. Theres got to be something that can be done?
The End Game
Some folks may be wondering about the result of my court appearance. The attorney I hired had an excellent reputation, and a price tag of $3,500.00 which I paid up front. While awaiting trial, he had a stroke and I was afraid that he might not be able to work. Fortunately he recovered fully. On the day of the trial, I was frightened and sweating bullets waiting for him to arrive. He had already earned my concern as he was very difficult to contact by calling his office. I had even resorted to faxing him on two occasions in order to check on his progress. I don't feel it is micromanagement for the defendant to be informed on the case. At any rate, trial day came bright and sunny, and my name was called before the court. Guess what? No damned attorney. I explained the problem to the judge and he gave me time to attempt to find the lawyer. My wife called his office from home, and after raising hell she was told he was "en route" and "held up by traffic". He finally arrived a prepaid hour later, and made the rounds of the courtroom, glad-handing everyone from the court clerk to the judge. He then spoke privately with the judge, and called me out for a conference.
If the police do it in public,is it still murder?
No,this isn't about another police assassination although there are plenty of those.This is a case of two criminals that robbed their drug dealer and were unlucky enough to get caught.I imagine the co
Latest Drug Hot Spot for British: Prisons
Do you think drug prices are astronomical? Want to find a place where drugs are cheap and plentiful? If you are British, all you have to do is get convicted of a crime and sent to jail where drugs are reportedly cheaper than they are for non-prisoners: Prisoners are ignoring chances to escape because they would rather stay in their cushy jails where drugs are cheaper than on the outside, a prison chief officers has said. Lags at Britain's 'toughest' prisons are treated to breakfast in bed, have Sky TV in every cell and are given cash bonuses for good behavior. At one prison in Yorkshire, drug dealers and hookers regularly break IN to ply their trade by leaning ladders up against prison walls. But none of the criminals take the opportunity to leave because they have got it so easy, according to assistant general secretary of the Prison Officers Association Glyn Travis. Earlier in the month, Prime Minister Gordon Brown proposed to increase the length of prison sentences for marijuana smokers by three years. I criticized this move at the time, but maybe I misunderstood his intentions. Perhaps he just wants to give pot smokers access to the cheap stuff. But seriously, whatâs the point of increasing the maximum sentence for marijuana smokers when the jails are overrun with drugs? It is absolutely baffling that the Prime Minister of a country can be concerned with non-violent marijuana smokers when the prison system is a joke. It is literally a joke. People are actually breaking into prison. That is something you would expect to see in a cartoon not actually happening in a developed country. This situation just further illustrates the failures of prohibition and the ridiculousness of Brownâs marijuana smoker crackdown. The British canât keep the drugs out of their jails where they have direct surveillance over prisoners. And they somehow expect to win the war on drugs and prevent the circulation of them throughout the regular population? Give me a break.
Clerics on Drug Policy: Religious Leaders Speak Out
The Interfaith Drug Policy Initiative and Common Sense for Drug Policy's new short film "Clergy Against the War on Drugs" does not offer scandalous footage of religious leaders using drugs, or advocating drug use, as prohibitionist advocates might wish to claim. What it does capture is a number of clergy from different religions and denominations offering their insightful views on the War on Drugs. These courageous community leaders have stepped forward to challenge the way our society deals with drug problems and to offer their experiences working with those who fall victim to these counterproductive and de-humanizing policies. It is truly inspiring to see religious leaders taking a stand and engaging in intelligent and humane discussions regarding our failed drug policies. This film not only shows clergy taking on political cowardice, the prison-industrial complex, the inequities of justice offered to drug offenders based on race and class, and other crucial aspects of the Drug War, it also shows them discussing the very real effects of this war on their own communities. "Clergy Against the War on Drugs" is compelling, honest and revealing. These women and men of various denominations demonstrate a keen understanding of the negative impact on community relations with law enforcement, and how prohibition's black market exacerbates problems and allows drugs to be sold to children. For those who would assume that representatives from communities of faith are too socially conservative or squeamish to take an enlightened stance on drug policy reform, watching this film will be quite a surprise. In reality, they are following in the proud tradition of Gandhi, the Rev. King, Dorothy Day, Oscar Romero, and numerous other religious leaders who were led by their faith to radical social activism. As an aside, I would add that when considering religious perspectives on drugs, we should remember that other traditions have equally valid positions on the issue. It is unfortunate that the voices of Rastafarians, members of the Native American Church, and some Hindu sects, to name a few, are often not heard or taken seriously in the debate on drugs. Instead, their claims of spiritual elevation using intoxicants are often disrespected and their ceremonies often unprotected by law. The Christian and Jewish leaders in the IDPI video who are speaking out for change should be commended for their courage and compassion. One of the most valuable lessons offered by "Clergy Against the War on Drugs" is the simple truth that the drug policy reform movement is not a movement of libertarians, economists, drug users, Latin American activists or any other niche group. It is a movement of all kinds of concerned citizens who want a more rational, compassionate way of dealing with a social problem than waging yet another war.