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Marijuana: New Hampshire House Passes Decriminalization Bill, But Without Veto-Proof Majority
The New Hampshire House Wednesday voted 214-137 to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, but the measure faces an uncertain future after Gov. John Lynch (D) immediately threatened to veto it. The House tally leaves supporters about 20 votes short of a veto-proof majority. Under the bill, HB 1653, adults caught possessing or transporting up to a quarter-ounce of pot would be subject to a $400 fine. Minors caught with a quarter-ounce or less would be subject to a $200 fine and their parents would be notified. Youthful offenders would also have to complete a drug awareness program and community service within a year or face an additional $1000 fine. Under current New Hampshire law, small-time pot possession is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine. The House passed a similar measure in 2008, but it died in the Senate after Gov. Lynch threatened to veto it. Last year, the House dropped decrim and instead concentrated on passing a medical marijuana dispensary bill. Lynch vetoed that. The House overrode his veto, but the Senate came up two votes short. Lynch was back in form on Wednesday. "Marijuana is a controlled drug that remains illegal under federal law. I share the law enforcement community's concerns about proliferation of this drug," Lynch said. "In addition, New Hampshire parents are struggling to keep their kids away from marijuana and other drugs. We should not make the jobs of parents â or law enforcement â harder by sending a false message that some marijuana use is acceptable." âThis makes three years in a row that the House has passed a bill attempting to reform New Hampshireâs archaic marijuana policies,â said Matt Simon, executive director for the New Hampshire Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy, which led the lobbying fight for the bill. âUnfortunately, Gov. Lynch has continued to show little interest in learning what the House has learned about these issues. The bill now goes to the Senate. But unless advocates can pass it overwhelmingly there and come up without another 20 or so votes in the House, it is likely to meet the same fate as the 2009 decrim bill and last year's medical marijuana bill.
Prohibition: Kansas Becomes First State to Ban Synthetic Cannabinoid Blends Such As K2, Spice
Kansas Gov. Mark Parkinson signed into law Tuesday HB 2411, which adds certain synthetic cannabinoids to the state's list of controlled substances. The bill is aimed directly at products containing a mixture of herbs and a powdered synthetic cannabinoid, JWH-018, which was isolated by a Clemson University researcher more than a decade ago. The products are sold under a variety of names, including Spice and K2. Kansas thus becomes the first state to ban K2, although a handful of localities in the region have already done so. A similar bill is working its way through the legislature in neighboring Missouri, and one is about to be introduced in Georgia. And, as law enforcement across the country jumps on the bandwagon, expect similar prohibitionist efforts to pop up in other states. Users report a marijuana-like high from using the blends. Although some adverse reactions have been reported, the number is small compared to the reported massive sales of the products. Under the new law, which goes into effect upon publication in the state register, possession of K2 becomes a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2500 fine. That's the same potential punishment as awaits someone busted for small-time marijuana possession in the Jayhawk State. âThis legislation has received overwhelming support by Kansas law enforcement and the legislature,â said Parkinson in a signing statement. âIt will help improve our communities by bettering equipping law enforcement officers in addressing this issue and deterring Kansans from drug use.â The governor is certainly correct about who supported the bill. Testifying for it were representatives of the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association, the Kansas Association of Chiefs of Police, the Kansas Sheriffs Association, the Kansas Peace Officers Association, and the Kansas Board of Pharmacy.
Who says there's no money in pharmaceutical marijuana?
As anyone who has been reading my blogs will know,I have a spinal condition that leaves me in considerable pain and have a 40 year history of large scale heroin trafficking and use or abuse,as it were
Six Groups Who Benefit From the Drug War
An awesome presentation from Judge Jim Gray. He really nails a lot of important points in a few short minutes:I will make one comment on Judge Gray's discussion here with regards to his statement that politicians are benefiting from the war on drugs. This has certainly been true in the past, but we're witnessing a palpable shift in the way these issues are approached in mainstream politics. The drug war has become so deeply unpopular among a sizable segment of the population that the White House felt it necessary to publicly reject the "war" metaphor. It was a shrewd and arguably disingenuous political maneuver, but it illustrates vividly how far removed we are from the days when politicians went out of their way to impress the public with tough lock 'em up rhetoric. You don't hear many mainstream politicians bragging about their drug war credentials these days. Heck, Obama's most popular drug policy decision since taking office was his effort to curtail DEA raids in medical marijuana states. We need to stop selling the idea that supporting the drug war is good for politicians. We don't want them thinking that, and it isnât really even true anymore.
Stupid Arguments Against Medical Marijuana, Part 2
Some legislators in Vermont aren't thrilled about a bill to create 5 medical marijuana dispensaries in the state:The bill has drawn opposition from the Department of Public Safety, where officials say they worry that dispensaries would fuel increased illegal drug use.Well, I certainly understand your concerns, ladies and gentlemen, and I thank you for sharing them. Allow me to clarify one thing though, if I may; this is legal drug use we're talking about here. This is for sick people using marijuana legally with a doctor's recommendation.You see, Vermont's patients can only obtain their medicine from illegal sources currently, so this is actually about creating a legal option and reducing illegal activity. If anyone is still anticipating problems here, I would refer you to the fact that you live in Vermont. Your neighbor grows marijuana. Vermont's epic pre-existing marijuana supply will not be substantially impacted by 5 little dispensaries that only sell to sick people. If your happy life in Vermont hasnât already been ruined by hippies, then you have nothing to worry about with this, I assure you.
Stupid Arguments Against Medical Marijuana, Part 1
Cliff Kincaid, kingpin of paranoid prohibitionists, blames last week's Pentagon shooting on the attacker's use of medical marijuana. That's right folks, marijuana makes you kill people. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, where they have more medical marijuana dispensaries than Starbucks, the murder rate is at its lowest level since 1957.
Prisoner Re-Entry: New Mexico Becomes Second State to "Ban the Box;" New Law Bans Criminal History Query on Public Job Applications
Gov. Bill Richardson (D) Monday signed into law a bill that removes one obstacle to employment for people with criminal convictions. The bill, SB 254, the Consideration of Crime Convictions for Jobs bill, will remove the question of public job applications about whether a person has been convicted of a felony, leaving such questions for the interview stage of the hiring process. The bill applies to job application for state, local, or federal public jobs. It does not apply to private sector employers. It passed the Senate 35-4 and the House 54-14. Known as "ban the box," such bills are designed to allow ex-convicts a better opportunity to re-enter the job market. Having a job is a key means of reducing recidivism. The measure passed the Senate 35-4 and the House 54-14. New Mexico now becomes the second state to pass such legislation. Minnesota passed a similar measure in 2009. Some cities, including Boston, Chicago, Minneapolis, and San Francisco have passed similar measures as well. "Lots of young people - and old people, too - have that one stupid mistake they made years ago," said Republican Sen. Clint Harden, a former state labor secretary who sponsored the bill. The bill gives them a chance to explain before they are shut out of the hiring process: "Yeah, I had a felony when I was 22, I got caught for possession with intent, I did probation, that was 15 years ago, and I don't do drugs now and yadda yadda," he told the Associated Press late last month. "We thank Gov. Richardson for signing the 'ban the box' bill," said Julie Roberts, acting state director of Drug Policy Alliance New Mexico. "The governor and the New Mexico legislature affirmed their support for people with convictions to be given this opportunity for a second chance. This bill will make our communities safer and keep families together by providing job opportunities to people who need them most." One in five Americans has a criminal record, and Roberts is one of them. She had a drug bust at age 18. "Since then, I've gone to college, I have had internships, I haven't been in trouble for eight years but I still have to check the box," she said. "There's a lot of people like me. This new law will allow individuals who are qualified for a position the chance to get their foot in the door," she said. "As a person with a criminal conviction, this law will not only help me, but others around the state who made a mistake years ago and are now rebuilding their lives." In addition to the Drug Policy Alliance, the bill was supported by the New Mexico Conference of Churches, the Lutheran Advocacy Ministry of New Mexico, the New Mexico Public Health Association, the Women's Justice Project, and Somos Un Pueblo Unido.
Everything You Need to Know About Marijuana Legalization
As more states begin to consider reforming marijuana laws, legislators are struggling to sort fact from fiction in the marijuana debate. Fortunately, we've already made enough progress that we have plenty of practical experience studying the impact of marijuana reform. Our friends at NORML have compiled this useful and revealing information in a new report, Real World Ramifications of Cannabis Legalization and Decriminalization. It's an excellent resource that ought to help any reasonable person understand why ending marijuana prohibition will make the world a better place.
How Many Cops Does it Take to Bust a Marijuana User?
Via Radley Balko, here's a perfect example of routine policing in the war on drugs. If it sounds supremely pathetic, that's because it is:Another tip from a watchful citizen early Tuesday morning brought the Greensburg Police Department closer to exterminating the drug problem in the city.â¦The caller advised that there was suspicious activity, strange noises and unusual odors coming from the apartment. When GPD officers arrived, the strange smell was identified as "burnt marijuana," Chief Heaton reported.After identifying the apartment that was emitting the odors, the GPD attempted to make contact. But inside the apartment, no one answered.Working quickly to establish probable cause, the officers sought to obtain a search warrant from the office of the Decatur County Prosecutor.In the interim period before the warrant was granted, the GPD kept a secure perimeter around the residence, making sure that no one went in or out of the apartment, Chief Heaton explained."It definitely tied up our units (for about two hours)," Heaton said.The search warrant was secured and served at 1:23 a.m. Tuesday. Upon gaining entry to the apartment, the police found marijuana and proof of marijuana consumption and the five suspects were arrested. [Greensburg Daily News]What a horrible place Greenburg, IN must be if the police have nothing better to do than this and the newspaper has nothing better to do than report every agonizing detail of it. The whole thing is so impressively lame, I can hardly believe I'm reading it. Good luck "exterminating the drug problem" in Indiana's most boring city.
Seventh Grader Suspended For Touching Pill
No real need to provide commentary here- this truly speaks for itself! http://www.care2.com/causes/education/blog/seventh-grader-suspended-for-touching-pill/
For the record: State Department Report, NYC ODs drop, Guatemalan Top Cop & Head Narc Busted, Salvia Banned in Wisconsin
Even though there was no Chronicle last week--due to your editor's death-battle with a vicious Mexican bug; I only returned to the land of the living on Friday--things continued to happen anyway. Here are a handful of items that would have been in the Chronicle had there been one last week: On Monday, the State Department released its annual state on the world on drugs report. The report, called the 2010 International Narcotics Control Strategy, was going to be the subject of a feature story last week before I got sick. I may still go with it this coming week. Also on Monday, the New York City Health Department reported overdose deaths fell in 2008 to the lowest level since 1999. OD fatalities fell from 874 in 2006 to 666 in 2008. Increased use of naloxane, an opioid agonist used to undo overdoses may get some of the credit. On Tuesday, Guatemala's national police chief and its head narc were arrested for links to drug traffickers and for the murders of five policemen. Police Chief Batlazar Gomez and anti-drug head Nelly Bonilla were arrested during an "investigation into a drug robbery (in April 2009) in Amatitlan, which those detained today are believed to have participated in", said Attorney General Amilcar Velasquez. Five police officers were killed during the robbery. The pair currently face charges of conspiracy, breaking and entering, abuse of power, making illegal arrests, drug trafficking, obstruction of justice, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. On Thursday, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle signed into law a bill banning salvia divinorum. That makes Wisconsin the 19th state to move against Sally D. A few states have limited its sale to adults, but most of those states have simply banned salvia. The Wisconsin bill, AB 186, bans the manufacture, distribution, or sales of salviaâalthough not its possessionâand backs it up with a $10,000 fine. I'm back at it now, and that means the Chronicle will be back on Friday. In the meantime, I'll most likely post a story or two in the blog just to see if you're paying attention.
The dubious dangers of enforcing drug laws
On FaceBook recently, a LEAP speaker commented that enforcing drug laws puts police officers at risk. Not so, I replied.
How Can We Stop Drug Gangs From Growing Pot in the Woods? Legalize Pot
One of the most embarrassingly mindless trends in the mainstream media's marijuana reporting is that of publishing one redundant story after another about the explosion of illegal outdoor cultivation in our national parks, while failing entirely to diagnose why it's happening and how it might be prevented:Â Pot has been grown on public lands for decades, but Mexican traffickers have taken it to a whole new level: using armed guards and trip wires to safeguard sprawling plots that in some cases contain tens of thousands of plants offering a potential yield of more than 30 tons of pot a year."Just like the Mexicans took over the methamphetamine trade, they've gone to mega, monster gardens," said Brent Wood, a supervisor for the California Department of Justice's Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement. He said Mexican traffickers have "supersized" the marijuana trade. [AP]This Associated Press report is over 1,200 words long, yet does not contain one single idea for addressing the problem. Not even a stupid hopeless drug war idea like "we need more funding for eradication," or "we need to get everyone to stop using marijuana." Apparently, the AP is simply content to point out to us that our most precious natural resources are being slowly destroyed by Mexican marijuana cartels and there isn't a damn thing anyone can do about it.But, of course there is. Illegal outdoor marijuana growing will immediately end the instant it becomes legal for Americans to grow their own marijuana on private property. People don't plant pot in remote wilderness because they like to go hiking. The reason they do it is obvious, but not so obvious that the AP should be forgiven for writing so much without mentioning it. Marijuana is illegal and until that changes, the problems associated with it will get worse every year. Keep that in mind. As devastating as our marijuana laws are today, they are actually causing greater and greater harm the longer they continue.
Debate: Should 'K2' Synthetic Marijuana be Made Illegal?
Calvina Fay of the Drug Free America Foundation says to ban it immediately and ask questions later:Research has linked naturally produced marijuana to health issues, including schizophrenia. With synthetic marijuana being even more potent, it is frightening to consider its potential damage.â¦Increasing numbers of children are purchasing synthetic marijuana products because they are legal and easier to obtain than cigarettes.â¦Let's face it: Anytime you consume an uncontrolled or unregulated drug or a drug with unknown effects, you are taking a risk. Products like K2 are not made in a controlled environment, and those who use it are playing Russian roulette.â¦The U.S. should move urgently to protect the public from yet another dangerous and potentially deadly class of drugs. [CNN]Grant Smith of the Drug Policy Alliance says to take a deep breath and remember that prohibition never delivers on its promises:When lawmakers consider regulating K2, they should keep in mind that the government has waged a futile war against marijuana and people who use the drug for decades.â¦Time and time again, elected officials have dropped the ball when it comes to regulating drugs. Lawmakers have preferred to lazily pass the responsibility of controlling a drug on to law enforcement and the criminal justice system.The problem is, we know from marijuana prohibition that law enforcement has no control over the drug market and the criminals who run it. Criminalizing K2 will only worsen the devastating harm our society already suffers under drug prohibition. Rather than regulation of the supply and ingredients of K2, criminalization leaves the question of what goes into the product up to drug dealers.Rather than passing regulations that bar K2 sales to minors, criminalizing K2 will essentially give dealers the green light to sell the product to whomever they please. [CNN]Nice job, Grant. You win. Every valid concern that exists here is better resolved by regulation than prohibition. If you don't want young people buying it, you can pass age limits. If you're concerned about what's in it, you can require more accurate labeling. If you don't want it sold in certain areas, you can use zoning laws to establish appropriate locations. Or, if you'd prefer to have no control over it at all, you can ban it altogether and let criminals make all these decisions.Pay attention, folks. The effort to ban synthetic marijuana products could be coming to your state before you know it and it's up to you to tell your legislators that regulation is the best approach. This fight could play out 50 different times and we'll win in more states if we start thinking about it now.
More on Police Dept. Blocking Officer From Speaking About Legalization
As I mentioned yesterday, LEAP speaker David Bratzer has been ordered by the Victoria Police Dept. not to speak at a city-sponsored harm reduction event. If they thought they could silence the case for legalization, their plan backfired:Â Â I agree with Pete Guither that it's a great segment. No matter what you think about drug policy, it just seems stupid and cowardly to deny this man his chance to speak. When opponents of legalization start resorting to this sort of petty obstructionism, it doesnât exactly reflect confidence. If the drug war is so frickin' great, it should be easy enough to defend it without attempting to silence its critics.
Former Cop Says Mayor Calvo Should Stop Complaining About the Killing of His Dogs
Check out this letter in The Baltimore Sun from an ex-cop who's pissed off about Cheye Calvo's efforts to monitor the use of SWAT teams. The writer apparently thinks police should be free to use as much violence as they choose without having to explain themselves to angry innocent citizens whose pets they kill.Radley Balko picks the whole thing apart masterfully, resulting in a rather useful point-by-point refutation of all the most common defenses of constantly using SWAT teams for everything. There isnât much else to say except that it still amazes me that anyone would dare condemn Calvo's advocacy. Guess what, if cops bust into an innocent family's home and kill their dogs, they're going to be extremely displeased. Everything that happened here is the fault of bad laws, bad procedures and bad cops. None of this is Cheye Calvo's fault, and any suggestion that he's overreacting is plainly ridiculous. You can't overreact to police coming into your home and shooting your pets! It's a really big deal. This wasn't a random accident that everyone can just put behind them. There is no such thing as an acceptable number of dog killings in the homes of innocent marijuana suspects. Things like that should never happen at all, and if they do, it should be discussed constantly until every contributing factor is identified and every responsible party is held accountable.
Police Dept. Blocks Officer From Speaking About Legalization
From our friends at LEAP:Active duty police officer and LEAP speaker/blogger David Bratzer was planning to accept an invitation to speak about drug policy and harm reduction at an official city government-sponsored event this week...until his police department's leadership stepped in and ordered him not to show up.More details here.
Thanks to the Drug War, Innocent People Fear Police
When a mysterious package of marijuana arrived at the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo, police arrived moments later and murdered his dogs in a horrible botched drug raid. He was completely innocent, and now other innocent people who receive suspicious packages have to worry about being victimized by law-enforcement:Sloan and Anderson have a German shepherd named Cheyenne. Sloan said the Berwyn Heights fiasco sprang to her mind the instant her husband told her about the coffee grounds."Before he even looked in to see what kind of drugs they were, I called 911," she said. "I told them exactly what was going on. I'm like, I don't want them coming through my door with guns drawn, because I love my dog." [Washington Post]It's just so tragic that anyone would even have to worry about such a thing. Every single element of this problem is a symptom of prohibition, from the smuggling technique of intercepting packages at random addresses all the way up to the violent raids and dog killings that occur when police crash into private homes with big guns and no proof of guilt. It's a dreadful situation and no one is safe from it.For more on the horrors of paramilitary policing, here's an interesting piece from Radley Balko and some disturbing news from Pete Guither.
Oliver North Says Dumb Things About the Drug War
You've just gotta read this editorial from Oliver North, in which he claims, among other things, that the media never reports on the Mexican drug war (they do so constantly) and that the Obama administration is trying to legalize drugs ("legalization" isn't even in their vocabulary, remember?). The whole thing is just an impressively confused argument from a man whose extraordinary crimes against our nation will never be forgotten. The fact that this particular guy wants to see more aggressive tactics in the war on drugs is the best evidence that we need the opposite. For more on what a hypocrite scumbag Oliver North is, see this post from Pete Guither.
Which is More Dangerous: Marijuana or Machine Guns?
Via The Agitator, here's another vexing example of the inherent hypocrisy of performing heavily armed SWAT raids in the name of protecting the public:Police arrested Jonathan E. Whitworth, 25, of 1501 Kinloch Court on Feb. 11 on suspicion of possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and second-degree child endangerment.â¦SWAT members encountered a pit bull upon entry, held back and then fatally shot the dog, which officers said was acting in an uncontrollably aggressive manner.Whitworth was arrested, and his wife and 7-year-old son were present during the SWAT raid, Haden said. A second dog, which Whitworthâs attorney Jeff Hilbrenner described as a corgi, also was shot but was not killed. [Columbia Tribune]So this guy is charged with child endangerment for possessing a misdemeanor amount of marijuana, yet police are free to enter private homes and shoot the family pets right in front of innocent children. It seems the only thing dangerous about a small bag of weed is that police might get the mistaken idea that you're a major supplier and raid your home with guns blazing. As safe as marijuana is, it would be a hell of a lot safer if the cops didn't do these kinds of things.