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Credit where none is due
Police,responding to a report of a possible home invasion arrived to find the front door open.Inside they found two men who had nothing much to say and they also spotted a quantity of ecstasy pills an
NJ Medical Marijuana Patient Convicted, Faces 5-10 Years in Prison
The jury has returned its verdict in the case of multiple sclerosis patient John Wilson, who was brought up on serious marijuana charges for growing his medicine:Somerville- The jury returned a not guilty verdict to John Wilson on the first-degree felony charges against him. But the MS patient could still face time in prison after being found guilty of second-degree charges of âManufacturingâ marijuana and third-degree possession of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Â If he had been convicted of "operating and maintaining a marijuana production facility" John would have faced a minimum of 15 years in state prison. That could have amounted to a death sentence for the 37 year old because of the degenerative nature of the disease. [Examiner]So it could've been worse, but it's awfully hard to get excited about a result that could still send a seriously ill patient to prison. I guess the mushroom possession didnât help, but shrooms should be legal anyway and I'm sure he found them helpful or he wouldn't have had them. Let's hope this less-than-worst-case scenario doesnât suck any momentum from the effort to get Wilson pardoned and pass medical marijuana legislation in New Jersey to prevent such injustices in the future.
There's No Economic Crisis for the Drug Cartels
No matter how many people are captured, killed, or incarcerated, the drugs just keep flowing. You could fill a room with academics who take turns explaining how complex the problem is, but it's actually really, really simple:Though estimates vary, many federal law enforcement agencies and analysts believe that $25 billion in drug proceeds are smuggled out of the U.S. each year.This compares to just $61 million seized over the past year â the $3 million blocked in banks through the Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act and another $58 million seized by border inspectors. That means authorities are halting just 25 cents of every $100 in cartel profits. [AP]It's hard to believe that anyone is still confused about why the drug war isnât getting us anywhere. And no, the solution is not to tell police to take more money from people's cars or pass new laws making it easier to do that. Innocent people have already suffered enough for our failure contain this mess.The solution is to appoint more responsible people to distribute the drugs.
Another Crazy Medical Marijuana Lie From the Drug Czar
Our friends at MPP just caught the drug czar literally editing out the most important part of the American Medical Association's new position on medical marijuana. According to a new ONDCP "factsheet":The American Medical Association: "To help facilitate scientific research and the development of cannabionoid-based medicines, the AMA adopted (a) new policy ⦠This should not be viewed as an endorsement of state-based medical cannabis programs, the legalization of marijuana, or that scientific evidence on the therapeutic use of cannabis meets the current standards for a prescription drug product."Notice how it doesn't say what the "new policyâ¦" actually is? That's because the original quote says, "the AMA adopted new policy urging the federal government to review marijuanaâs status as a Schedule I substance." Leaving that part out isn't just confusing and dishonest; it looks ridiculous. If it's now ok to use ellipses to pervert policy positions, maybe I'll just take AMA's statement and do this with it:"This shouldâ¦be viewed as an endorsement of state-based medical cannabis programs, the legalization of marijuana, [and] that scientific evidence on the therapeutic use of cannabis meets the current standards for a prescription drug product."Yeah, I like the sound of that. But I'm not going to print it on a "factsheet," because it's not true. As accustomed as I am to seeing the drug czar's office routinely deploying these sorts of sleazy semantic deceptions, I'm genuinely awed by this one. They buried the lead so blatantly that anyone who reads it ought to just end up wondering what the hell AMA's "new policy" on medical marijuana actually is. And once Google answers that question in a half-second, you might as well have just told the truth or scrubbed AMA off the site altogether like I suggested weeks ago.
NJ Medical Marijuana Trial Takes an Interesting Turn
Prosecutors in the trial of multiple sclerosis patient John Wilson probably arenât too happy about this:A judge reversed course today, allowing a man on trial for possession of 17 marijuana plants that he was growing during the summer of 2008 to testify about his medical condition.Judge Robert Reed had earlier ruled that defendant John Ray Wilson could not present a defense based on this medical condition.But then, after taking the stand in his own defense today, and after multiple conferences among the lawyers and the judge, Wilson was allowed to say "I told them(the arresting officers) I was not a drug dealer and I was using the marijuana for my MS(Multiple Sclerosis)." [NBC]Unfortunately, that's all the judge would allow. Since New Jersey currently has no medical marijuana law, discussion of the defendant's medical use is considered prejudicial to the jury. We can only hope they got the message. John Wilson is a patient, not a criminal.Regardless of the outcome here, this whole shameful episode powerfully illustrates the urgency of New Jersey's pending medical marijuana legislation. This trial should never have happened in the first place, but the least we can do is make sure it never happens again.
"No one threw bong water at me, but it came pretty close"
I enjoyed this story about Colorado State Senator Chris Romer's visit to the Cannabis Holiday Health Fair. As a proponent of stricter regulations that could close many Colorado dispensaries, Romer isn't exactly regarded as a friend of medical marijuana. Nevertheless, he used the event as an opportunity to build relationships and work to find common ground with the patient community. It sounds like a lot of people were impressed to learn how well he understood the issue.There's an important lesson here for folks on either side (or stuck in the middle) of any debate over public policy regarding medical marijuana (and hopefully other pending reforms). Romer approached the conflict by trying to open more dialogue, rather than sitting in an office somewhere plotting against people. In the process, he was able to build some sympathy for his position, while also gaining some sympathy for the concerns of his opponents. Supporters of medical marijuana should also take note of the bad publicity you earn by lashing out against opponents in an unprofessional way. The article quotes Romer saying that, "I did have some people yelling at me and throwing F-bombs." In an otherwise positive article about open communication between patients and politicians, this unnecessary ugliness stood out and reflected badly on the patient community. Bitterness and hostility are in no short supply when it comes to debating drug policy, but it's best to vent such frustrations among friends and never in the company of those we hope to influence. People who don't already agree with you will usually mistake your fury for craziness.Still, I think there's a positive message here about how communities can work together to make drug policy reforms work in everyone's best interest. As medical marijuana continues to gain ground and broader legalization builds momentum, it's going to become necessary for competing interests to cooperate and find common ground. That's what has to happen and every good example we set goes a long way.
Latest Drug War Lie: Debating Medical Marijuana Causes More Kids to Smoke Pot
New data on youth drug use was released today and, as we've come to expect, the drug warriors would rather lie about it than learn from it. Instead of focusing on the fact that more high school seniors are smoking marijuana than cigarettes (proving what a perfect failure our marijuana laws truly are), the drug czar and his minions tried to claim that debating drug policies causes more young people to do drugs:The increase of teens smoking pot is partly because the national debate over medical use of marijuana can make the drug's use seem safer to teenagers, researchers said. In addition to marijuana, fewer teens also view prescription drugs and Ecstasy as dangerous, which often means more could use those drugs in the future, said White House drug czar Gil Kerlikowske.The "continued erosion in youth attitudes and behavior toward substance abuse should give pause to all parents and policy-makers," Kerlikowske said. [AP]Wait, what was that about the medical marijuana debate causing an increase in teen pot-smoking? According to The Associated Press, that's what the "researchers said," but the only reference to medical marijuana in the whole study tells a more interesting story:Marijuana use began to decline in 1997 among 8th graders and then did the same in 1998 among 10th and 12th graders. The rate of decline was rather modest, however, perhaps due in part to effects of the public debates over medical use of marijuana during that period. So they never said marijuana use "increased" because of the medical marijuana debate. Not even close. All they did was speculate that a decrease -- which took place 12 years ago â would "perhaps" have been steeper if it weren't for the debate over medical marijuana. I'll give you one guess where I'm about to go with thisâ¦Teen marijuana use declined following the emergence of a national debate over medical marijuana. That's what actually happened and the suggestion that such declines would have been greater if it weren't for marijuana activism is about as logical as arguing that Sgt. Pepper would have been an even better record if The Beatles weren't on acid. Rates of high school marijuana use had been climbing rapidly until 1996, when California voters legalized medical marijuana, after which point they declined for 10 years straight. Now I'm not saying that the debate over medical marijuana caused a reduction in teen marijuana use, but even if I did, it would still make a lot more sense than what we read yesterday from The Associated Press. Of course, I completely understand that journalists canât possibly read and digest a 700+ page report. That's understandable, as is some reliance on press releases when piecing a story together. But if you're getting all your information from the drug czar, you should be awfully careful not to get taken advantage of. A really good sign that you've been completely worked over is if you end up reporting that the legalization debate causes kids to do drugs.
Search and Seizure: Ohio Supreme Court Rules Police Need Warrant to Search Cell Phones
The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that police officers must obtain a search warrant before reviewing the contents of a suspectâs cell phone unless their safety is in danger. The ruling came on a narrow 5-4 vote of the justices. The ruling came in State v. Smith, in which Antwaun Smith was arrested on drug charges after answering a cell phone call from a crack cocaine user acting as a police informant. When Smith was arrested, officers took his cell phone and searched it without his consent or a search warrant. Smith was charged with cocaine possession, cocaine trafficking, tampering with evidence and two counts of possession of criminal tools. At trial, Smith argued that evidence derived through the cell phone search should be thrown out because the search violated the Fourth Amendment ban on unreasonable searches and seizures. But the trial judge, citing a 2007 federal court ruling that found a cell phone is similar to a closed container found on a defendant and thus subject to warrantless search, admitted the evidence. Smith was subsequently convicted on all charges and sentenced to 12 years in prison. Smith appealed, but lost on a 2-1 vote in the appeals court. In that decision, the dissenting judge cited a different federal court case that found that a cell phone is not a container. In the majority opinion Tuesday, state Supreme Court Justice Judith Ann Lanzinger wrote that the court did not agree with the appeals court and trial judge that a cell phone was a closed container. "We do not agree with this comparison, which ignores the unique nature of cell phones," Lanzinger wrote. "Objects falling under the banner of 'closed container' have traditionally been physical objects capable of holding other physical objects. ... Even the more basic models of modern cell phones are capable of storing a wealth of digitized information wholly unlike any physical object found within a closed container." "People keep their e-mail, text messages, personal and work schedules, pictures, and so much more on their cell phones," Craig Jaquith, Smith's attorney, said in a statement. "I can't imagine that any cell phone user in Ohio would want the police to have access to that sort of personal information without a warrant. Today, the Ohio Supreme Court properly brought the Fourth Amendment into the 21st century." But Greene County prosecutor Stephen Haller complained to the Associated Press that the high court had gone too far. "I'm disappointed with this razor-thin decision," Haller said. "The majority here has announced this broad, sweeping new Fourth Amendment rule that basically is at odds with decisions of other courts."
Europe: Czech Government Announces Decriminalization Quantities; Law Goes Into Effect on New Yearâs Day
The Czech cabinet Monday approved a Justice Ministry proposal that sets personal use quantity limits for illicit drugs under a penal code revision that decriminalizes drug possession in the Czech Republic. The law and its quantity limits will take effect on January 1. The Czech government had approved the decriminalization law late last year, but failed to set precise quantities covered by it, instead leaving it to police and prosecutors to determine what constituted a âlarger than smallâ amount of drugs. The resulting confusion--and the prosecution of some small-scale marijuana growers as drug traffickers--led the government to adopt more precise criteria. Under the new law, possession of less than the following amounts of illicit drugs will not be a criminal offense: Marijuana 15 grams (or five plants) Hashish 5 grams Magic mushrooms 40 pieces Peyote 5 plants LSD 5 tablets Ecstasy 4 tablets Amphetamine 2 grams Methamphetamine 2 grams Heroin 1.5 grams Coca 5 plants Cocaine 1 gram Possession of âlarger than a small amountâ of marijuana can result in a jail sentence of up to one year. For other illicit drugs, the sentence is two years. Trafficking offenses carry stiffer sentences. Justice Minister Daniela Kovarova said that the ministry had originally proposed decriminalizing the possession of up to two grams of hard drugs, but decided that limits being imposed by courts this year were appropriate. "The government finally decided that it would stick to the current court practice and drafted a table based on these limits," Kovarova said. The Czech Republic now joins Portugal as a European country that has decriminalized drug possession.
Man Gets Tased and Dies After Trying to Swallow Marijuana During Police Encounter
I just can't possibly tell you emphatically enough, if you're approached by police, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO EAT YOUR STASH:It's just chilling to watch this young man struggle for his life. The tasing certainly didnât help either, but I'm not ready to join the ranks of commenters I've seen around the web who are calling this a murder. From what I can see, the officers did as they were trained and it's just a shame that police are now encouraged to zap anyone who struggles with them. It's unclear to me whether the tasing contributed to the choking and/or whether some of Grande's resistance was caused by his inability to breathe. What is clear as day, however, is that Andrew Grande would still be alive today if it weren't a crime to possess marijuana. As long as police continue to arrest and criminally charge marijuana users, there will be no end to tragedies like this one. It may be easy for some to blame Grande's panic-induced actions for his death, but that's only half the story. If fear of our drug laws leads people to take such risks, then there is something wrong with our drug laws. The leaders of the war on drugs are constantly claiming that they are only trying to help people like Andrew Grande. The drug czar upon taking office exclaimed, "we're not at war with people in this country," and he might even genuinely believe that to be true. But such assurances are worthless as long as people are so intimidated that they'd sooner risk choking to death than receive the sort of "help" our drug policy is known for.
Pledge Your Support: Replace the San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis
Deadline is March 12, 2010
CANDIDATE WANTED: District Attorney for the County of San Diego
POSITION: San Diego County District AttorneyPOSITION TYPE: Public Elected OfficialFILING DATE: March 12, 2010ELECTION DATE: June 8, 2010 CAMPAIGN DONATIONS PLEDGED SO FAR $7,900(as of 12/12/09)PLEDGE YOUR SUPPORT TODAY!THE IDEAL CANDIDATE: The San Diego District Attorney, in partnership with the Community, should be dedicated to the pursuit of truth, justice and protection of the innocent and the prevention of crime through the vigorous and professional prosecution of those who violate the laws of the State of California. Additionally the ideal candidate will keep all "personal objections" to California written law at home or in the ballot box. ETHICS: Candidate must be held to the highest standard of integrity and personal and professional conduct. And will not allow "personal relationships" to interfere with the prosecution of a crime. RESPECT: Candidate will treat fellow county employees and all members of the public with dignity and respect, specifically defendants who are found innocent as well as legal medical marijuana patients/caregivers. ACCOUNTABILITY: Candidate must accept a shared responsibility for ensuring sound fiscal management, operational efficiency and continuous improvement. SUPPORT FOR VICTIMS: Candidate will show compassion and understanding to the victims of crime and their families. DIVERSITY: Candidate will be committed to diversity and recognize the significant and valuable contributions to the mission of the office, fellow employees and the community you'll serve. COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP: Candidate will be an advocate and support the building of strong and viable partnerships with law enforcement, all members of the criminal justice systems and the community you serve for the purpose of achieving the highest level of public safety for the citizens of San Diego County. COMMUNICATIONS: Candidate will be open and forthright in communications with fellow prosecutors as well as all those with whom you come in contact. INCUMBENT HISTORY: Bonnie Dumanis is the unchallenged incumbent to this position. Since taking office in 2004 the current DA has alienated the position from the community and is no longer trusted by the courts, sheriffs or local police departments due to repeated poor judgment in allowing "personal opinion" and "personal relationships" to cloud the San Diego County justice system. Interested candidates should use the confidential contact form below to be considered for campaign support. [contact-form] HOW TO RUN FOR POLITICAL OFFICE: http://www.wikihow.com/Run-for-Political-Office http://www.ehow.com/how_18207_prepare-run-political.html http://www.amazon.com/You-Want-Run-Political-Office/dp/0963367102 Candidate support groups may include, but are not limited to; San Diego Americans for Safe Access National Americans for Safe Access So Cal Norml National Norml Marijuana Policy Project
Big Government's Psychopathic Tendencies!
Big corporations and governments are often lacking in conscience and empathy.
Good Stuff to Read
An Alternet story about the DEA's continuing failure to update their website in accordance with the AMA's new position on medical marijuana seems to have gotten results. DEA made another update here, noting the new position and replacing bad info.  Also at Alternet, 10 Signs the Failed Drug War Is Finally Ending by Tony Newman. This has been an incredible year for drug policy reform and Tony's piece was published before this week's incredible news on Capitol Hill. An outrageous medical marijuana prosecution in New Jersey. It's really time to get this legislation passed.A new poll finds 53% support for legalizing marijuana. Other interesting stuff in there too.The worst anti-marijuana editorial I've seen in awhile. The dude even mixes up North and South Korea.Drug war robots! I've been warning about this for years now. It's just a matter of time before the cartels build robots too (if they haven't already). And finally, Prisoner dupes guards, grows pot in cell. Seriously. He told them it was tomatoes. And he only got busted because another inmate ratted him out. Although I suppose it would have caught up with him eventually, because at some point the guards might notice that he doesnât ever seem to have any tomatoes.
Washington Post Writer Gets Tricked by the Drug Czar, Refuses to Accept Responsibility
It all started when Washington Post's Ashley III Halsey claimed that 11-16% of weekend motorists are on drugs:Feds: Watch out for drivers high on drugsAs you idled at that busy intersection Saturday night, there's a pretty good chance another driver waiting for the light to change was high on illegal drugs.About 11 percent of motorists are high on the weekend, and the number creeps up past 16 percent once night falls on Friday and Saturday, according to federal drug czar Gil Kerlikowske and a national roadside survey by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.The problem is, that's simply not what the drug czar or the survey said. The data reported on percentages of drivers who tested positive for having drugs in their system, which does not mean they were impaired behind the wheel. The NHTSA carefully explained this in their report:The reader is cautioned that drug presence does not necessarily imply impairment. For many drug types, drug presence can be detected long after any impairment that might affect driving has passed. For example, traces of marijuana can be detected in blood samples several weeks after chronic users stop ingestion. Also, whereas the impairment effects for various concentration levels of alcohol is well understood, little evidence is available to link concentrations of other drug types to driver performance.Now, in fairness to Halsey, it was almost certainly the drug czar's intention to blur that distinction and ONDCP shares the blame when their devious press releases lead to factual distortions in the press. Nevertheless, when Pete Guither sent an email correcting the error, Halsey jettisoned all credibility by getting pissed and spewing insults:Your arrogance and ignorance are impressive.Behold the unmatched maturity and professionalism of a staff writer at the venerable Washington Post. Confronted with a transparent and embarrassing error, he spits venom instead of attempting to correct or qualify his poor reporting. Halsey speaks of arrogance and ignorance even though he's the one refusing to admit mistakes and reporting on studies he hasnât read and doesnât understand.As someone who's emailed corrections to a good number of journalists, I can honestly say I've never seen such a shameless and hostile response. Typically, a correction is made or not made and I get a "thanks for sharing" or I'm ignored. This, on the other hand, is so nasty that it would warrant managerial intervention even if Pete's suggestion weren't clearly correct. Seriously, whoever signs the checks at The Post should tell Ashley III Halsey not to act like this.Other than that, the whole episode reminds me of basically every drug-related news story ever published prior to 2009. Maybe Halsey just missed the memo about drug reporting having to be accurate from now on.
Congressional Budget Deal Allows Federal Funding for Needle Exchange and Medical Marijuana in the Nation's Capital
US House and Senate negotiators in conference committee approved the finishing touches on the Fiscal Year 2010 budget Tuesday night, and they included a number of early Christmas presents for different drug reform constituencies. But it isnât quite a done deal yet--this negotiated version of the FY 2010 Consolidated Appropriations Act must now win final approved in up-or-down, no-amendments-allowed floor votes in the House and the Senate. What the conference committee approved: * Ending the ban on federal funding for needle exchange programs--without previous language that would have banned them from operating within 1,000 feet of schools, parks, and similar facilities. * Ending the ban on the use of federal funds for needle exchanges in the District of Columbia. * Allowing the District of Columbia to implement the medical marijuana initiative passed by voters in 1998 and blocked by congressional diktat ever since. * Cutting funding for the Office of National Drug Control Policyâs National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign from $70 million this year to $45 million next year. In a news release after agreement was reached, this is how the committee described the language on needle exchange: Modifies a prohibition on the use of funds in the Act for needle exchange programs; the revised provision prohibits the use of funds in this Act for needle exchange programs in any location that local public health or law enforcement agencies determine to be inappropriate Its description of the DC appropriations language: Removing Special Restrictions on the District of Columbia:...Also allows the District to implement a referendum on use of marijuana for medical purposes as has been done in other states, allows use of Federal funds for needle exchange programs except in locations considered inappropriate by District authorities. And its language on the youth media campaign: National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign: $45 million, $25 million below 2009 and the budget request, for a national ad campaign providing anti-drug messages directed at youth. Reductions were made in this program because of evaluations questioning its effectiveness. Part of the savings was redirected to other ONDCP drug-abuse-reduction programs. Citing both reforms in the states--from medical marijuana to sentencing reform--as well as the conference committeeâs actions, Drug Policy Alliance Executive Director Ethan Nadelmann stopped just short of declaring victory Wednesday. âItâs too soon to say that Americaâs long national nightmare â the war on drugs â is really over,â said Nadelmann. âBut yesterdayâs action on Capitol Hill provides unprecedented evidence that Congress is at last coming to its senses when it comes to national drug control policy.â But, as noted above, there are still two votes to go, and DPA is applying the pressure until it is a done deal. âHundreds of thousands of Americans will get HIV/AIDS or hepatitis C if Congress does not repeal the federal syringe funding ban,â said Bill Piper, DPA national affairs director. âThe science is overwhelming that syringe exchange programs reduce the spread of infectious diseases without increasing drug use. We will make sure the American people know which members of Congress stand in the way of repealing the ban and saving lives.â Washington, DC, residents got a two-fer from the committee when it approved ending the ban on the District funding needle exchanges and undoing the Barr Amendment, the work of erstwhile drug warrior turned reformer former Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), which forbade the District from implementing the 1998 medical marijuana initiative, which won with 69% of the vote. âCongress is close to making good on President Obamaâs promise to stop the federal government from undermining local efforts to provide relief to cancer, HIV/AIDS and other patients who need medical marijuana,â said Naomi Long, the DC Metro director of the Drug Policy Alliance. âDC voters overwhelmingly voted to legalize marijuana for medical use and Congress should have never stood in the way of implementing the will of the people.â "The end of the Barr amendment is now in sight,â said Aaron Houston, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project. âThis represents a huge victory not just for medical marijuana patients, but for all city residents who have every right to set their own policies in their own District without congressional meddling. DC residents overwhelmingly made the sensible, compassionate decision to pass a medical marijuana law, and now, more than 10 years later, suffering Washingtonians may finally be allowed to focus on treating their pain without fearing arrest." Medical marijuana in the shadow of the Capitol? Federal dollars being spent on proven harm reduction techniques? Congress not micromanaging DC affairs? What is the world, or at least Washington, coming to?
Prosecution: No More Crack Pipe Felonies for Houston
Prosecution: No More Crack Pipe Felonies for Houston Beginning January 1, prosecutors in Harris County, Texas, will no longer file felony drug charges against people found with less than one one-hundreth of a gram of illegal drugs. Currently in Houston, people caught with trace amounts of drug or holding crack pipes with drug traces are routinely charged with felonies. But under a new policy promulgated by Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos, police are instructed to instead issue Class C misdemeanor tickets to people caught in possession of crack pipes or trace amounts of drugs. That means arrestees will face only a $500 fine, not the up to two years in state jail mandated by the felony charge. The cops are not happy. âIt ties the hands of the officers who are making crack pipe cases against burglars and thieves,â said Gary Blankinship, president of the Houston Police Officers' Union. âA crack pipe is not used for anything but smoking crack by a crack head. Crack heads, by and large, are also thieves and burglars. They're out there committing crimes,â he told the Houston Chronicle. But Lykos told the Chronicle there were good reasons to change the policy. Less than one-hundreth of a gram of a drug is not enough for more than one drug test, and defense attorneys often want to run their own tests, she said.
10 Rules for Dealing With Police (Film Preview)
If you've ever wondered why I only blog at night, it's because I've been spending the daylight hours at Flex Your Rights helping write and produce what I believe will be the best know your rights resource ever made. Here's a peak at the new film 10 Rules for Dealing with Police, which we're releasing on January 25:I have a cameo in the film where I get chased and tackled by a massive plainclothes narcotics officer. Mark your calendars.
Deputy Drug Czar: "I hate this job"
The New York Times has a rather strange visit with Deputy Drug Czar Tom McClellan in which he says he only took the job because his son had recently died from a drug overdose and now admits that he hates working there:In a recent interview in his office here — still sparsely decorated except for a photocopied picture of his family, including his surviving son and two young grandsons (or "grand felons," as he called them) — Dr. McLellan put his feet up on the coffee table and declared, "I hate this job." "This is a job that needs scientific background," he went on. "But if you come to it with the kind of desires to turn everything into a scientific experiment, you will have your poor little heart broken." I don't understand. Did Tom McClellan think they cared about science at the Office of National Drug Control Policy? Maybe if someone had shown him Stoners in the Mist, he could have figured out what he was getting himself into before it was too late. Regardless, it's just weird to find the new deputy drug czar already hating on his own job in The New York Times. It strikes me as yet another indication of what a sickly and irrelevant institution the ONDCP has become. Sometimes, I feel like it's just a matter of time before the whole thing collapses in a poignant public spectacle: Dr. McClellan might be our best candidate yet for bringing that beautiful sight to life.
Medical Marijuana: LA City Council Votes to Cap Medical Marijuana Dispensaries at 70
Under a measure passed Tuesday by the Los Angeles City Council, the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the city will shrink by more than 90%. The council voted to cap the number of dispensaries at 70, while recent estimates put the number of actually operating medical marijuana outlets in the city at between 800 and 1000. The vote is only the latest in the councilâs torturous and twisted four-year effort to regulate the cityâs booming medical marijuana retail industry. There were four dispensaries in the city when the council first tackled the issue in 2005. By the time the council issued a moratorium on new dispensaries in 2007, there were 186. In the past two years, their numbers have increased four-fold from there. Of the dispensaries that legally registered with the city prior to the moratorium, officials believe 137 are still open. Those establishments will be allowed to stay open, but may have to move to comply with restrictions on where they may locate. "I think we should hold true to those that followed the rules," said Councilman Dennis Zine, explaining why he voted to reward dispensaries that were legally registered. If Los Angeles actually does cap dispensaries at 70, that will mean roughly one dispensary for every 50,000 residents. In Oakland, the only other large city in the state to impose a cap, four dispensaries serve 100,000 residents each. Other, smaller, California cities with caps include Berkeley (one dispensary for each 34,000 residents), Palm Springs (one for each 24,000 residents), West Hollywood (one for every 9,000 residents), and Sebastopol (one for every 3,500 residents). The council will continue working on its medical marijuana dispensary regulation ordinance tomorrow (Wednesday), and could even see a final vote then.