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Mexican Drug War

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PA Bill Allowing MedMJ Growers to Sell Direct to Patients Advances, Cartel Gun Bill Filed, More... (11/17/23)

The South African National Assembly has approved a marijuana legalization bill, a bipartisan federal bill to disarm cartels by blocking the flow of American guns south is filed, and more.

Peso Pluma. The popular Mexican artist has been threatened by cartels over his narcocorridos. (Creative Commons)
Medical Marijuana

Pennsylvania House Approves Bill to Let Medical Marijuana Growers Sell Directly to Patients. The House on Wednesday approved a measure, Senate Bill 773, that would allow licensed medical marijuana growers in the state to sell their products directly to patients. The bill has already passed the Senate, but will have to go back for a concurrence vote after changes were made in the House.

Under the measure, sponsored by Sen. Chris Gebhard (R), the state Department of Health would create a process to allow the state's 10 independent marijuana grower-processors to apply to obtain a dispensary permit to engage in direct commerce with patients. The House amended the bill to allow the state's four independent dispensaries to grow their own medical marijuana as well.

Under the state's current medical marijuana law, only 25 businesses can be licensed for growing and processing, and only five of those can sell directly to patients through vertically integrated dispensaries. That has created a near monopoly on medical marijuana in the state, one dominated by out-of-state operators.

If the Senate approves the changes in a final vote, the bill will then go to the desk of Gov. Josh Shapiro (D).

Drug Policy

Bipartisan Bill Aims to Disarm Cartels by Stopping Trafficking of American Guns Across Southern Border. On Tuesday, House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Chair Rep. Mike Thompson (R-CA) joined Rep. Dan Goldman (NY-10) and Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) to introduce the "Disarming Cartels Act" to curtail the trafficking of US-made firearms and ammunition southbound over the US-Mexico border. The measure is also cosponsored by Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV), Danny Davis (D-IL), and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC).

Guns originating in the United States power human- and drug-trafficking efforts and other illicit activities by cartels and other transnational criminal organizations in Mexico and beyond. "Firearms purchased in the United States are being illegally trafficked to Mexico, arming the cartels and fueling the fentanyl epidemic," said Thompson. "Going after the bad actors that facilitate the exchange of guns for fentanyl will help us crack down on illegal drug trade while preventing firearms from getting into the hands of cartels and other criminal organizations. The Disarming Cartels Act will help us secure our border, reduce the flow of fentanyl in our country, and disrupt the illegal flow of firearms into Mexico. As Chair of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, I'm proud to support this important bill with Reps. Goldman, Castro, Titus, Danny Davis, and Eleanor Holmes Norton."

"Democrats and Republicans alike recognize the devastating threat posed by the fentanyl trade and human smuggling and trafficking, all of which are predominantly controlled by Mexican drug cartels at our southern border," Goldman said. "But Republicans simply ignore that the source of the cartels' power is the hundreds of thousands of American-manufactured weapons of war that flow out of the United States and into the hands of the cartels. If we want to address crime across our southern border, then we must address the exportation of American guns across the border. The Disarming Cartels Act will do just that."

Mexico has one gun store in the entire country and restrictive firearm regulations. Yet, on an annual basis, there are nearly 30,000 annual firearm deaths in Mexico.

More than 500,000 American-made guns are trafficked to Mexico every year, and seventy percent of firearms recovered from crime scenes in Mexico can be traced to the United States. Criminal organizations operating in Mexico purchase firearms and ammunition from U.S.-based retailers to target law enforcement and military personnel, harm citizens, and enforce cartel control of territory.

To disrupt the trafficking of U.S.-sourced firearms into Mexico, the Disarming Cartels Act directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to:

  • Increase interagency collaboration to identify, target, disrupt, and dismantle transnational criminal organizations responsible for exporting firearms and related munitions from the United States to Mexico.
  • Instruct Homeland Security Investigations within U.S. Immigration and Customs and Enforcement to establish a mechanism for sharing aggregated information about interdictions of southbound firearms and U.S.-sourced firearms in Mexico with Federal partners.
  • Expand the collection and analysis of information concerning firearms recovered at crime scenes in Mexico to identify US-based gun traffickers.
  • Enhance coordination with Mexican agencies to increase outbound inspections by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on the southwest land border.
  • Establish performance measures for efforts to disrupt the smuggling of U.S.-sourced firearms to Mexico.
  • Require the Secretary of Homeland Security to provide annual reports on the Department's actions to disrupt the smuggling of US-sourced firearms and munition to Mexico.

International

Mexico's Tijuana Bans Narcocorridos. Last week, the Tijuana city council approved an ordinance banning the performance or even playing in public spaces of narcocorridos, popular ballads that glorify drug kingpins and their exploits. The move comes after threats last month against popular singer Peso Pluma and popular band Fuerza Regida, who have performed narcocorridos. The threats are presumably coming from rivals of the people honored in their songs.

Under the ordinance, any artist who "transmits, exhibits, sings or reproduces music, videos, images or any other similar thing that promotes the culture of violence or makes apologies for crime or for the authors of illegal acts in a live performance" can be subject to fines of up to $72,000. That money would be directed to municipal programs for the prevention, treatment and control of drug abuse.

"What cannot be part of Mexican folklore, nor represent us, is the narcocorrido and the apology of crime," Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero said in announcing the law.

But Peso Pluma said that narcocorridos are a reflection of real life. "It's bad to say that it's normal -- we all know that," Peso Pluma said. "But it's the reality. What we say and what we sing and what's lived and what's heard isn't a lie."

Still, they have long been a target for authorities in the Mexican version of culture wars. Tijuana banned narcocorrido hitmakers Los Tucanes de Tijuana from playing in the city in 2010, and the following year, the state of Sinaloa banned the songs from being played in bars and nightclubs. In 2015, the state of Chihuahua threatened 36 hours of jail time and a $20,000 fine for anyone performing narcocorridos, and in 2017, another narcocorrido hitmaking band, Los Tigres del Norte, were fined for playing "Contrabando y Traicion" ("Contraband and Betrayal") in Chihuahua City.

South African Lawmakers Approve Marijuana Legalization Bill. The National Assembly on Tuesday approved a long-awaited bill to legalize marijuana, It now goes to the other chamber in the parliament, the National Council of Provinces, for a concurrence vote.

The Supreme Court had ruled in 2018 that the prohibition of possession and personal cultivation was unlawful and gave parliament two years to come up with a remedy. It took longer than two years, but now it is finally happening.

The bill to codify legalization was finally introduced in 2020, but action has been delayed, even as South Africa's government has included marijuana in a list of sectors to prioritize in the interest of economic expansion.

The bill does not include specific possession or cultivation limits, which are likely to be addressed in rulemaking from Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamo.

"People should bear in mind what this bill is about. It is about cannabis for private use by adults," MP Janho Engelbrecht said. "You are not allowed to buy or sell cannabis, because this still remains a criminal activity with severe consequences. If you want to smoke it, you have to grow it, don't buy it."

Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo has said that it's the government's hope that the non-commercial legalization bill will serve as a jumping off point for lawmakers to enact more robust regulations to support the establishment of a marijuana market in the country.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in his State of the Nation address last year that he wants to his the country enter the global medical hemp and cannabis industry, arguing that it could generate more than 100,000 jobs.

For now, however, the simple legalization bill that's moving through the Parliament is focused on removing criminal penalties in accordance with the Constitutional Court's unanimous 2018 ruling, which followed a lower court decision in the Western Cape province covering Cape Town to end prohibition.

IN Supreme Court Rules for Jury Trials in Asset Forfeiture Cases, Sinaloa Cartel Hands Out Food, More... (11/9/23)

Florida Supreme Court justices were skeptical of the state's effort to keep a marijuana legalization initiative off the ballot, a Canadian Senate committee calls for an immediate psychedelic research program for veterans, and more.

People in Navolato, Sinaloa, lining up for food donations from the Sinaloa Cartel after Hurricane Norma. (X)
Marijuana Policy

Florida Supreme Court Justices Voice Skepticism About State's Effort to Throw Out Marijuana Legalization Initiative. An effort by state Attorney General Ashley Moody (R) to keep the Smart & Safe Florida marijuana legalization initiative off the November 2024 ballot ran into skeptical justices as the state Supreme Court heard oral arguments on her motion Wednesday.

Justice Charles Canady said he was "baffled" by Moody's argument that the initiative's ballot summary would mislead voters because it says that marijuana would be legal in Florida, when it is illegal federally.

The initiative's ballot summary says it "does not change, or immunize violations of, federal law," Justice John Couriel noted. "C'mon," it also says 'applies to Florida law.' We can't not read the context of the whole statement."

The state also claimed that because the ballot summary says medical marijuana treatment centers and "other state licensed entities" could distribute recreational marijuana, voters might assume they are authorizing the creation of more licenses.

"The ballot summary is playing on a desire of voters to see greater competition in this marketplace," the state argued.

But Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz scoffed, asking what kind of voter would want recreational marijuana but would vote against it because they disagreed with the structure of the marketplace. The state argued that the language needs to be clear regardless.

Attorneys for the initiative noted that they had studied previous Supreme Court guidance on marijuana legalization initiatives and drafted their accordingly.

"This court has said many times that it's reluctant to strike language from the ballot," initiative attorneys argued. "If there was ever a case not to do it, it's the one where the ballot sponsor looked at this court's precedents, tried to follow them scrupulously, and even adopted the language that this court said is appropriate."

The court has until April 1 to reach its decision. If it approves the initiative, the measure will need the approval of 60 percent of voters to pass.

Asset Forfeiture

Indiana Supreme Court Rules Civil Forfeiture Defendants Have a Right to a Jury Trial. The state Supreme Court ruled unanimously last week that civil asset forfeiture defendants have the right to a jury trial.

The ruling came in the case of Alucious Kizer, from whom police seized $2,435 in cash after a traffic stop where they found drugs in his vehicle. Under state civil forfeiture law, police can seize assets if they are suspected of criminal activity. King challenged the seizure, but the state Court of Appeals ruled that he was "not entitled to trial by jury."

"The State insists that Kizer has no right to a jury trial because civil forfeitures pursuant to Indiana's drug forfeiture laws are a special statutory procedure intended exclusively for trial by the court," Justice Christopher M. Goff of the Indiana Supreme Court summarized in an opinion published October 31. "Kizer disagrees, arguing that the State's theory would effectively deprive Hoosiers of a jury trial when filing suit under any modern statutory scheme."

The court sided with Kizer. "The historical record -- consisting of statutes and judicial decisions reflecting contemporary practice -- strongly suggests that Indiana continued the common-law tradition of trial by jury in actions for the forfeiture of property," wrote Goff. The seizure of assets suspected to be used in the commission of a crime, he added, is "an essentially legal action that triggers the right" to a jury trial.

The Supreme Court returned Kizer's case to a lower court for a jury trial to determine whether he will get his $2,435 back.

"The right to a trial by jury of our peers is core to our system of justice," said Sam Gedge, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice. "For centuries, courts across the nation have confirmed the obvious: when the government sues to forfeit your property, you're entitled to make your case to a jury."

International

Canadian Senate Committee Calls for Immediate Launch of Psychedelic Research Program to Explore Treatments for Veterans. The Senate Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs issued a report Wednesday that calls for "the immediate implementation of a robust research program" funded by Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) and the Department of Defense, in partnership with federal health agencies, to carry out studies into the efficacy of psychedelic-assisted therapy for veterans with conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The subcommittee was critical of VAC's current approach to psychedelic medicine, calling it a "wait and see" approach that is "ill-suited" to the moment. The agency "should be doing everything in its power to improve the health of veterans, particularly those who have exhausted all the treatment options available to them," the report said. "Research on these subjects is constantly evolving and will continue to do so. No one can predict whether progress will be spectacular or whether there will be setbacks. What we know today is that there is no reason to wait for results from other countries, because the results would still need to be confirmed for our veterans," the report says. "It is the Government of Canada's duty to assure veterans that it is doing everything in its power, immediately, to respect its solemn commitment to support, at any cost, those who chose to defend us with honour."

Sen. David Richards, chair of the subcommittee, said that the panel "heard harrowing stories from veterans who have returned home from conflict zones only to face the darkest moment of their lives." The research into psychedelic-assisted therapy is too promising to ignore," he said. "Our veterans sacrifice so much -- we must do everything we can to help them."

Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel Distributes Food to Families Affected by Hurricane in El Chapo's Hometown. After Hurricane Norma wreaked havoc along the Mexican Pacific Coast last week, men linked to the Sinaloa Cartel delivered groceries to affected families in the Sinaloa municipality of Navolato, the birthplace of imprisoned cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

Images and videos have circulated of residents standing in lines to receive bags of necessities marked on the outside with the initials JGL, alluding to Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzman Loera. People received toilet paper, sugar, corn flour, egg and cans of tuna, among other items.

Navolato is also the home Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar, El Chapo's son, who is known as El Chapito. Ivan and his brothers form the Los Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel and ran the Juarez Cartel out of town back in 2020.

OR Lawmakers Discuss Measure 110 Rollback, Cartel Kills 13 Cops in Mexico, More... (10/24/23)

New York is rolling out a drug checking program, Seattle begins a crackdown on public drug use, and more.

Drug Policy

Mexico's bloody drug wars keep on generating new body counts. (Creative Commons)
Oregon Lawmakers Hold Hearing on Measure 110 Issues. Two years after voters approved Measure 110, which decriminalizes drug possession and allocates hundreds of millions of dollars in marijuana tax revenues to drug prevention and treatment, the measure is under concerted attack. With concerns over overdoses and public drug use rising, a legislative joint committee on addiction met last week with Measure 110 on its mind.

"The crisis that we are facing in our addiction system is not a big-city crisis or a rural-community crisis, it's not a Republican crisis, it's not a Democrat crisis or an Independent crisis, this is a crisis in all of Oregon," said Sen. Kate Lieber, D-Portland, who chairs the committee.

Lieber vowed that the committee would examine all aspects of the crisis and consult with a broad range of experts to come up with policy solutions that lawmakers could address in the 2024 legislative session. Democrats hold a majority in the legislature and have not committed to repealing Measure 110, but Lieber said it could use some adjustments.

"It is clear that the ballot measure that Oregonians passed in 2020 is not delivering what we need it to deliver, and we need to make systemwide change to try to address this issue," she said.

Her Republican counterpart, Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, was more inclined to attack Measure 110.

"I agree that Measure 110 is not delivering. In fact, I think it has been a massive failure. I think it was born to fail for a couple of reasons. One, is that there was not on-demand treatment that was ready to go when decriminalization happened, and I think that was a huge mistake," he said. "I also think that community harm reduction was not really contemplated with Measure 110 and making sure that those who are causing harm to the community through addiction get to treatment and recovery."

During the hearing, lawmakers heard from addiction prevention and recovery experts, none of whom would go so far as to recommend repealing Measure 110. Instead, they said that the state's addiction treatment and recovery systems are understaffed and underfunded.

Seattle Police Crack Down on Public Drug Use as New City Ordinance Goes into Effect. Last month, the city council passed an ordinance criminalizing public drug use and possession under municipal law, and last Friday, police began emphatically enforcing it. Squads of police officers swept through two neighborhoods -- Little Saigon and downtown Pine Street -- and arrested about two dozen people.

Ten people were jailed, mostly on outstanding felony warrants, while another 15 people who were arrested were referred to case workers and released.

Police Chief Adrian Diaz said the department would conduct similar operations on a weekly basis.

"We are going to be compassionate in our approach to getting people connected with services while still making sure our city streets are safe," he said.

But opponents worry the law will punish people for addictions and called it a new version of the war on drugs, which subjected Black and brown people to disproportionate enforcement. And they noted that access to treatment remains severely limited.

"Data shows the minute you're arrested, there are cascading consequences for your stability," said Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda , who opposed the new law. "People are more likely to die while in jail due to withdrawal or die upon release due to overdoses," she said. "We don't want public consumption throughout the streets, but we do not have the treatment resources necessary to implement this policy."

Harm Reduction

New York State Department of Health Announces Drug Checking Programs The New York State Department of Health's Office of Drug User Health (NYSDOH-ODUH) has implemented four drug checking programs operated by state funded Drug User Health Hubs (DUHH). Drug checking is used as a consumer safety tool -- either before or after consumption -- and a method to engage people who use drugs (PWUD) in other harm reduction services. This information can help inform the larger PWUD community about new or emerging adulterants in the local drug supply and how to decrease their risk of overdose from dangerous substances like fentanyl.

"As new or dangerous substances, including fentanyl, continue to appear in the drug supply, the risk of overdose for people who use drugs continues to rapidly increase," State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said. "Given this ever-changing landscape, these essential comprehensive drug checking services will help protect New Yorkers and help us to better understand the local drug supply and improve overall drug user health."

The technology used to test for drugs produces results within minutes and provides the technician the ability to determine the chemical composition of the sample. To ensure that technicians can interpret test results accurately, the NYSDOH-ODUH has contracted with an experienced drug checking consultant who provides training and ongoing technical assistance.

For further support, the drug checking program also includes the use of a confirmatory laboratory that allows DUHH to send residual amounts of inactivated drug samples to the lab and in compliance with Drug Enforcement Administration and postal regulations. Technicians will send the first 150 residual samples to the laboratory for additional testing to confirm the accuracy of initial analysis. The laboratory providing the additional analysis utilizes gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS), which is regarded as a gold standard for drug testing.

"The unregulated drug supply is increasingly unpredictable and dangerous. Having comprehensive drug checking available is a strategy to decrease potential harms, including overdoses, and supports our ongoing work to expand and enhance harm reduction services across New York State," said Office of Addiction Services and Supports Commissioner Dr. Chinazo Cunningham.

The drug checking programs are located in Central New York, the Southern Tier, the Mohawk Valley, the Capital Region and Long Island. The program involves staffing and training at each participating DUHH. Governor Kathy Hochul specifically mentioned in her 2023 State of the State Address the expansion of drug checking technology within DUHHs to provide a more comprehensive evaluation of substances before and after use. This enhanced technology will be available at Drug User Health Hubs so that individuals can test their drugs to mitigate drug-related harms and prevent overdose.

International

Irish Parliamentarians Call for "Radical Change" in Drug Policy After Citizens' Assembly Recommends Decriminalization. Over the weekend, the Citizens' Assembly on Drug Use voted to recommend that the country move toward a "comprehensive health-led" approach to drug policy, including a form of drug decriminalization. In response, a cross-party group of parliamentarians is calling for a "radical change" in drug policy.

In a statement on Monday evening, a group parliamentarians, including politicians from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Green Party, Labor, and People Before Profit, said that the decision by the Citizens' Assembly "reinforces the case for radical change in Irish drug policy".

"We urge the Oireachtas [the parliament] to assign the report, when published, to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice to allow them carry out detailed deliberation and to propose draft legislation," the statement reads. We emphasize the need for detailed analysis and recommendations on the decriminalization of the drug user and regulation of cannabis."

Mexican Cartel Guns Down 13 Cops in Guerrero. Supposed cartel gunmen ambushed police in Coyuca de Benitze, Guerrero, on Monday, leaving 13 dead, including the local police chief and municipal security secretary. This was only the latest in a growing number of deadly attacks against police in the region.

At least 34 police officers have been killed in Guerrero so far in 2023 -- one-tenth of the total number of police killed countrywide -- making it the second most dangerous state for law enforcement.

The state has been plagued by turf wars between various drug trafficking organizations, who seek to dominate both the opium and marijuana-growing mountainous interior and the consumer market in the tourist city of Acapulco and other coastal resort areas.

FDA Issues Guidance for Cocaine, Meth Treatments; US Sanctions Chinese Fentanyl Precursors, More... (10/5/23)

The DA in Oregon's most populous county weighs in on decriminalization, top US officials meet with their counterparts in Mexico on drugs and immigration, and more.

Fentanyl seized in Portland, Oregon. (Multnomah Co. Sheriff)
Drug Policy

Oregon’s Multnomah County DA Supports Decriminalization but Wants Public Drug Use Criminalized. As the debate on whether to overturn voter-approved drug decriminalization heats up—the legislature is studying the issue and an initiative campaign to undo it is underway—Multnomah County (Portland)  District Attorney Mike Schmidt says that while he supports decriminalization, he thinks public drug use should be made a misdemeanor.

"I still believe connecting people to treatment is the right thing, but we also have to preserve our public spaces for everybody, and right now that’s not happening," he said.

The city of Portland has imposed its own public use ban, but in a memo outlining Schmidt's position, his policy director, Aaron Scott, argued that local bans are not likely to be as effective as making public drug use a statewide misdemeanor.

"While we are generally supportive that a public-consumption ban is a valuable part of a larger package, we are very concerned that if it is the only proposal implemented or if it is implemented incorrectly that the proposal will be counterproductive," Knott wrote.

Drug Policy

FDA Urges Development of Cocaine and Meth Addiction Treatments. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued unpublished draft guidance, "Stimulant Use Disorders: Developing Drugs for Treatment," that includes recommendations for clinical trials designed specifically to assess treatments for stimulant use disorders, excluding symptoms associated with caffeine or nicotine use.

"Currently there is no FDA-approved medication for stimulant use disorder," said Marta Sokolowska, Ph.D., deputy center director for substance use and behavioral health in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "When finalized, we hope that the guidance will support the development of novel therapies that are critically needed to address treatment gaps."

The final version of the guidelines will be the first time the agency has issued guidance on treatment stimulant use disorders. Comments on the guidance are open for the next 60 days.

Beyond the guidance, the FDA has also recently held workshops and public meetings to encourage the development of treatments for stimulant use disorder. 

Foreign Policy

Biden Administration Sanctions China-Based Network Involved in Fentanyl Trafficking. The administration on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a Chinese fentanyl precursor syndicate and more than two dozen people and entities involved in the international trade in fentanyl and other drugs. Some of the individuals involved have also been indicted on criminal charges in federal court.

The sanctions, which take immediate effect, ban those people and companies from using the US financial system and bars US citizens from doing business with them.

"Treasury is taking sweeping action with our colleagues in law enforcement to expose and disrupt a network responsible for manufacturing and distributing illicit drugs, including fentanyl and other substances that take thousands of American lives each year," Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo said in a statement Tuesday. "Today’s action from OFAC and IRS-CI reflects how we will swiftly use all of our tools to counter the global threat posed by the illicit drug trade."

Top US Officials in Mexico for Tense Talks. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas traveled to Mexico City Wednesday for two days of meetings with their Mexican counterparts. The two key issues facing policymakers are the illicit drug trade and cross-border immigration.

The meetings come as relations between the two countries are increasingly contentious, especially with Mexico bristling at repeated suggestions by Republican lawmakers and presidential candidates that the US use military force inside Mexico against Mexican drug trafficking organization—with or without the consent of the Mexican government.

The Americans will meet with President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and do not expect to come back with groundbreaking policy announcements but see the encounter as a chance to ease relations between the two countries.

"The relationship with our neighbor is arguably the most important that we have in terms of the practical impact that it has on the lives of our citizens every day, in so many ways, but also in a number of very challenging ways," Blinken said.

American diplomats said they wanted Mexico to prioritize combating drug trafficking and that the Mexican government should more aggressively deploy the military and federal law enforcement to intercept fentanyl precursor chemicals from China, as well as go after labs in Mexico manufacturing the drug.

NY Governor Looks to Expand Legal Pot Market, Sinaloa Cartel Says No More Fentanyl, More... (10/4/23)

The Florida Supreme Court has set a date for oral arguments on a marijuana legalization initiative, New York's governor rolls out a plan to expand the legal weed market and crack down on the illicit one, and more.

Seized fentanyl. (DHS)
Marijuana Policy

Florida Supreme Court Sets Date for Hearing on Whether Marijuana Legalization Initiative Can Go on Ballot. The state Supreme Court has set November 8 as the date for oral arguments on whether a marijuana legalization initiative can appear on the November 2024 ballot. The court must approve the wording of the initiative before it can be certified for the ballot.

The initiative from Smart & Safe Florida would legalize the possession of up to three ounces of marijuana by people 21 and over, but contains no provision for home cultivation. Existing medical marijuana dispensaries would be authorized to sell marijuana to anyone over 21.

The initiative is being challenged by state Attorney General Ashley Moody (R), who argues that it does not meet “the requirements of Florda Statures” and that it marks an effort to create a “monopolistic stranglehold” on the state’s marijuana market by Trulieve, a Florida-based multistate marijuana operator and the state’s largest medical marijuana company, which has contributed the vast bulk of the $40 million raised for the campaign.

The state Supreme Court has rejected five of the past nine voter initiatives it has reviewed and is “heavily tied” to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has repeatedly spoken out against marijuana legalization.

New York Governor Announces Plan to Expand Legal Marijuana Market, Tackle Illegal Sales. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has announced that the state intends to expand its legal marijuana market with hundreds of new retailers while aggressively cracking down on unlicensed marijuana sales. She announced that hundreds of licenses are being made available to grow and sell marijuana beginning today. Applications will be open for two months.

Hochul also touted efforts to crack down on the illicit market, announcing the seizure of more than 8,500 pounds of weed after 246 inspections. And she announced that the state will join forces with local municipalities to obtain orders closing illicit pot businesses, as well as using multiple state agencies to target the operators of illicit businesses.

“We know there's room for improvement as New York works to launch a brand-new cannabis industry and crack down on illicit operators, and I'm committed to working with all stakeholders to get the job done right,” Hochul said in a statement. ”My Administration is laser-focused on shutting down illegal storefronts, protecting the health and safety of children, and helping small businesses thrive. We will continue working to build the most equitable adult-use cannabis industry in the nation that invests in communities and rights the wrongs of the past.” 

International

Sinaloa Cartel Says It is Out of Fentanyl Business. Banners appearing on overpasses and near highways Monday in northern Mexico signed by a Sinaloa Cartel faction said the drug trafficking organization has gotten out of the sale and production of fentanyl, the synthetic opioid tied to roughly two-thirds of all fatal drug overdoses in the US in recent year.

The banners came from Los Chapitos, the sons of imprisoned drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, former head of the Sinaloa Cartel. They claim they have banned the production or sale of fentanyl within Sinaloa.

“In Sinaloa, the sale, manufacture, transport or any other business dealing with fentanyl, is strictly prohibited, including the sale of chemicals used to produce it,” the banners read. “You have been warned. Respectfully, Chapitos.”

This is not the first time Los Chapitos have denied links to fentanyl trafficking. In May, they claimed in a letter that they were not involved in the fentanyl trade. “We have never produced, manufactured or commercialized fentanyl nor any of its derivatives,” the letter said. “We are victims of persecution and have been made into scapegoats.”

But experts scoff at the assertion. Mike Vigil, former head of international operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration, said there is concrete evidence that “Sinaloa is the biggest producer of fentanyl in Mexico” and that there has been no sign the cartel is moving away from it.

“I think the Chapitos started feeling the pressure when they increased the reward for their capture,” said Vigil "I think they are trying to create a massive illusion to take the pressure off,” he said. “It’s almost like a big campaign to convince the US they’re not involved. It’s nothing more than pure propaganda."

House Dems Reintroduce Weed Legalization Bill, San Francisco Mayor Wants Forced Treatment for Benefits, More... (9/22/23)

Wisconsin Democrats roll out a marijuana legalization bill, a Pennsylvania medical marijuana expansion bill passes the Senate, and more.

Members of the Sinaloa Cartel parading through San Gregorio Chemic in Chiapas state, near the Guatemalan border. (YouTube)
Marijuana Policy

House Democrats Reintroduce Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Legislation. House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), along with Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) and Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) have reintroduced the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act (HR 5601), one of the most comprehensive marijuana reform bills ever introduced in the U.S. Congress.

Following efforts led by states across the nation, the MORE Act decriminalizes marijuana at the federal level. The bill also aims to correct the historical injustices of failed drug policies that have disproportionately impacted communities of color and low-income communities by requiring resentencing and expungement of prior convictions. This will create new opportunities for individuals as they work to advance their careers, education, and overall quality of life. The MORE Act also ensures that all benefits in the law are available to juvenile offenders.

The bill:

  • Decriminalizes marijuana at the federal level by removing the substance from the Controlled Substances Act. This applies retroactively to prior and pending convictions, and enables states to set their own policy.
  • Requires federal courts to expunge prior convictions, allows prior offenders to request expungement, and requires courts, on motion, to conduct re-sentencing hearings for those still under supervision.
  • Authorizes the assessment of a 5% sales tax on marijuana and marijuana products to create an Opportunity Trust Fund, which includes three grant programs:
    • The Community Reinvestment Grant Program: Provides services to the individuals most adversely impacted by the War on Drugs, including job training, re-entry services, legal aid, literacy programs, The Cannabis Opportunity Grant Program: youth recreation, mentoring, and substance use treatment.  
    • Provides funds for loans to assist small businesses in the marijuana industry that are owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals
    • The Equitable Licensing Grant ProgramProvides funds for programs that minimize barriers to marijuana licensing and employment for the individuals most adversely impacted by the War on Drugs.
  • Opens up Small Business Administration funding for legitimate cannabis-related businesses and service providers.
  • Provides non-discrimination protections for marijuana use or possession, and for prior convictions for a marijuana offense:
    • Prohibits the denial of any federal public benefit (including housing) based on the use or possession of marijuana, or prior conviction for a marijuana offense.
    • Provides that the use or possession of marijuana, or prior conviction for a marijuana offense, will have no adverse impact under the immigration laws.
  • Requires the Bureau of Labor Statistics to collect data on the demographics of the industry to ensure people of color and those who are economically disadvantaged are participating in the industry.

The MORE Act has the support of a broad coalition of civil rights, criminal justice, drug policy, and immigration groups, including: the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Drug Policy Alliance, NORML, Better Organizing to Win Legalization, and Minorities for Medical Marijuana, the Center for American Progress, and Students for Sensible Drug Policy.

Wisconsin Democrats File Marijuana Legalization Bill. State Sen. Melissa Agard and state Rep. Darrin B. Madison have introduced a marijuana legalization bill. This bill would allow Wisconsin to join thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia that have passed laws broadly legalizing cannabis in some form. Republican majorities in the legislature have blocked any progress on such bills in the past.

"I’ve said this time and time again – we know that the most dangerous thing about cannabis in Wisconsin is that it remains illegal," said Sen. Agard. "For the past decade, I have worked to undo Wisconsin’s antiquated and deeply unjust marijuana policies and put our state on a prosperous path forward.  

"Legalizing cannabis is a matter of public safety and racial justice here in Wisconsin," said Rep. Madison. "People in Wisconsin indulge in cannabis use and deserve the ability to buy safe cannabis and use it responsibly without being criminalized. According to the ACLU, Black people were 4.24 times more likely to be arrested than white people in Wisconsin during 2018. Similar disparities exist in convictions, leading to immeasurable harm to black communities in Wisconsin. The bill we’ve introduced today lays a solid foundation for those that have been harshly convicted for non-violent possession charges and the ramifications of those convictions." 

Under the proposal, adults in Wisconsin aged 21 and older could legally have marijuana in their possession. The measure would also lay the groundwork for a regulated cannabis market to launch in the state.

Medical Marijuana

Pennsylvania Senate Passes Bill to Expand Medical Marijuana Program. The Senate has approved a bill that would expand the state’s medical marijuana program by allowing growers to sell directly to patients despite ongoing federal cannabis prohibition. The bill was approved last Wednesday on a 44-3 vote.

Sen. Chris Gebhard and a bipartisan coalition of senators introduced Senate Bill 773  earlier this year. The current state medical law authorizes licenses for 25 businesses growing and processing medical marijuana, but only five of those licensees can sell directly to patients through vertically integrated dispensaries. SB773 would allow all medical marijuana growers and processes to sell directly to patients.

The bill now goes to the House, where it may become a vehicle for broader reforms, from allowing for patient home cultivation to converting the bill into a full-on legalization bill. But changes too profound could endanger an amended bill's prospects back in the Senate, which would have to address any changes.

"There will certainly be vigorous discussions there on what shape this bill will come back to the Senate in said Sen. Dan Laughlin (R). "If this becomes a vehicle for adult use, I doubt that it would pass this chamber. However, I think if they do add home-grown to this bill, it would strengthen the bill and I believe that we would be able to get it through this chamber as well."

Drug Policy

San Francisco Mayor Proposes Mandatory Drug Treatment for Cash Assistance Programs. Trying a new tack in the city's ongoing effort to get a grip on open air drug use and an overdose crisis, Mayor London Breed is now proposing that city residents with addiction issues who receive cash assistance be required to undergo drug treatment in order to keep receiving payments. The proposal would have to be approved by the Board of Supervisors.

Under the proposal, people who apply for County Adult Assistance Programs would have to undergo screening for substance use disorder and participate in a treatment program if they're found to have an addiction. People who refuse or who "do not successfully engage in treatment" would not be eligible for cash assistance.

"We fund a wide range of services, and we want to help people get the care they need but under current state law, local government lack tools to compel people into treatment," Breed said. "This initiative aims to create more accountability and help get people to accept the treatment and services they need."   

Some, but not all, supervisors are on board. Board President Aaron Peskin demurred, saying that Breed should focus on stopping dealers and open-air drug markets rather than "drug testing people on welfare."

"If she can't find the way to prevent several hundred brazen criminals from selling deadly drugs -- how does she think she will find the resources to drug test thousands of welfare recipients?" Peskin said

Drug Testing

Washington Department of Corrections Sued Over Faulty Drug Tests, Harsh Punishments. Columbia Legal Services (CLS) filed a class action complaint against the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC), challenging the widespread practice of imposing harsh discipline on people in DOC facilities based on unreliable drug testing. People have faced months in solitary confinement, delays in release from prison, loss of visitation, and other cruel punishments after colorimetric tests have returned "presumptive" positive results on incoming mail and other possessions.

Clifton Bell, et al. v. Washington State Department of Corrections, filed in Thurston County Superior Court last Friday, alleges that DOC’s actions violate plaintiffs' rights under Washington State law and the Washington State Constitution.Plaintiff Gregory Hyde was placed in administrative segregation (another term for solitary confinement) for almost five months after a presumptive positive test result. The item that tested positive for drugs was a packet of crossword, word search, and Sudoku puzzle books sent by Mr. Hyde’s father and stepmother.

After facing months of irreversible disciplinary actions, DOC returned the books in question to Mr. Hyde with no explanation or expungement of the infraction. His father’s name remains on DOC’s records as having mailed drugs to the prison.

"I think DOC is using its power to punish people who can’t fight back," said Mr. Hyde."My elderly father just wanted to send me some puzzle books. Now they’re saying he’s a drug dealer. Now my father is too far away to see because I got transferred to a different facility. My father is impoverished and on a fixed income. I think it’s an abuse of power. I don’t think DOC should be doing this."

Manufactured by companies like DetectaChem and MMC International, the colorimetric tests (also called roadside tests or field tests) are designed to be initial screening testsand the manufacturers are clear that they require confirmatory testing to be valid. Similar test technologies have been found unlawful in many settings, including in other state prison systems. In 2021, a Massachusetts court forced that state’s DOC to stop using similar colorimetric tests from another manufacturer, with the court describing them as "only marginally better than a coin flip"at identifying drugs. The tests in that case were found to deliver false positives nearly 40 percent of the time.

International

Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel Lauded by Chiapas Townspeople for Rescuing Them from Jalisco New Generation Cartel. Townspeople in San Gregorio Chemic, Chiapas, near the Guatemalan border, cheered a 20-vehicle convoy of Sinaloa Cartel fighters as they paraded through the city after having driven out the rival Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNGC).

JNGC fighters had seized the town and blocked the only highway access to it for nearly two weeks, killing and extorting local residents along the way. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced over the weekend that he was sending 800 National Guard troops to the area. He also implored local youth not to be seduced by the Sinaloa Cartel.

'It turns out that on the border with Guatemala, in Comalapa, towards Motozintla, there are organized crime groups that are fighting for the territory (Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel) to have spaces, to store drugs that enter from Central America, to have control of that territory and they will confront each other, fortunately there have not been many murders,' López Obrador said during his daily presser with the media.

A local Catholic priest said that local residents may have been intimidated into cheering on the Sinaloa Cartel. "Others will say that they have already allied themselves with drug traffickers. They line them up," he said. "It's not that they want to. There will be people who do it on their own, but people are being forced and that is not worth it. People are being forced to defend one cartel, to fight for another and they are being used as cannon fodder."

NCAA Moves to End Marijuana Ban, Study Finds Mexican Cartels a Major Employer, More... (9/25/23)

A pair of Republican senators file a bill to require congressional approval to down-schedule marijuana, the House Rules Committee advances a pair of psychedelic research amendments to the defense spending bill, and more.

College basketball under the aegis of the NCAA. An end to the weed ban could be coming soon. (Creative Commons/Phil Roeder)
Marijuana Policy

GOP Senators File Bill to Block Marijuana Legalization Without Congressional Approval. Last Friday, Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), joined by her colleague Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), introduced the Deferring Executive Authority (DEA) Act to give Congress final approval over the legalization of marijuana. 

According to a recent report from the Congressional Research Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has signaled it will follow a recommendation issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to transfer marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. This would, in essence, legalize marijuana federally. 

This recommendation was issued after President Biden requested that the Department of Justice (DOJ) and HHS evaluate marijuana’s status as a Schedule I substance.  The Deferring Executive Authority (DEA) Act will require congressional review of rules rescheduling marijuana. 

"Congress makes the laws in this country, not DC bureaucrats," said Lummis. "The American people through their elected representatives in the Senate and House should have the final say on such a momentous change as the legalization of marijuana. The Biden administration’s rush to reschedule marijuana without compelling scientific evidence appears to be political, not about what’s best for the American people."  

NCAA Committee Recommends Legislation to Remove Marijuana from Banned Substances List in All Three Divisions. The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports recommended legislation that would remove marijuana from the NCAA's list of banned drug classes at all three divisions, the organization announced last Friday. The recommendation calls for a "robust educational strategy" for college athletes when it comes to marijuana.

"Cannabis is not a performance-enhancing drug and that a harm-reduction approach to cannabis is best implemented at the school level," the NCAA said in a statement following midweek meetings in Indianapolis. 

The committee reasoned that removing marijuana from the list of banned substances achieves several aims: acknowledging the ineffectiveness of the current policy of banning, testing, and penalizing; affirming that NCAA drug testing is aimed only at performance-enhancing substances; and emphasizes the importance of moving toward a harm reduction strategy.

The recommendation now goes to the governing structures of the NCAA's three divisions.

"When making a decision on an important topic like this, we agree that the membership should have an opportunity to vote on the final outcome," committee chair James Houle, lead sport psychologist at Ohio State, said in a statement. "We are recommending a big shift in the paradigm when it comes to cannabinoids. We want to modernize the strategy with the most up-to-date research to give schools the best opportunity to support the health of student-athletes."

Psychedelics

House Rules Committee Clears Pair of Psychedelic Research Amendments to Defense Spending Bill. The House Rules Committee last Saturday approved two psychedelic research amendments for inclusion in the must-pass defense spending bill. It also cleared the larger defense bill for a House floor vote this as a government spending deadline looms.

One amendment, sponsored by Reps. Morgan Luttrell (R-TX) and Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), would provide $15 million in funding for DOD to carry out "Psychedelic Medical Clinical Trials."

The other amendment, also from Crenshaw, would require the Defense Health Agency to "submit a report to Congress on options to ensure that active-duty service members who are suffering from Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) are able to participate in clinical trials under the Department of Veterans Affairs for the purposes of studying the effectiveness of psychedelic substances."

International

Mexican Drug Cartels Employ 175,000 People, Study Finds. Mexican drug trafficking organizations—the so-called cartels—employ roughly 175,000 people, according to new research findings published in the journal Science. That makes organized crime the fifth-largest employment sector in the country. 

The study examined a decade of data on murders, missing persons, and imprisoned people and used a mathematical model to determine overall cartel membership and which policy responses would best reduce violence. Homicides in the country have tripled since 2007, when then-President Felipe Calderon escalated the domestic drug war by sending in the army.

The study authors argue that the best way to reduce violence is not to lock up more gang members, which they argue would actually increase the murder rate, but to cut cartel recruitment.

"More than 1.7 million people in Latin America are incarcerated, and adding more people to saturated jails will not solve the insecurity problem," wrote the authors.

The analysts identified 198 armed criminal groups in the country, although two of them, the Sinaloa cartel and the Jalisco New Generation cartel, battle for national domination.

Reform Groups Respond to HHS Marijuana Rescheduling Call, TX Activists Rally at Governor's Mansion, More (8/31/23)

A British parliamentary committee is calling on the government to reinstate festival drug checking, Texas harm reduction activists protest Gov. Greg Abbott's regressive drug policies, and more.

More than a thousand Mexican soldiers are being deployed to the cartel-ridden state of Michoacan. (Creative Commons)
Marijuana Policy

Reform Groups Respond to HHS Recommendation to Reschedule Marijuana. The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) announcement that it was formally recommending moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act has excited considerable commentary and varied reactions from the reform community. Here, thanks to Marijuana Moment, are the reactions from several groups. For more, as well as reaction from political figures, click on the link above:

NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano

"The goal of federal cannabis policy reform ought to be to address the existing, untenable chasm between federal marijuana policy and the cannabis laws of the majority of U.S. states," Armentano told Marijuana Moment on Wednesday.

"Rescheduling the cannabis plant to Schedule III of the US Controlled Substances Act fails to adequately address this conflict, as existing state legalization laws—both adult use and medical—will continue to be in conflict with federal regulations, thereby perpetuating the existing divide between state and federal marijuana policies," he said.

US Cannabis Council (USCC) Executive Director Edward Conklin

"The US Cannabis Council enthusiastically welcomes today’s news. President Biden and his Administration recognized that cannabis was wrongly classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, and they are delivering on their promise to change it," Conklin said. "We believe that rescheduling to Schedule III will mark the most significant federal cannabis reform in modern history. President Biden is effectively declaring an end to Nixon’s failed war on cannabis and placing the nation on a trajectory to end prohibition.

"Rescheduling will have a broad range of benefits, including signaling to the criminal justice system that cannabis is a lower priority and providing a crucial economic lifeline to the cannabis industry by lifting the 280E tax burden. State licensed cannabis businesses of all shapes and sizes will benefit from this historic reform," he said. "We urge the DEA to proceed with rescheduling cannabis with all reasonable speed."

Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) Director of State Policies Karen O’Keefe

"We are encouraged by the recommendation made by the Dept. of Health and Human Services for a more sensible and realistic scheduling for cannabis," O’Keefe said. "Given that over half the US population lives in medical cannabis states and millions of Americans are finding relief with cannabis products, it is long past due for the federal government to acknowledge cannabis’ medical value."

"Unfortunately, moving cannabis to Schedule III will still leave many of the harms of federal prohibition in place," she said. "However, today’s news is a step in the right direction and will deliver real benefits, including facilitating increased research and reducing burdens on medical cannabis patients and the businesses that serve them."

Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) and Parabola Center’s Cat Packer

we recognize that a shift to schedule III would be significant in a number of ways," Packer told Marijuana Moment, noting how the reform would remove research barriers and allow marijuana businesses to "make normal business deductions."

However, she said that the rescheduling action "would fall woefully short of the promises made by President Biden during his 2020 presidential election campaign, especially promises made to Black and Brown communities."

"It does not address the underlying criminalization of marijuana, even just for personal use and possession—which President Biden has already acknowledged as a failure that disproportionately impacts Black and Latino communities," Packer said. "If the Biden Administration is seriously committed to ending the Country’s failed approach on marijuana and righting the wrongs of marijuana criminalization including addressing the disproportionate impacts of criminalization on Black and Latino communities, Biden should support decriminalization and a new approach to federal cannabis policy that actually promotes fairness and justice."

National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) CEO Aaron Smith

"Moving cannabis to schedule III could have some limited benefit but does nothing to align federal law with the 38 U.S. states which have already effectively regulated cannabis for medical or adult use," Smith said. "The only way to fully resolve the myriad of issues stemming from the federal conflict with state law is to remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and regulate the product in a manner similar to alcohol.""The vast majority of Americans live in states with laws that depart from federal law on this issue and where thousands of regulated Main Street businesses are serving the legal cannabis market safely and responsibly," he said. "It’s long past time for Congress to truly harmonize federal policy with those states."

Harm Reduction

Texas Activists Rally Outside Governor's Mansion to Protest Abbott's Harm Reduction and Overdose Policies. Texas activists marked International Overdose Awareness Day Wednesday by rallying in front of the governor's mansion in downtown Austin to call out Gov. Greg Abbott (R) for his regressive policies around harm reduction and overdose prevention.

The state has seen a 30 percent increase in fentanyl-related overdose deaths from 2021 to 2022, but Abbott has failed to push for measures that could alleviate the crisis, such as House Bill 362, which would have legalized fentanyl test strips. While that bill passed the House, it failed to advance out of the Senate.

Instead of taking up harm reduction and overdose prevention measures, Abbott has urged the legislature to crack down on trafficking, including a February move declaring fentanyl an emergency. He also directed lawmakers to label fentanyl overdoses "poisonings" and prosecute them as murder.

The protest was organized by VOCAL-TX, an activist and harm reduction organization.

International

UK Home Office Urged to Reinstate Festival Drug Checking. The House of Commons Home Affairs Committee issued a report Thursday urging the Home Office to reinstate music festival drug checking, which had been a regular part of the festival scene in recent years until the Tory government suddenly demanded drug checkers be licensed earlier this summer. The Home Affairs Committee report also urged members of Parliament to grant necessary licenses to local authorities to allow drug checking to go forward in a bid to reduce overdoses.

A licensing plan should be in effect by next summer, the report urged. This summer, festival organizers were hit with last-minute notices that they needed licenses only hours before festivals began. Those licenses came with a $3,500 fee and could take months to process.

"Back of house testing has been operating at festivals for a number of years through memorandums of understanding between local stakeholders, including the police and local authorities," the report said. "The primary aim of drug checking is to reduce drug-related harms. This is done through the provision of healthcare advice from medical professionals to the individuals who have submitted samples and/or via the dissemination of health warnings to the wider public— for example, to festival-goers. Countries, such as, the United States, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Canada, Austria and Australia have established drug checking services."

But the Tory Home Office is having none of it: "There is no safe way to take illegal drugs, which devastate lives, ruin families and damage communities, and we have no plans to consider this," it said in response to the report. "Our 10-year drugs strategy set out ambitious plans, backed with a record £3 billion funding over three years to tackle the supply of illicit drugs through relentless policing action and building a world-class system of treatment and recovery to turn people’s lives around and prevent crime."

Mexico Deploys 1,200 More Troops to Conflict-Ridden Michoacan. The Mexican government said Monday it sent 1,200 more troops to the cartel-dominated western state of Michoacan after a weekend of violence. State prosecutors said three convenience stores and five trucks and cars had been set afire, a tactic often used by drug cartels in the state to block roads and enforce extortion demands. Prosecutors said three men and three youths aged 16 and 17 were arrested in the attacks.

The soldiers are being deployed to the cities of Apatzingan, Buenavista, and Uruapan. In Buenavista, lime growers and farmers are complaining of extortion by the cartels, and in Apatzingan, cartel extortion has nearly doubled the price of basic goods. Similar conditions a decade ago sparked the rise of civilian vigilante groups, but those have since faded away or been infiltrated by the cartels themselves. 

DEA Hired "Legacy" Job Applicants Despite Failed Polygraph Tests, DeSantis Rejects Legal Weed, More... (8/28/23)

Republican presidential contenders burnish their anti-drug reform credentials, and more.

There is some tarnish on that DEA badge after a new Justice Department Office of the Inspector General report. (DEA.gov)
Marijuana Policy

DeSantis Doubles Down on Opposition to Marijuana Legalization. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a 2024 Republican presidential contender, reaffirmed his opposition to marijuana legalization as he campaigned in Iowa on Saturday. He argued—contrary to the facts—that legalization has increased the size of the black market in Colorado, the first state to legalize it.

Responding to a question about children experiencing "cannabis inducted psychosis," DeSantis clarified that he "would not legalize" in an echo of earlier comments on the topic. "I think what’s happened is this stuff is very potent now. I think when young people get it, I think it’s a real, real problem, and I think it’s a lot different than stuff that people were using 30, 40 years ago," DeSantis said. "I think when kids get on that, I think it causs a lot of problems and then, of course, you know, they can throw fentanyl in any of this stuff now."

While fentanyl has been encountered as a contaminant in various powder drug substances, every case of alleged fentanyl contamination of marijuana has so far been shown to be false. It, too, is a white powder, which could not be easily disguised in marijuana buds.

He also said he would opposed a proposed marijuana legalization initiative poised to make the ballot in Florida. "I would not do that," DeSantis said on Saturday. "And the places that legalized it like Colorado and California, you know, the argument was—and honestly it wasn’t a crazy argument—’Look, we know people are going to use marijuana. It is a drug. If you legalize it, then you can tax it, regulate it, and it’s going to end up being safer for people."But what’s happened in Colorado, the black market for marijuana is bigger and more lucrative than it was before they did the legalization," the governor said. "So the legalization I don’t think has worked."

But one report on the marijuana industry in Colorado found to the contrary that 99 percent of marijuana sales in the state took place within the legal framework.

Foreign Policy

Nikki Haley Calls for Siccing US Special Forces on Mexican Cartels in Mexico..Former UN Ambassador and current Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley has doubled down on earlier calls to use US military forces inside Mexico to go after Mexican drug trafficking organizations.

"When it comes to the cartels, we should treat them like the terrorists that they are," Haley said. "I would send special operations in there and eliminate them just like we eliminated ISIS and make sure that they know there's no place for them. If Mexico won't deal with it, I'll make sure I deal with it," she added.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has firmly rejected any use of US military forces inside Mexico.

Haley also took aim at China for its role in the production of fentanyl, saying the US president has to "go to the true source" of the problem. "China knows exactly what they're doing when they're sending that fentanyl across the border. And we need to tell them we will stop all normal trade relations with you until you stop killing Americans," Haley said. "We lost 75,000 Americans last year, and we can't continue to allow that to happen."

Law Enforcement

DEA Hired "Legacy" Job Applicants Despite Failed Lie Detector Tests. According to a new report from the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General (OIG), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has hired dozens of job applicants who failed lie detector tests as its polygraph unit faced pressure to approve "legacy" candidates related to senior officials.

Besides favoritism toward friends and family members of DEA officials, the report found that agency bosses ignored admissions of criminal behavior that should have been reported for further investigation, including one case where the applicant "admitted to pedophiliac tendencies" during the lie detector exam.

Also providing evidence about DEA lie detector practices is an agency whistleblower who has filed a federal lawsuit alleging misconduct within the DEA. The whistleblower alleged that when the pedophiliac applicant made his incriminating statements, supervisors pooh-poohed them, saying "there was nothing that could be done" and that the whistleblower "would be liable" for making an anonymous complaint to local law enforcement.

In a letter sent to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram last week, the OIG said it had "identified numerous concerns," including the use of loopholes to avoid complying with a policy enacted in 2019 that specifically bars the agency from hiring applicants who fail a polygraph or show signs of "countermeasures" to cheat the test.

(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org's 501(c)(4) lobbying nonprofit, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this website. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)

OH Health Departments Oppose Pot Initiative, Uganda Lawmakers OK MedMJ, More... (8/23/23)

Mexican drug cartels are increasingly resorting to IEDs, a push for marijuana legalization is underway in Costa Rica, and more. 

Medical marijuana could be coming soon to Uganda. (Creative Commons)
Marijuana Policy

Ohio Health Departments Join Opposition to Marijuana Legalization Initiative. The Ohio Association of Health Commissioners, which represents the state's 112 local health departments, has joined the opposition to the marijuana legalization initiative from the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol that will appear on the November ballot.         

The measure would allow people 21 and over to possess up to 2.5 ounces of pot and grow up to six plants, as well as setting up a system of taxed and regulated legal marijuana commerce.

An association representing Ohio’s 112 local health departments is opposing a marijuana legalization ballot measure set to go to voters in November, claiming the policy change would only contribute to drug-related problems in the state.

"Making marijuana more accessible through legal recreational use and retail sales hurts Ohio, creates serious new risks for children’s health and makes our workplaces and highways less safe," the association warned in a statement Tuesday. "With Ohio’s rates of opiate abuse and overdoses still among the highest in the country, we need to be helping Ohio find solutions to addiction, not facilitating it or the interests of an industry that profits from it."

The association joins with Gov. Mike DeWine (R) and the state's Republican political establishment in opposing the initiative, but a poll last month suggests they are out of touch with Buckeye state voters. That poll, from Suffolk University, had support for legalization at 59 percent.

International

Costa Rica Lawmakers Divided on Revised Recreational Marijuana Bill. A bill to legalize marijuana lost a vote in the Assembly's Environmental Commission, but will proceed to an Assembly floor vote anyway.

After several months on hold, the Environmental Commission of the Legislative Assembly will resume discussions this week on the bill to legalize recreational marijuana in the Costa Rica.

The proposal was rejected by the majority of the commission members, which includes three from the PLN  and two from the New Republic parties. This was confirmed by Manuel Morales, a member of the ruling party.

"There are five votes against," said Manuel Morales, a member of the ruling party.  "We have already prepared the minority report to be presented to the Plenary. Some of the substitute text includes their suggestions, but they are going to vote against it," he added. "When it reaches the Plenary, I believe it can be approved. It may be tight, but I think some members of the National Liberation party will support it," Morales stated.

The bill would legalize adult use marijuana, with regulations similar to those governing tobacco smoking, including no smoking in public. The revised bill would reallocate tax revenues from the legal marijuana market upon request of the ministries of health and security or the Drug Control Institute.

Mexican Army Says Drug Cartels Are Increasing Use of Roadside Bombs. The Army said Tuesday that drug trafficking organizations have increased their use of roadside bombs or improvised explosive devices (IEDs) this year, with at least 5 security force members killed and 42 police, soldiers, and suspects wounded.

The five members of the security forces killed included four state police officers and one National Guard officer.

The Army noted that the use of bomb-carrying drones has also increased. Before 2020, there were no drone attacks; this year there have been 260 so far.

The number of car bombs has also increased, from one last year to six so far this year.

So far, 556 IEDs of all types—roadside, drone-borne, and car bombs—have been found this year. More than 2,000 have been discovered since President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador in 2018, with more than half of those in the state of Michoacan, which has been the scene of continuing violence between the rival Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels.

Uganda Parliament Passes Drug Law That Legalizes Medical Marijuana. The parliament on Tuesday approved the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Control Bill, which will now allow for the licensed cultivation and use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. The bill also legalizes the medicinal use of  khat, a plant native to Yemen and East Africa that acts as a mild stimulant.

"Under a highly controlled legal regime, the international obligations notwithstanding, the two plants (cannabis and Khat should only be allowed for cultivation and usage strictly for medical purposes and research," said Hon Kajwengye.

"The committee posits that all licences and permits to be issued under this Act should centrally be issued by the Ministry responsible for Health since the permission to use narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances is restricted to only medical purposes; the Ministry of Internal Affairs should remain the enforcement arm of the Government," said Hon. Kajwengye.

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