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Chronicle AM: Asset Forfeiture Actions in Three States, Trump Kratom Petition Needs Signatures, More... (1/5/17)

Submitted by Phillip Smith on (Issue #956)
Consequences of Prohibition

It's going to cost big bucks to get into the Arkansas medical marijuana growing business, a petition urging Donald Trump not to let the DEA ban kratom seeks signatures, there is asset forfeiture action in three states, and more.

The American Kratom Association is petitioning Donald Trump to block any ban on the herb. (Project CBD)
Medical Marijuana

Arkansas Sets Grower License Fee at $100,000. People who want one of the five commercial medical marijuana cultivation licenses the state is preparing to issue better have deep pockets. The Medical Marijuana Commission has set an annual fee of $100,000 for those licenses. But wait, there's more: That's in addition to a $15,000 application fee, only half of which will be refunded if the application is rejected. And applicants must show proof they have a million dollars in assets or surety bond and $500,000 in cash. One commission member argued for a lower, $15,000 license fee, saying he didn't want some residents to be shut out of the opportunity, but that move didn't fly.

Kratom

Less Than Three Weeks Remain to Sign Trump Kratom Petition. The American Kratom Association has organized a petition urging President-elect Donald Trump to halt the DEA's effort to criminalize kratom or to reverse any last-minute ban that might occur under the Obama administration. The group has set a target of 25,000 signatures before January 22, but only has 8,000 so far.

Heroin and Prescription Opioids

Ohio Governor Signs Naloxone Expansion Bill. Gov. John Kasich (R) has signed into law Senate Bill 319, which expands access to the anti-overdose drug naloxone to entities such as homeless shelters, halfway houses, schools, and treatment centers that deal with populations at higher risk of overdose. It also offers civil immunity to law enforcement officers who carry and use naloxone.

Asset Forfeiture

Kansas Bill Would Undo Police Asset Forfeiture Reporting Requirements. The first bill introduced in the 2017 legislative session, Senate Bill 1, would repeal a state law requiring law enforcement agencies to file annual reports on the money and other assets they seize. The bill is the creation of the Legislative Committee on Post Audit, which filed a report last summer noting that few police agencies comply with the reporting requirements, so the committee's solution was to kill the requirement. The bill is not yet available on the legislative website. The session starts next week.

Michigan Bill Would Reform Civil Asset Forfeiture. State Rep. Peter Lucido (R-Macomb County) has introduced House Bill 4629, which would reform the state's forfeiture laws by killing a provision that requires property owners whose property is seized to pay 10% of what police feel it is worth within 20 days to get the property back. Lucido said that the next step is getting rid of civil asset forfeiture. The bill is not yet available on the legislative website.

Ohio Governor Signs Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Bill. Gov. John Kasich (R) has signed into House Bill 347, which limits civil asset forfeiture proceedings to cases involving at least $15,000 in cash and requires a criminal conviction or at least a criminal charge be filed in most cases before forfeiture proceedings can begin.

Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.

Comments

Victoria Khan (not verified)

while two states move forward and out of laws based on the premise of the lies which started up the failed war on drugs/people...  one state Kansas, moves bassakward ... and why?? well because most of the police and their respective forces/depts dont follow the law anyway... so to keep it simple, instead of forcing them to follow and come under the law, we will just dump the law altogether, and to hell with people and the things they worked hard to acquire... to hell with the american dream....to hell with it all, (kans-ass).

Thu, 01/05/2017 - 6:04pm Permalink
reddragon696 (not verified)

 The CAFL's make so much profit from the legal theft of mostly innocent citizens for LEO's that the laws will most likely never be repealed. Research shows that less than 1% of big time drug dealers, the ones the law was originally intended for, are actually affected by CAFL. Over 99% are innocent rank and file people that have the misfortune of traveling with cash or expensive property that LEO's decide they want. Most people lose every thing the LEO's steal from them because they simply cannot afford the large fees it takes to try to get the money/property that is stolen from them back. It is truly a shame that American Law Enforcement has become an organization bent on stealing from innocent citizens instead of protecting them from other thieves.

The Supreme Court has already previously ruled that LEOs do NOT have to provide protection for citizens as their job is to enforce laws not protect citizens. Now, with CAFL it appears that we have more to fear from LEOs than we do actual thieves and murderers. 

It just goes to show how much America leans towards a Police State and Dictatorship and it will only get worse under Russian Puppet Trump.

Fri, 01/06/2017 - 5:44pm Permalink

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