Anti-drug crusaders bashed Barack Obama's candid chat with New Hampshire high schoolers Tuesday, saying his casual manner sent a dangerous message: You can get high and still be President. "A person in his position has an obligation to be very clear about the seriousness and illegality and potentially deadly results of using drugs," said Calvina Fay, executive director of the Drug Free America Foundation. She said the two most effective weapons against teen addiction are emphasizing the harm drugs can cause and stressing societal disapproval of using them. [continues 160 words]
Law Wrongheaded, Victoria Lawyer Says The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation yesterday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act currently contains no mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted under the act. Judges use their own discretion about whether to send drug pushers and growers to jail. [continues 434 words]
Mandatory Jail Terms Proposed For Growers, Dealers The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation yesterday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act currently contains no mandatory prison sentences. Judges use their own discretion about whether to send drug pushers and growers to jail. However, the new bill proposes: [continues 386 words]
Law Similar To Marina, Seaside Bans Salinas became the third city in Monterey County to ban medical marijuana dispensaries after a divided council voted Tuesday for an ordinance that prohibits their establishment. After 75 minutes of debate, Mayor Dennis Donohue joined council members Steve Villegas, Janet Barnes and Tony Barrera in voting to adopt an ordinance that bans stores from selling pot for medical use. Marina and Seaside adopted similar measures earlier this year. Councilwoman Jyl Lutes, whose first husband died of cancer and saw the relief he experienced from marijuana, was the most fervent supporter of allowing medical dispensaries in the city. She said it was unfair to ask patients to drive to Santa Cruz -- the closest place where marijuana can be obtained legally -- or to grow it in their backyard, as Deputy City Attorney Chris Callihan said is allowed by state law for sick patients. [continues 228 words]
Britain's illegal drugs trade is worth up to UKP 8bn a year, a Home Office report has revealed. Drugs are smuggled into the country by 300 major importers and distributed by 3,000 gangs, the research showed. The contraband is then sold on to users by 70,000 dealers, some with hundreds of customers. The dealers earn an average of UKP 100,000 a year and their annual turnover is estimated at between UKP 7bn and UKP 8bn -- equivalent to more than 40 per cent of Britain's alcohol sales and one third of its tobacco sales. [continues 86 words]
TWO British Columbia men are seeking to have the richest highway drug bust in Manitoba history tossed out of court, claiming RCMP violated their rights by stopping their vehicle just west of Winnipeg. Derek Laviolette and James Oddleifson are accused of possessing 46 kilograms of cocaine, which carries a street value of up to $3 million. Their two-week trial began Monday with a motion to exclude all the evidence, based on what they claim was an illegal search and seizure. [continues 410 words]
The U.S. Sentencing Commission is taking welcome steps toward ending an unjust disparity in federal sentences for cocaine-related crimes. For two decades, people convicted of possessing or selling crack cocaine have been treated to much harsher penalties than those involved with powder cocaine. Under federal law, it takes 100 times as much powder cocaine as crack to draw stiff five- and 10-year mandatory prison terms. Target Drug Kingpins Even if the commission does all it can, it would not be enough to eliminate the injustice that has disproportionately imprisoned crack-cocaine offenders. Only Congress can fix what it broke when it set badly skewed mandatory-minimum prison sentences based on misinformation. [continues 339 words]
OTTAWA -- The Conservative government unveiled legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs, including those who grow marijuana for profit. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now, to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act has no mandatory prison sentences. Judges use their own discretion about whether to send drug pushers and growers to jail. [continues 591 words]
The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. "Anything that brings a more strict penalty for the use of illegal drugs in the course of drug trafficking, and the use of criminal organized structure-- these are all huge benefits to law enforcement," said Insp. Shaun Gissing, in charge of the Calgary Police Service organized crime section, who welcomed the changes. [continues 209 words]
The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act currently contains no mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted under the act. Judges use their own discretion about whether to send drug pushers and growers to jail. [continues 327 words]
Critic Compares Strategy To U.S. Prohibition The Conservative government unveiled legislation yesterday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act contains no mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted under the act. Judges use their own discretion about whether to send drug pushers and growers to jail. [continues 835 words]
Regarding the article "Common Sense and Marijuana Policy" (Daily News, Nov. 7), if health outcomes determined drug laws instead of cultural norms, marijuana would be legal. Unlike alcohol, marijuana has never been shown to cause an overdose death, nor does it share the addictive properties of tobacco. Marijuana can be harmful if abused, but jail cells are inappropriate as health interventions and ineffective as deterrents. The first marijuana laws were enacted in response to Mexican immigration during the early 1900s, despite opposition from the American Medical Association. Dire warnings that marijuana inspires homicidal rages have been counterproductive at best. White Americans did not even begin to smoke pot until a soon-to-be entrenched government bureaucracy began funding reefer madness propaganda. [continues 91 words]
Grinnell, Ia. - America needs to reconsider its punitive approach to "the so-called war on drugs," presidential candidate John Edwards said here today. "We're not going to build enough prisons to solve this problem," he told a crowd of about 800 at Grinnell College. The former North Carolina senator grinned when a young man sitting behind him on stage asked about drug policy. "Only on college campuses," Edwards joked before answering. He said he's especially concerned about mandatory minimum sentences for first-time drug offenders, which he said should be reconsidered. He added that too few drug offenders get treatment. [continues 210 words]
Bill Also Targets Drug Growers. Newest Stage In Tories' Crime Crackdown The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation yesterday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, and to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act currently contains no mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted under the act. [continues 551 words]
The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials, and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act currently contains no mandatory prison sentences for anyone convicted under the act. [continues 500 words]
Proposed Legislation Will Also Allow Judges To Impose Drug Treatment Over Jail The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation yesterday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The new bill proposes: - - A one-year mandatory jail term for dealing drugs while using a weapon, or for dealing drugs in support of organized crime. - - A two-year mandatory term for dealing cocaine, heroin or methamphetamines to young people, or for dealing them near a school or any place young people are known to frequent. [continues 647 words]
Move Is Latest Front In Harper Government's War On Crime The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. The proposed changes are the newest chapter in the Harper government's sweeping crackdown on crime, which includes bills before Parliament to toughen rules for repeat violent offenders, to keep accused young offenders in jail before their trials and now to impose automatic prison penalties on serious drug offenders. [continues 488 words]
Dear Editor, Re: "Ex-Cop Walks the Talk in Anti-Prohibition Effort" ["Reefer Madness," News] Nov. 2 by Jordan Smith: Former Police Officer b of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition is to be commended for speaking out against the War on Drugs. Attempts to limit the supply of illegal drugs while demand remains constant only increase the profitability of drug-trafficking. For addictive drugs like heroin, a spike in street prices leads desperate addicts to increase criminal activity to feed desperate habits. The drug war doesn't fight crime; it fuels crime. [continues 147 words]
LANSING (AP) - A group that wants to allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes has turned in nearly 500,000 signatures to put the issue on the November 2008 ballot. The Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care says the 496,000 signatures it handed over to the secretary of state's office should easily contain 304,101 valid signatures, the minimum required. If approved by voters, the initiative would allow qualified, seriously ill patients to use and grow a limited amount of marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a doctor. Twelve states and five Michigan cities have passed laws allowing the medical use of marijuana. Marijuana is illegal under federal law under all circumstances. [end]
Within 90 days, the California Supreme Court will use the case of a medical marijuana patient who lost his job to determine whether or not companies can fire medical cannabis users for testing positive for marijuana. The ruling hinges on Gary Ross, a U.S. Air Force veteran who was honorably discharged from the military in 1980 because of back pains. Ross used the computer knowledge he learned to start a career as a computer assistant, said Ross' attorney Joseph Elford. [continues 428 words]
After months of discussion, the Salinas City Council has banned medical marijuana dispensaries within city limits. A 4-3 vote Tuesday decided in favor of an ordinance that will keep them out of Salinas. "I'm sorry for the people who have cancer, who'll die because they don't have this to make it better," Councilman Sergio Sanchez said. "We talk about being a city of peace ... if we don't respect their rights, we'll be hypocritical." As in August's tied decision, Sanchez and council members Jyl Lutes and Gloria De La Rosa voted to reject the ban, while council members Janet Barnes and Tony Barrera and Mayor Dennis Donohue voted in its favor. [continues 247 words]
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION -- Most of the Windsor County legislative delegation has called on Gov. James Douglas to withdraw his directive against Windsor County State's Attorney Robert Sand over his controversial decision to refer a marijuana possession case to court diversion. "Our concern is based on the integrity of county government, voters' rights and the well-established legal principle of prosecutorial discretion," read a portion of the two-page letter, signed by Sen. John Campbell, D-Windsor, Sen. Richard McCormack, D-Windsor, and 11 House members, all Democrats or Progressives. [continues 480 words]
MONTPELIER -- Franklin Billings Jr., a former chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, said Friday that Gov. James Douglas was wrong to tell state law enforcement officers to not take significant marijuana cases from the office of Windsor County State's Attorney Robert Sand. "I think the prosecutors have the sole discretion, or they should have," said Billings, a Republican and former speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives. "He certainly has a right to speak his piece," Billings said of the governor. "You don't throw everybody in jail because they are charged with a crime. You have to look at every case." [continues 441 words]
The Progressive Party had four morning breakout sessions on its convention agenda. One on "Agriculture." One on "Economic Development & Tax Reform." Another on "Health Care," and a fourth on "Drug Policy & Correcting Corrections." According to the printed agenda, the drug-policy session was to have been moderated by Windsor County State's Attorney Robert Sand -- someone in the news last week. But State Chair Martha Abbott informed the delegates that State's Attorney Sand had called her the night before and informed her he would not be able to make it as planned. [continues 434 words]
Gov. Jim Douglas may have thought he was scoring points for next November when he jumped into the middle of the Great Windsor County Marijuana Case, but the pot and the plot are definitely thickening. Martha Davis, a Woodstock Generation lawyer and part-time family court judge who called Fish & Wildlife over a dead deer, got popped for the 2 1/2 pounds and 32 small marijuana plants the officials discovered on her property. State's Attorney Bobby Sand, a decriminalization advocate, gave the first-time offender a shot at court diversion. [continues 517 words]
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION -- It all started when Martha Davis called authorities about the dead deer she found on her property. When a game warden responded and went looking for it, he spotted marijuana plants in a backyard flower bed, triggering a series of events that led to the arrest of the lawyer, a prosecutor's decision to go easy on her and the subsequent intervention of an outraged Gov. Jim Douglas. Now, supporters of Windsor County State's Attorney Robert Sand are speaking out on his behalf in a case that has renewed debate about Vermont drug policy and ignited concerns about political interference. [continues 816 words]
LANSING -- A group that wants to allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes has turned in nearly 500,000 signatures to put the issue on the November 2008 ballot. The Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care says the 496,000 signatures it gave the secretary of state's office should easily contain 304,101 valid signatures, the minimum required. If approved by voters, the initiative would allow qualified, seriously ill patients to use and grow a limited amount of marijuana for medical purposes upon the recommendation of a doctor. Twelve states and five Michigan cities have passed laws allowing the medical use of marijuana. Marijuana is illegal under federal law under all circumstances. [end]
SYDNEY - Results from a survey of student drug use are useful in helping agencies target their programs and resources, but also allow them to see areas where information is lacking, the director of Addiction Services says. Everett Harris was reacting to the release this week of the most recent survey of student drug use in Nova Scotia. There were nearly 4,500 surveys completed provincewide by students in Grades 7, 9, 10 and 12. The drugs most commonly used were alcohol, tobacco and cannabis. [continues 597 words]
Critic Says It Won't Work OTTAWA -- The federal Conservatives hope legislation introduced Tuesday will eventually crack down on drug dealers and change the lives of addicts who want to go clean. But at least one critic predicts the bill -- if it passes -- will only increase violent crime between rival drug gangs and overload Canada's prison population. The proposed changes to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act would, for the first time, impose mandatory minimum prison sentences on anyone convicted of trafficking illegal drugs. [continues 593 words]
Addiction Gripping All Levels of Society A mom who pimped out her young daughter. A retired autoworker who lost everything. A newborn baby who suffered such severe withdrawal symptoms -- passed on from the mom -- that human contact was agonizing. Those were the pictures of crack cocaine addiction painted for a packed house Tuesday during a workshop called Cracked II. "Once you try the devil's candy, it won't let you go," said Sophia Martin, one of four sisters addicted to crack at various times. "People who smoke crack cocaine are possessed by it. When you inhale it, you inhale the breath of death." [continues 567 words]
Proposed Legislation Would Set Mandatory Prison Terms for Dealers Who Are Linked to Organized Crime or Who Traffic Near Schools OTTAWA -- Serious drug offenders could no longer hope for leniency under new legislation introduced yesterday by the federal government. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson offered an unusually sympathetic message for those who resort to non-violent crime to support their habits, but he also urged strong action against major producers and dealers and drug peddlers whose customers include young people. "For too long, Canadians have been getting mixed messages about drugs," Mr. Nicholson told reporters. "With today's bill, we are saying that serious drug crimes will mean serious jail times." [continues 437 words]
Conservatives Say Crackdown Targets Grow-Ops and Other 'Serious Drug Crime' In Neighbourhoods OTTAWA - The Conservative government has introduced automatic minimum jail terms of one to three years for serious drug crimes, as it targets grow-ops, organized crime and drug dealers or producers who exploit youths. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson introduced a bill to amend the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to bring in a range of mandatory minimum penalties that would be jacked up if there were aggravating factors - all in a bid to crack down on what he called a growing problem of "serious drug crime" that is "infiltrating" Canadian neighbourhoods. [continues 409 words]
More Than 3,000 Petitions by Federal Inmates Are Pending. The President Acted on Only 18 in Fiscal 2007. WASHINGTON -- The federal clemency system is approaching gridlock as a surge in applications for pardons and commutations has resulted in the largest and most persistent backlog of cases in recent history, according to federal data obtained by the Los Angeles Times. As of Oct. 1, more than 3,000 petitions for clemency filed by federal prisoners were pending with the Office of the Pardon Attorney, Justice Department statistics show. That compares with an average of 500 to 1,000 in the five decades since World War II. [continues 1164 words]
BOSTON -- Backers of a ballot question calling for civil instead of criminal penalties for the possession of marijuana say they collected more than enough signatures to get the initiative on next year's ballot. Supporters say they filed about 105,000 signatures -- far more than the 67,000 required. The ballot question would impose civil penalties for anyone caught with one ounce or less of marijuana. Backers of the question say it would save millions in law enforcement costs and spare thousands from getting a criminal record. Opponents say loosening the state's drug laws sets a bad precedent. [end]
On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the worst scandal to hit the Atlanta Police Department in his four years as leader, Chief Richard Pennington announced that the department's newly revamped anti-drug section is "the best-trained narcotics unit in the Southeast." With Mayor Shirley Franklin by his side, Pennington said the Nov. 21, 2006, police killing of Kathryn Johnston, 92, in her home on the city's northwest side was a tragedy that "tore at the heart of the community" and caused an overhaul of police training and procedures to ensure such a thing doesn't happen again. [continues 662 words]
The family of the 92-year-old woman fatally shot in a botched police raid filed a civil suit against the city and the Police Department on Wednesday, the one-year anniversary of a police killing that shocked the nation. "The filing of this lawsuit continues my aunt's journey to justice," Sarah Dozier, a niece of the victim, Kathryn Johnston, wrote in a letter read aloud by lawyers on the courthouse steps. "While I cannot bring her back to life, I want to ensure that her legacy is the removal of unconstitutional practices by the Atlanta PD so that this never happens to anyone else," she said. [continues 925 words]
Members of the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council who were suspended for not taking a drug test have been reinstated, after a tribal judge struck down the requirement. In October, the tribal council passed a resolution requiring members and other elected officials to take a "hair follicle" drug test. The ordinance was in response to the arrest in New Mexico of Councilman Don Garnier, who faces a federal charge of possession of marijuana with intent to distribute it. Tribal Judge Lisa Adams earlier this month upheld the test for council members but struck down the requirement for the tribe's treasurer. [continues 185 words]
Showcase Television Helps Break More Taboos With Cult Favourite Weeds NEXT TIME YOU light a spliff and sit in front of the tube, why not flip to a show that portrays the industry of the reefer you're enjoying? A new phase in the presence of marijuana in the entertainment media seems to be signaled by the rising popularity of Weeds, the blazed comedy/drama carried by the cable network Showcase. The greener grass is the bona-fide star of the show, produced by Vancouver-based Lions Gate Entertainment. Weeds follows the misadventures of the recently widowed Nancy Botwin (portrayed by the acclaimed thespian Mary-Louise Parker), suburban mother of two and would-be drug lord. [continues 554 words]
At least one Weatherford resident is fed up with the availability of drug paraphernalia, specifically glass pipes, within the city. James Hamilton wrote an e-mail to city council members and the mayor earlier this week suggesting a law be placed on the books making it illegal to purchase the pipes under what he calls "the laughable disclaimer, ‘for recreational use only.'" Hamilton lives with his family in the Clear Lake area of Weatherford and frequently purchases gasoline, ice and other incidentals at a convenience store at the intersection of Clear Lake Road and Interstate 20. [continues 580 words]
Senior Officer Refuses Promotion An investigation has been launched into claims made by a Police Superintendent that police officers are involved in the drug and guns trade in the Southern Division. The allegation that rampant corruption exists in the division was made by Supt Chandrabhan Maharaj, in a letter written to Police Commissioner Trevor Paul. In the letter, Maharaj, who is in charge of the Princes Town Police Station, refused to accept a promotion to the position of Acting Senior Superintendent in charge of the entire Southern Division because of the alleged crooked activities of police officers. [continues 317 words]
re: 'Time to end drug prohibition,' letter to the editor, Friday, Nov. 2, 2007 Imagine if you had no "drug-related crime." Imagine if your overall crime rate was a small fraction of your current crime rate. We once had such a situation here in the United States. Prior to the passage of the Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914, the term "drug-related crime" didn't exist. And drug lords, drug cartels or even drug dealers as we know them today, didn't exist either. [continues 102 words]
Did you happen to catch Corner Gas the other night? It was a classic. Cranky old Oscar somehow ended up as a replacement school bus driver and, knowing today's kids are all unruly hooligans, he imposed an immediate zero-tolerance policy. After his search for booze among the clean-cut, church-going teenagers (who all called him "sir") turned up nothing, he banned reading and confiscated their pens, until he finally provoked a riot. I wonder if Justice Minister Rob Nicholson was watching. [continues 612 words]
DEA Agents Serve Warrant at Dispensary, Seize Cannabis, Arrest One in First Action Vs. L.B. Clinic. LONG BEACH - Federal agents served a search warrant at a local medical marijuana dispensary on Tuesday, seizing cannabis and money and arresting one individual, authorities said Wednesday. Tuesday's raid was the first of its kind in Long Beach since the 1996 passage of state Prop. 215, the Compassionate Use Act that legalized marijuana for patients with certain medical conditions. Although state laws authorize the distribution of medical marijuana in certain circumstances, federal law still prohibits distribution of the drug for any purpose, Special Agent Jose Martinez, a spokesman for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's Los Angeles Field Division, said Wednesday. [continues 530 words]
City Has Become 'Major, Major Stash House Area' You may be living next to a stash house and not know it. With a record 1.2 million pounds of marijuana confiscated in Arizona from Oct. 1, 2006, to Sept. 30 - nearly half of it in Pima County - Tucson has developed a thriving business as a distribution hub. The area is a way station where marijuana is stashed until it is moved to its ultimate destination, often on the East Coast. "It's just a major, major stash house area," Counter Narcotics Alliance Sgt. Helen Hritz said of the Tucson area. "There can be 11,000 pounds in one house." [continues 999 words]
The Supreme Court recently heard a case that touched on a 20-year-old controversy involving justice and crack cocaine. The court will rule early next year in Kimbrough v. United States whether a federal district judge's more lenient sentencing decision, based on his disagreement with policy that punishes crimes involving crack cocaine more harshly than those involving powder cocaine, is reasonable. The case will help judges determine their ability to sentence below an advisory guideline range. Unfortunately, the outcome will leave in place the excessive mandatory penalties that the Kimbrough judge found unjust. [continues 589 words]
ALMOST HALF of American adults have tried marijuana, and the number of people who use it regularly has increased to about 15 million. This expanding use of marijuana can no longer be dismissed as simply a youthful fad that can be eliminated through the war on drugs. Still, marijuana arrests account for nearly 44 percent of all drug arrests in the United States. According to the Uniform Crime Report, nearly 830,000 people were arrested in 2006 on marijuana charges, nearly a 15 percent increase over 2005. Nine out of 10 were arrested for mere possession. [continues 575 words]
A federal commission should make changes to crack-sentencing laws retroactive, freeing many who were jailed in the 1980s. Disproportionately harsh federal prison sentences for crack cocaine offenders is an injustice that has been smoldering for two decades. The U.S. Sentencing Commission, a presidentially appointed body that sets federal court policies and practices, recently changed those crack penalties so they are in keeping with punishments for other drugs. But the commission still is contemplating whether to make those changes retroactive so that 19,500 prisoners serving unfairly long sentences can petition to be released. Of them, 115 were sentenced in Colorado. [continues 476 words]
New Federal Legislation Would Create About 700 More Prisoners Every Year B.C. will have to find space in its already crowded jails for about 700 more marijuana growers each year if new mandatory sentences announced by the Conservative government this week are enacted, an analysis of sentencing figures suggests. "You basically need a new prison to facilitate that," said Darryl Plecas, a criminologist at the University College of the Fraser Valley who has studied marijuana sentencing. "You're going to have hundreds, if not thousands, of people going to jail who aren't going now." [continues 893 words]
I have a growing dislike for the phrase "drugs and alcohol." This term strengthens the notion that the two are separate entities. However, there is little difference between the two substances. According to hypno linguistics (www.hypnolinguistics.com), they both are substances that alter the mind. As a teenager, I was taught frequently about sex in school. Why shouldn't drugs and alcohol be treated the same way? As our generation has aged, we have been conditioned to buy into the dangers of drugs. [continues 695 words]
BISMARCK, N.D.--The federal judge handling two farmers' lawsuit against the U.S. government over the right to grow industrial hemp says the matter might be better handled by Congress than the courts. "Isn't the best remedy to amend the definition of industrial hemp (in federal law)?" Judge Dan Hovland asked during a recent court hearing. "To me, it seems like the easiest solution." North Dakota farmers Wayne Hauge and Dave Monson want Hovland to bar the federal government from prosecuting them for growing industrial hemp under state regulations approved last year. [continues 483 words]
