'Pill Mill' Operator Indicted in Deaths; State Was Slow To Act

HAYSVILLE -- Stephen Schneider knew the high volume of drug overdoses among his clinic patients was attracting the wrong kind of attention.

A piece of the proof emerged in 2006 while Schneider underwent questioning by attorney Larry Wall, who filed a malpractice lawsuit against the physician on behalf of a deceased patient. The interrogation was lengthy and, at times, heated. But the owner of the high-traffic, pain-management clinic was ready.

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Some seem surprised that I advocate the legislation that is supportive of medical marijuana. Let me make it clear that I do not advocate the legalization of marijuana or any other controlled substances.

This marks the 25th year since I first publicly supported medical marijuana and the reclassification of marijuana from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule 2 drug (Class I -- no medicinal value; Class II -- medicinal value).

I find it almost unbelievable that our federal government would continue to let its citizens suffer from various diseases when the properties contained in marijuana would alleviate that suffering. Frankly, I don't know how those in the federal government and the Drug Enforcement Administration can sleep at night when they choose to ignore mounting evidence that marijuana relieves suffering from many diseases.

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Few public figures are willing to stand up and advocate using marijuana for medical reasons. Former Kansas Attorney General Bob Stephan is one of those people.

His opinions on the subject deserve attention because as attorney general he was the highest law enforcement official in the state. He also is a cancer survivor and suffered through seven years of chemotherapy. He has a special understanding of the pain and nausea brought on by treatments.

On Monday, Stephan was back out front defending medical marijuana when he spoke to the Senate Health Care Strategies Committee. He is supporting a bill that would help people who use marijuana because of medical problems. The bill would not legalize marijuana but would provide a defense for those with a chronic or debilitating disease if they have a written statement from a doctor that using marijuana could help them.

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Officials Argue Bill That Would Make Medical Marijuana a Defense

Junction City Police Lt. Mike Life viewed consideration Monday of medical-marijuana legislation as a wacky ploy to seek legalization of pot in Kansas.

"Marijuana is not medicine," Life said in testimony to the Senate Health Care Strategies Committee. "There is a well-financed and organized pro-drug legalization lobby whose strategic ploy is to appeal to your compassion for sick people."

Former Kansas Attorney General Robert Stephan, on the other hand, said he couldn't imagine how federal government officials slept at night knowing pot could alleviate pain of people battling severe disease.

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TOPEKA - Several people urged lawmakers Monday to approve a measure that would allow some patients to use a note from their physician as a defense for possessing marijuana.

Opponents, including law enforcement, the Pharmacy Board and the Kansas Medical Society, questioned the plant's efficacy in treating symptoms of disease such as cancer and multiple sclerosis.

The measure, SB 556, dubbed the Medical Marijuana Defense Act, would allow people with diseases such as glaucoma, cancer or multiple sclerosis to use a note from their doctor as a defense to possessing marijuana and related paraphernalia.

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Senate Health Committee To Discuss Medical Conditions As Defense

A Senate health committee will hear testimony today on a bill that would allow certain medical conditions as a defense against prosecution for marijuana possession.

Under the Kansas Medical Marijuana Act, people with a debilitating disease could present to the judge a "written certification" from their doctor attesting to the relief marijuana provides.

"(This bill) doesn't legalize marijuana, it doesn't decriminalize it," said Laura Green, director of Kansas Compassionate Care Coalition. "It just allows a person who has a serious debilitating medical condition who gets arrested for marijuana to bring it up to a court."

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Topeka - A House committee on Thursday postponed voting on a bill that would require drug testing at major traffic accidents.

Several committee members said more work was needed on the proposal.

Under House Bill 2617, people involved in accidents that resulted in serious injuries or fatalities would have to submit to drug tests.

Currently, such a test, frequently a blood sample, can be ordered only if there is reasonable suspicion of drug use.

The new proposal was prompted by the death of Amanda Bixby, 19, who was killed in a wreck last year. Her parents, Dennis and Denise Bixby, of Tonganoxie, said the person who struck Amanda should have been tested for drugs.

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Federal court officials in Kansas are going over crack cocaine cases that may require resentencing because of a U.S. Supreme Court decision in December and changes in sentencing guidelines made last year.

At least two Douglas County cases are to be reviewed.

"This is only a sentencing matter; it's not going to change the conviction," said David Phillips, who oversees federal public defender offices in Kansas.

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court sent the cases of Maurice Trotter and his brother, Mardell Trotter, back to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th District, which includes Kansas.

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A bill introduced in a Senate committee Monday would allow judges to consider a medical condition as defense of marijuana possession.

Under the proposal, those with a debilitating illness arrested for the drug's possession could present in court a doctor's written certification that marijuana would offer therapeutic benefits.

"This is simply an issue of compassion," said Laura Green, director of the Kansas Compassionate Care Coalition that helped draft the measure.

The bill would not legalize or decriminalize possessing the drug.

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Five area legislators were in town Saturday for an opportunity to interact with the public, and two hot topics were medical marijuana and the coal-fired plant debate.

Sen. Terry Bruce, along with Reps. Mark Treaster, Jan Pauls, Mike O'Neil and Bob Bethell visited the Hutchinson Community College campus for the first of three local legislative forums, where citizens peppered the lawmakers with questions.

One of the first questions submitted in the forum requested legislators' opinions on medical marijuana, and whether they would favor the issue if they received more letters of support from the public.

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When Smoked, Plant Induces 15-Minute Hallucinogenic State

An old hallucinogenic drug is growing in popularity with young people and causing concerns for health and law enforcement officials.

And in Kansas, as in most states, it's perfectly legal to sell it, buy it or ingest it.

In fact, the main concern of law and health officials is that so little is known about the drug and how it works.

It's called salvia divinorum.

Some Native Americans have been using it in spiritual ceremonies for hundreds of years. It is native to certain areas of the Sierra Mazateca region of Oaxaca, Mexico.

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With every passing year the drug problem seems to get worse. The U.S. government responds by pumping billions more dollars into the war on drugs. Federal spending for this "war without end" is more than twenty times what it was in 1980 and still the drug traffickers appear to be winning. Despite more than six billion dollars spent on "Plan Colombia" alone, cocaine production has actually increased in that country. Now the Bush Administration is asking for $1.4 billion more to aid the Mexican government's drug crackdown through the "Merida Initiative."

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After months of debate and discussion, USD No. 353 Wellington made it's first school drug testing policy a reality.

On Thursday, Aug. 9, members of the school board unanimously passed the current policy with a 6-0 vote.

Debate on who would be tested, how, how often, and what would be tested for was up in the air, but after two poorly attended public meetings were held, the school board came to their decision.

School board President David Peck said there was little opposion to the testing policy, seeing as it has already been established at other schools around Kanas including El Dorado. He said students and parents openly welcomed the policy as an extra way to keep everyone safe.

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Officials from school districts that already have implemented random student drug testing agree community support is vital for the program to be successful.

"If the community is not supportive of this, then you are fighting a losing battle," said Jay Sabatino, superintendent of Community High School District 117 in Lake Villa, Ill.

For the last five years, the Illinois school district with more than 2,600 high school students has performed random student drug tests on students in athletics and those with a parking pass, Sabatino said.

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Lawrence Appeal Is One of Two Challenging Police Actions

Topeka - Two minor drug cases, including one in Lawrence, have led to major constitutional questions before the Kansas Supreme Court over when police can search a person.

The court will hear oral arguments at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday in a dispute arising from the June 16, 2005, arrest of Paul Martin near Trinity Episcopal Church, 1011 Vt.

The incident started as Lawrence police Officer Reid Walter was on patrol investigating whether someone was urinating in the area and he approached Martin, according to court records.

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Students Question Policy Draft

De Soto High School senior Jessica Pennington Tuesday night gave a word of warning to the committee studying a random drug testing policy for De Soto USD 232.

"If you asked us if we would stop participating in activities if this policy were in place the answer is yes," she said. "It's not that we feel we have anything to hide. If you did present me with this option I honestly feel I would turn my stuff in right now."

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If enough teens participate, the Kansas Communities That Care Student Survey can measure and predict delinquency, substance abuse and violence.

But only 26 percent of Wichita students take the survey. Backers of the survey would like to have 80 percent participation. They blame the low response on a Wichita schools policy called "active consent." Parents must sign a form permitting their children to take surveys. By contrast, many districts require parents to opt out of such surveys.

Unless participation rises, the state could miss out on a $14 million federal grant to combat underage drinking.

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Drug Abuse Resistance Education or DARE has been around nationally since 1983. This past week the Parsons Police Department expanded its DARE program in hopes of reaching and helping more students. This is a positive step for students and the police.

Public Safety Officer Sherri McGuire recently graduated from DARE school and joined Sgt. Walter Largent as the second DARE-trained officer on the Parsons force. The program consists of 80 hours of training in areas such as child development, classroom management, teaching techniques and communication skills. With the unfortunate increase of drug use around the country and now the proliferation of over-the-counter drug abuse this couldn't have come at a better time. And having two officers who can cover for each other will ensure the program doesn't miss a beat in teaching kids to say no to drugs.

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Law enforcement, along with local social and prevention agencies, will come together Tuesday in Great Bend to discuss statewide awareness of methamphetamine and its impact in Kansas.

The summit, which is hosted by the Kansas Task Force addressing methamphetamine and illegal drugs, will feature speakers who have become the frontrunners for meth research, clandestine lab investigations and treatment of meth addictions.

Juliene Maska, who is responsible for staffing the drug task force, said the importance of the summit helps educate agencies about the prevalence of meth in their areas and effective ways to combat it.

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Each year students across the nation fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and when they do, there's a small box under Question 31 that - if marked - can cost them significant federal aid.

College students in the United States and Canada rallied against this question, which asks students if they have been convicted for the possession or sale of illegal drugs, last week as part of the Students for Sensible Drug Policy's week of action.

Tom Angell, government relations director for SSDP, said about 40 campuses participated in the week of action against the Aid Elimination Penalty, though K-State was not one of them.

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Cocaine is stacked after a traffic stop turned into a drug bust of 500 pounds of the drug in Franklin County.

A traffic stop by a Franklin County Sheriff's deputy Wednesday led to the seizure of 500 pounds of cocaine found stashed in a hidden compartment aboard a box van.

The cocaine, estimated by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration as having a street value of $5 million, is the county's largest drug seizure ever, Sheriff's Lt. Jimmie Dean said in Thursday's announcement.

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It comes as no surprise to me that many prescription and even over-the-counter drugs are dangerous, and that "adverse drug events" have escalated dramatically during the past decade ("Prescription 'adverse events' mount, despite oversight," Sept. 11 Eagle). According to the article, the drugs most often linked to serious problems, including deaths, are from two categories: those that work primarily on the immune system, such as drugs used for diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS and Crohn's disease; and pain relievers, both prescription and nonprescription, commonly used for degenerative disk disease, osteoarthritis and many other causes of chronic pain.

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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety," Benjamin Franklin said in 1759.

Many parents in the Maize school district won't understand what that means; they proved that by signing the consent form for their children to have random drug testing. Had they not signed it, their children couldn't be in sports or any extracurricular activity, including graduation or parking in the parking lot.

Now isn't that what giving up our freedom is all about? I take responsibility for my own children. That includes watching which kids they hang out with, talking to them, and teaching them respect, responsibility, right from wrong and their rights as human beings. Then others come along and look for someone to make their jobs as parents less complicated. So now my child has to suffer because they can't take care of their children.

Thank you, parents, for letting this go by so easily. Maybe someday someone else can teach your children their constitutional rights. Enjoy your temporary safety. Now you've got Big Brother watching your kids for you.

Michele Lyon,

Wichita

[end]

In his Aug. 23 letter, Eric Voth decries former Attorney General Bob Stephan's endorsement of medical marijuana. Dr. Voth states that marijuana isn't a safe drug and is not "clearly effective." He goes on to list some of the side effects of its use.

The point here isn't whether medical marijuana is more or less effective, or more or less dangerous, than many of the other drugs regularly prescribed by doctors for their patients. The point is to decide who will make our medical decisions. Will it be the patient herself, teamed with a licensed medical professional? Or will it be non-medical groups intent on imposing their non-medical agendas on the rest of us?

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Dr. Eric Voth's letter, "Goal isn't medical help," (Aug. 18) is truly what is terrible about medical marijuana. The anti-cannabis fanatic's colors wave dull and dark in Voth's screed.

Dr. Voth in declaring his chairmanship of the Institute on Global Drug Policy also declares his association with the worst of the prohibitionist movement in the 21st century, including folks like Mel and Betty Sembler, who were instrumental in the failed and torturous Straight Inc. organization, a group that has tortured American children in the jihad against drugs and those who use them.

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Federal Funds Could Help State Make Further Dent In Cutting Meth Supply Lines

Kansas law enforcement officers have won a battle against methamphetamine, but the war is far from over.

Authorities said meth lab busts have plunged dramatically in recent years, suggesting there has been a steep drop in the amount of the drug being manufactured in the state.

But the bad news is that importation of the drug has climbed, apparently so much that the overall supply of the destructive drug has remained relatively steady despite the decline in domestic labs.

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Former Attorney General Bob Stephan recently ventured outside his area of expertise and endorsed a new push for medical-excuse marijuana in Kansas ("Former AG supports medicinal marijuana," Aug. 17 Local & State). He has joined ranks with advocates of drug legalization to advance their cause under the guise of "compassionate" marijuana.

It is most important to understand that legislative actions giving access to marijuana seriously jeopardize consumer protection. Our processes for bringing medicine to the public have been established so that science, not emotion, prevails. The Food and Drug Administration opposes medical-excuse marijuana and such legislative actions.

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Former Kansas Attorney General Bob Stephan is one of the most respected figures in Kansas law enforcement. People should listen when he says the state should legalize marijuana for medical purposes.

We also should pay attention because Stephan is a cancer survivor and suffered through seven years of chemotherapy. He has a special understanding of the pain and nausea brought on by treatments.

Marijuana has been found to alleviate these symptoms, yet archaic and politically charged laws keep it illegal.

Today's restrictions on marijuana began with a laughable series of events in the 1930s, when Harry J. Anslinger, who worked in the Bureau of Prohibition, led the political fight against marijuana using baseless arguments, false accusations and racism. Industrialists in paper and plastics, who feared competition from hemp production, helped support his efforts.

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Former Attorney General Bob Stephan said Friday he wants to start a legislative discussion on medicinal marijuana in Kansas.

Stephan, a cancer survivor, said he did not use the drug himself during his treatments, but believes that Kansans suffering from a list of diseases and disorders proven to be helped by marijuana should have the opportunity to take advantage of the positive effects of the drug.

Yes, the benefits for those suffering from pain due to cancer treatments, multiple sclerosis, eye disorders and other conditions sound too good to be true. But look at the problems other states with medicinal marijuana laws have had and one can see that these patients will not be the only customers at any potential "medical marijuana dispensaries."

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TOPEKA - An effort under way in Kansas to legalize the medical use of marijuana was endorsed Friday by former Kansas Attorney General Bob Stephan.

Stephan recounted his own bouts with cancer. He was diagnosed with the disease at age 39 and was given only two to four weeks to live.

He outlived that prediction but spent years undergoing chemotherapy treatments that always left him nauseated. He said doctors prescribed medications for the nausea but they never worked well.

Stephan was asked if he smoked marijuana during his illnesses, a question he said he had been asked numerous times but declined to answer. He answered it Friday.

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Former Kansas A.G. Says Treatment of Drug 'Absurd'

Topeka -- The push to legalize medical marijuana got a big lift Friday when former Attorney General Bob Stephan announced his support and urged Kansans to get behind the effort.

"The state should not pre-empt the role of the physicians when it comes to deciding what is best for ill Kansans," said Stephan, a cancer survivor and the longest serving attorney general in state history.

But lawmakers said there was little chance of legalizing medical marijuana, at least in the 2008 legislative session that starts in January.

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Stephan Wants Patients Protected

Former Attorney General Robert Stephan plans to speak out Friday about what he believes is the need to legalize the medical consumption of marijuana in Kansas.

The state's chief law enforcement officer from 1979 to 1995 will participate in a news conference in the Statehouse hosted by Kansas Compassionate Care Coalition, which seeks legal protection for patients who use marijuana as part of a treatment program and for physicians who recommend the drug to patients.

Laura Green, director of the coalition, said in an interview Tuesday that laws relating to medicinal use of marijuana are on the books in more than 30 states. A dozen states rigidly shield patients from prosecution when consuming cannabis for medical purposes.

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WASHINGTON -- News that Al Gore's 24-year-old son, Al Gore III, was busted for pot and assorted prescription pills has unleashed a torrent of mirth in certain quarters.

Gore-phobes on the Internet apparently view the son's arrest and incarceration as comeuppance for the father's shortcomings. Especially rich was the fact that young Al was driving a Toyota Prius when he was pulled over for going 100 mph -- just as Papa Gore was set to preside over concerts during a 24-hour, seven-continent Live Earth celebration to raise awareness about global warming.

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Washington -- In January 2002, in Juneau, Alaska, Joseph Frederick had the sort of idea that makes a teenager seem like one of nature's mistakes. Last week, after five years and the attention of 13 federal judges, Frederick became a footnote in constitutional history.

His case illustrated how the multiplication and extension of rights lead to the proliferation of litigation. It also illustrated something agreeable in a disagreeably angry era -- how nine intelligent, conscientious justices can civilly come to strikingly different conclusions about undisputed facts.

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School Districts Differ On Random Drug Testing Of Students

DE Soto Is Studying The Idea, But Other County Districts, Including Shawnee Mission, Say They Don't Plan To.

Although the De Soto School District is considering random drug testing of students, other Johnson County school districts, including Shawnee Mission, express no interest in such a program.

De Soto is exploring a proposal to require random drug and alcohol testing for middle and high school students who participate in athletics or other school activities, or high school students who use school parking lots.

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Rumors circulating nationwide about flavored methamphetamines have not yet been confirmed by lab tests. Until they know with certainty, however, law enforcement, school officials and anti-drug groups across the country are taking it seriously.

The Carson City, Nev., Sheriff's Office is credited with the initial seizure of flavored meth known as "strawberry quick."

Sgt. Darrin Sloan, who leads the Special Enforcement Team in Carson City, said that the new meth came to light during a buy set up with an informant who had worked with sheriff's officers on about 10 cases. The informant said that he could buy what he called "pink meth" from one of the suspects the SET was investigating.

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Students who are convicted drug users may be unable to afford college. Two KU students speak out against the Higher Education Act denying federal aid to offenders.

Getting caught smoking a joint could cost a college student thousands of dollars in federal financial aid.

That's why Carrie Wallace, Lawrence senior, and Dana Maher, Omaha, Neb., senior, are trying to raise awareness about a provision in the Higher Education Act that denies federal aid to convicted drug offenders. Wallace and Maher are trying to form a student organization in connection with the national Students for Sensible Drug Policy organization.

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Dozens of El Dorado USD 490 fifth graders graduated Thursday evening from the DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program. Ceremonies were held in the auditorium at El Dorado Middle School.

Darryl Smith, women's basketball coach at Butler Community College, addressed the crowd at the graduation ceremony. Smith talked to parents and students about the power of proper motivation and why drug and alcohol abuse is a subject with no gray area.

"You can't do it!" Smith said. "Nothing good comes from it."

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Deaths From Drug Use -- Efforts To Hold Dealers Responsible Are On The Rise

A Kansas man faces first-degree murder charges in the fatal overdose of another man in a Hays motel.

"This is a product liabilities act for illegal drugs. If you have product liability for legal items, why not for illegal items?" Daniel Bent, a former U.S. attorney in Hawaii who drafted a drug-dealer liability act No one is accusing David Knapp of intentionally killing Frank Brown.

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Thank you for the article ("Few funds for parolee drug abuse treatment," March 25 Eagle) and editorial ("Fund it: Walk the talk on parolees," April 1 Opinion) regarding funding drug treatment for parolees. A new study released by the National Institutes of Drug Abuse revealed that less than 10 percent of inmates who need treatment get it.

At a time when Kansas is considering improving services in this area, and is doing so in the area of re-entry, the Kansas Legislature is considering a registry for meth offenders as an amendment to the sex offender registry bill passed last year. Fortunately, a few legislators have efforts under way to ensure that, at minimum, judicial discretion is preserved.

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First Amendment Rights Should Be Defended, but Can Easily Be Abused.

The case of Frederick v. Morse, otherwise known as bratty pothead v. anal principal, is in the Supreme Court, making a mockery of the judicial system.

In 2002, Joseph Frederick, a high school senior in Juneau, Alaska, unfurled a 14-foot sign that proclaimed, "Bong Hits 4 Jesus!" in front of passing news cameras at a school field trip to the Olympic Torch Relay. After his school principal, Deborah Morse, tore down the sign and gave him a 10-day suspension, Frederick sued the school on the grounds that, under the first amendment, his right to free speech had been violated. He won.

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At the same time that the Kansas Department of Corrections is emphasizing efforts to help thousands of parolees succeed after release from prison, it is funding substance abuse treatment for only a fraction of them.

Although experts say that generally two-thirds of offenders have a history of substance abuse, the department has provided no money for community-based substance abuse treatment for two budget years in a row.

So substance abuse -- one of the biggest problems among offenders and a threat to public safety -- is receiving some of the least funding from the department at a time when the investment might count the most, experts say.

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The Legislature's definition of an inherently dangerous felony resulted in a scaled-up murder charge against a Hays man charged with causing an overdose death.

David S. Knapp, 46, 2400 E. Seventh, No. 15, was charged Thursday in Ellis County District Court with first-degree murder in the death of Frank Allen Brown. Brown, 46, Gorham, was found dead in a room at Budget Villa motel on Oct. 31. According to the complaint filed in court, Knapp allegedly provided fentanyl to Brown, leading to Brown's death from an overdose.

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Regarding "Morrison backs ban on drug paraphernalia" (Feb. 1 Eagle): Why throw more public resources into a useless effort? The ban proposed by the Wichita NAACP and supported by Attorney General Paul Morrison would not only be very costly but completely ineffective.

As almost any middle school student knows, countless everyday items can be utilized as drug paraphernalia.

Are we going to outlaw toilet tissue and canned beverages, for instance? The paper tube from a roll of toilet tissue and an empty beverage can are but two common items that can easily be modified to serve as pipes for the smoking of a variety of drugs.

If a person wants to use illicit drugs, that person will find a way. The lack of conventional paraphernalia is no deterrent to the determined drug abuser.

For the sake of all Kansans, please let our legislators concentrate on more meaningful issues.

C.A. Riley,

Wichita

[end]

There is no doubt that methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug that has serious health effects for the user and the community.

This year's proposal to combat meth is SB 14, a bill requiring persons convicted of manufacturing meth (as well as growing marijuana) to register on the KBI's offender Web site. It's oddly similar to pending legislation in 14 other states.

This bill is a feel-good initiative for legislators and a poor use of taxpayer dollars. It will do nothing to educate the public about the dangers of meth, and it won't deter anyone from trying it.

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Kansas Attorney General Paul Morrison is supporting a legislative push by the Wichita Branch NAACP and a statewide task force to ban the sale of drug paraphernalia in Kansas.

"He wholeheartedly supports banning all drug paraphernalia," said Ashley Anstaett, communications director for Morrison's office. "He prosecuted one of the first drug paraphernalia cases in 1981."

The recommendations by the NAACP and the Drug Paraphernalia Task Force aim to strengthen current law by defining drug paraphernalia more specifically and stiffening penalties for violators, among other provisions.

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Tianesha Robinson was about four months pregnant last fall when she was jolted with a Taser stun gun while resisting arrest during a traffic stop.

After experiencing cramps for several weeks, the 33-year-old Wichita, Kan., woman miscarried. Her family insists there is a connection between the miscarriage and the roughly 50,000-volt shock that subdued her, though doctors said the link would be more clear had she miscarried immediately after the shock.

That kind of uncertainty is fueling debate about the safety of the devices.

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Dramatic Drop Attributed To New Law Restricting Cold And Allergy Medicine

Law enforcement officers reported no methamphetamine lab busts in 2006 in Douglas County -- the first time in at least the past five years.

The decline is part of a statewide trend.

Kansas Bureau of Investigation statistics released this week show that seizures of methamphetamine labs, supplies and equipment were down across the board in 2006.

The decline came even after a new state law requiring counties to report meth lab seizures took effect last year.

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On Friday, the Crawford County Attorney's Office and District Court sent a message to methamphetamine manufacturers: You break the law, you go to jail.

William P. Murr was sentenced to eight years in prison for conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, manufacture of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine and possession of felony drug paraphernalia. The office asked for 12 years, but because of Murr's age and "need to support his family," the court sentenced him to eight.

We applaud the work of the Crawford County Attorney's office in prosecuting this case. As County Attorney John Gutierrez told the court, "manufacturing methamphetamine is a threat to society." By putting Murr in jail, the county has not only taken one manufacturer off the street, they have made the area safer around the building where he was making the drug.

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America's futile effort to arrest its way out of our drug problems has cost taxpayers more than $1 trillion since 1970, and it drains $69 billion a year -- every year -- from our treasury. It funds terrorists and clogs the court system, yet our kids report that it can be easier for them to buy illegal drugs than beer or cigarettes.

As a child growing up in Wichita, I learned to spot a failure when I saw one. And this one's a whopper.

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