It was early evening, and the crew on a U.S. Air Force surveillance jet was taking a hard look at a suspicious plane that had just taken off from Venezuela. "He's not squawking," says Air Force Lt. Col. Bryan Dickson, the commander, meaning the plane was not broadcasting the standard signal to air traffic controllers. "Anyone not squawking is suspect." The Associated Press got a rare look at the U.S. military's counter-drug operations over the Caribbean, the transit zone for 30 percent of U.S.-bound cocaine. [continues 610 words]
A letter on July 11 stated that people of Dubuque would oppose police using drug dogs randomly throughout the city of Dubuque, so why allow them in schools. Aren't drugs illegal? Those not using drugs have no need to worry if a drug sniffing dog happens to cross their path. It doesn't make any difference what the age, race or social status is of the person, if they are using drugs they are breaking the law. I recently lost a relative to a drug overdose. For years I witnessed how drugs can tear a family apart, only to end in tragedy. If having drug dogs in our schools will prevent or deter drug users from infiltrating our schools, preventing another family from going through the same heartache, then it's time to allow the dogs in our schools. [continues 121 words]
The Retired Texas Police Officer Says Authorities Have Better Things To Worry About Than Drugs A retired Texas policeman is riding horseback across America wearing a T-shirt that says "Cops Say Legalize Drugs." Howard Wooldridge, 54, a member of the group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, is hoping to spread his message that law enforcement officials have better things to worry about than drugs - such as drunken driving, child molestation and "flying planes into buildings." "After 35 years of the war on drugs, we know the government and police cannot stop anyone from making a foolish decision about drugs," Wooldridge said during a stop in Dubuque on Wednesday. [continues 296 words]
Marijuana: Plant Is Found Growing In Front Of Dubuque Law Enforcement Center What had taken root on the lawn of the law-enforcement center was not your typical weed - but then again, it was weed. For possibly weeks, a marijuana plant had been sprouting along a sidewalk outside the Dubuque Law Enforcement Center. Monday, Dubuque County Sheriff Leo Kennedy was alerted to the plant by a Telegraph Herald photographer. Kennedy walked to the front of the northwest corner of the center, took one look at the almost 10-inch tall vegetation, and said confidently, "That's hemp." [continues 199 words]
Canada: The Number Of Those Now Eligible To Use The Drug Is Expanded TORONTO (AP) - New regulations took effect Monday expanding the number of Canadians allowed to use medical marijuana, but those eligible say the system resembles a bureaucratic maze likely to delay hundreds more from participating. The rules are part of the first system in the world that includes a government-approved and paid-for supply of marijuana for people suffering from terminal illnesses and chronic conditions such as multiple sclerosis or severe arthritis. [continues 412 words]
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - With Washington set to deepen its involvement in Colombia's anti-drug efforts, a U.S. Embassy official said Wednesday that there are far more cocaine- and heroin-producing crops growing here than previously believed. Washington is considering giving more aid to Colombia, atop a $1.3 billion existing package aimed against leftist rebels and rival right- wing paramilitaries who tax drug crops that are exported to the United States and beyond. The most recent U.S. estimate, conducted at the end of last year, showed 336,400 acres of coca - the prime ingredient of cocaine - were being cultivated. In addition, Colombian police say 15,300 acres were being used to grow poppy, from which heroin is made. [continues 310 words]
Texas Controversy: The ACLU Alleges The Narcotics Task Force Violated The Suspects' Civil Rights DALLAS (AP) - Prosecutors have dismissed 17 drug cases filed by a narcotics task force accused of targeting suspects because of their race. Dismissals of the cocaine prosecutions came a week after the American Civil Liberties Union complained to the U.S. Justice Department that the South Central Narcotics Task Force violated the civil rights of blacks during a drug bust last year that led to 28 arrests. [continues 311 words]
The Illinois House passed a bill Tuesday calling for a feasibility study of growing hemp as a legal crop. It was a 67-43 vote victory for Rep. Ron Lawfer, R-Stockton, who supports hemp as an alternative crop. Opponents have expressed concern that the introduction of hemp could lead to legalization of marijuana. "There is a misperception that growing hemp will lead to increased drug use," Lawfer said. "Hemp is not a drug, and the sole purpose of growing it is to help farmers and provide a product that the market demands." [continues 163 words]
I trust I am not the only reader who read with dismay the idiotic explanation in the April 10 TH by state Rep. Bob Osterhaus for the new law providing life sentences for meth sales. What gibberish! Boiled down to its basics, his comments amounted to: We know this law won't work, but this is a big problem and we don't know what to do with it, so we have to look like we're doing something. It was depressing to see our local representatives, Murphy and Jochum, going along with this nonsense, although they had the good sense not to offer an explanation for their vote, which was obviously designed to avoid looking soft on drugs. [continues 125 words]
