Over-Regulation Only Helps Criminals

The fundamental goal of drug decriminalization is to put criminals out of business. It's to bring billions and billions of dollars in black-market, back-room commerce into the sunshine. Prohibitionary policies have done nothing to reduce Americans' demand for currently illegal drugs, and they have cost taxpayers dearly through the militarization of police, crowded courts and the highest incarceration rate in the world. Imagine the results of an armistice in the war on drugs: more resources for community policing, less strain on the justice system and more tax dollars for essential government services.

[continues 437 words]

Another Failure of the War on Drugs

Each year, the United States spends more than $51 billion on the war on drugs - a war we're clearly losing. The war has become so futile that the federal agency charged with leading the fight has undermined its own mission - and no one is being held accountable.

A Justice Department review found that, for years, DEA agents assigned to Colombia indulged in sex parties involving prostitutes supplied by drug cartels. The report found that local police often stood guard during the parties, keeping an eye on the agents' weapons and other belongings, and that three DEA supervisors involved in the parties accepted gifts of money, weapons and other items from the cartels.

[continues 354 words]

You want to see how democracy is not supposed to work? Take a look at the hysteria that's going on down at the Washoe County Commission.

A couple of hundred NIMBYs are concerned about a medical marijuana dispensary being placed in the Galena Lodge. Public commenters have chosen a scorched earth strategy, attacking and threatening individual commissioners, particularly Kitty Jung, despite the chairwoman's frequent admonishments to act like mannerly adults. They're advocating a "We're inside, close the door to development behind us."

[continues 538 words]

Finally, there's a national plan more sophisticated than a soundbite. The gaping hole in the social safety net has allowed far too many Americans to descend into the nightmare of addiction.

Nevada, in particular, has been hit hard by the tragedy of heroin addiction and overdose deaths, as a close reading of the obituaries in newspapers around the state reveals. It's no surprise that our last place finish in the number of behavioral health professionals and a severe lack of state funding for treatment has led to 87 percent of Nevadans with drug addiction receiving no treatment last year. Alcoholics fared even worse. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administation's "behavioral health barometer" for 2014, 95 percent of Nevadans who needed treatment for alcoholism didn't get it.

[continues 522 words]

Re "A year of living soberly" (Feature story, July 2):

This is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. It is a subject I find I must defend over and over in my good, sensible conscience. What is this fascination, nay, obsession, with the concept of addiction? When viewed in a light slightly more favorable, addiction becomes a corn-fed value I force feed myself in times of insecurity: "Up your focus. Focus on persistence. Persist and go further." Where is the line between culturally acceptable behavior and a lifestyle, which needs a stigma?

[continues 310 words]

Clark County's first legal medical marijuana dispensary plans to open Monday after months of delays.

Euphoria Wellness got final state and county approvals this week, a spokesman said Thursday.

The news, a relief for patients and advocates, came more than two years after the Nevada Legislature voted to allow marijuana dispensaries.

"It's pretty exciting," said state Sen. Tick Segerblom, who sponsored that bill. "It's one small step, but it's pretty amazing."

For its first two days, Euphoria will sell only to invited customers who pre-registered. On Wednesday, it will open to anyone with a state-issued medical marijuana card. The dispensary is at 7780 S. Jones Blvd. in the southwestern Las Vegas Valley.

[continues 387 words]

Why One Patient Gave Up Her State Card

For more than a year, Sheila Gerstenzang has carried the card in her wallet: "Medical Marijuana Patient."

But she's yet to purchase a single bit of marijuana.

After a year of frustration and more than $200 out of her pocket, she gave up and let her card expire in May.

Months of delays in opening the first legal Las Vegas-area dispensary have cost investors money and frustrated advocates. But the effect on patients has been the most cruel.

[continues 1132 words]

Re "Liberals should learn from pot regulation" (Let Freedom Ring, July 30):

While I agree with Brendan Trainor's premise that government can screw-up policy implementation, I choose to not agree that all government participation in economic strategic planning is bad. Yes, Nevada has had numerous missteps rolling out the medical marijuana dispensaries, but does that really mean that they can do nothing well? What is the alternative to some degree of government oversight, a free-for-all? Government's role is to establish the rules of the game so people and the environment are not ruined by endless greed. Do they get too heavy-handed on occasion? Of course.

[continues 153 words]

Re "Liberals should learn from pot regulation" (Let Freedom Ring, July 30):

Whether one supports or opposes medical marijuana establishments in Washoe County, everyone can agree on one issue. The current site dispensary selection procedure is totally devoid of any semblance of promised transparency. Our politicians certainly waxed poetic last November regarding the need for transparency and integrity in government. Would it surprise you to know that this legislation was specifically written to keep secret the identity of the dispensary owners? Tradespeople were required to sign non-disclosure agreements! Prominent dispensary owners only went public to help with public relations damage control when rumors started circulating. This is not governmental transparency in action.

[continues 108 words]

Clark County government decided more than a year ago that it wanted medical marijuana dispensaries to operate in unincorporated areas. We know this because county commissioners last year passed an ordinance allowing the dispensaries, then spent weeks meeting with lobbyists and juiced insiders before awarding coveted licenses.

And here we are in August 2015- almost 15 years after Nevada voters approved medical marijuana, more than two years after the Legislature finally authorized the retail sale of the drug to registered patients with a doctor's prescription- and no dispensaries are open in Southern Nevada.

[continues 308 words]

The long-awaited grand opening of Nevada's first medical marijuana dispensary happened Friday morning in Sparks.

More than three dozen people arrived early to wait in line outside the doors of Silver State Relief, snaking their way along the building and into the parking lot. They filled out forms as they waited, eager to purchase the first legal, commercially sold marijuana in the state.

Nevada's first medical marijuana dispensary opens in Reno on July 31, 2015. Andy Barron

"I'm way more emotional than I thought I would be," said Aron Swan, general manager of the dispensary.

[continues 265 words]

In a recent interview with Yahoo News, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie - - also a presidential candidate - said he wants the justice system to "stop treating the victims of addiction as enemies in a war." He said that the war on drugs has been a failure, and that far too many nonviolent offenders are incarcerated. And we totally agree.

The trouble is, Gov. Christie's logic ends there.

Gov. Christie calls for treatment and not incarceration for nonviolent, addicted offenders, but also says that marijuana (which he calls a "gateway drug") and other drugs should remain illegal, and that if elected president, he would not allow states to decriminalize pot. While Sen. Marco Rubio agrees with Gov. Christie, many of the governor's GOP rivals, including Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz, support letting states set their own polices.

[continues 367 words]

I happened to tune into Sam Shad's interview with Sen. Tick Segerblom on the subject of marijuana, specifically medical marijuana, and why it has taken years to get to where we are today.

Ironically, Nevadans voted in two elections to legalize and provide distribution centers to make medical marijuana available to those who may be helped by this herbal medication. I must admit, I was shocked, and perhaps even mildly amused to learn that distribution stores are ready to do business. Wow! About time-after two years!

[continues 381 words]

A medical marijuana cardholder has filed a lawsuit alleging Nevada's patient registration system is unconstitutional.

James Parsons' complaint says federal agents raided his house in 2010 after getting his name from a state patient database. He says provisions in the state's medical marijuana laws and the actions of state officials violate his Second and Fifth amendment rights and constitutional right to privacy.

Parsons, whose lawsuit identifies him as a Clark County resident and former Marine, filed the case without an attorney Tuesday in Las Vegas Justice Court. He declined to answer questions Wednesday, saying he planned to have a press conference later.

[continues 363 words]

Thanks for publishing Robert Sharpe's thoughtful letter: "Privacy, freedom at stake in drug war" (7-15-15).

I'd like to add that many judges and prison wardens have said that 70 to 80 percent of all property crime and violent crime is "drug-related."

Actually almost 100 percent of all so-called "drug-related crime" is caused by drug prohibition policies -- not drugs.

When Coca-Cola contained cocaine instead of caffeine and sold for 5 cents a bottle, the term "drug-related crime" didn't exist. Neither did drug lords, drug cartels or even drug dealers as we know them today.

[continues 110 words]

Editor:

Regarding your July 10 editorial on civil asset forfeiture, vague allegations of drug trafficking don't justify turning protectors of the peace into financial predators. The drug war threatens the integrity of a country founded on the concept of limited government.

Warrantless government surveillance, drug-sniffing dogs in schools and random drug testing have led to a loss of civil liberties, while failing at preventing drug use.

The drug war is largely a war on marijuana consumers. Based on findings that criminal records are inappropriate as health interventions and ineffective as deterrents, a majority of European Union countries have decriminalized marijuana. Despite marijuana prohibition and perhaps because of forbidden fruit appeal, lifetime use of marijuana is higher in the U.S. than any European country.

[continues 82 words]

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling should be the final nail in the coffin for the type of drug-interdiction cash seizures that have generated so much bad publicity in Northern Nevada.

Nobody likes to see the bad guys get away, but even more important is Americans' constitutional right to protection from unreasonable searches and seizures.

An Elko County case involving more than $167,000 taken from a Delaware RV during a traffic stop was held up in federal court earlier this year pending a ruling in Rodriguez v. United States. In April, the Supreme Court ruled that law enforcement cannot prolong traffic stops to wait for drug-sniffing dogs to arrive and inspect vehicles when there is no probable cause to do so. Justices said police cannot detain drivers after issuing them a ticket, even if a driver appears "nervous."

[continues 431 words]

LAS VEGAS (AP) - The top federal prosecutor in Nevada wants to appeal an order to return $167,000 seized from a Hawaii man who was stopped twice on I-80 near Elko but never charged with a crime.

U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden said in a statement this week that his office has asked the solicitor general for authority to challenge U.S. District Judge Larry Hicks' June 12 ruling.

The $167,000 was confiscated from Straughn Gorman in January 2013, but the case could cost the government more than $300,000 because the judge also put the government on the hook to pay attorney fees and costs that Gorman's attorney, Vincent Savarese, said total at least $142,000.

[continues 205 words]

I am writing in response to "Pot dispensary will not ruin your neighborhood" [Letters, June 17].

Clearly the author of that letter does not understand the concerns of the community residing in the area of Mt. Rose Highway and Thomas Creek Road.

We are opposed to a marijuana dispensary in that specific location. The proposed location is less than 1 mile from Galena High School and Hunsberger Elementary School.

No community impact study was done to inform parents and homeowners that live in the neighborhood of the proposed facility. We were not given any notice of the marijuana dispensary being considered for this location before the license was granted.

[continues 90 words]

A federal judge recently sentenced a 31-year-old man with no criminal record to life in prison for running a website.

Russ Ulbricht ran the Silk Road on the dark net. Many don't know that Google-style search engines only sweep 30 percent of the internet. The other 70 percent is accessible on The Onion Router (TOR) through a freely downloadable browser. The dark web is perfectly legal, used for legitimate research purposes. The dark web is anonymous, as the digital packets are rerouted over and over through servers in multiple nations.

[continues 501 words]