Re: "Apply due process to forfeiture - Powerful tool has become another government idea gone awry, says David Simpson," Dec. 23, Viewpoints. Thanks to Rep. David Simpson for calling attention to the most corrupting influence in law enforcement: civil asset forfeiture. According to an analysis of 43,000 state and local reports submitted to the Justice Department Equitable Sharing Program, nearly $2.5 billion was seized. In up to 81 percent of the cases, no indictment was ever filed. Civil forfeiture laws presume seized property to be tainted. Property owners must prove in court that their money or property was acquired legally in order to get it back. This is almost always more expensive than giving up the legally acquired property. [continues 109 words]
Regarding "Stockman bill would have banned some asset seizures" (Page B2, Tuesday), if only Steve's Stockman's bill to stop federal seizure of assets could fix bad laws instead of being a political statement. The government's ability to label goods suspicious and take them without any proof of illegalities is Orwellian in its reasoning. The Justice Department claims it's an effective tool, ignoring innocent victims of asset seizure in the fever to stop drug trafficking and organized crime. [continues 68 words]
Powerful Tool Has Become Another Government Idea Gone Awry, Says David Simpson "If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary." - - James Madison, 1788 Civil asset forfeiture, or forfeiture of contraband as it is referred to in Chapter 59 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, is the process by which the state may confiscate assets of an individual that are alleged to be proceeds or instruments of crime. Current law allows such property to be seized even if the property owner is never charged, much less convicted. If charges are brought, the seized property may be disposed of prior to conviction, or in the case of acquittal, does not have to be returned to the owner. [continues 524 words]
Regarding "Wise counsel" (Page B8, Thursday), Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland is to be commended for speaking out against marijuana prohibition. There are positive aspects to legalization that bear repeating. New research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that states with open medical marijuana access have a 25 percent lower opioid overdose death rate than marijuana prohibition states. This research finding has huge implications for states such as Texas that are grappling with prescription narcotic and heroin overdose deaths. [continues 96 words]
Congress Should Listen to What Houston Police Chief Charles Mcclelland Has to Say. Advocates for ending the war on drugs found an unlikely new ally last week: Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland. In an interview with Houston-based radio show Cultural Baggage, McClelland candidly discussed the undeniable facts about our nation's criminalization and prohibition of marijuana, calling the drug war a "miserable failure." "Most police chiefs understand that when it comes to marijuana use, we cannot (continue) to criminalize such a large population of society that engage in casual marijuana use," McClelland said during the pre-recorded interview that aired Friday on KPFT 90.1. [continues 652 words]
Izaiah Ruiz's epilepsy was so severe, his daily life so miserable, that his grandmother says she would have sold her Montgomery County home and moved to Colorado for what many say is a new, miracle treatment: marijuana. But Lori Fountain couldn't make the finances work. As her 6-year-old grandson suffered, all she could do was follow online the progress of patients who sought treatment in Colorado, where marijuana is legal. Their families reported patients suddenly were seizure-free, verbal, able to dress and feed themselves thanks to treatment with a strain of marijuana, a preparation known as Charlotte's Web, which has become something of a national phenomenon. [continues 733 words]
Man Who Had Faced Possible Life Sentence Takes 7 Years Probation. GEORGETOWN - A man whose case made national news when he was facing up to life in prison for possessing pot brownies in Williamson County has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge. Jacob Lavoro, 20, pleaded guilty Wednesday to the second-degree felony of possession of tetrahydrocannabinol, better known as THC, said his lawyer, Jack Holmes. Lavoro agreed to the plea in exchange for a sentence of seven years' probation, Holmes said. [continues 339 words]
Regarding "Advocates of legal pot say it's not if, but when" (Page A1, Monday), I believe that the government should legalize the use of marijuana. However, the government should be in charge of taxing and regulating the substance. By doing so, the government will generate new revenues and lower the number of criminals selling marijuana. This would also allow for police to focus more on major crimes rather than petty criminal charges of marijuana possession. I agree with the fact that the government should place an age limit on the drug. Sam Kretzschmar, Bellaire [end]
The young biochemists who trained at Rice University came to pitch their business plan for testing legally produced marijuana for a "cannabinoid signature" that consumers can use to decide which batch of a given strain is best for their medical conditions or the recreational high they desire. A team from Florida and another from Colorado each made the case for new lighting systems designed to cut electricity expenses for indoor growers while helping boost their agricultural output. Another hopeful entrepreneur outlined plans to convert trees killed by pine beetle infestation into a unique charcoal that would feed fertilizer to plants more efficiently and reduce runoff, while some big dreamers from Washington state promised tourists a "luxury cannabis experience" in a Victorian-era castle with a pot-friendly hotel and fancy restaurant. [continues 695 words]
Program for Low-Level Pot Offenders Makes Sense The second time, we hope, will be the charm. An underused 2007 state law offered police officers the option of writing citations for certain low-level offenses rather than hauling suspects to jail. The point was to keep cops on the street and avoid burning up valuable hours processing defendants for misdemeanors like marijuana possession or graffiti. Dallas tried to take advantage right away, but the experiment went poorly, with most offenders failing to show for court. [continues 487 words]
Drs. Oz & Roizen With clever names like Peace of Mind, Girl Scout Cookies, Train Wreck and Tsunami, it's a good bet that the marketers of legal marijuana finished high school. That's less certain for their younger customers. New research shows daily marijuana use before the age of 17 cuts your chances of graduating from high school or getting a college degree by 60 percent. And that info's just the tip of the joint. Now that marijuana is legal for recreational use in Washington and Colorado, and for medical purposes in 19 other states plus the District of Columbia, scientists are able to study the drug more closely. The result is an outpouring of data on marijuana's formerly unknown or underappreciated risks. [continues 144 words]
The call to legalize pot steadily emanates from the decaying 74-year-old home in Montrose. A gray-haired, sharp-voiced Dean Becker settles in behind a microphone there each Sunday night at the studios of KPFT public radio to spread his mantra: End the Drug War. Becker and those of a like mind about legalizing marijuana say they are getting some traction nowadays. With recreational use of pot now legal in Colorado and Washington - and public opinion polls showing growing nationwide support for such measures - speculation is rampant that even in law-and-order Texas, it is not a question of if, but when, legalization will happen. [continues 791 words]
Freeing Up Police Resources the Goal of Possible Policy Change People caught in Dallas with a small amount of pot may soon be able to avoid jail. County criminal justice leaders are quietly working on a program that would allow police to issue tickets to people accused of simple possession. Those cited would still face prosecution in court, but they wouldn't be arrested. Officials hope to launch a pilot program in Dallas in mid-January. Applied countywide, such a change in enforcement policy could result in hundreds fewer arrests each month. The goal, officials say, is to reduce the jail population and free up police resources. [continues 600 words]
Ogg Argues She Originated Plan to Decriminalize Possession A move to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana emerged Wednesday as a major issue in the contentious race for Harris County district attorney with both candidates claiming ownership of the idea. At a news conference, Republican Devon Anderson, the incumbent, said that beginning Monday, nonviolent first offenders carrying less than 2 ounces of marijuana will be able to escape prosecution by performing eight hours of community service or going through a drug awareness class. [continues 590 words]
Is America's scientific research biased to focus on the harmful effects of drugs? That was one of the questions at the heart of a congressional hearing this summer seeking to understand more comprehensively the scientific evidence related to marijuana. And it was how Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, found herself being grilled by Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va. "Dr. Volkow, your testimony seems to completely disregard lots of other data," he accused. Volkow and I were the witnesses, along with a representative from the Food and Drug Administration. Connolly was particularly interested in learning why NIDA and the FDA - both part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - supported so little research into the potential medical uses of marijuana. He appeared exasperated by the focus on drugs' harmful effects, which "impeded the ability to have legitimate research that could benefit human health." [continues 1113 words]
IF YOU THINK BIG TOBACCO WAS BAD, WAIT TILL YOU GET A WHIFF OF BIG MARIJUANA, SAYS KEVIN SABET Proponents of legalization and other drug policy reforms make some important points. It is true that most people who try drugs do not get addicted - they stop after using a few times. It is also true - and regrettable - that America's incarceration rate is embarrassingly high and that blacks and Latinos bear the brunt of harsh arrest policies. And, finally, despite our best efforts, fully eradicating drug use and its consequences remains a distant dream. But placing faith that legalization will help any of these issues is misguided. In fact, legalization threatens to further contribute to disproportionate health outcomes among minorities, all the while creating a massive new industry - Big Tobacco 2.0 - intent on addicting the most vulnerable in society. [continues 1245 words]
Regarding "New 'wax' form of pot can be explosive, feds warn" (Page B1, Saturday), isn't it time the Chronicle stopped being complicit in spreading "Reefer Madness" nonsense from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration? The two scare quotes from your article on 'dabs' or 'wax' is that it's twice as strong as regular pot and that people may blow themselves up trying to make it. People have been smoking hashish with the same strength as 'wax' for millennia with no ill effects. If drug prohibition vanished, experts would be making 'wax' commercially and the toking public wouldn't be trying to make it. Pot use hasn't killed anyone in the history of its use (including hashish, sensimilla, and 'wax'). People shouldn't get high and drive, but since the 1960s, auto death rates haven't skyrocketed because of pot. Rick Potthoff, Houston [end]
The medical industry has many tools for treating pain and illness, and while America has some of the most advanced medical treatments in the world, treatment is a tricky thing and sometimes has unintended side effects. One issue that afflicts Americans in particular is reliance on painkiller prescriptions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 10,000 men and 6,600 women died in 2010 from painkiller overdose. Women in particular are facing a tremendous increase in the number of overdoses each year, with a 400 percent increase since 1999 compared to 265 percent among men. [continues 740 words]
The Ability to Cite Small-Time Marijuana Offenders Results in a Patchwork System. While you may not find Texas listed alongside marijuana-friendly states like Colorado and Washington, we actually decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana back in 2007 - sort of. State law allows peace officers to issue a citation for certain misdemeanor crimes, such as graffiti, criminal mischief, theft and, yes, possession of marijuana. Instead of every Willie Nelson fan caught with a joint having to spend a night in the slammer before meeting with a judge, smokers could have a set appointment in court the next week. This system saves space in crowded jails and saves otherwise harmless citizens an unnecessary trip. It also saves police officers' time that could be spent keeping Houston safe. [continues 448 words]
Re: "For Sane Drug Laws - Texans need to know where candidates stand on pot," Sunday Editorials. Regarding your thoughtful Aug. 3 editorial, the days when politicians can get away with confusing the drug war's tremendous collateral damage with a comparatively harmless plant are coming to an end. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize violent drug cartels, prohibition is a grand success. The drug war distorts supply-and-demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. If the goal is to deter use, marijuana prohibition is a catastrophic failure. The United States has almost double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands, where marijuana has been legally available for decades. The criminalization of Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis has no basis in science. The war on marijuana consumers is a failed cultural inquisition, not an evidence-based public health campaign. It's time to stop the pointless arrests and instead tax legal marijuana. Robert Sharpe, policy analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy, Washington, D.C. [end]
Regarding "End prohibition" (Page B6, Saturday), thank you for calling for an end to marijuana prohibition in your editorial. Mexican drug cartels are no doubt thrilled with our federal government's insistence that marijuana remain illegal. If the goal of marijuana prohibition is to subsidize violent drug cartels, prohibition is a grand success. The drug war distorts supply-and-demand dynamics so that big money grows on little trees. If the goal is to deter use, marijuana prohibition is a catastrophic failure. The United States has almost double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands where marijuana is legal. The criminalization of Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis has no basis in science. [continues 52 words]
Regarding "Marijuana find no surprise to Polk County residents" (Page B1, Wednesday), if Polk County or the state has any problem getting rid of the pot they are pulling up, I have a suggestion: Sell it to Colorado or to the state of Washington. Texas could certainly use the couple million dollars it would bring. Bob Sieckmann, Trinity [end]
Texans Need to Know Where Candidates Stand on Pot The Marijuana Policy Project advocacy group, spearhead for national pot reforms, has hired a full-time political director in Texas to focus on changing laws here. The organization has also hired a lobbyist to work the state Capitol. The idea that conservative, law-and-order Texas is ripe for change might have been ridiculed in the not-too-distant past. Things are moving fast, though, as it becomes clearer that the public is fed up with needless casualties and wasted money from the nation's decades of waging war against weed. Even in Texas, people are fed up. [continues 392 words]
With calls for change coming from across the spectrum, let states dictate marijuana laws. We always knew that marijuana altered the human brain, but it must be more powerful than we thought if it has the famously liberal New York Times editorial board in agreement with Gov. Rick Perry. In a recent editorial, the collective voice of the Grey Lady echoed a sentiment that Perry expressed last year at World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland: Marijuana laws should be dictated by the states, not the federal government. It is a position that this board has reiterated over the past several years. [continues 515 words]
Regarding "Marijuana isn't necessarily safe to treat what ails us" (Page B13, Sunday), before David Murray, the senior fellow in the Center for Substance Abuse Policy Research, condemns using marijuana medically, he should ask, "What is marijuana?" The federal definition of "marihuana" is over 100 words long, but does not mention either THC, CBD or smoke. He should know that there has been a bait-and-switch to advance a political agenda. It occurred about 44 years ago, when that definition was enacted into law, then temporarily placed into Schedule 1, thus precluding the studies he requires for validation. [continues 86 words]
Re: =93Lower Sentences for Drugs =AD Commission right to offer reduced penalty,=94 Monday Editorials. For the 50-year period spanning the 1920s to early 1970s, there were about 110 state and federal prisoners per 100,000 in the United States. In 1973, President Richard Nixon created the Drug Enforcement Administration by executive order, thereby ushering in the modern war on drugs. State and federal prisoners now number about 700 per 100,000. After release, these prisoners can be legally discriminated against for the rest of their lives. They can be refused employment, housing, education, government benefits and the right to vote. [continues 132 words]
Reports repeatedly conclude habitual drug use in the United States is the root cause for children from Central America to illegally come here. The drug cartels there use violence to make them leave, or the children can stay and be killed. The armed forces, several thousand law enforcement employees, miles of fences and walls, electronic and air spying, jails and deportation proceedings - all of these combined will not greatly alleviate this latest immigration problem we bring upon ourselves. Besides, all of them are a great waste of time, money and manpower except for those among us who want to make money by these means. [continues 96 words]
Commission Right to Offer Reduced Penalty America's effort to use our prisons to stem the illegal drug problem has largely failed. Incarceration of drug offenders has seen prison and jail populations skyrocket, even as public opinion has shifted away from harsh sentences for nonviolent drug crimes. That's why the U.S. Sentencing Commission was right to decide this month that some 50,000 federal drug trafficking offenders could be eligible for reduced sentences. The amendment to federal sentencing guidelines, approved in April, is already in effect for offenders facing sentencing in the future, creating an issue of fairness: Why should the length of a sentence be determined by the date of sentencing? [continues 377 words]
No one seems to want to face up to the bad policies and laws that have created our latest immigration problems on our southern border. Starting in 1937 with the prohibition of marijuana and all other recreational drugs thereafter, America has funded all the drug cartels in Mexico and Central and South America to such an extent that they are more powerful than the governments in those countries. These cartels have destroyed the economies in these countries and created such violence and lawlessness that the refugees from these countries are fleeing here for safety and economic opportunity. Remember that alcohol prohibition fueled organized crime in America previous to this prohibition of drugs. We didn't seem to learn from the previous mistake. Easy, feel-good legislation is not always a good thing. We created this problem! Gilbert White, Ennis [end]
Good governance is about good stewardship. Government executives always should consider how best to use the government's vast assets, including personnel, money and materials. In this light, continued opposition by the Drug Enforcement Administration to the legalization of cannabis - marijuana - is not only a losing battle but a waste of taxpayer money, particularly when the president, Congress and an increasing number of state legislatures are responding to the will of the people by decriminalizing nonviolent marijuana use and possession. Our federal tax dollars would be better spent by responding to the current widespread increase of heroin use in ways that will prevent continued abuse, reduce harm to users and provide for greater public safety. [continues 666 words]
How much longer will it take before the United States declares a truce in the Drug War? Without federal leadership, you can count on marijuana legalization to keep spreading one state at a time. This latter-day prohibition is taking an immense toll. And the stakes ought to be low, given that mostAmericans don't want anyone jailed for being caught with small amounts of pot. But it does require some courage to pipe up. So thank you, former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, for joining the swelling chorus that wants to see marijuana legalized. [continues 613 words]
As a former educational professional, I've witnessed the negative social impacts and negative opportunity costs of cannabis prohibition. I observed these negative impacts while working with inner city youth; I also took note that these effects existed in my own suburban neighborhood. The world is our backyard. I began to observe how easy it was for teens to access cannabis on the illicit market and how many are left to endure life-altering criminal convictions. I examined the constant draining of tax dollars, all the while watching the expansion of violent criminal cartels. [continues 473 words]
The measure, approved unanimously by the council, is symbolic. The city has very little influence over whether the Legislature legalizes marijuana and it's considered unlikely to gain approval in the 2015 legislative session. Only two speakers testified about the measure to the council, and both were in support. In a sign of how non-controversial this issue is in left-leaning Austin, it was approved with no council discussion or debate as part of the consent agenda. Council Members Bill Spelman and Mike Martinez, who sponsored the resolution, cited a Scripps-Howard poll that found 75 percent of Texans would support legislation allowing people with serious illnesses to use marijuana to treat themselves. Supporters consider it an important step in the effort to legalize marijuana for medical use. Currently all forms of marijuana are illegal in Texas. More than 20 states, including Colorado and California, have taken steps to legalize the use of marijuana for medical ailments, such as muscular dystrophy. [end]
Re: June 9 commentary, "Pot isn't harmless; making it legal would be a disaster." I agree that legalizing cannabis would be a disaster for professional drug war cheerleader Calvina Fay because she would be unemployed. I'd like to add that the cannabis legalization issue is not whether cannabis is completely safe for everybody, including children and adolescents; it is not. The issue is freedom of choice for adults. Children have died from eating peanuts and peanut butter but we don't cage peanut growers, sellers or consumers. One in thirteen children suffer from food allergies, yet we have no foods that are outlawed. And the voters of Colorado and Washington state have decided that we should not cage cannabis growers, sellers or consumers. Texas adults have the freedom of choice of whether or not to consume legal alcohol. Shouldn't they have the same freedom of choice regarding legal cannabis? MESA, ARIZ. [end]
Re: June 9 commentary, "Pot isn't harmless; making it legal would be a disaster." Calvina Fay is right about one thing. Like any drug, marijuana can be harmful if abused. Marijuana prohibition doesn't make the plant safer though. Prohibition opens up a gateway to hard drugs by granting a marijuana monopoly to drug cartels that also sell meth, cocaine and heroin. Like alcohol prohibition before it, marijuana prohibition has given rise to a youth-oriented black market. Drug cartels don't ID for age. [continues 78 words]
A Texas teenager could face up to 99 years in prison for making and selling brownies infused with cannabis, despite the product being legal elsewhere in the United States. Jacob Lavoro, 19, was arrested on April 14 after a neighbour smelled suspiciously pungent smoke and called the police. The authorities allege that after entering his apartment they found an illicit baking operation that included the brownies, a pound of cannabis, hash oil and US$1675 (NZ$1900) in cash. His case is more serious because prosecutors can charge him based on the entire weight of the brownies' ingredients, which amounted to 660 grams, instead of just the weight of the oil, a substance that is more tightly controlled than ordinary cannabis buds. In Texas, possession of more than 400g of hash oil with intent to deliver can yield up to life in prison. [continues 139 words]
If Cannabis Works, We Owe Our Veterans Access to This PTSD Treatment Option. Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, plagues many veterans in this country. The depression, anxiety and flashbacks typical of this disorder can make vets' adjustment back to civilian life difficult. Some veterans say that marijuana helps alleviate symptoms of the disorder and may pose fewer long-term health risks than present treatment options such as opioid painkillers, antidepressants and sleeping pills. Some experts agree. "Legalizing cannabis for medical use won't restore missing limbs or heal skin scarred by fire, but it can help wounded veterans live a more normal life," William Martin, director of the drug policy program at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, maintains. Yet, right now in Texas, a vet who is suffering from PTSD and who uses marijuana to self-medicate is committing a crime. [continues 260 words]
Police Were Allowed in Apartment by Resident, Arrest Warrant Says GEORGETOWN- The case against Jacob Lavoro, who could face a steep sentence for allegedly making and selling pot brownies, should be thrown out because police never had a warrant to search his apartment, his lawyer said Thursday as supporters rallied outside a court hearing at the Williamson County Justice Center. Police were responding in April to a tip from a neighbor complaining about marijuana smoke coming from Lavoro's Round Rock apartment when they arrived at his door announcing they were maintenance men, said Jack Holmes, Lavoro's lawyer. Even after someone opened the apartment door, police had no evidence that there were illegal substances inside, but they entered anyway, Holmes said. [continues 425 words]
Re: "My bad trip on edible marijuana - Colorado coming to grips with darker side of legalizing pot for the public, says Maureen Dowd," Friday Viewpoints. Naive marijuana users like Maureen Dowd may be in for an unpleasant surprise if they choose edibles as a means of experimenting with legal marijuana in Colorado. The delayed onset effects can be overpowering. Colorado should require warning labels. First-time users should be discouraged from trying marijuana in edible form. The horror stories coming out of Colorado obscure the fact that marijuana consumption is safer under legalization. [continues 137 words]
Arkansas AG Approves Ballot Title for Proposed Constitutional Amendment Come November, Arkansas voters could be the first in the South to decide whether or not to legalize marijuana for recreational use. Last week, Attorney General Dustin McDaniel certified the wording of a proposed state constitutional amendment called "The Arkansas Hemp and Cannabis Amendment." The amendment would allow the "cultivation, distribution, sale and use of the cannabis plant" and all products derive from the plant throughout the state. The Legislature would have the authority to regulate, but not ban pot in the state. Now all supporters have to do is gather more than 78,000 signatures of registered Arkansas voters to secure the proposal a spot on the November ballot. Not an easy task. But not impossible, either. Two other ballot initiates regarding legal marijuana could end up on the ballot as well. Both would legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes, not recreational. [continues 233 words]
Radical shifts in public policy are far-reaching and have everlasting effects that may not be foreseen. Marijuana legalization is an extreme measure of policy reform and a dangerous social experiment. Policies should be implemented with public health and safety in the forefront. However, marijuana legalization seems to only benefit those who stand to profit. Following the legalization of marijuana, Colorado and Washington have seen increases in drugged driving and marijuana use. Colorado experienced an infestation of "drug tourism." [continues 585 words]
You might find yourself racing to the eye doctor if you picked up your newspaper and read "Governor Perry and the ACLU agree." When the discussion is about marijuana, though, you'd be wasting your co-pay. In January, at an international conference in Switzerland, Perry said he supports softening penalties for pot users. He correctly pointed out that our state has been in the forefront of the movement to implement policies that provide sentencing alternatives such as drug courts and rehabilitation programs outside the prison setting. [continues 603 words]
Colorado coming to grips with darker side of legalizing pot for the public, says Maureen Dowd The caramel-chocolate-flavored candy bar looked so innocent, like the Sky Bars I used to love as a child. Sitting in my hotel room in Denver, I nibbled off the end and then, when nothing happened, nibbled some more. I figured if I was reporting on the social revolution rocking Colorado in January, the giddy culmination of pot Prohibition, I should try a taste of legal, edible pot from a local shop. [continues 601 words]
FORT WORTH - Move over, GOP convention-goers, the marijuana reformists are in Cowtown, too. The Dallas-Fort Worth chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws is hosting the second annual Texas Regional NORML Conference this weekend in downtown Fort Worth. More than 300 people are expected to attend. A few blocks away, thousands of Republicans are attending the state party convention at the Fort Worth Convention Center. NORML organizers decided that this weekend was the ideal time to broach the issue, saying the stage is set for reform. [continues 174 words]
House Vote Shows States Tired of Disjointed Tack We can't go on like this. The words are familiar to parties in many dysfunctional relationships, like the one between the federal government and states that have gone their separate ways on the failed and grotesquely expensive war on drugs. Something has to give. The U.S. House recognized that with an unprecedented bipartisan vote last week to bar the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration from raiding marijuana dispensaries in states that legalized pot for medicinal uses. [continues 420 words]
This would be easy to overstate, but in comparison with much of the world, our country does a decent job of administering justice in a measured, equitable manner. Sure, there's lots of room for improvement. For example, blacks are considerably more likely to be executed or incarcerated than are whites who commit the same crime. We should work on this. Still, in a world that has at least 37 countries that outlaw homosexuality, at least 10 of which punish it with the death penalty, we do a reasonable job of administering even-handed, let-the-punishment-fit-thecrime justice. Then there's Jacob Lavoro. Last week my local newspaper, the Austin American Statesman, reported that Lavoro, a 19-year-old from Round Rock, Texas, has been charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. [continues 548 words]
Let's End Hyperbolic Warnings and Focus on Actual Threats - Like Prescription Pills. Since its inception, the war on drugs has essentially been based on fear-mongering to children. Drugs will ruin your life! Buying drugs gives money to terrorists! One puff of a joint, a lifetime of consequences! All these warnings have done little to reduce drug use, but they have instilled a deep sense of cynicism in far too many kids. With changes in drug laws across the country, perhaps it is time we started to tell children the truth: No one is going to die from overdosing on marijuana. Prescription painkillers are a different story. [continues 520 words]
Marijuana Supporters Encouraged by Politicians' Comments. Democrats want to turn Texas blue. Republicans want to keep it red. Now, members of a new advocacy group in Austin have something else in mind: They want to make Texas green. The Washington, D.C.based nonpartisan organization isn't blowing smoke about environmental causes. Rather, the Marijuana Policy Project sees an opening to loosen marijuana laws in Texas, following recent comments by Gov. Rick Perry and other state politicians. Heather Fazio, the newly installed Texas political director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said she, a lobbyist and several volunteers will work toward passing state laws that would permit the use of medical marijuana, decriminalization of the controlled substance and eventually allowing adults to possess small amounts of marijuana. Similar efforts will be made in several other states. [continues 724 words]
Teen Could Get Life for Making, Selling Marijuana Brownies Several states have made the use of marijuana legal for certain medical conditions with a doctor's prescription. And two states-Colorado and Washington-have made recreational use of the drug legal. But possession, sale and use of marijuana is still illegal under federal law and in many states. That means if you get caught with pot in the wrong part of the country, the penalty can range from a slap on the wrist to prison time-a lot of prison time. Just ask Jacob Lavorno. Lavorno, 19, lives in Round Rock, Texas. He has no previous criminal record. But he is now facing a possible life sentence for violating the state's drug laws. How? Well, he made some marijuana brownies. No, we aren't kidding. According to prosecutors, Lavorno had quite a little business making and selling marijuana brownies and cookies. And when police raided his apartment, they found some pot, more than $1,500 in cash and the brownies. [continues 317 words]
A Travis County grand jury has declined to indict a sheriff's office deputy for firing his pistol during a narcotics investigation in 2012. Christopher Douglas and two other deputies were investigating possible drug activity at the Promontory Point Apartments at 2250 Ridgepoint Drive in Northeast Austin on Nov. 30, 2012. When a resident of an apartment answered a knock on the door, Douglas and another deputy could smell marijuana and see a baggie of what appeared to be marijuana on a table inside the apartment, according to a news release from the district attorney's office. [continues 80 words]
Inside Texas
