Recent articles and letters about a proposal to further raise Wisconsin's cigarette tax got me thinking. Despite almost 70 years of marijuana prohibition and nearly 800,000 arrests per year, most for simple possession, the cannabis market continues to grow. The report concluded cannabis should be taxed and regulated, like we do now with tobacco and alcohol. This is not a new idea, and coincidentally, the report comes just days after the death of former Pennsylvania Gov. Raymond Shafer. A conservative Republican, Shafer had chaired President Richard Nixon's commission on marijuana. The commission concluded marijuana users "are essentially indistinguishable from their nonmarijuana using peers by any fundamental criterion other than their marijuana use." [continues 178 words]
It's the war nobody in Washington is talking much about these days, primarily because we're losing it so badly. The war was started by Richard Nixon and has been fought by Republican and Democratic administrations alike with no measurable difference in the outcome: we're losing and losing badly. We're talking about the War on Drugs that was supposed to cleanse the nation of the curse of illegal substance abuse. We have spent hundreds of billions of dollars at home and abroad fighting this war. [continues 399 words]
The co-owner of a rural Blanchardville home where three men died in drug-related shootings last March was charged Tuesday in Lafayette County Circuit Court with helping run a drug house. A woman , 29, told investigators she knew her husband, Brad, was growing marijuana in a secret basement room and helped him grow and process it, according to the criminal complaint. Brad Fandrich, a gun collector, shot two men raiding the home March 16, then killed himself while being interviewed by Lafayette County deputies who responded to the wife's telephone call for help. [continues 421 words]
Nurse Lorilee Olmsted Has Heard the Same Order Too Many Times When It Comes to Disposing of Unused Drugs in the Many Nursing Homes and Hospitals Where She Has Worked. "'Flush them,' that's what they tell me," Olmsted said. "It happens so frequently. . . . It is greatly disturbing to me." Olmsted is disturbed because she knows those drugs don't just go down the drain. They go into the sewer system and eventually contaminate our lakes, streams and drinking water. And she is frustrated because for Wisconsin residents there are few safe ways to get rid of expired or unused drugs. [continues 356 words]
15 Pounds of Marijuana Found A town of Dunn man from whom authorities seized 50 pit bulls after a drug raid pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to a marijuana conspiracy charge. Robert A. Lowery, 58, admitted to conspiring with Jason Carr, 25 and Heather Lane, 31, both of the town of Genesee, to distribute more than 450 pounds of marijuana between Jan. 1 and June 13, 2006. Carr made three trips to Arizona earlier this year and each time returned to Lowery with about 150 pounds of marijuana, said Assistant U.S. Attorney David Reinhard. On the last two trips, authorities saw Carr and Lane leave Lowery's residence together and return days later, Reinhard said. [continues 275 words]
Officials Want Task Force To Battle Heroin, OxyContin Abuse Waukesha - In the latest sign that heroin and other dangerous narcotics are infiltrating Milwaukee suburbs, Waukesha County is considering action to confront a surge in such drug abuse. "It's fair to say we have a serious problem," said Claudia Roska, executive director of the Addiction Resource Council in Waukesha. The treatment center reports that a growing number of clients are indicating that their primary drug of choice is heroin or other derivatives of opium, including the prescription painkiller OxyContin. [continues 566 words]
A Madison Couple Whom Authorities Say Are Serious Drug Users Were Charged Tuesday in Connection With Nine Armed Bank Robberies Between July and November, Part of a Rash of 35 Bank Robberies in Dane County This Year. A man, 29, is being held in Dane County jail on $46,000 bail, and a woman, 26, is being held on $20,000 bail in connection with the robberies that netted a total of $37,800 from banks in Madison, Cottage Grove, Monona, Middleton and Stoughton. [continues 665 words]
Now that animal-rights activists have won the right to buy land for a museum next to UW-Madison's primate labs, you have to wonder who's going to visit. It's hard to imagine dad offering to pack up the kiddies for a fun day at a display of cruelty to animals. "Wanna go down to the Primate Freedom Project and see the new torture methods?" "Yeah!" "It's my turn to shock the monkey first!" Yes, I know. It's more about protest than a place to entertain little kids on a gray Saturday morning. [continues 340 words]
Regarding Eric Sterling's Nov. 23 op-ed, "Take Another Crack at That Cocaine Law," mandatory minimum prison sentences have done little more than give the land of the free the highest incarceration rate in the world. The deterrent value of tough law enforcement is grossly overrated. During the crack epidemic of the '80s, New York City chose the zero-tolerance approach, opting to arrest and prosecute as many offenders as possible. Meanwhile, Washington, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry was smoking crack and America's capital had the highest per capita murder rate in the country. Yet crack use declined in both cities simultaneously. [continues 100 words]
We Made Some Terrible Mistakes by Eric E. Sterling November 23, 2006 One of our most infamous contemporary laws is the 100-to-1 difference in sentencing between crack cocaine and powder cocaine. Under federal drug laws, prison sentences are usually tied to the quantity of drugs the defendant trafficked. For example, selling 5,000 grams of powder cocaine (about a briefcase full) gets a mandatory 10-year prison sentence, but so does selling only 50 grams of crack cocaine (the weight of a candy bar). [continues 723 words]
The headline of Tuesday's editorial about cleaning up state politics - -- "No more excuses for Legislature" -- could also easily apply to medical marijuana. Polling has long established that a majority of voters support legal access to medical marijuana. Some of the "bums" the voters "threw out" were anti-medical marijuana zealots. In the 2005 to 2006 session, AB 740 became the fourth medical marijuana bill to die in committee without a vote since 1997. Each year, there are an estimated 36,000 new cases of cancer in Wisconsin and around 11,000 people die from it. Add in patients with multiple sclerosis, AIDS, glaucoma and many other medical conditions, and we are talking about thousands of citizens who will benefit if the Legislature will only listen to the people. [continues 97 words]
State Agencies' Plans Are Mostly Vague, Unpalatable Madison - If state agencies had to cut their spending by 10%, Department of Transportation officials say they would ask permission to stop printing up to 1.8 million state highway maps, saving $232,500. But because the DOT is required by law to print the maps, that request can be turned down by Gov. Jim Doyle and the state Legislature. A picture of Doyle and his wife, Jessica, is on the maps, after all, and legislators get as many maps as they want, put their names on them and often hand them out to constituents like candy. [continues 911 words]
Lori Lynn Laxton will always remember the day her life took on a new mission: Oct. 29, 2006. On that afternoon, the Holmen native was about 150 days clean of methamphetamine, an addiction that controlled her life for three years after she tried the drug for the first time at age 40. She vividly recalls that afternoon -- walking around downtown La Crosse, absorbing the energy of young people at the library, visiting the Salvation Army for a free lunch and sharing stories with the folks there. Then, she says, three young men came up to her and they took a walk down to Riverside Park, past a memorial for a recently drowned college student. She picked up all the litter she saw, the empty vodka bottles and cigarette wrappers strewn around the park [continues 1552 words]
CEDARBURG - A first-ever drug sweep of the high school and the adjacent parking lot Tuesday morning turned up no illegal drugs on the grounds. Considering that one student was arrested for possessing cocaine and prescription amphetamines to sell at the school last month and other teens have been caught stealing and abusing Coricidin cold medicine, the absence of drugs at CHS was good news to school officials. "We're ecstatic," said Superintendent Daryl Herrick. "We are extremely pleased with the result." [continues 365 words]
A plant chewed for millennia as a stimulant by East Africans and Arabs brought a rare drug conviction Tuesday night in Madison. The plant is khat, an evergreen shrub grown in East Africa and the Arabian peninsula and prized for its stimulating properties. The new felon is Liban Moalin, 37, a Canadian citizen who was born in Ethiopia, where people routinely chew the plant's leaves and stems. It took a jury only about a half-hour to find the former Fitchburg man, who now lives in St. Paul, Minn., guilty of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. [continues 667 words]
Students For A Sensible Drug Policy Will Rally Nov. 17 To 19 Students hoping to influence laws and regulations concerning drug policies nationwide can join Students for a Sensible Drug Policy at a rally this month. SSDP will host an international conference and congressional lobby day Nov. 17 to 19 in Washington D.C. SSDP's most recent focus has been disputing a federal law that prohibits students who have drug convictions from receiving financial aid. "Students are tired of having our access to education destroyed as collateral damage in the War on Drugs," Kris Krane, SSDP's executive director, said in a press release. "For too long, the Drug War has been waged supposedly to protect young people." [continues 53 words]
It amazes me how people can remain so uneducated in spite of the availability of factual information. It further amazes me that there are political candidates who can be as far behind the learning curve as Wisconsin's Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Green ("Where's Jacki's Medicine?" Expresso, Oct. 26). I've watched for nearly a decade both Gary Storck and Jacki Rickert fight in order to have safe legal access to their cannabis medicine. Mark Green is representative of politicians out of touch with voters, issues and reality. As the research continues, we see cannabis proving effective against many maladies, including cancer and MS. Researchers are saying it may prove more effective than pharmaceuticals in dealing with Alzheimer's. In fact here in Oregon cannabis is listed as useful in treating the rage associated with Alzheimer's. Wisconsin should heed the words of these two very brave patient-warriors and avoid supporting Mark Green's ignorance when marking their ballots. Allan Erickson Drug Policy Forum of Oregon Eugene, Ore. [end]
As a Christian who helped pass Colorado's medical cannabis law, allowing sick citizens to use cannabis legally, I can see it works. One reason to legalize cannabis (kaneh bosm/marijuana) for sick citizens that doesn't get mentioned is because it is biblically correct since Christ God Our Father indicates He created all the seed-bearing plants, saying they are all good, on literally the very first page (see Genesis 1:11-12 and 29-30). The only biblical restriction placed on cannabis is that it be accepted with thankfulness (see 1 Timothy 4:1-5). [continues 58 words]
GREEN BAY - A Green Bay Police officer and his K9 partner were recognized at a state conference last month for a 26-pound marijuana bust. Officer Jim Swanson and his partner, Buddy, received the Meritorious K9 Narcotics Find award at the annual Wisconsin Law Enforcement Canine Handler Association Conference in early October in Waukesha. The two recovered the marijuana worth $41,000 in July, the police department said. Swanson is a 27-year veteran of the department and is assigned to the detective division as a school resource officer, working in schools and the Brown County Drug Task Force. [end]
Tim Schultz has had many years of experience with people addicted to methamphetamine - and he doesn't like what he sees. The Wisconsin Department of Justice special investigator was the keynote speaker at the Dunn County Community Forum on Methamphetamine at the Menomonie Middle School Wednesday evening. "People ask me if there's a way to tell who is going to use methamphetamine," Schultz said. "Meth is not an entry-level drug. The gateway drug is marijuana." People who use methamphetamine have most likely used marijuana first, he said. [continues 670 words]
Pressure is growing to put police officers inside the Milwaukee Public Schools. Fearing she would have fewer officers to deploy to crimes in the community, Milwaukee Police Chief Nannette Hegerty is resisting. All parties are slated to discuss the issue in a meeting with Mayor Tom Barrett on Wednesday. Advertisement Proponents cite a recent spate of violent activity in the schools. A police union official went so far as to describe as "ineffective" the present system of safety aides. Proponents have failed to back up that claim with facts, but, nonetheless, it's time to start stationing cops in schools, perhaps on a trial basis. The officers' presence might improve safety. And, as Superintendent William Andrekopoulos suggests, the police could do more than just respond to crime. They should serve as resource officers, patrolling the buildings, relating to students. [continues 282 words]
Prosecution Can't Prove Defendant Provided Methadone Waukesha - It took authorities the better part of three years to put together a homicide case in the 2003 fatal drug overdose of Angela Franceschetti, but when the case faced its first real test in a courtroom, a judge threw it out. Although a woman who partied with Franceschetti the night before she died admitted supplying her with LSD, she denied giving her any methadone, and it was a combination of the two that killed the New Berlin woman, according to court records. [continues 849 words]
Grafton man will stand trial on three additional counts of first-degree homicide PORT WASHINGTON - The 24-year-old Grafton man, who was sentenced this past fall for supplying the heroin that killed a Cedarburg teenager a year ago, will stand trial on three additional counts of first-degree homicide. Ozaukee County Circuit Court Judge Joseph D. McCormack sentenced Benjamin R. Stibbe in September for providing a fatal dose of heroin to Angela Raettig, a 17-year-old Cedarburg teenager, who was found dead by her mother on Nov. 30. [continues 322 words]
Students At St. Richard School Lean All Year Long About Staying Drug-Free RACINE - St. Richard School normally boasts blue uniforms for its kindergarten through eighth-grade students. But on Nov. 1, the school was a sea of red - red sweatshirts, red polo shirts, red T-shirts and red jerseys. Red ribbons also abounded - all with drug prevention messages for national Red Ribbon Week, which St. Richard's highlighted with a big morning gathering on the playground. Students from all grades formed a giant human circle with a line through it, illustrating in their own way a "just say no" symbol. Three stories above, from the roof of the school, Principal Joe Majowski and Journal Times Director of Photography Mark Hertzberg photographed the event and preserved the students' message. [continues 314 words]
Thank you for your articulate and well reasoned editorial about medical marijuana. It contains one glaring error. Jackie does not receive medical marijuana under the long closed federal Compassionate Use program. She was certified as qualified for the program because her doctors stated that medical marijuana gave her relief not achieved with alternate therapies and with fewer side effects than the alternate therapies. The federal government closed the program before her supplies were approved. (Only 7 people currently get federal medical marijuana.) Not only was Jackie denied the right to supplies of the best medical therapy for her she was actually arrested several years ago. Yes, they really do arrest severely ill people in their homes, roughly cart them off to jail, etc. Despite all of this Jackie's spirit remains unbroken and she continues to be active. She strives for positive change with hope as her organization name suggests ~ Is My Medicine Legal Yet? (IMMLY) Caren Thomas Glencoe, IL [end]
Mark Green Doesn't Support Medical Marijuana for Seriously Ill People Polls show that an astounding 80% of Wisconsin residents favor legalizing marijuana for seriously or terminally ill patients if a physician supports that course of therapy. But don't count Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Green as a member of the majority. Medical marijuana activists have been seeking answers from Green, the son of a South African doctor, about his views on allowing seriously ill people to use marijuana as part of a state-regulated program. When Madison resident Gary Storck wrote to Green last year, Green's letter indicated that he was against legalizing medical marijuana, even for those suffering from debilitating medical conditions. "Smoking marijuana, even in small amounts, carries health risks that exceed any perceived therapeutic effects," Green wrote. "I believe current medical options are superior to legalizing an addictive and dangerous illegal drug." [continues 204 words]
Dear Editor: The prosecution of the alleged heroin supplier charged in connection with the death of a young Madison woman reaffirms an already bad precedent. Illegal drug users are reluctant to seek medical attention in the event of an overdose for fear of being charged with a crime. Attempting to save the life of a friend could result in a murder charge. Overzealous drug enforcement results in easily preventable deaths. Rehabilitation also is confounded. I think it's safe to say that turnout at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings would be rather low if alcoholism were a crime pursued with zero tolerance zeal. Eliminating the penalties associated with illicit drug abuse would encourage the type of honest discussion necessary to facilitate rehabilitation and save lives. Drug abuse is bad, but the drug war is worse. Robert Sharpe, Common Sense for Drug Policy, Washington, D.C. [end]
HORICON - Red Ribbon Week will be celebrated next week with three days of special activities at Van Brunt Elementary and Middle School. On Monday, students are asked to wear as much red as possible to school. They will also be watching skits performed by the middle school drama team. On Tuesday, students are asked to wear bright colors. Michael McGowen will speak to the elementary and middle school children. McGowan presents numerous assemblies to school children every year. The presentations are tailored to fit the individual school and grade level. The primary focus is helping children to value their differences and strengths. The grade school presentations focus on reinforcing good decision making and encouraging children to use their communication and networking skills to make positive friendships. In middle school, the presentations focus on the feelings they have about themselves and how they use a variety of coping mechanisms as well as how they treat each other. [continues 190 words]
The Beaver Dam Police Department and Beaver Dam Elks Lodge 1540 have joined together to inform area children about the dangers of drugs as part of Red Ribbon Week. Red Ribbon Week was implemented in 1985 by the National Federation of Parents for Drug Free Youth and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It is celebrated every year from Oct. 23 to 31. Since next week is shortened for Beaver Dam students, the drug awareness event began Tuesday with a visit to Prairie View Elementary School. [continues 406 words]
Deaths Add Meaning to Red Ribbon Week CEDARBURG - At least four drug overdose deaths, the arrest of a CHS student for selling amphetamines on campus and the dismantling of a heroin-dealing operation with ties to Ozaukee County have merged over the past year to make this year's annual Red Ribbon Week more critical than ever. The campaign to educate youths on the dangers of alcohol, tobacco and drug use is under way in cities across the nation this week, including Cedarburg, where young people continue to experiment with and abuse everything from heroin to over-the-counter cold medicines. [continues 685 words]
DOVER - The Racine County Sheriff's Department used Google Earth - an online mapping program - last week to pinpoint marijuana fields in Mount Pleasant and bust a Racine man for harvesting pot. The investigation began Friday after Racine County Sheriff's deputies pulled over Dean Brown, 37, of Racine, near highways 75 and 20, according to a criminal complaint. A deputy smelled marijuana as he approached the car, and discovered 18 pounds of freshly harvested marijuana in the car's cargo area. The marijuana, stuffed in two large garbage bags with heavy stems poking through the plastic, was worth between $63,000 and $140,000. [continues 264 words]
Eisman Presents Ideas, Hopes For State At Student Forum Green Party gubernatorial candidate Nelson Eisman spoke to students about his plans for the future of Wisconsin on Sunday, Oct. 15. Eisman talked about the domination of corporate interests in politics, his goal for universal health care in Wisconsin and reformation of public education and law enforcement at the state level in an event sponsored by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee's chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. "We need to start thinking critically about what's fair in our state," Eisman said. [continues 389 words]
Early Saturday morning a young man exhibited an egregious lack of judgment in Rice Lake. Young Adam Carr made several bad decisions, not beginning with but ending with the decision to get behind the wheel of a vehicle allegedly after drinking. An assortment of drugs, including marijuana and cocaine, and a gun were found in the man's vehicle after he was pulled over for speeding by a Rice Lake police officer. (The police department is still investigating the case.) Just another traffic/drug stop in Rice Lake, except for the fact that the name of the subject's father will appear on the ballot for the Barron County Sheriff's election Nov. 7. [continues 499 words]
I support cannabis (kaneh-bosm/marijuana) legalization ("Supporters of legalizing marijuana rally in Madison," Oct. 9, 2006). This is a chance for citizens who use or don't use cannabis to help change an ignorant anti-Christian law. It is a chance for parents and mothers to help protect children from the laws of prohibition and their harms. It is a chance to guide police toward serving and protecting, rather than maintaining a misguided prohibition. It's a chance for true fiscal conservatives to stop government from unsuccessfully spending more money to control what people put in their bodies. It is a chance for DARE graduates who've been lied to to speak out. [continues 71 words]
Alleged Supplier Is Charged A Madison man previously convicted for dealing drugs was ordered to stand trial Monday in connection with the death in May of a young Madison woman who died after taking heroin. Robert Steed, 37, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide for providing the heroin that allegedly killed Elise Schnitzler, 20, on May 17. Although the prosecution put in no direct evidence of what killed Schnitzler, testimony showed she died the morning after ingesting heroin provided by Steed while Schnitzler and a friend, Kellie Prager, were at an east side hotel the night before the death. [continues 470 words]
A Madison man was ordered to stand trial Monday on charges that he sold heroin that caused a woman's overdose death, following testimony from a man who was convicted of a similar crime in 1994. Dane County Circuit Judge Michael Nowakowski ordered Robert D. Steed, 37, to stand trial for allegedly supplying the heroin that caused the death of Elise Schnitzler, 20, on May 17. In addition to first-degree reckless homicide, Steed is charged with three counts of delivering heroin, all during police-controlled drug purchases made during the investigation that followed Schnitzler's death. [continues 347 words]
Marijuana Reform Hot Topic Among Many Enthusiasts The 36th Annual Great Midwest Harvest Festival brought together a motley mix of protesters, reformers and Zen practitioners to Library Mall over the weekend. But on a beautiful fall Sunday, the crowd had one demand: Join the political struggle against marijuana prohibition and smoke some weed in public. Ushering in such radical change in U.S. drug policy is no small task, and most of the marijuana enthusiasts who marched on the Capitol Sunday were aware of the uphill battle. [continues 322 words]
The skies were clear but a haze hung over hundreds of marijuana activists as they paraded up State Street to the Capitol for the 36th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival. Some who marched advocated marijuana for medicinal purposes, while others championed hemp as an answer to the state's agricultural woes. And more than a few undoubtedly toked up for the sheer pleasure of smoking a doobie on a sunny afternoon on State Street. "The sky didn't fall, nothing happened, nobody got hurt, and we went all the way down the road in full public view and nothing went wrong," activist Jim Miller from New Jersey said. [continues 694 words]
MADISON - Supporters of legalizing marijuana urged people to vote for candidates who support the drug's legalization at a rally this weekend. Organizers estimated several hundred people attended the 36th annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival, which took place at State Street Mall on Saturday and Sunday. Police did not have their estimate readily available, said Madison Police Sgt. Dave McClurg. No arrests were made for marijuana use, he said. Last year's rally focused on supporting a bill that would have legalized medicinal marijuana in the state. But with the demise of that bill, organizer Gary Storck said this year they focused on electing officials who support legalization. [continues 174 words]
As Wisconsin farmers tended to the soybean and corn harvest, hundreds of people gathered in Madison this weekend hoping that someday those same farmers will be able to legally add another cash crop to their yield. On Saturday and Sunday on State Street Mall, proponents of marijuana legalization gathered to stump for their favorite weed with political speeches, music and - at least in a few instances - pot smoking at the 36th annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival. Last year the focus was on supporting a bill that would have legalized medicinal marijuana in Wisconsin. But with the demise of that bill, this year's focus was on electing officials who do support legalization, said event organizer Gary Storck. [continues 478 words]
Police Search With No Warrant Was Illegal WAUSAU - A state appeals court Tuesday overturned a drug conviction because police in northern Wisconsin illegally entered a man's apartment without a search warrant after another tenant complained about smelling marijuana. Donovan M. Bender, 22, of Superior, was convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession a year ago and fined $260. In throwing out the conviction, the 3rd District Court of Appeals ruled that Superior police officers wrongly created the justification for going into the apartment without a warrant by knocking on the door. [continues 309 words]
Some would question if we as a community are making any headway with the drug problem. We have law enforcement and grassroots efforts making a difference in our neighborhoods. We have citizens making donations to Crime Stoppers for the purpose of developing and implementing financial rewards for the apprehension of drug dealers (more information to come on these efforts). There is a lot of prevention and proactive efforts going on within Sheboygan. Beginning this month, another effort by the Sheboygan Area School District and the Sheboygan Police Department will take root -- Students Against Drugs or SAD. [continues 420 words]
Alone Or With Heroin, Fentanyl Has Killed Hundreds A powerful drug that when mixed with heroin has been traced to hundreds of deaths nationwide has surfaced in Milwaukee, authorities said Thursday.Advertisement Last week, Milwaukee vice detectives seized 6.5 grams of pure fentanyl - a legally produced synthetic painkiller that is 80 times stronger than morphine - in a bust on the city's north side, said Lt. Robert Stelter. They thought they were getting heroin and were surprised to learn it was fentanyl, presumably sold to be added to heroin, he said. [continues 330 words]
A hunter tipped off authorities after finding plots of marijuana plants, some growing up to 7 feet tall, in western Kenosha County, authorities said. The 2,250 plants, said to have an estimated street value of $4.5 million, were seized and destroyed Monday, according to the Kenosha County Controlled Substance [end]
Milwaukee-To- Ozaukee Pipeline Is Busy, Deadly Cedarburg - Jerry R. Cote, 19, who had a history of heroin use, was found dead of a suspected overdose the night of Sept. 15 in a Town of Grafton apartment. If what investigators suspect proves to be true, it will be the fourth heroin-related death in the state's wealthiest and geographically smallest county in less than a year, putting it on at least a par with other more populous Milwaukee-area counties. [continues 881 words]
Why does our United States government stand for more heroin production and sales from a country where our troops are fighting -- Afghanistan. I had the understanding that this country was and is stepping up enforcement on drugs. I say burn the fields up -- each and everyone of them. The people in the White House that are our leaders are just turning the other cheek. The whole government needs to be tested for drug use without an advance warning. Do it randomly like truck drivers. If positive, they should step down and this should be made public information, and the media should feed on this. [end]
Diaz Fails In Attempt To Fire His Lawyer A 33-year-old man who allegedly tried to hire someone to kill a Brown County narcotics agent and a confidential informant will stand trial today, despite his efforts to fire his lawyer. Leo Manuel Diaz in June pleaded not guilty to two counts of solicitation of first-degree intentional homicide. If convicted on both charges he faces 25 years in prison. At a hearing Monday, Diaz claimed that his lawyer, Eric Pangburn, had a conflict of interest because he represented in an unrelated case a man who Diaz claimed was a witness in an unrelated federal investigation against him. [continues 495 words]
County Unit Has Made 5 Arrests In 14 Months Lt. Dean Roberts of the Ozaukee County Sheriff's Department says its the "pendulum effect" that brought the Ozaukee County Anti-Drug Task Force to Homestead High School. "We go where the tips lead us," said Roberts, the commander of the Task Force. "We are not focusing on Homestead, but if we get information and it's credible we will follow up on it no matter what school it brings us to." [continues 731 words]
What good is electing Democrats if they do nothing for the people? The Sept. 12 primary sent a clear message to Democratic incumbents Herb Kohl, Gwen Moore and Jeff Plale that their constituents have had enough of their failed leadership. Ben Masel, a Madison hippie who ran no campaign, received more than 50,000 votes in his race against Herb Kohl. More than 700 people cast write-in ballots against Gwen Moore, and Jeff Plale "won" his primary 70%-30% over Donovan Riley, a man who pulled out of the race in disgrace more than a month ago. Many Democrats have had enough of these lousy leaders and sent that message by voting for anybody but the incumbent. With Democrats like these, who needs Republicans? [continues 152 words]
The Sept. 5 Tribune article "Incumbent faces former undersheriff in Crawford County" by Anne Jungen contained incorrect information regarding the DARE program. In the article, Crawford County Sheriff Bob Ostrander was quoted as saying, "The county board voted to discontinue the DARE program after federal funding was eliminated." I believe it's important to correct the fact that local, county and state "Safe and Drug Free Schools" federal funding for DARE programs in Wisconsin has not been eliminated. In reality, any Wisconsin law enforcement agency and school district providing DARE prevention education to elementary, middle school or high school students may submit a waiver to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and if properly submitted that law enforcement agency will receive federal funding from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction through "Safe and Drug-Free Schools" funds. [continues 62 words]
Inside Wisconsin
