Times-Tribune, The _Scranton PA_ 1/1/1997 - 31/12/2024
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51 US PA: Column: Tobacco Debate Gone To PotWed, 22 Jan 2014
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Cohen, Richard Area:Pennsylvania Lines:86 Added:01/22/2014

On Jan. 1, Colorado began permitting the legal sale of marijuana. Even before that, the nation's news media had swung into action, arguing just about everything - marijuana is dangerous or not dangerous, a gateway drug or just a lot of smoke.

Nothing I saw mentioned why I will not smoke marijuana. I'm afraid it would lead me back to cigarettes.

Once I was addicted to cigarettes. (I suppose I still am.) I tried to quit numerous times - hypnotism, acupuncture, hypnotism again, willpower and shame and mortal shame - but nothing worked. I felt enslaved - sucking this poison into my body, soiling my lungs - and enraged at an industry that encouraged me as a youth to smoke and, despite all the health findings, continued to give me that wink: Smoke. Such sweet pleasure!

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52 US: The Year Of Pot Legalization?Tue, 21 Jan 2014
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Ganga, Maria L. LA Area:United States Lines:84 Added:01/21/2014

Petitions Out In At Least Five Other States To Put On Ballot

SEATTLE - The new year is shaping up to be one of the marijuana movement's strongest ever.

The first legal pot storefronts in America opened to long lines in Colorado this month. Washington state is poised to issue licenses for producing, processing and selling the Schedule I drug - once officials sift through around 7,000 applications.

Signature gatherers have been at work in at least five states to put marijuana measures on the ballot in 2014. On Wednesday organizers announced they had gathered more than 1 million signatures in favor of putting a medical marijuana measure before voters in Florida, a high-population bellwether that could become the first Southern state to embrace pot.

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53 US PA: PUB LTE: Pass Peace PipeFri, 03 Jan 2014
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Sharpe, Robert Area:Pennsylvania Lines:38 Added:01/08/2014

Editor: The common theme among recipients of mandatory minimum prison sentences described in George Will's Dec. 26 column is consensual drug transactions between willing buyers and sellers.

The war on some drugs has had a profound impact on this country. The alleged Land of the Free now has the highest incarceration rate in the world. At a cost of over $30,000 per inmate annually, this is big government at its worst.

Prisons transmit violent habits and values rather than reduce them. Most nonviolent drug offenders are eventually released, with dismal job prospects due to criminal records. Turning nonviolent drug offenders into hardened criminals is a senseless waste of tax dollars.

It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin treating all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem it is.

WASHINGTON, D.C.

[end]

54 US CO: This Bud's For YouThu, 02 Jan 2014
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Wyatt, Kristen Area:Colorado Lines:74 Added:01/02/2014

Legal Recreational Pot Industry Opens in Colorado

DENVER (AP) - The nation's first recreational pot industry opened in Colorado on Wednesday, kicking off an experiment that will be followed closely around the world and one that activists hope will prove that legalization is a better alternative than the costly American-led drug war.

Business owners who threw their doors open for shoppers at 8 a.m. are looking for the fledgling industry to generate as much revenue as state officials hope it will. At least 24 pot shops in eight towns opened, after increasing staff and inventory and hiring security.

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55 US PA: Column: Sentencing Laws Skew JusticeThu, 26 Dec 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Will, George Area:Pennsylvania Lines:112 Added:12/26/2013

WASHINGTON - Federal Judge John Gleeson of the Eastern District of New York says documents called "statements of reasons" are an optional way for a judge to express "views that might be of interest." The one he issued two months ago is still reverberating.

It expresses his dismay that although his vocation is the administration of justice, his function frequently is the infliction of injustice. The policy of mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses has empowered the government to effectively nullify the constitutional right to a trial. As Lulzim Kupa learned.

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56 US PA: Editorial: Politics Wrong PrescriptionWed, 20 Nov 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA)          Area:Pennsylvania Lines:40 Added:11/21/2013

Pennsylvania is far behind the curve in recognizing that marijuana has legitimate medicinal uses. A bill introduced this week by state Sens. Dylan Leach, a Montgomery County Democrat, and Mike Folmer, a Republican from Lebanon County, would begin the process of moving medicinal pot use from the realm of politics to that of medicine.

The bill is far more restrictive than those in 18 states that have approved medicinal marijuana use, and it simply does not entertain legal general recreational use of marijuana.

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57 US IL: Pot: Benefit Or Risk?Wed, 13 Nov 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Hirst, Ellen Jean Area:Illinois Lines:96 Added:11/14/2013

Evidence of How Drug Helps With Specific Diseases Lacking

CHICAGO - Even though 20 states have passed laws legalizing medical marijuana, swayed in part by thousands of personal testimonies, current research hasn't nailed down exactly if, and how, marijuana alleviates all the specific diseases the drug is being legalized to treat, experts say.

A number of proponents believe marijuana could benefit people with everything from glaucoma to cancer, and it's been legalized in Illinois to aid patients with some 40 medical conditions. But opponents of its medicinal use believe the risks of smoking medical marijuana outweigh the benefits, while others question whether patients really improve or only feel like they improve.

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58 US CO: Marijuana RefugeesTue, 29 Oct 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Phillips, Dave Area:Colorado Lines:68 Added:10/30/2013

New Pot Laws Are Drawing Families Seeking Medical Cures.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - When Mohammad Halabi was a boy, his parents fled war in Lebanon to give their child a chance at life. This month, as Mr. Halabi drove to Denver International Airport to pick up his wife and 2- year-old daughter, he realized he was doing the same thing.

Mr. Halabi's daughter, Mia, has severe epilepsy. Treatment by some of the country's best neurologists and with the most powerful drugs has done little. This year, doctors told him to prepare for her death.

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59 US CA: States Planning Legal Pot Look At Calif. ExperienceSun, 27 Oct 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Nagourney, Adam Area:California Lines:69 Added:10/29/2013

Marijuana Becoming Alcohol Substitute for Young People.

LOS ANGELES - In the heart of Northern California's marijuana growing region, the sheriff 's office is inundated each fall with complaints about the stench of marijuana plots or the latest expropriation of public land by growers. Its tranquil communities have been altered by t he emergence of a wealthy class of marijuana entrepreneurs, while nearly 500 miles away in Los Angeles, officials have struggled to regulate an explosion of medical marijuana shops.

But at a time when polls show widening public support for legalizing marijuana - recreational marijuana is about to become legal in Colorado and Washington, and voter initiatives are in the pipeline in at least three others states - California's 17-year experience as the first state to legalize medical marijuana offers surprising lessons, experts say.

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60 US ME: Marijuana Efforts Move East To MaineSun, 20 Oct 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Canfield, Clarke Area:Maine Lines:61 Added:10/21/2013

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Advocates of recreational marijuana use are looking to an upcoming vote in Maine as an indicator of whether the East Coast is ready to follow in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington by legalizing cannabis.

Voters in Portland are being asked whether they want to make it legal for adults 21 and over to possess - but not purchase or sell - up to 2.5 ounces of pot. The Nov. 5 vote is being eyed nationally as momentum grows in favor of legalizing marijuana use.

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61 US PA: PUB LTE: Prison SlavesTue, 10 Sep 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Bettum, Stephen George Area:Pennsylvania Lines:35 Added:09/12/2013

Editor: Is there hidden slavery in the United States?

There is a never-ending war on drugs, a seriously broken justice system, and laws that are not equally enforced. Many states have mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders and three-strike laws. Some states' prison systems can add time to a prisoner's sentence for minor infractions without a trial.

These for-profit prison systems are running prisons for a fee and then getting the use of free prison labor to manufacture products for industries that then compete with regular businesses. How many jobs is this costing the regular American public?

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62 US WA: Washington State Sets Rules For Recreational MarijuanaSat, 07 Sep 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Ganga, Maria L. LA Area:Washington Lines:74 Added:09/07/2013

SEATTLE - Recreational marijuana users in Washington state would have as many as 334 stores where they would be able to buy cannabis, and the first could open as soon as next spring under regulations released this week.

But as one of the first legal markets in the United States for the sale of recreational marijuana begins to take shape in the Pacific Northwest, future producers, sellers and smokers have more questions than there are answers now that their once-illicit industry has gone straight.

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63 US PA: Editorial: Pot's Perils, Even If LegalSat, 07 Sep 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA)          Area:Pennsylvania Lines:41 Added:09/07/2013

The Justice Department has decided not to fight 20 states and the District of Columbia over laws they have adopted, in contradiction to federal law, to decriminalize medicinal and recreational marijuana use.

Attorney General Eric Holder characterized the decision as establishing priorities for use of limited resources. Indeed, those resources should be used to fight criminal conduct rather than legal conduct in states that have adopted the new laws, usually by referendum.

If the DOJ had decided to take on the laws in court, it likely would have won because federal laws generally supersede state or local laws when they conflict.

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64 US PA: PUB LTE: Decriminalize UseTue, 27 Aug 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Sharpe, Robert Area:Pennsylvania Lines:30 Added:08/27/2013

Editor: The drug war is part of the problem ("Drug War Scam Ends," Leonard Pitts column, Aug. 19). 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 war enforcement results in preventable deaths. Rehabilitation also is confounded. Turnout at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings would be much lower if alcoholism were a crime pursued with zero-tolerance zeal.

Eliminating the penalties associated with illicit drug use would encourage the type of honest discussion necessary to facilitate rehabilitation and save lives.

POLICY ANALYST, COMMON SENSE FOR DRUG POLICY Washington, D.C.

[end]

65 US PA: Column: Drug War Scam EndsMon, 19 Aug 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Pitts, Leonard Jr. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:78 Added:08/21/2013

It's been a war on justice, an assault on equal protection under the law. And a war on families, removing millions of fathers from millions of homes. And a war on money, spilling it like water.

And a war on people of color, targeting them with drone-strike efficiency.

We never call it any of those things, though all of them fit. No, we call it the War on Drugs.

It is a 42-year, trillion-dollar disaster that has done absolutely nothing to stem the inexhaustible supply of and insatiable demand for illegal narcotics. In the process, it has rendered this "land of the free" the biggest jailer on Earth.

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66 US: Holder: Ease Up On Drug OffendersMon, 12 Aug 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Horwitz, Sari Area:United States Lines:129 Added:08/12/2013

Attorney General Will Outline a Package of Comprehensive Prison Reforms Aimed to Boost Fiscal and Societal Efficiency.

WASHINGTON - Attorney General Eric Holder is set to announce today that low-level, nonviolent drug offenders with no ties to gangs or large-scale drug organizations will no longer be charged with offenses that impose severe mandatory sentences.

The new Justice Department policy is part of a comprehensive prison reform package that Mr. Holder will reveal in a speech to the American Bar Association in San Francisco, according to senior department officials. He is also expected to introduce a policy to reduce sentences for elderly, nonviolent inmates and find alternatives to prison for nonviolent criminals.

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67 US PA: County On Trial Over Drug Raid On Music ChurchSun, 21 Jul 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Mandak, Joe Area:Pennsylvania Lines:65 Added:07/23/2013

Concerts Worship, Church Says in Lawsuit, but Must Convince Jury of Its Earnestness.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A church that contends the jam band concerts it promotes are worship services will try to convince a U.S. District Court jury this week that a drug raid at one such music festival in 2009 was an unreasonable search spurred by county officials hell-bent on persecution.

But to prove its religious retaliation claim under federal law, the Church of University Love and Music must first convince the jury that "Funk Fest" was an expression of "sincerely held" religious beliefs - and not merely a hearty outdoor party that drew about 400 people.

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68 US: Marijuana Steps Up Its March Toward MainstreamSun, 30 Jun 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Benac, Nancy Area:United States Lines:130 Added:06/30/2013

Whether it's medicinal or recreational, pot is confounding policymakers.

WASHINGTON - It took 50 years for American attitudes about marijuana to zigzag from the paranoia of "Reefer Madness" to the excesses of Woodstock back to the hard line of "Just Say No."

The next 25 years took the nation from Bill Clinton, who famously "didn't inhale," to Barack Obama, who most emphatically did.

Now, in just a few short years, public opinion has moved so dramatically toward general acceptance that even those who champion legalization are surprised at how quickly attitudes are changing and states are moving to approve the drug - for medical use and just for fun.

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69 US: Kids' Ingestion Of Pot On RiseFri, 31 May 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Healy, Melissa Area:United States Lines:57 Added:06/03/2013

Secondary Consequences of Marijuana Legalization Seen

As legalized marijuana appears in an increasing number of American homes, so too does evidence of a dark side: accidental ingestion of pot and pot-infused food by young children.

The results can be frightening to such children, who often suffer anxiety attacks when they start to feel unexpected symptoms of being high: hallucinations, dizziness, altered perception and impaired thinking.

And the trend should prompt equal concern among adult caregivers and public health authorities, since ingestion of highly potent marijuana by young children can suppress respiration and even induce coma, according to a study published online this week in JAMA Pediatrics.

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70 US PA: PUB LTE: Untaken LeapWed, 22 May 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Muse, Kirk Area:Pennsylvania Lines:25 Added:05/23/2013

Editor: State Attorney General Kathleen Kane says marijuana is a "gateway drug" ("Kane against pot legalization," May 18). So why don't we have more than 100 million heroin addicts? More than 100 million cocaine addicts? More than 100 million meth addicts?

More than 100 million Americans have used marijuana at least once, according to the DEA.

MESA, ARIZ.

[end]

71 US PA: Kane Against Pot LegalizationSat, 18 May 2013
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Jackson, Peter Area:Pennsylvania Lines:56 Added:05/19/2013

Attorney General Calls Marijuana a "Gateway Drug."

HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane told a gathering of newspaper editors Friday that she opposes legislation to legalize marijuana because users often move on to harder drugs.

"It's a gateway drug," Ms. Kane said in a luncheon speech during the annual conference of the Pennsylvania Associated Press Managing Editors.

"When you don't get your high from marijuana you're going to turn to something else. It's going to be oxycodone and then it's going to be heroin. It doesn't stop just at marijuana," she said. "I oppose it for criminal justice reasons."

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72 US PA: Corbett Would Veto Any Marijuana BillWed, 26 Dec 2012
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Jackson, Peter Area:Pennsylvania Lines:68 Added:12/27/2012

Recent Legalization Votes Buoy Advocates

HARRISBURG (AP) - Some advocates of repealing or relaxing Pennsylvania's antimarijuana laws say they are encouraged by referendum votes to legalize recreational use of the drug in Colorado and Washington state, but Gov. Tom Corbett vows to veto any such bill.

State Sen. Daylin Leach, who sponsored one of two medical-marijuana bills that died in committee during the just-ended legislative session, said the referendums results will help pave the way for similar measures in other states.

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73 US PA: Pot Smokers Beware: No Plans To Ease Drug TestsSun, 16 Dec 2012
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Falchek, David Area:Pennsylvania Lines:64 Added:12/16/2012

Though Marijuana Legal in Some States, It's Unlikely to Change Workplace Policies.

Marijuana use is legal in Colorado and Washington, but Pennsylvanians whose workplaces have random drug testing should stick to more conventional activities if visiting those states.

The legalization of marijuana in other states is unlikely to change workplace policies in Pennsylvania.

Just as an employer could dismiss someone for showing up to work with alcohol in his or her system, they could do so for marijuana, whether it was used out-of-state legally or not.

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74 US: Poll: If States Ok Pot, Feds Should RelaxSun, 09 Dec 2012
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Page, Susan Area:United States Lines:60 Added:12/09/2012

However, There's No Consensus on Legalization.

Americans are divided over whether marijuana should be decriminalized - - 50 percent say no, 48 percent say yes - but they overwhelmingly agree on this: When states vote to legalize pot, the feds should look the other way.

In a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, those surveyed say by almost 2-1, 63 percent to 34 percent, that the federal government shouldn't take steps to enforce federal marijuana laws in states that legalize pot.

The question took on some urgency Thursday as Washington became the first state to decriminalize the possession of marijuana for recreational purposes. Just after midnight, hundreds of celebrants lit joints at the base of Seattle's Space Needle.

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75 US CO: Easing Pot Laws Poses ChallengeMon, 18 Jun 2012
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Crary, David Area:Colorado Lines:38 Added:06/18/2012

DENVER - Michael Jolton was a young father with a 5-year-old son when Colorado legalized medical marijuana in 2000. Now he's got three boys, the oldest near adulthood, and finds himself repeatedly explaining greenleafed marijuana ads and "free joint" promotions endemic in his suburban hometown.

"I did not talk to my oldest son about marijuana when he was 8 years old. We got to talk about fun stuff. Now with my youngest who's 8, we have to talk about this," said Mr. Jolton, a consultant from Lakewood.

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76 US PA: House Adding New Synthetic To Ban ListTue, 24 May 2011
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Swift, Robert Area:Pennsylvania Lines:53 Added:05/24/2011

HARRISBURG - House lawmakers are adding a synthetic drug that caught the attention of law enforcement officials just weeks ago to a bill expanding the list of controlled substances.

The drug 2C-E is a hallucinogenic that mimics LSD and ecstasy and is considered responsible for the death of a user recently in Minnesota.

The Judiciary Committee Tuesday approved an amendment adding 2C-E to Senate-approved legislation banning the sale of "bath salts" that is getting priority attention before the legislative summer recess.

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77 US PA: PUB LTE: Safe ReliefThu, 17 Dec 2009
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Muse, Kirk Area:Pennsylvania Lines:37 Added:12/19/2009

Editor: I'm responding to the outstanding letter from Robert Sharpe: "Doc's, patient's call" (Your Opinion, Dec. 13).

I'd like to add that one of the medications prescribed by my personal physician for my arthritis pain and inflammation has the rare potential side effect of death. In other words, if I take this medication as prescribed, I can die as a result.

On the other hand, marijuana has never been documented to kill a single person in the 5,000 year history of its use.

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78 US PA: PUB LTE: Doc's, Patient's CallSun, 13 Dec 2009
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Sharpe, Robert Area:Pennsylvania Lines:38 Added:12/14/2009

Editor: Regarding your Dec. 10 editorial, "House stirs medical pot": While there have been studies showing that marijuana can shrink cancerous tumors, medical marijuana is essentially a palliative drug. If a doctor recommends marijuana to a cancer patient undergoing chemotherapy and it helps him or her feel better, then it's working.

In the end, medical marijuana is a quality of life issue best left to patients and their doctors.

Drug warriors waging war on noncorporate drugs contend that organic marijuana is not an effective health intervention. Their prescribed intervention for medical marijuana patients is handcuffs, jail cells and criminal records. This heavy-handed approach suggests that drug warriors should not be dictating health care decisions.

It's long past time to let doctors decide what is right for their patients; sick patients should not be jailed for daring to seek relief from medical marijuana.

Robert Sharpe

Policy Analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, D.C.

[end]

79 US PA: Editorial: House Stirs Medicinal PotThu, 10 Dec 2009
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA)          Area:Pennsylvania Lines:60 Added:12/10/2009

There probably is little chance that the state Legislature will legalize medicinal marijuana any time soon. A bill to do so, introduced by Rep. Mark Cohen of Philadelphia, has just half a dozen cosponsors and it's not at the top of the legislative agenda.

Yet a recent Health and Human Services Commitee hearing on the bill was a remarkable event in this conservative state and a step toward a rational policy for medicinal marijuana use. Testimony during the hearing did much to dispel myths about medicinal marijuana and to establish a framework for legalization.

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80 US PA: Hearing Explores Whether Marijuana Should Be LegalWed, 02 Dec 2009
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Swift, Robert Area:Pennsylvania Lines:74 Added:12/02/2009

HARRISBURG - A House committee waded through a thicket of health, ethical and legal issues Wednesday during a first-time hearing on a bill to legalize the medical use of marijuana.

The hearing before the Health and Human Services Committee featured testimony from individuals with a wide range of views about an issue that has gained headway in a number of western states, but until now has not garnered much attention in Pennsylvania.

The measure by Rep. Mark Cohen, D-202, Philadelphia, would provide for state licensing and inspection of "compassion" centers where marijuana can be used with a doctor's recommendation by patients suffering from HIV, AIDS, cancer and other illnesses.

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81 US PA: Supervision Is Key In Drug Court ProgramFri, 26 Dec 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Mrozinski, Josh Area:Pennsylvania Lines:88 Added:12/26/2008

TUNKHANNOCK TWP. - Scott Ramey nearly lost everything nine months ago when he was convicted of driving under the influence.

As Mr. Ramey celebrates Christmas with his family, he said he is grateful for a Sullivan/Wyoming county drug court program that helped him avoid incarceration and turn his life around.

"Ever since I've been doing the program, I haven't even picked up a drink," said Mr. Ramey, 33, who is married and has four children. "If the program wasn't available, I wouldn't be here."

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82 US PA: PUB LTE: Prohibition DeadlyWed, 13 Feb 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Muse, Kirk Area:Pennsylvania Lines:35 Added:02/13/2008

Editor: Re: "Drug deaths rising" (Feb.10). The prohibition of alcohol was the source of "bathtub gin" that killed, blinded and crippled thousands. Our current drug prohibition policies are the source of the lethal heroin mixtures that are killing so many drug users today.

Drug prohibition is the reason the drugs like heroin are of unknown quality, unknown purity and unknown potency. When pure pharmaceutical-grade Bayer heroin was legally available in pharmacies and grocery stores for pennies per dose, we didn't have black market, bootleg drugs.

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83 US PA: Treatment Still Facing Hurdles In RegulationWed, 13 Feb 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Axelrod, Daniel Area:Pennsylvania Lines:182 Added:02/13/2008

Five years after the release of a much-heralded drug that blocks opiate addicts' cravings, state officials are grappling with how to regulate the treatment.

Federal officials spent years helping to develop and promote buprenorphine and encouraged doctors to dispense it. The hexagonal orange pill -- marketed as Suboxone -- is manufactured by the pharmaceuticals subsidiary of the British company Reckitt Benckiser.

Providers say state regulations make it difficult for inpatient and outpatient facilities to prescribe the medicine and receive reimbursement. However, some obstacles to dispensing Suboxone could soon fall. In late December, state Secretary of Health Calvin Johnson, M.D., approved recommendations by the Buprenorphine Workgroup, a collection of addiction experts who studied barriers to the treatment.

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84 US PA: PUB LTE: Prevention WorksTue, 12 Feb 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Pittack, Kevin Jr. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:61 Added:02/12/2008

Editor: As a graduate of Lakeland High School, I am dismayed to see the recent news of several girls allegedly caught in the act of dealing and purchasing drugs in the school lavatory.

How could a handful of teenage girls be peddling drugs on school property, in the middle of a school day? How long have they been doing so without being caught? What is more disheartening is the reactionary response of the superintendent, Dr. Margaret Billings-Jones, who, only days after the events, sent letters to parents, urging them to be proactive in educating their children about drugs.

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85 US PA: PUB LTE: Education VitalTue, 12 Feb 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Solfanelli, Gerald A. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:48 Added:02/12/2008

Editor: In response to your recent series of articles on addiction: The negative impact of abuse, which originates with the addict, slowly permeates into his or her family and ultimately throughout the community. Efforts to educate our communities regarding these consequences are critical in initiating positive change.

The tangible losses associated with addiction are often readily apparent. Crime and the eventual losses of health, jobs, family, friends and money are only the manifestations of a more intangible loss, which is likely the real culprit behind abuse: loss of one's self through the insidious and consistent detachment of one's feelings through addiction.

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86 US PA: Drug Deaths RisingSun, 10 Feb 2008
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA)          Area:Pennsylvania Lines:40 Added:02/11/2008

There were two deaths attributed to opiates in 1992 in Lackawanna County, according to county coroner records. By 1997, 12 drug-related deaths involved some form of an opiate.

Of those 12 deaths, only one involved a prescription opiate, while the rest involved either heroin or morphine.

Now, in most drug overdose deaths, a combination of drugs or alcohol is found in the system. Of the 39 deaths in 2002, for example, 35 involved some form of opiate, including heroin, morphine, oxycodone, fentanyl and methadone. Four of those deaths were related to oxycodone and three were attributed to fentanyl, said Michael Coyer, the toxicologist for Lackawanna County.

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87 US PA: Same Drug, Different Form, Higher Mandatory MinimumSun, 25 Nov 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Nissley, Erin L. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:152 Added:11/27/2007

Get caught dealing 5 grams of crack and you will get at least five years in a federal prison.

It would take a case involving 500 grams of powder cocaine to get the same minimum sentence.

It's a discrepancy critics say leads to harsher punishments for minorities and the poor, who experts say are more likely to buy and sell crack because it's cheaper and more potent than powder.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission eased the sentencing guidelines for crack dealers and users this month, dropping sentencing guidelines two levels for crack offenders. That's good news for the 350 people imprisoned on crack charges in the Scranton-based U.S. Middle District of Pennsylvania, all of whom could be eligible for early release.

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88 US PA: Probation, Parole Officers Stepping Up EnforcementSun, 04 Nov 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Nissley, Erin L. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:89 Added:11/05/2007

For years, checking in with a probation officer meant making a trip to his or her office in the morning, giving a urine sample and answering some questions.

Not anymore.

Now, Lackawanna County probation and parole officers are dropping in on clients at homes, stopping at bars and holding evening hours to make sure they are getting a full picture of their clients' behavior.

"When offenders come to the office, they're on their best behavior. You're seeing them in an artificial environment," said John Conlon, director of the county's probation and parole office. "It's important for our officers to get to know the client in his or her neighborhood, their families."

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89 US PA: Drug Court Rehabs LivesSun, 21 Oct 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Nissley, Erin L. Area:Pennsylvania Lines:230 Added:10/22/2007

The turning point for Ed Volovitch almost came too late. The North Scranton native opted to enroll in Lackawanna County's drug court, an intensive program launched in 2000, to avoid a prison sentence in 2003.

His parents had turned him in after he tried to break into a safe to get money to buy heroin. No one would put up the $500 for bail. He was desperate.

The turning point for Ed Volovitch almost came too late. The North Scranton native opted to enroll in Lackawanna County's drug court, an intensive program launched in 2000, to avoid a prison sentence in 2003.

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90 US PA: PUB LTE: Just Regulate DrugsSat, 21 Jul 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Muse, Kirk Area:Pennsylvania Lines:44 Added:07/21/2007

Editor: I'm writing about Mike Langan's thoughtful letter: "End phony drug war" ( 7-13-07 ). If we re-legalized all our illegal drugs so that they could be sold by licensed and regulated businesses for pennies per dose, would this eliminate our drug problems? No.

However, doing so would substantially reduce the crime rate and dramatically increase public safety.

Will we ever be able to eliminate our drug problems? No.

However, we can substantially reduce the harm caused by our illegal drugs. Regulated and controlled drugs would be of known purity, known potency and known quality -- which would make them much safer than black-market drugs.

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91 US PA: PIAA Not Planning Statewide TestingSun, 15 Jul 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Garvey, Mike Area:Pennsylvania Lines:51 Added:07/17/2007

While Texas, Florida and New Jersey have state-wide testing programs, Pennsylvania is going a different route to keep its high school sports drug-free -- education.

In November 2006, the PIAA started a pilot program called STAR Sportsmanship. Run by an Alabama-based company, Learning Through Sports, STAR is an internet-based program that teaches student-athletes about sportsmanship, according to the program's proposal on the PIAA Web site.

The high school level of STAR Sportsmanship puts a heavy focus on steroids, their effects, risks and consequences. The goal, according to PIAA spokesperson Melissa Mertz, is not to create some kind of penal colony for drug users through mandatory testing.

[continues 177 words]

92 US PA: PUB LTE: End Phony Drug WarFri, 13 Jul 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Langan, Mike Area:Pennsylvania Lines:36 Added:07/15/2007

Editor: We lost the war on illegal alcohol. Now we are losing the phony war on drugs. Should we legalize drugs?

Drug enforcement people and drug pushers would be unemployed. Even paying the unemployment and retraining costs, Congress would be faced with major budget surpluses.Jails will tend to be empty. Media would have to find news to replace drug-related bad news and robberies would be to get money for professional sporting events, not to get money for drugs.

If Congress doesn't give control to the oil industry, drug prices should drop and, as a young woman said to me, "legal drugs may be less attractive."

Look at the drug money that is being thrown at the California fight to legalize marijuana. Are we really that powerless? Write your senators and congressman.

Legalizing drugs will make America safer.

Mike Langan

Stroud Township

[end]

93 US PA: Random Drug Testing For Cops A Cloudy IssueSun, 11 Mar 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Kemeny, Matthew Area:Pennsylvania Lines:154 Added:03/14/2007

The recent arrest of a Scranton police officer for allegedly selling drugs while on duty has sparked concerns about whether the city should, or even can, randomly test its officers.

Mark Conway, 36, of 1012 Maple St., was arrested March 1 after Lackawanna County detectives allegedly found five OxyContin pills and 33 methadone tablets in his patrol car. A confidential informant tipped authorities that Officer Conway was allegedly addicted to heroin for more than a year. The informant also said he had bought heroin from Officer Conway about 10 times, according to an affidavit.

[continues 947 words]

94 US PA: City Cop BustedSat, 03 Mar 2007
Source:Times-Tribune, The (Scranton PA) Author:Goodenow, Evan Area:Pennsylvania Lines:115 Added:03/03/2007

A Scranton police officer was arrested late Thursday after allegedly dealing drugs while on duty.

Officer Mark Conway, 36, of 1012 Maple St., was in uniform when Lackawanna County detectives found five OxyContin pills and 33 methadone tablets in his car, according to authorities.

He was charged with possession of methadone, possession of OxyContin, unlawful delivery of OxyContin and two counts of using a telephone for a drug transaction, First Assistant District Attorney Eugene M. Talerico Jr. said.

He was arraigned and released on a $25,000 bond.

[continues 642 words]


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