Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2002 16:46:18 -0700

Subject:Canada: Include U.S. In Drug Discussions, Panel Hears Up TOC

Newshawk: Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy (http://www.cfdp.ca/)
Pubdate: Wed, 12 Jun 2002
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2002, The Globe and Mail Company
Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca
Website: http://www.globeandmail.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168
Author: Allison Dunfield

INCLUDE U.S. IN DRUG DISCUSSIONS, PANEL HEARS

Canada needs to include the United States in discussions on the creation of
a new drug policy, a Senate committee on illegal drugs heard this week.

As part of its efforts to table a final report addressing Canada's policy
on cannabis, the committee held meetings with several U.S. officials
including John Walters, director of the U.S. national drug policy.

Committee chair Pierre Claude Nolin said Mr. Walters told the group that if
Canada adopts some form of decriminalization of marijuana, the U.S. would
not want to encroach on Canada's legislation.

However, "the two neighbours would influence each other's policy," Mr.
Nolin told globeandmail.com.

Mr. Walters also said that information must flow freely across the border,
said Mr. Nolin, who heads the Special Senate Committee on Illegal Drugs,
which is looking specifically at the use of cannabis in Canada.

"We agreed on rigour and unbiased information. That's the only way we can
discuss [the issue]," Mr. Nolin said.

Officials from both countries also talked about the need to develop the
same lexicons, he said.

For example, if Canada decided that abuse of a drug amounts to a certain
number of grams a day, the United States would use the same standards.

Although there is nothing in writing with respect to the standards, the
talks mean that "the door is now open to have a formal discussion on it,"
Mr. Nolin said.

Common to both countries are jurisdiction problems, he said.

Canada's federal, provincial and municipal governments need to work more
closely together on new drug strategies, he said.

The committee is charged with developing the guiding principles for the
government with respect to marijuana use.

Mr. Nolin said that the final report must be presented to Senate on Sept.
13, but he hopes to have a copy ready by the first week of September.
Although the topic of decriminalization will be included in the document,
it will not be its "cornerstone," he said.

Rather, the report will speak to what steps the government should take next
to change or improve the nation's public policy on illegal drugs, he said.
Also included will be a discussion on whether Canada should develop an
independent drug information agency that is not tied to the federal
government, similar to the National Institute on Drug Abuse in the United
States.

The committee wrapped up cross-country hearings this week in which it heard
testimony from police, marijuana activists, health officials and other
Canadians about how the government should develop a new drug strategy.

A recent discussion paper released by the Special Senate Committee on
Illegal Drugs also said that its preliminary conclusions found that
marijuana is not a "gateway drug" to the use of harder narcotics.

"Scientific evidence seems to indicate that cannabis is not a gateway drug.
It may be appropriate to treat it more like alcohol or tobacco than like
the harder drugs," Mr. Nolin said when the report was released.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart

 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Thu, 13 Jun 2002 21:01:05 -0700

Subject:Canada: U.S. Drug Czar Warns Canada On Plan Up TOC

Newshawk: Alex
Pubdate: Wed, 12 Jun 2002
Source: Newsday (NY)
Copyright: 2002 Newsday Inc.
Contact: letters@newsday.com
Website: http://www.newsday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/308
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/walters.htm (Walters, John)

U.S. DRUG CZAR WARNS CANADA ON PLAN

QUEBEC -- Canada should get tough on marijuana instead of decriminalizing
the drug or allowing people to use it for medicinal purposes, U.S. drug
policy chief John Walters said Wednesday.

"Canada's decision about how it handles this or other issues of regulated
substance is its decision. We respect that," Walters told reporters during
a two-day visit for an international meeting of the College on Problems of
Drug Dependence.

But he made it clear the American government disagrees with recent moves in
Canada to liberalize drug policies.

More than 250 Canadians have federal government clearance to smoke
marijuana for medical reasons. Canada amended drug laws last year to allow
patients with conditions such as HIV, cancer, and multiple sclerosis to use
marijuana legally.

Walters said there were better ways to treat patients than smoking marijuana.

A Canadian Senate committee has expressed initial support for
decriminalizing marijuana, with its final report due in August following
public hearings. A preliminary report released in May said no scientific
evidence exists that marijuana use leads to harder drugs, or that it is
more dangerous to society than alcohol.

Canadian federal agencies spend about $326 million each year to fight drugs
and more than 30,000 people are charged with simple possession annually,
the preliminary report said.

If Canada follows the committee's initial recommendations, marijuana would
still be illegal, but users would not be penalized. That would differ from
the zero tolerance policy of the U.S. government.

Walters, the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control
Policy, said that of the 4.3 million Americans suffering drug addiction, 65
percent are dependent on marijuana.

Liberal drug laws in Canada would be a concern for the United States,
Walters said.

"It certainly could become a problem if the trade is able to use our
borders as a vehicle to enhance their effectiveness to move drugs across
the border," he said of drug smugglers.
__________________________________________________________________________
Distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in
receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager

 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2002 08:18:09 -0700

Subject:Canada: Do not go soft on pot, U.S. drug czar warns us Up TOC

Newshawk: Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy (http://www.cfdp.ca/)
Pubdate: Thursday June 13, 2002
Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)
Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/
Feedback: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/letters_to_editor/index.html
Address: 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg Manitoba R2X 3B6
Contact: letters@freepress.mb.ca
Author: Alexander Panetta / Canadian Press

Do not go soft on pot, U.S. drug czar warns us

By Alexander Panetta

  QUEBEC -- Now's the time to step up the war against marijuana -- not to
decriminalize it, not to use it for medicinal purposes and certainly not to
make it legal, the United States' drug-policy chief said yesterday.

Canada is free to have its medicinal-marijuana program, but the drug is
dangerous and the American government doesn't agree with the idea, said John
Walters, director of national drug policy and cabinet member under President
George W. Bush.

Marijuana is the most heavily abused drug in the U.S. and addiction rates
have risen in recent years, he said during a two-day trip to Canada.

Of the 4.3 million Americans suffering drug addiction, 65 per cent are
dependent on marijuana, he said.

"If we're going to effectively face the dependency problem in the United
States today, we have to begin doing a better job with marijuana, as well as
cocaine, alcohol and the other drugs of abuse," Walters added.

Arguments about marijuana include whether to approve the drug for medicinal
purposes, to fully legalize it or to decriminalize it, which means the drug
would not be legal but users would not be penalized.

 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2002 08:19:34 -0700

Subject:DC: The Reliable Source: What Would J.R. Think? Up TOC?

The Reliable Source: What Would J.R. Think?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A49610-2002Jun14.html
Washington Post
June 14, 2002
by Lloyd Grove

What Would J.R. Think?

Liver transplant recipient and recovering alcoholic Larry Hagman, a
featured speaker tomorrow at the National Association of Drug Court
Professionals conference, plans an impassioned message for the judges
and law enforcement types gathered at the Marriott Wardman Park.

"I think it's ridiculous to put young people or any people in jail for
nonviolent crimes =E2=80=93 say, a first offense with marijuana =E2=80=93=
 and have them
marked forever," the 70-year-old actor told us. "It costs a lot of
money, maybe $65,000, to keep them in jail for two years, but to get
them into rehabilitation, and actually help them, costs a helluva lot
less."

Hagman, who has financed a video to advocate drug courts that stress
rehabilitation over punishment, added: "I think they should
decriminalize drugs like marijuana and make alcohol illegal." He said he
also favors legalized medicinal marijuana.

Best known for playing J.R., the charming villain in the hit series
"Dallas," Hagman said he has been doing "swell" in the seven years since
his cancerous liver was removed and replaced. "I got a great Puerto
Rican liver!" he crowed, referring to 1995 tabloid reports that
identified his donor, a car-accident victim. "You're not supposed to
know who the donor is. That's the policy. But about six months after the
operation, I heard from the mother of the victim asking for $10,000 to
start a bumper sticker company to advertise organ donations. I felt I
couldn't respond, because that might seem like I was paying for the
organ. It's rather sad."




=



**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2002 08:22:23 -0700

Subject:CA: Federal Injunction Halts Pot Buyers Clubs Up TOC

Title: Federal Injunction Halts Pot Buyers Clubs
Author: Wayne Wilson, Bee Staff Writer
Source: Sacramento Bee
Contact: opinion@sacbee.com
Website: http://www.sacbee.com/
Pubdate: Thursday, June 13, 2002

Three cannabis buyers clubs that are still functioning must immediately
halt the distribution of marijuana under a permanent injunction issued by
U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer.

The order, dated and filed Monday in San Francisco, is expected to further
disenfranchise California's medical marijuana patients, some of whom
depend on pot cooperatives for their medicine.

Seriously ill Californians, under state law, have had the right to use
marijuana, with a doctor's recommendation, since passage of Proposition
215, the "Compassionate Use Act," in 1996.

But U.S. law bars the cultivation, distribution or possession of marijuana
by anyone, and federal authorities have been using every tactic available
to them to stop the gains made by California's pro-pot brigade.

By employing a permanent injunction to stop the distribution of cannabis
by cooperatives, the government avoids the necessity of charging and
trying the clubs criminally before California jurors who might have voted
for Prop. 215.

Monday's ruling has an unfortunate downside, according to Robert A. Raich,
an attorney for the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative, one of the three
clubs affected by the order.

Now patients who don't grow their own medicine "will have to go out to the
streets and be exposed to the criminal element, as well as the danger of
getting medicine of questionable quality," he said.

Such things actually did happen the last time the federal government shut
down a pot club, Raich said.

"Some of its members did, indeed, get robbed or were sold something that
was not marijuana," he observed.

According to Raich, however, the order by Breyer came as no surprise.

"We had been anticipating this for some time. We even asked the judge to
expedite it," he said.

"Now we are finally in a posture where we can appeal all the issues" to
the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Raich said.

The only issue off the table, according to Raich, is the distribution or
cultivation of marijuana for medical necessity.

That was addressed, and rejected, by the U.S. Supreme Court last May.

"A medical-necessity exception for marijuana is at odds with the terms of
the (U.S.) Controlled Substances Act," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for
the court, which voted unanimously, 8-0.

"The statute reflects a determination that marijuana has no medical
benefits worthy of an exception, outside the confines of a
government-approved research project," he stated.

In addition to the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative, which provides pot
to patients suffering from AIDS, multiple sclerosis and other serious
ailments, Monday's order will also impact the Marin Alliance for Medical
Marijuana and the Ukiah Cannabis Buyers Club, Raich said.

Two other cooperatives were originally a part of the action, but they are
no longer operating, Raich said.

Copyright The Sacramento Bee.



 
 


**




web:     http://www.crrh.org/

------------------------------
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2002 12:10:49 -0700
From: webmaster@drugsense.org (DrugSense)
Subject:DrugSense Weekly, June 14, 2002, #254 Up TOC

**********************************************************************

DRUGSENSE WEEKLY

**********************************************************************

DrugSense Weekly,            June 14, 2002                        #254

Read This Publication On-line at: http://www.drugsense.org/current.htm 

Listen On-line at: http://www.drugsense.org/radio/

- ------------------

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

* This Just In

    (1) Colombia's Drug Effort Questioned
    (2) U.S. Drug Czar Warns Canada On Plan
    (3) Police Chiefs Set To Extend Lambeth's Soft Line On Drugs
    (4) UK: Dispenser Could Cut Heroin Deaths

* Weekly News in Review

Drug Policy-

    (5) Probe Of Missing Drug Funds Targets Officers
    (6) Pot Seizure Linked to Reservation Shooting Incident
    (7) Methadone Clinic Wins Battle
    (8) Drug Pipe May Cost Family Its Apartment

Law Enforcement & Prisons-

    (9) Jeff Judge Arrested In Plot To Plant Drugs
    (10) Drug Houses Seized By State Still Operating, County Says
    (11) State Studies Early Release Of Hundreds Of Prisoners
    (12) Editorial: Wrong Time For New Prison

Cannabis & Hemp-

    (13) Protesters Ask DEA To Change Drug Law
    (14) California's Top Court Mulls Medical Marijuana Law
    (15) Armed Robbers Take Over California Medical Marijuana Club
    (16) Canadian Doc Says Pot Less Harmful Than Booze And Tobacco
    (17) Scottish Train Driver Sacked For Holiday Cannabis

International News-

    (18) 19 Die, 17 Hospitalized After Drinking Cologne
    (19) Police: Journalist Murdered By Drug Lord
    (20) President Signs Four 'Landmark' Bills Into Law
    (21) London Council Will 'Not Pursue' Hard Drug Users
    (22) Free Drug Injection Kits To Halt Spread Of Hepatitis

* Hot Off The 'Net

    Why I Am Willing To Go To Jail For Medical Marijuana 
    Open Letter: Daniel Forbes Responds To Richard Linnett 
    Major Media Ignores National Protest Against DEA 
    The  American  Alliance  For  Medical  Cannabis  Homepage Updated 
    D.C. Initiative Coalition
    ONDCP Media Campaign Evaluation
    Police  Powerless  To  Stop  B.C.  Marijuana  Boom,  Study  Says

* Letter Of The Week

    Smoke Screen / By Howard J. Woodridge

* Feature Article

    How Much Does It Take? / By Mary Jane Borden

* Quote of the Week

    Mike Duggan

***********************************************************************

THIS JUST IN
=======================================================================

(1) COLOMBIA'S DRUG EFFORT QUESTIONED

GAO  report criticizes country's failure to make use of U.S. military 
aid

Even  as the Bush administration is lobbying to increase U.S. military
aid to Colombia, the South American nation is failing to do its part in
a  joint military effort to combat narcotics trafficking, according to
an unreleased congressional report.

The  report,  from  the  General  Accounting Office, says Colombia has
failed  to  provide  military  pilots  for 14 U.S.-supplied Black Hawk
helicopters, leaving the high-tech aircraft idle.

It says the country's armed forces have not supplied all the personnel
promised  for programs training pilots and mechanics, and recently cut
back on drug crop-eradication programs because of "political concerns."

Plans  for  using  U.S. military aid "have fallen substantially behind
schedule,  and  prospects for near-term fixes are bleak," according to
the brief report, which has not been released publicly but was provided
to relevant congressional committees this week.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 13 Jun 2002
Source: Contra Costa Times (CA)
Website: http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes
Copyright: 2002 Knight Ridder
Author: Paul Richter, Los Angeles Times
Continues: http://www.bayarea.com/mld/cctimes/3461997.htm

===

(2) U.S. DRUG CZAR WARNS CANADA ON PLAN

QUEBEC  (AP)  -  Canada  should  get  tough  on  marijuana  instead of
decriminalizing  the  drug  or allowing people to use it for medicinal
purposes,  U.S.  drug  policy  chief  John  Walters  said  Wednesday.

"Canada's  decision  about  how  it  handles  this  or other issues of
regulated  substance  is  its decision. We respect that," Walters told
reporters  during  a two-day visit for an international meeting of the
College on Problems of Drug Dependence.

But  he  made  it  clear the American government disagrees with recent
moves in Canada to liberalize drug policies.

 [snip]

Walters,  the  director  of  the  White  House Office of National Drug
Control  Policy, said that of the 4.3 million Americans suffering drug
addiction, 65 percent are dependent on marijuana.

Liberal drug laws in Canada would be a concern for the United States, 
Walters said.

"It  certainly  could become a problem if the trade is able to use our
borders  as  a  vehicle  to  enhance their effectiveness to move drugs
across the border," he said of drug smugglers.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 13 Jun 2002
Source: Associated Press (Wire)
Copyright: 2002 Associated Press
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1086.a07.html

===

(3) POLICE CHIEFS SET TO EXTEND LAMBETH'S SOFT LINE ON DRUGS

Relaxed  approach  on  cannabis possession will be rolled out to other
parts  of  the  country  despite warnings about risk to schoolchildren

Police chiefs are drawing up plans to extend the Lambeth experiment on
cannabis  to  other parts of the country, despite growing criticism of
the scheme.

The move will see several forces in England and Wales warn, rather than
arrest,  many  people  caught  with  small  amounts  with  the  drug.

It  is  intended  to  tie  in  with the Government's decision to relax
cannabis laws, which David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, is expected to
announce next month.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 14 Jun 2002
Source: Independent  (UK)
Copyright: 2002 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.
Website: http://www.independent.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/209
Author: Jason Bennetto, Crime Correspondent
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1091.a03.html

===

(4) UK: DISPENSER COULD CUT HEROIN DEATHS

Addicts Would Get Carefully Controlled Doses

Drugs  deaths  could  be  cut by using a dispensing device designed to
prevent overdoses.

The  government  is  backing  a  trial  of  new technology designed to
carefully measure drug doses.

Officials  hope  it  will  can  be used to reduce the number of heroin
deaths and cut crime.

It  should also cut the number of people injecting their drugs and the
rise  of diseases like Hepatitis and Aids spread through sharing dirty
needles.

The  new  technology  was first designed to provide carefully measured
doses  of cannabis-based medicine for the treatment of conditions like
multiple sclerosis.

Controlled Doses

But  it  is  hoped that the Advanced Dispensing System, designed by GW
Pharmaceuticals,  will  help Britain's 250,000 heroin users take their
drugs in a more controlled way ensuring they get the correct doses each
time.

People  taking part in the trial will self administer either heroin or
methadone using programmable inhalers.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 13 Jun 2002
Source: BBC News (UK Web)
Copyright: 2002 BBC
Contact: http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/talking_point/forum/
Website: http://news.bbc.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/558
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1091.a07.html

***********************************************************************
WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW
=======================================================================

Domestic News- Policy
- ----------------------------------

COMMENT: (5-8)

 The  failure of American drug policy as it applies to foreign affairs
 was  painfully apparent last week, as new details were released about
 recent  scandals.  About  $2  million  in  American anti-drug aid for
 Colombia  was  allegedly  stolen  by  a  number  of  police officers,
 including  the  highest  ranks  of  drug  enforcement. And an alleged
 incursion  by Mexican military officials into U.S. territory has been
 linked  to  a  massive  marijuana  smuggling  operation  through  an
 American Indian reservation.

 After  six  years  of  efforts,  the City of Philadelphia has finally
 stopped  blocking  efforts  to bring a methadone clinic downtown. And
 Supreme  Court  support  for  zero  tolerance drug policies in public
 housing  continue  to reverberate. A California mother faces eviction
 because  her  son  was  caught with a marijuana pipe, even though the
 mother  has  turned the boy over to law enforcement for drug problems
 a number of times.

===

(5) PROBE OF MISSING DRUG FUNDS TARGETS OFFICERS

Colombia

The  government  is  investigating  60  police officers, including top
counter-narcotics  commanders,  in  the  disappearance of more than $2
million  in  U.S.  funds  earmarked  for  the  war on drugs, officials
said.  The  list of police officers under "disciplinary investigation"
by  the  Colombian  inspector-general's  office  includes Gen. Gustavo
Socha,  who  resigned  last  month  as  chief of the counter-narcotics
police;  Col.  Yadira  Angelica  Rivera,  in  charge  of international
relations;  Col.  Carlos  Julio  Rivera; chief of police aviation; and
Col. Climaco Antonio Torres, chief of drug interdiction.

Pubdate: Wed, 12 Jun 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Section: The World, In Brief
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Times Wire Report

===

(6) POT SEIZURE LINKED TO RESERVATION SHOOTING INCIDENT

Federal  agents  seized  a ton of marijuana in the southwestern Tohono
O'odham  Nation  just a few hours before a U.S. Border Patrol agent in
the same area reported being shot at by Mexican soldiers.

The  coincidence  of  the  smuggling  attempt  and  the  shooting  has
convinced  some  Border  Patrol agents that the soldiers were involved
in moving drug loads that afternoon.

 [snip]

The  Mexican  government has denied that its soldiers were even in the
area  where  the  shooting took place on the night of May 17. Further,
Mexican  officials  have suggested that criminals dressed in military-
style  uniforms  may  have  been  responsible  for  the  shooting, not
actual soldiers.

 [snip]

Tohono  O'odham  Nation  spokesmen  have  declined to offer details of
the  incident  involving  the  ranger.  However they acknowledged that
tons of marijuana are moving through the nation.

In  April,  Tohono  O'odham  police  seized  15,907  pounds of illegal
drugs,  almost  all of it marijuana, tribal spokesman Matt Smith said.
In  the  same  month, customs agents working in the corridor where the
shooting  took  place  seized  more  than  22,000 pounds of marijuana.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 03 Jun 2002
Source: Arizona Daily Star (AZ)
Copyright: 2002 Pulitzer Publishing Co.
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/23
Author: Tim Steller
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/corrupt.htm (Corruption)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1047/a06.html

===

(7) METHADONE CLINIC WINS BATTLE

FRAMINGHAM  -  Selectmen  last night struck a deal to end the six-year
battle  with  Spectrum  Health  Systems  over  a  downtown  methadone
clinic,  and  the  decision  earned  them  an  earful  from residents.

The  board  voted 4-1 to settle with Spectrum, a move that essentially
clears  the  way  for  opening  the  proposed  Howard  Street  clinic.

Selectman  Ginger  Esty  cast  the  only  vote against the deal, which
calls  for  both  sides  to  drop  pending  lawsuits and pay their own
legal fees.

With  the  town  facing  a  suit that could cost upward of $1 million,
most  board  members said their decision was aimed at getting the best
deal available.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Metrowest Daily News (MA)
Copyright: 2002, MetroWest Daily News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/619
Author: Peter Reuell
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?136 (Methadone)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1068/a08.html

===

(8) DRUG PIPE MAY COST FAMILY ITS APARTMENT

Marisa  Perez  never tried to shield her 17-year-old son from the law.
She  hauled  him  to  the  juvenile  hall or called San Jose police at
least  four  times  in  the  last  2  1/2 years when he skipped out on
court-ordered drug programs.

But  after  police  arrested  the teen last month outside his mother's
apartment  with  a  marijuana  pipe,  an  eviction notice arrived that
could  force  Perez  and  her three youngest children from the complex
where  she  has  lived for 13 years. Her landlord gave her until today
to move out, but she plans to fight the eviction in court.

``It's  not  their  fault  that  I had it on me,'' her son said of the
pipe. ``I messed up.''

That  doesn't  help  his mother's case. Perez, 34, is caught between a
teenager  she  can't  control  and  a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling
that  says  public  housing  tenants  can  be evicted for illegal drug
activity  by  family  members  or  friends -- even if they didn't know
about the drugs.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 10 Jun 2002
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 2002 San Jose Mercury News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/390
Author: Ben Winograd
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1070/a04.html

=======================================================================

Law Enforcement & Prisons
- -------------------------

COMMENT: (9-12)

 A  drug-planting  judge  and  state  that  owns drug dens highlight a
 strange  week  in  law enforcement and prison news. A Louisiana judge
 with  "law  and  order"  reputation  has  been taken into custody for
 allegedly  plotting  to  plant  drugs  on  a  critic  of  his private
 business.  Low  in  the story readers learn that drug dealing is also
 alleged  at the business owned by the judge. And county officials are
 suing  the  state  of  Michigan,  accusing  it of owning drug houses.
 State  officials  say  they  should  be  immune  from such a lawsuit.

 In  Hawaii,  the  governor  is  recommending  early  release for some
 non-violent  prisoners,  including  drug  offenders, in order to ease
 prison  crowding. And the Los Angeles Times editorialized against new
 prison  construction  in California, noting the unseemly relationship
 between the governor and the prison guard's union.

===

(9) JEFF JUDGE ARRESTED IN PLOT TO PLANT DRUGS

Feds Say Bodenheimer Targeted Critic Of Eastern N.O. Marina

Jefferson  Parish  Judge  Ronald  D. Bodenheimer, whose 20-year career
as  a  tough-on-crime prosecutor paved the way for his election to the
bench  three  years  ago,  was  arrested  Wednesday  and  accused  of
arranging  to  have  illegal drugs planted in the vehicle of a man who
complained  about  the  eastern  New  Orleans  marina that Bodenheimer
owns.

"You  know  this  boy,  the sad part about it is, he ain't got a shot,
he  ain't  got  a chance, you know, he ain't gonna know what hit him,"
Bodenheimer  is  quoted  in  federal  documents  as  saying  about the
marina critic.

Bodenheimer,  49,  of  Metairie,  and  Curley  Joseph Chewning, 57, of
Chalmette,  were  booked  with  distributing  and  possessing with the
intent to distribute the drug OxyContin, a morphine-based
painkiller.  They  also  were booked with conspiring to distribute and
conspiring  to  possess  with  intent  to  distribute  the  same drug,
according to the U.S. attorney's office in New Orleans.

 [snip]

The  cooperating  witness  has  been  providing  information  about
Bodenheimer  and  the  marina  to  the  FBI  since about 1999, federal
officials  said.  He  also  has  filed  numerous  complaints  with law
enforcement  and  regulatory  agencies  about  drug  trafficking,  and
safety,  permit  and  zoning  violations at the marina, the government
said.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Times-Picayune, The (LA)
Webpage:
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/newsstory/arrest07.html
Copyright: 2002 The Times-Picayune
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/848
Author: Dennis Persica
Note: Staff writers Joe Darby and Susan Finch contributed to this story.

===

(10) DRUG HOUSES SEIZED BY STATE STILL OPERATING, COUNTY SAYS

DETROIT (AP) - The county prosecutor is suing the state for
allegedly  failing  to control drug houses it seized because of unpaid
taxes.

Twenty  of  the seized houses were later involved in drug raids, Wayne
County  Prosecutor  Michael  Duggan said. He has filed lawsuits trying
to get the houses under control or demolished.

"If  we  don't  get the state to shut down its drug houses, in another
six  months  you  are  going  to have all the drug dealing done out of
state-owned houses," Duggan said.

State  officials  say  they want to put an end to drug houses as well.
But  in  a  hearing  Friday in Wayne County Circuit Court about one of
the  houses,  a  lawyer  with  the  Michigan attorney general's office
said the state has sovereign immunity from such suits.

As many as 10,000 Detroit homes are owned by the state.

Pubdate: Sun, 09 Jun 2002
Source: Buffalo News (NY)
Copyright: 2002 The Buffalo News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/61
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1072/a05.html

===

(11) STATE STUDIES EARLY RELEASE OF HUNDREDS OF PRISONERS

The  Governor  Argues  The  Move  Can  Safely  Ease  Prison  Crowding

Gov.  Ben  Cayetano  wants to release several hundred inmates early to
relieve  prison  overcrowding  and  get  some  prisoners  into  drug
treatment programs.

Prison  officials  said  earlier this week that they were looking into
releasing about 300 low-risk inmates early.

"As  far  as  I'm concerned, that number that they have recommended is
a  little  too  small,"  Cayetano  said yesterday after signing a bill
that  requires  probation  and  drug  treatment  instead of prison for
nonviolent, first-time drug offenders.

 [snip]

Besides  drug  offenders  who  may  be  eligible  for treatment, those
being  considered  for  early  release include the elderly, terminally
ill  prisoners,  those who can be deported and prisoners who have less
than a year to serve before their release, officials said.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 8 Jun 2002
Source: Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI)
Copyright: 2002 Honolulu Star-Bulletin
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/196
Author: Craig Gima
Related: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1058/a08.html
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)
Note: The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1063/a08.html

===

(12) EDITORIAL: WRONG TIME FOR NEW PRISON

Connect  the  dots. Last week, the Justice Department released a study
showing  that  the  fanatical prison building boom in most U.S. states
in  the  1980s  and  early '90s did not deter crime. In fact, the rate
at  which  inmates released from prison committed new crimes increased
from  1983  to  1994.  The  California  Department  of Corrections has
overspent  its  budget  by $277 million and has a surplus of more than
10,000  costly  prison  beds  since  passage  of Proposition 36, which
diverts  some  nonviolent  drug  offenders  to  treatment  instead  of
prison.

Put  it  all  together,  and it is obvious that Gov. Gray Davis should
not  spend  $595  million  building  a new state prison in the Central
Valley  town  of  Delano.  Last  month,  a  state  Senate subcommittee
scratching  for  funds  to  restore  some  of the programs axed in the
governor's  new  austerity  budget  suggested  that  construction  at
Delano  at  least  be  delayed.  None  of  the state's top legislative
leaders,  however,  has  seconded that recommendation. Legislators are
clearly  loath  to  antagonize  Davis  on  this. The governor has been
Delano's  most  ardent  supporter since 1998, when the state was flush
with  cash  and  the  California  Correctional  Peace  Officers  Assn.
donated  $2  million  to  his  campaign. But in a year when his budget
has  come  up  $22  billion  short,  surely  Davis  can recognize that
building  Delano  now  would  be  a  boondoggle. Facing similar fiscal
crises,  four  Republican  governors  have  recently closed prisons to
save money.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Webpage:
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-000039958jun07.story
Copyright: 2002 Los Angeles Times
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/prison.htm (Incarceration)

=======================================================================

Cannabis & Hemp-
- ---------------------------

COMMENT: (13-17)

 Last  week's  cannabis news was dominated by the U.S. National Day of
 Action  organized  by  Americans  for Safe Access. Actions protesting
 the  DEA's  raids  on  California  medicinal  cannabis  distribution
 centers  took place in over 50 U.S. cities, and lead to the arrest of
 activists  and  drug  reform  leaders  in Washington D.C.. In further
 California  news,  the  state's Supreme Court began to hear testimony
 regarding  the implementation of Proposition 215 last week. The court
 will  decide  whether  prop.  215 grants legitimate medical marijuana
 users  immunity  from  arrest,  or merely provides for an affirmative
 "medical  necessity"  defense  in  court.  The  court may also decide
 whether  local  communities  have a right to set different guidelines
 than those of the state initiative.

 Like  the DEA isn't enough of a problem. More bad news for California
 compassion  clubs:  last  Wednesday Healing Herbs, a central Berkeley
 club  was  robbed  at  gunpoint,  losing $1500 in cash and a pound of
 cannabis to the thieves.

 In  Canada,  the  Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs continued
 its  national  information  gathering sessions. In Windsor they heard
 from  Dr.  Patrick  Smith,  an  addiction  specialist  with Toronto's
 Centre  for Addiction and Mental Health, who called for legalization,
 arguing  that  cannabis  was  far  safer  than  alcohol  and tobacco.

 And  finally  in  the  UK,  a  committee  found that a Scottish train
 driver  who  was  sacked  after  admitting to cannabis use during his
 holidays  was  wrongly  dismissed.  Casey  Jones would undoubtedly be
 pleased.

===

(13) PROTESTERS ASK DEA TO CHANGE DRUG LAW

To  Francisco  Garcia marijuana is a medicine that helps ease the pain
in the Vietnam veteran's aching leg.

But  to  federal  drug  enforcement  officials, smoking marijuana is a
federal crime because pot is an illegal drug.

 [snip]

Medical  marijuana  supporters,  patients  and city officials demanded
during  the  demonstration  that  the federal drug agency stop raiding
local medical marijuana dispensaries.

The  demonstration  was a part of a national protest at 55 DEA offices
on  "National  Day  of  Action"  for  which  participants  had planned
non-violent civil disobedience events to disrupt
"business-as-usual."

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Berkeley Daily Planet (CA)
Copyright: 2002 The Berkeley Daily Planet
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1238
Author: Chris Nichols, Daily Planet Staff
Cited: Americans for Safe Access http://www.SafeAccessNow.org
Oakland Cannabis Buyer's Cooperative http://www.rxcbc.org/
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1061.a11.html

===

(14) CALIFORNIA'S TOP COURT MULLS MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW

Five  and  a  half years after California passed its medical marijuana
law,  the  state  Supreme  Court is about to consider what Proposition
215 really means.

The  court  will  hear  arguments today in Los Angeles in the Tuolumne
County  case  of  Myron  Carlyle Mower, 40. The case began and will be
argued far from the Bay Area, but its effects here could be
profound.

 [snip]

The  court  will  decide  whether  Proposition  215  of  1996  --  the
Compassionate  Use  Act  that  aimed to legalize medical marijuana use
- --  confers  immunity  from  prosecution,  or  whether someone must be
arrested  and  brought to trial before using the medical marijuana law
as a defense.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 06 Jun 2002
Source: Oakland Tribune, The (CA)
Copyright: 2002 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/314
Author: Josh Richman, Staff Writer
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/props.htm (Ballot Initiatives)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1062.a06.html

===

(15) ARMED ROBBERS TAKE OVER CALIFORNIA MEDICAL MARIJUANA CLUB

A  central  Berkeley  medical  cannabis  club  was  robbed  Wednesday
afternoon  after  armed  assailants held those inside hostage and made
off with marijuana and cash.

The  robbery  occurred  at  about  2:40  p.m.  after two Latino males,
armed  with  a  gun and a knife, entered Medical Herbs, located on the
1600  block  of  University Avenue, Berkeley police Lt. Cynthia Harris
said.

Two  others  were  waiting outside in a car during the robbery, Harris
said.

 [snip]

Anybody  with  information about this robbery can contact the Berkeley
Robbery Detail at 981-5742.

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Daily Californian, The (CA Edu)
Copyright: 2002 The Daily Californian
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/597
Author: Nate Tabak
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1054.a11.html

===

(16) CANADIAN DOC SAYS POT LESS HARMFUL THAN BOOZE AND TOBACCO; CALLS FOR
LEGALIZATION

Marijuana  is  less  dangerous  than alcohol and tobacco and should be
decriminalized,  a  federal  committee  examining  the  country's drug
policies was told Friday.

"If  we  discovered  three  drugs today and they were alcohol, tobacco
and  marijuana,  there  isn't  an  expert  in  the  country  who would
recommend that marijuana be the one that is banned based on
individual  and  societal  harm,"  Dr. Patrick Smith of the Centre for
Addiction  and  Mental  Health  in  Toronto  told  the  Senate Special
Committee on Illegal Drugs.

Smith  said  removing  marijuana possession from the Criminal Code and
making  it  an  offence punishable by a fine would not have any impact
on its use.

And  decriminalization  would  allow  police to focus drug enforcement
efforts on growers and dealers, Smith added.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Windsor Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2002 Canadian Press
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/501
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1061.a04.html

===

(17) SCOTTISH TRAIN DRIVER SACKED FOR HOLIDAY CANNABIS

A  TRAIN  driver  sacked for admitting he had smoked cannabis while on
holiday  yesterday  claimed  a  moral  victory  after  an  industrial
tribunal ruled he was unfairly dismissed.

Alan  Robertson  confessed that he had used the drug two months before
the  train  he  was  driving  was  involved  in  a  minor  accident at
Edinburgh's  Waverley  Station.  An  employment  tribunal  ruled  the
company  was  wrong  to  sack  Robertson,  from Inverness, but decided
that  he  should  not  be  allowed to return to his job because he had
contributed to his dismissal.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Fri, 07 Jun 2002
Source: Scotsman (UK)
Copyright: The Scotsman Publications Ltd 2002
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/406
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02.n1065.a01.html

=======================================================================

International News
- ---------------------------

COMMENT: (18-22)

 Once again illustrating the futility of and harm caused by
 prohibition,  in  Saudi  Arabia  reports  last week say that nineteen
 people  died  after  drinking methanol-containing cologne. Alcohol is
 prohibited in Arabia; predictably, people seek substitutes with tragic
 results.

 In  Brazil,  a  reputed "drug lord" murdered Brazilian journalist Tim
 Lopes.  Lopes, who had tried to report on a shantytown gathering, was
 caught attempting to sneak into a party there.

 The  president of the Philippines last week signed a bill into law to
 more  harshly  punish  drug dealers and users. The new law lowers the
 amounts  of  drugs  needed  to  trigger  the  death  penalty  or life
 imprisonment,  including  death  for  those  found  with 500 grams of
 marijuana.

 In  the UK, however, harm reduction is gaining ground as a new policy
 asking  that police not arrest "hard-drugs users" will take effect in
 South  London.  Also  in  news from the UK, the governmental Advisory
 Council on Misuse of Drugs issued a report urging that injection kits
 be  made  available  to  addicts,  in  order  to  halt  the spread of
 blood-borne disease.

===

(18) 19 DIE, 17 HOSPITALIZED AFTER DRINKING COLOGNE

Nineteen  people  in  Riyadh  have  died  and  17  hospitalized  after
drinking  cologne  containing  methanol,  news  reports  said  Sunday.

Drinking  alcohol  is  banned  in  Saudi  Arabia  and  punishable  by
lashings,  fines  and  prison  terms.  Some people drink cologne as an
alcohol substitute.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 10 Jun 2002
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 2002 San Jose Mercury News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/390
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1073/a06.html

===

(19) POLICE: JOURNALIST MURDERED BY DRUG LORD

Tim  Lopes  of  Globo  television  was  captured June 2 as he tried to
infiltrate  a  dance party in the Vila Cruzeiro shantytown where gangs
sold drugs and staged illicit sex shows.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Tue, 11 Jun 2002
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 2002 San Jose Mercury News
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/390
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1078/a08.html

===

(20) PRESIDENT SIGNS FOUR 'LANDMARK' BILLS INTO LAW

 [snip]

Republic  Act  9165, known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of
2002,  aims  to  strengthen the government campaign to rid the country
of the rising drug menace.

 [snip]

Under  RA  9165,  the death penalty would be imposed on a person found
possessing  50  grams  of  shabu,  down  from a high of 200 grams; 500
grams  of  marijuana;  10  grams  of  opium,  heroin, cocaine, Ecstasy
tablets  and  other  drugs  banned and deemed as dangerous by the law.

If,  however,  the suspect is found possessing less than what has been
stipulated  for  the  death  penalty,  the suspect would be jailed for
life.  On  cases  when  the  amount  of  drugs found is less than five
grams, the penalty is 12 years in jail.

The  law  also  mandates random drug testing for students, private and
government employees.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sat, 8 Jun 2002
Source: Manila Times (Philippines)
Copyright: The Manila Times 2000
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/921
Author: Joshua Dancel
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1062/a05.html

===

(21) LONDON COUNCIL WILL 'NOT PURSUE' HARD DRUG USERS

A  radical  policy  calling  for  police  to  caution  and  not arrest
hard-drugs users is to be introduced in South London.

The  proposal,  drawn  up  by  the Liberal Democrat-dominated council,
would  effectively  see  heroin  and  cocaine  decriminalised  in  the
borough of Southwark.

If  successful,  this  policy of non-arrest will be extended to the 14
other  local  authorities  the  Lib  Dems  control  across England and
Wales after their 2002 local election victories.

However,  Simon  Hughes,  the  Lib  Dem  Home  Affairs spokesman, said
there  would  be  a  zero-tolerance  policy on drug dealers and anyone
found in possession of guns or knives.

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 9 Jun 2002
Source: Independent (UK)
Copyright: 2002 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/209
Author: Sophie Goodchild, Home Affairs Correspondent
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1062/a02.html

===

(22) FREE DRUG INJECTION KITS TO HALT SPREAD OF HEPATITIS

Drug  addicts  are  to  be  handed  free sterile injecting kits by the
state  under  controversial  plans  to combat a threatened epidemic of
potentially fatal diseases.

 [snip]

Home  Office  Ministers  are now considering changing the law to allow
the  distribution  of  the  kits to try to prevent the virus spreading
through  shared  equipment.  They  could  include  tourniquets to help
isolate  veins  and  clean  vessels  for  'cooking'  heroin  prior  to
injection.

 [snip]

The  Government's  Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs has recommended
lifting  the  ban  on supplying 'drug paraphernalia', including citric
acid to be mixed with heroin and 'cooking' spoons.

The  recommendation  is  still  being  studied  by  Ministers but Home
Office  sources  said  they were expected to regard it favourably. 'We
will  certainly  be  looking  at  this  very, very closely,' said one.

 [snip]

The  advisory  council's  recommendations were backed by a recent Home
Affairs Select Committee report.

A  Home  Office  spokesman  said no final decision had been taken. 'We
are  studying  the  report  and  will  publish  a full response in due
course.'

 [snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 09 Jun 2002
Source: Observer, The (UK)
Copyright: 2002 The Observer
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/315
Author: Gaby Hinsliff, chief political correspondent, The Observer
Continues: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1068/a02.html

***********************************************************************

HOT OFF THE 'NET
- -------------------------------

Why I Am Willing To Go To Jail For Medical Marijuana

An essay by Kevin Zeese.

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1057/a08.html

===

Open Letter: Daniel Forbes Responds To Richard Linnett

Written  after  Advertising  Age  columnist attacks journalist's work.

http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1086/a03.html

===

Major Media Ignores National Protest Against DEA

A MAP Focus Alert.

http://www.mapinc.org/alert/0243.html

===

The American Alliance For Medical Cannabis Homepage Updated

http://letfreedomgrow.com/

===

D.C. Initiative Coalition

Please visit http://www.dcinitiative.org/ and take a moment to ask your
Congressman to vote against any measure that would prevent residents of
the  District  of Columbia from making medical marijuana available for
patients  suffering  from  AIDS, cancer, and multiple sclerosis. It is
quick and free.

Thank you, Jason Young, Project Coordinator

===

ONDCP Media Campaign Evaluation

The  4th semi-annual evaluation of ONDCP's anti-drug media campaign is
finally available online. Copies in PDF format can be downloaded from:
http://www.nida.nih.gov/despr/westat/index.html

A copy of the executive summary is available from:
http://www.nida.nih.gov/PDF/DESPR/Table_ExecSumm.pdf

According to the report;

"There  is  little  evidence  of  direct favorable Campaign effects on
youth.  There is no statistically significant decline in marijuana use
or  improvements  in beliefs and attitudes about marijuana use between
2000  and  2001,  and no tendency for those reporting more exposure to
Campaign messages to hold more desirable beliefs."

===

Police Powerless To Stop B.C. Marijuana Boom, Study Says

Vancouver  -  A  report  on  marijuana grow operations has renewed the
debate  over  how  the  courts  deal  with  people caught growing pot.

B.C.  Solicitor General Rich Coleman says it's time to look at stiffer
sentences  for  people  growing  marijuana.  "Frankly, I've not of the
opinion that we should be soft in this province on drugs."

The  study  of  12,000  cases  shows  only  2,500 of those busted were
convicted.  Fewer  than  500  went  to  jail,  and most of them served
sentences of less than six months.

However,  B.C.  Supreme Court Justice Wally Oppal says by itself, jail
does not eliminate crime.

"All  you  have to do is look at the United States which imposes large
penalties  and  lengthy  jail  terms, and we know they do not have the
safest society," he says.

Oppal  says criminals generally think they're not going to get caught,
and  that  they  don't  check  to  see  what  will  happen if they do.

Marihuana in British Columbia

http://www.icclr.law.ubc.ca/Site%20Map/Publications%20Page/Marihuana.htm

Pubdate: Friday June 14, 2002 
Source: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Canada Web) 
Website: http://www.cbc.ca/ 
Video: http://vancouver.cbc.ca/clips/Vancouver/ram-lo/020613_potboom.ram

***********************************************************************

LETTER OF THE WEEK
- ------------------------------------

Smoke Screen

By Howard J. Woodridge

Fort  Worth,  Tex.  -  Lynn  Crosbie's  recent  comments  on marijuana
(Testing Positive With The Stoner Demographic -- June 5) reminded me
of  Reefer  Madness,  the  1930s  U.S.  government  propaganda film. I
especially  liked  her  comment  that  users  are, "by nature slow and
methodical people."

I  stopped  using  pot  two  weeks before starting the police academy.
During  my  seven  years  of use I became fluent in German and French,
received  a  BA and bench-pressed 130 per cent of my body weight. Slow
and  methodical  types  include hundreds of professional athletes, the
current mayor of New York and the former president and
vice-president of the United States.

I  am  neither  for  nor against marijuana. I do know that pot smoking
causes  law  enforcement  zero problems. The prohibition of pot causes
police officers and others to die every day. And for what?

Howard J. Wooldridge,

Retired Police Officer

Pubdate: 06/07/2002
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1048/a09.html

***********************************************************************

FEATURE ARTICLE
- -------------------------------

HOW MUCH DOES IT TAKE?

By Mary Jane Borden

How  much  does  it  take?  How  much  public  support is necessary to
change  policy  with  respect to medical marijuana? At what point will
the  public  hold  politicians  accountable for their inaction on this
issue?

A  new  report  by  the Ohio Patient Network, "The People Have Spoken:
Medical  Marijuana  Polling  1996-2002,"  places the debate on medical
marijuana  in  the  context  of  public opinion by analyzing sixty-six
separate  polls  on  medicinal cannabis conducted after the passage of
California  Proposition  215.  The  Key  Findings  of  this study are:

- -  Since  the passage of California Proposition 215 in 1996, sixty-six
separate,  scientific  polls  and  studies  have  been conducted about
medical  marijuana  both  nationwide  and  in more than thirty states,
representing the opinions of more than 50,000 respondents.

- -  Of  those  respondents,  more  than  two-thirds  (68%)  aggregately
support  the  medical  use  of  cannabis.  Those  who oppose medicinal
cannabis represent only one quarter of the populace.

- -  Favorable  public  opinion  toward  medical marijuana has increased
significantly over the past six years.

- -  Polls  taken  prior  to  medicinal  cannabis  ballot  initiatives
successfully predict their passage every time.

- -  When  the  news covers medical marijuana, the public tracks it more
closely than most other health issues.

- -  An  estimated nine million people in the United States use cannabis
medicinally.

- -  Over  the last ten years, nearly one-quarter of a million people in
the  United  States  have  been  arrested on medical-marijuana-related
offenses.

- - The public believes the reports of patients and health
professionals  regarding  the  therapeutic  value  of  cannabis;  this
widespread  support  should  compel  lawmakers  to shift the policy on
the issue.

- -  Democrats  who  "strongly  favor"  candidates  who  endorse medical
cannabis  outnumber  those  who  "strongly oppose" it by seven to one.
Republicans  who  "strongly  favor"  such  candidates  outnumber those
"strongly opposed" by two to one.

- - As many as two thirds of the voting populace will reward
candidates  who  support  medicinal  cannabis.  Fewer than one in four
voters  would  more  likely  cast  their  ballot  for a candidate that
supports its prohibition.

- -  The  depth  and breadth of support for medical marijuana represents
a  major  opportunity  for  the  political party that chooses to seize
it.  By  supporting  this  issue,  the party can solidify its own base
while  assuming  leadership  on  an issue that also enjoys substantial
cross-party and general public support.

Clearly,  this  is  a document that should be read by every politician
in  the  United  States.  The report not only analyzes these sixty-six
studies,  it  also  matches  polling data to election results in order
to  create  an  easy-to-understand model of possible election outcomes
should  this  issue  receive  major  party support. A brief history of
medicinal cannabis and the impact of its prohibition, both
numerically  and  through  personal  accounts,  are  also  covered.

"The  People  Have  Spoken"  has  been  designed  as a tool to provide
politicians  with  clear  and  compelling  reasons  to change the law.
Surely,  sixty-six  separate  surveys conducted in the last five years
must  be  enough  to tell politicians that the public has spoken about
medical marijuana. It is time for change.

Please visit http://www.ohiopatient.net/Poll_Analysis.htm.
Presentation-quality  PDF  files of the report and its data tables can
also be downloaded from this site.

Mary  Jane  Borden  is  a  writer, artist, and activist in drug policy
reform  from  Ohio.  She  is  a co-founder of the Ohio Patient Network
(http://www.ohiopatient.net) and serves on the staff of DrugSense as
Fundraising Specialist/Business Manager.

***********************************************************************

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
- ------------------------------------

"John  Walters addressing a meeting of scientists sounds analogous to 
Mike  Tyson addressing a feminist group or Rush Limbaugh addressing a 
convention of logicians."

David F. Duncan, DrPH, CAS, FAAHB, Clinical Associate Professor, School 
of Medicine, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island

***********************************************************************

DS  Weekly  is  one  of  the  many free educational services DrugSense
offers  our  members.  Watch  this  feature  to  learn more about what
DrugSense can do for you.

TO SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS:

Please utilize the following URLs

http://www.drugsense.org/hurry.htm

http://www.drugsense.org/unsub.htm

CREDITS:

Policy  and  Law  Enforcement/Prison content selection and analysis by
Stephen  Young  (maxharm@maximizingharm.com),  Cannabis/Hemp  content
selection  and  analysis  by  Philippe  Lucas  (phil@drugsense.org),
International content selection and analysis by Doug Snead
(doug@drugsense.org), Layout by Matt Elrod (webmaster@drugsense.org)

We  wish  to thank all our contributors, editors, NewsHawks and letter
writing  activists.  Please help us help reform. Become a NewsHawk See
http://www.mapinc.org/hawk.htm  for  info  on  contributing clippings.

===

NOTICE:

In  accordance  with  Title  17  U.S.C.  Section 107, this material is
distributed  without  profit  to  those  who  have  expressed  a prior
interest  in  receiving  the  included  information  for  research and
educational purposes.

===

MAKE A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION TO DRUGSENSE ON-LINE

http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm

- -OR-

Mail  in  your contribution. Make checks payable to MAP Inc. send your
contribution to:

The Media Awareness Project (MAP) Inc.
D/B/a DrugSense
PO Box 651
Porterville,
CA 93258
(800) 266 5759
MGreer@mapinc.org

------------------------------
End of Restore-Digest V2002 #108
********************************