Drug War Chronicle

It's almost time for the hash harvest in Lebanon, and farmers are taking up arms to protect their cash crop from eradicators.

In one of the largest medical marijuana demonstrations in years, as many as a thousand people came out in Oakland Monday to let President Obama know he needs to end the federal crackdown on dispensaries.

There was some interesting and well-informed discussion at Oaksterdam University Saturday night as the authors of four recent books on marijuana sat down to talk and think out loud.

A proposed constitutional amendment to legalize marijuana in Montana has failed to gather enough signatures to qualify for the ballot, but voters in Big Sky County will still have the chance to vote on medical marijuana.

The English speaking Central American nation of Belize has undertaken a review of whether to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

The White House has ordered a review of Clarence Aaron's commutation request, and a broader review of the pardons and commutations process.

DrugWarFacts.org, a publication of Common Sense for Drug Policy, is an in-depth compilation of key facts, stats and quotes on the full range of drug policy issues, excerpted from expert publications on the subjects. The Chronicle is running a series of info items from DrugWarFacts.org -- check them out!

California US Rep. Sam Farr (D) has again introduced a bill that would allow medical marijuana defendants to mount a defense in federal court. The Truth in Trials Act already has 18 cosponsors.

The federal crackdown on medical marijuana continues in California, the first plants are now being grown in New Jersey, and there's lot's more medical marijuana news, too.

More trouble on the border, more prison guards get caught, and a Puerto Rican cop goes away for a long, long time.