Drug War Chronicle

La Conferencia Internacional sobre la Reforma de las Políticas de Drogas de 2007 sucedió el fin de semana pasado en Nueva Orleáns. He aquí un sabor a como fue.

Esta semana, tanto la Comisión de Penas como la Corte Suprema de los EE.UU. redujeron las sentencias para infractores de la legislación federal contra la piedra de cocaína. Pero, en razón de las condenas mínimas obligatorias impuestas por el Congreso, ello debe tomar providencias para reducir más la injusticia.

Alex White made a career out of being an informant for Atlanta police, but when they asked him to lie for them in the Kathryn Johnston case, he instead went to the feds. Now he's suing the Atlanta police, claiming his career as a snitch has been ruined.

An Indiana drug task force faces some questions over seized goods, the NYPD can't find some drug evidence, a Texas crime lab tech gets greedy, and so does an Indiana cop.

The Swiss parliament has rejected a popular initiative calling for the legalization of marijuana. But the Swiss Senate must still debate it, and it could go to a popular vote.

In its battle against medical marijuana dispensaries, the DEA has brought its landlord-threatening letter campaign to San Francisco. Now, the dispensaries are suing in federal court, and the House Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on the matter.

Both the US Sentencing Commission and the US Supreme Court acted this week to reduce the harsh sentences for federal crack cocaine offenders. But because of congressionally imposed mandatory minimum sentences, Congress must act to further reduce the injustice.

The 2007 International Drug Policy Reform Conference took place last weekend in New Orleans. Here is a taste of what is was like.

Vietnamese courts have handed down death sentences to 35 drug traffickers in the past two weeks as the Southeast Asian nation makes a serious bid to be the world's leading executioner of drug offenders. Iran killed some too.