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For Immediate Release: July 23, 2007 Contact: Margaret Dooley at (213) 291-4190 or Dave Fratello at (310) 394-2952 Al Gore III Faces Up to Three Years in Prison for Drug Possession; Californians Favor Alternatives to Incarceration CA Law Offers Treatment to 36,000 Nonviolent, Low-level Drug Offenders—Famous and Not—Every Year Gore Heads to Court as CA Senate Debates Budget Cuts to Prop. 36 LOS ANGELES, July 23 – Al Gore III, the 24-year-old son of the former vice president, is facing more than three years in prison for simple drug possession following an arrest in Southern California earlier this month. Advocates call for Gore to receive what most nonviolent, low-level drug offenders in California do—community-based treatment instead of incarceration under Prop. 36, passed by 61% of voters in 2000. The DA of Orange County will determine Gore’s eligibility for the program in the next couple of weeks. Margaret Dooley, Prop. 36 Coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance, said, “It is a tragedy when anyone enters the criminal justice system—rather than the healthcare system—because of drug use. Thanks to Prop. 36, people in California can address those problems, without adding the trauma and stigma of incarceration. We hope the court will find that Gore is one of the tens of thousands who could benefit from Prop. 36 this year.” Over 36,000 people—famous and not—benefit from Prop. 36 each year. Daniel Baldwin, brother of Alec Baldwin, last week told Larry King that Prop. 36 intervened in his long-term cocaine addiction and allowed him to access the treatment he needed. His story is similar to that of Rudy Mendez, a not-so-famous resident of San Diego, who entered Prop. 36 to treat his long-term addiction to heroin, and has been sober for five years. Both men are now spokesmen for recovery and work with others to spread the news that “Recovery Happens!” and that one way to get there is Prop. 36. Gore’s arrest and Baldwin’s interview come just as the California Senate considers cutting funding to Prop. 36, in exchange for hefty tax breaks for large corporations. Advocates say the plan to cut funding to the life-saving and cost-effective program is a slap in the face of California voters. In 2000, 61 % of California voters approved Prop. 36, permanently changing state law so that all eligible nonviolent drug possession offenders must be given the option of state-licensed treatment. In just six years, over 70,000 Californians have graduated Prop. 36 and taxpayers have saved $1.8 billion. For more information, visit www.Prop36.org. To see Larry King interview Daniel Baldwin about his addiction and Prop. 36, visit http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2007/07/19/lkl.daily.daniel.baldwin.cnn # # #

Drug Truth Network Update: Cultural Baggage + Century of Lies + 4:20 Drug War NEWS Half Hour Programs, Live Fridays... at 90.1 FM in Houston & on the web at www.kpft.org. Hundreds of our programs are available online at www.drugtruth.net, www.audioport.org and at www.radio4all.net. We provide the "unvarnished truth about the drug war" to scores of broadcast affiliates in the US and Canada., Cultural Baggage for 07/20/07 Jack Cole, Director Law Enforcement Against Prohibition + Mark Mauer of Sentencing Project & Poppygate & "Tora Bora on my Mind" MP3 MP3 LINK: http://www.drugtruth.net/007DTNaudio/FDBCB_072007.mp3 Century of Lies for 07/20/07 Matt Elrod, is pot legal in Canada, again? + Atty Buford Terrell re "cheese" + Tribute to Virginia Resner, (1946-2007) MP3 MP3 Link: http://www.drugtruth.net/007DTNaudio/COL_072007.mp3 4:20 Drug War NEWS 07/23/07 to 07/29/07 now online (3:00 ea.): Monday 07/23/07 Remembering Virginia Resner (1946-2007) Tuesday 07/24/07 Poppygate Wednesday 07/25/07 Atty Buford Terrell re: "Cheese" Thursday 07/26/07 Jack Cole Director Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Friday 07/27/07 Eric Sterling of Criminal Justice Policy Foundation Saturday 07/28/07 Drug War Facts + "Official Government Truth" Sunday 07/29/07 Canadian Pot Laws are Unconstitutional per Canadian Broadcasting NEXT Friday: ) - Cultural Baggage 8 PM ET, 7 PM CT, 6 PM MT & 5 PM PT. Eric Sterling, Criminal Justice Policy Foundation & LEAP - Century of Lies 2 PM ET, 1 PM CT, Noon MT & 11 AM PT. TBD Check out our latest videos on YouTube from US Social Forum via www.drugtruth.net/dtnvideo.htm Please become part of the solution, visit our website: www.endprohibition.org for links to the best of reform. "Once we remove these charlatans from positions of power, other social changes will become much easier." - Reverend Dean Becker, Drug Truth Network Producer Dean Becker 713-849-6869 www.drugtruth.net

ASA ACTION: Voter Rights Protected by Initiative Case ASA ACTION: Fighting for the Truth about Medical Marijuana COLORADO: ASA Action for Better Access LOS ANGELES: City Trying to Regulate, Feds Trying to Intimidate FEDERAL: Rosenthal to Appeal Medical Marijuana Conviction CALIFORNIA: Orange County to Issue Medical Marijuana ID Cards HAWAII: Expansion of Medical Marijuana Protections Sought WASHINGTON: Program Expansion Sought There, Too VIRGINIA: Medical Use of Marijuana - Criminal or Not? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASA ACTION: Voter Rights Protected by Initiative Case A local California medical marijuana initiative that election officials say was narrowly defeated has become a test case for electronic voting machines. When proponents of the measure asked for a recount, Alameda County election officials said they could not provide data to prove that the machines had accurately tallied votes. ASA sued to make sure elections remain accountable to the people. “We’re trying to be good stewards of democracy,” said ASA’s Don Duncan. Medical marijuana election may head to revote by Henry K. Lee, San Francisco Chronicle An Alameda County judge said Friday she may void election results for a failed 2004 Berkeley medical marijuana measure and order it returned to the ballot because county election officials failed to hand over data from voting machines. Judge scolds officials for blocking vote recount by Ian Hoffman, The Argus (CA) Faced with accusations of lying, destroying public records and other chicanery, Alameda County officials — facing a lawsuit over their handling of a hotly contested election recount — instead protested to a state judge on Friday that they were victims of misunderstandings, bad decisions and their own ignorance of the multimillion-dollar machines used to conduct elections. Berkeley's Measure R Could Be Back In The Ballots ABC7 KGO-TV (San Francisco) A 2004 Berkeley ballot measure may be re-appearing on their 2008 ballot, that's according to an Alameda County superior court judge who found there was no way to accurately re-count votes because the registrar's office didn't back-up electronic data properly. Could it happen again? Judge Calls For New Vote After Data Loss by Bobby Carroll, Daily Californian A re-vote on a 2004 medical marijuana initiative appears likely after a judge issued a tentative ruling Thursday stating that electronic election data lost by Alameda County were critical to discerning the legitimacy of the Measure R voting results. New vote likely in California e-voting case by Stephen Lawson, IDG News Service A California judge is likely to order a Berkeley city initiative back on the ballot because of local officials' mishandling of electronic voting machine data, a public-interest lawyer arguing the case said Friday. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ASA ACTION: Fighting for the Truth about Medical Marijuana ASA’s petition to correct the government’s denial of medical marijuana has gone to federal court. ASA wants the Department of Health and Human Services to end two years of delay and respond to the petition, which outlines the substantial scientific research and government reports showing the therapeutic efficacy of marijuana and asks the government to stop saying there is no medical use. Arguing on behalf of patients was co-counsel Alan Morrison, the founder of Public Citizen’s Litigation Group and currently a senior lecturer at Stanford Law School. More info about the petition and the case is at www.AmericansForSafeAccess.org/DQA. Pot Group Sues to Make Feds Eat Words by Matthew Hirsch, The Recorder Medical marijuana advocates and federal prosecutors have never agreed on whether the drug has medical value. Now, an Oakland, Calif.-based advocacy group, Americans for Safe Access, is trying to use a little-known Clinton-era law to make federal agencies take back statements about marijuana -- for example, that pot has "no currently accepted medical use." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- COLORADO: ASA Action for Better Access Close on the heels of a victory in another Colorado caregiver test case, attorney Brian Vicente has convinced a state court to intervene on behalf of patient access and allow caregivers to help more patients. Vicente, who is director of the Colorado Campaign for Safe Access, a joint project of Sensible Colorado and ASA, also recently had an OpEd published in which he explained how medical marijuana dispensaries can both benefit the community and serve the most seriously ill and injured. Others in Colorado are hoping to help the patient collective model develop there. Judge: Colorado Medical-Marijuana Restriction Unfair Associated Press In response to a lawsuit brought by a man suffering from AIDS, a judge has temporarily blocked a state rule limiting the number of medical-marijuana patients that caregivers are allowed to oversee. Marijuana pain relief by Ted Holteen, Durango Herald (CO) Durango prides itself on being a "green" city, but two local men think it could be greener. Aamann Degarth and Eric Gay are spearheading an effort to open a local chapter of the Portland, Ore.-based The Hemp and Cannabis - or THC - Foundation, which advocates the use of medicinal marijuana in the 13 states that have legalized the practice.