My idea for a system
IF ALL DRUGS WERE MADE LEAGEL
I think that there is no real wining argument when it comes to prohibition or legalization of drugs. I think whatever happens there will always be problems.
Victimâs Rights in the War on Drugs
Pete Guither pointed out the other day that the Republican platform contains this vague statement on victimâs rights:
I wonder if such a law would protect victims of armed robbery when police search their home, arrest them for marijuana, confiscate even more of their money than the robbers did, and ultimately decline to investigate the initial robbery for which they were called in the first place.
Victimâs rights is an interesting idea. Letâs talk about it after we end the drug war.
The innocent have far fewer rights than the accused. We call on Congress to correct this imbalance by sending to the states for ratification a constitutional amendment to protect the rights of crime victims.
I wonder if such a law would protect victims of armed robbery when police search their home, arrest them for marijuana, confiscate even more of their money than the robbers did, and ultimately decline to investigate the initial robbery for which they were called in the first place.
Victimâs rights is an interesting idea. Letâs talk about it after we end the drug war.
Palin Pick Makes Medical Marijuana a Problem Issue For McCain
We know she used marijuana when it was legal in Alaska. And we know that she hypocritically claims to oppose legalization. But Sarah Palin is also governor of a state thatâs had a medical marijuana program for ten years. How does she feel about that?
Does Sarah Palin share John McCainâs open hostility towards seriously ill patients who use marijuana on the advice of their doctors?
Frankly, I highly doubt Palin agrees with this. Itâs bad politics for her in Alaska and, for that matter, everywhere else as well. If pressed, sheâll be forced to take the party line, but that wonât go well for her. Palin canât conveniently defend federal supremacy over state medical marijuana laws because sheâs already argued that her own past marijuana use was legal in Alaska. She canât defend medical marijuana raids without labeling herself a criminal.
The point isnât that thereâs anything damaging about her admitted marijuana use or that people who admit trying marijuana become obligated to support medical access. Neither is true. The point, rather, is that Palinâs personal story highlights the absurdity of bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. telling people all the way up in Alaska what sorts of petty drug laws they ought to have. She doesnât want to go there. Itâs a terrible jumping-off point for initiating a defense of federal authority to arrest sick people.
Thatâs why the Obama campaign would be smart to apply pressure here. Public support for medical marijuana is overwhelming and the video of McCain literally turning his back on a wheelchair bound patient is compelling. This debate polarizes independent and libertarian voters in Obamaâs favor, while forcing McCain to defend another unpopular Bush policy. Bidenâs obnoxious drug war background also becomes a counterintuitive asset, as he can ably deflect any shrill attacks from the law & order crowd on the right.
As the democrats clamor for opportunities to puncture the narrative of McCain/Palin as a "reform" ticket, there is nothing to lose, and potentially much to gain by directly challenging McCainâs deeply unpopular views on medical marijuana.
(This blog post was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Does Sarah Palin share John McCainâs open hostility towards seriously ill patients who use marijuana on the advice of their doctors?
Frankly, I highly doubt Palin agrees with this. Itâs bad politics for her in Alaska and, for that matter, everywhere else as well. If pressed, sheâll be forced to take the party line, but that wonât go well for her. Palin canât conveniently defend federal supremacy over state medical marijuana laws because sheâs already argued that her own past marijuana use was legal in Alaska. She canât defend medical marijuana raids without labeling herself a criminal.
The point isnât that thereâs anything damaging about her admitted marijuana use or that people who admit trying marijuana become obligated to support medical access. Neither is true. The point, rather, is that Palinâs personal story highlights the absurdity of bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. telling people all the way up in Alaska what sorts of petty drug laws they ought to have. She doesnât want to go there. Itâs a terrible jumping-off point for initiating a defense of federal authority to arrest sick people.
Thatâs why the Obama campaign would be smart to apply pressure here. Public support for medical marijuana is overwhelming and the video of McCain literally turning his back on a wheelchair bound patient is compelling. This debate polarizes independent and libertarian voters in Obamaâs favor, while forcing McCain to defend another unpopular Bush policy. Bidenâs obnoxious drug war background also becomes a counterintuitive asset, as he can ably deflect any shrill attacks from the law & order crowd on the right.
As the democrats clamor for opportunities to puncture the narrative of McCain/Palin as a "reform" ticket, there is nothing to lose, and potentially much to gain by directly challenging McCainâs deeply unpopular views on medical marijuana.
(This blog post was published by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also shares the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Police Raid Wrong Address, Hit Innocent Man With the Butt of a Shotgun
Also from Radley Balko, another horrific botched drug raid. This one happened a couple weeks ago, but didnât get nearly as much press coverage as the Cheye Calvo raid, maybe because no dogs were shot. These folks must not have had any dogs. Instead, police hit an epileptic man in the head with a gun.
And just listen to this pathetic excuse for an excuse:
No, itâs not understandable! Itâs inevitable. It's deeply disturbing. But it is not understandable. If doing multiple aggressive drug raids each day leads to outcomes like this, then stop doing them. If you canât keep track of the addresses and your officers are clubbing the innocent, then please do something about it and donât tell us we should be more understanding.
What sort of defense is it to point out that his officers smash down 1,100 doors a year? That, rather obviously, is exactly the problem.
Armed with a battering ram and shotguns, Buffalo police looking for heroin broke down the door and stormed the lower apartment of a West Side family of eight.
The problem is that the Wednesday evening raid should have occurred at an apartment upstairs.
And, thatâs only the tip of the iceberg, according to Schavon Pennyamon, who lives at the mistakenly raided apartment on Sherwood Street with her husband, Terrell, and six children.
Pennyamon alleges that after wrongly breaking into her apartment, police proceeded to strike her epileptic husband in the head with the butt end of a shotgun and point shotguns at her young children before admitting their mistake and then raiding the right apartment. [BuffaloNews.com]
And just listen to this pathetic excuse for an excuse:
"We wouldnât be comfortable discussing the internal investigation," [Chief of Detectives, Dennis J.] Richards said. "We can say comfortably that over 1,100 search warrants were executed last year and 580 to date this year and that, with such a high volume and such a fast-paced environment, it is understandable that mistakes could happen."
No, itâs not understandable! Itâs inevitable. It's deeply disturbing. But it is not understandable. If doing multiple aggressive drug raids each day leads to outcomes like this, then stop doing them. If you canât keep track of the addresses and your officers are clubbing the innocent, then please do something about it and donât tell us we should be more understanding.
What sort of defense is it to point out that his officers smash down 1,100 doors a year? That, rather obviously, is exactly the problem.
Prosecutor Getting Nervous in the Ryan Frederick Case
â¦as well he should since Ryan Frederick is innocent and the whole thing is a colossal travesty. Radley Balko notes that the prosecution is hoping for a change of venue:
The special prosecutor in the case against Ryan Frederick, the Chesapeake man accused of killing a city detective, wants the murder trial moved out of the Hampton Roads area.
The commonwealth has urged the court for a change of venue from Chesapeake to a court elsewhere in the state. Frederick is to stand trial Jan. 20 in Chesapeake Circuit Court on charges of capital murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and possession with the intent to distribute marijuana. [PilotOnline.com]
Itâs a devious move, necessitated by the fact that a lot of folks in and around Chesapeake, VA know that Ryan Frederick didnât do anything wrong. Police thought he was growing marijuana, but he wasnât. When they raided his house, he thought he was being robbed and fired on the intruders, killing an officer that he didnât realize was a cop. The marijuana growing operation they were looking for just wasnât there and Iâm still unclear on why theyâre pursuing distribution charges for the tiny amount of pot found in his home.
Letâs hope the judge has the sense to see through this sham of a trial and blocks these pathetic efforts to gain leverage for charges that should never have been filed to begin with.