News Feature

Marijuana arrests have begun to decline in the US, but drug war inertia remains strong, and more than 1.5 million people were arrested for drugs last year, according to new FBI statistics.

Federal drug sentencing reforms adopted by the US Sentencing Commission went into effect today. Not only will new offenders face less time, but people already serving time will be able to seek sentence reductions.

Election Day is less than a week away, and it's not just statewide marijuana, medical marijuana, sentencing reform, and drug testing initiatives that we're watching. In five states, voters in some cities or counties will have opportunities to cast ballots for local marijuana reform measures. Here's the rundown.

It's much easier to do bad things to -- or fail to do good things for -- people we have stigmatized as somehow lesser than the rest of us. The Denver-based Harm Reduction Action Center is taking on the stigmatization of drug users. That's a good thing.

It's now less than two weeks to Election Day, things are looking pretty good for those statewide marijuana legalization and medical marijuana initiatives, but they could still use your help. Find out what you can do.

A California initiative to raise medical malpractice liability limits is using the focus group-friendly drug testing of doctors as a sweetener, but even that may not be enough to save Proposition 46 as the medical community (and drug reformers) unite against it.

A 2011 fake drug house rip-off scheme in Miami that ended up with four people dead, including the police informant, has raised lots of questions about police tactics and accountability.

With Oregon's Measure 91 marijuana legalization initiative in a tight race, supporters are pointing to the experience of Colorado and Washington as arguments for voting yes.

California's Prop 47 would turn simple drug possession felonies into misdemeanors, saving the state hundreds of millions of dollars. Six weeks out, it looks set to pass, but we're still six weeks out.

With concern over police militarization running rampant in the wake of the Ferguson, Missouri, protests, a pair of congressmen have filed a bill that would begin to rein in the use of military equipment by police.