News Brief

In an interview with the The New Yorker's David Remnick, President Obama said marijuana was safer than alcohol and that state-level experiments with legalization were "important," but that he thought it was a bad habit.

Marijuana law reform bills just keep coming, a most likely unconstitutional food stamp drug test bill gets filed in Georgia, Australian regulators block urine drug testing of state energy company workers, Jamaicans legalizers grow impatient, and more.

Washington's attorney general has dealt a body blow to the statewide legalization of marijuana commerce there, medical marijuana continues to keep state legislatures busy, a New Mexico town and county pay out big time for a horrid anal search, heroin legislation is moving in Kentucky, and more.

Florida's medical marijuana initiative appears poised to qualify for the ballot (if it survives a challenge in the state Supreme Court), a new pot poll finds the country evenly split, Afghanistan was on the agenda in the Senate yesterday, and more.

US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has come around on medical marijuana, and he thinks cops waste too much time arresting pot smokers, too.

A marijuana legalization bill has passed the New Hampshire House, but not with enough votes to overcome a promised gubernatorial veto. It still faces more votes in the House and Senate, too.

As the legislative season gets underway, bills are being introduced all over the place -- good, bad, and ugly. And there's trouble in Mexico, there are peace talks in Colombia, and more.

The Washington, DC, city council has advanced a decriminalization bill with a unanimous committee vote. It now heads for the full council.

This week, we have a trio of jail guards gone bad, as well as another cop with a pain pill problem and sticky fingers. That's a bad combination.

Lots of activity on the marijuana and medical marijuana fronts today, and an academic study casts doubt on the utility of student drug testing.