News Brief

For all that talk about drug law reform, the cops continue to do what they've always done. The FBI reports that drug arrests actually inched upward last, although marijuana arrests dropped (almost imperceptibly).

Public opinion has tipped in favor of marijuana reform in Michigan, with nearly half of respondents calling for outright legalization and more than two-thirds embracing either decriminalization or legalization.

A California man volunteering to help with marijuana eradication in the state's national forests died Thursday when he fell out of a helicopter. That's the 29th drug war death so far this year.

A Missouri technical college's bid to drug test students for "public safety" reasons was largely slapped down by a federal district court judge Friday.

An unarmed alleged meth dealer was gunned down by undercover California cops in a restaurant parking lot after they said he threatened them. The dead man's family would like some answers. Good luck with that.

More jail guards in trouble, and a Georgia cop gets nailed for helping meth dealers.

The year's 28th drug war killing occurred Monday night during a drug raid in Harbor Hills, Texas.

A Texas trooper who shot and killed two Guatemalan immigrants from a helicopter as he pursued what he thought was a drug load has been cleared of any criminal misdoing. But at least Texas authorities have had to revise their policy on the use of deadly force from the air.

Colorado is first out of the gate with final rules for legal marijuana commerce, with the first shops expected to open around New Year's Day, but Washington state isn't far behind.

Comments in the Senate Judiciary Committee provided hope that medical marijuana's banking problems may be ending, California communities continue to tussle over the issue, and a New Jersey bill is signed into law. There's more, too.