News Brief

Illini Bluff school teachers managed to fend off random drug testing for themselves, if not their successors, but still submitted to one drug test to get back to work.

The Mexican president gave his annual state of the union speech last week, but that had no impact on the killing.

It ain't decriminalization, but Arkansas is moving in the right direction when it comes to pot penalties.

Getting back in step with other Latin American countries, the Colombian Supreme Court has undone former Pres. Uribe's amendment recriminalizing the possession of small amounts of drugs for personal use.

A Minnesota women is dead after a routine traffic stop escalated into a potential drug bust and attempted escape that endangered a trooper.

A Kentucky man is this year's 33rd US drug war fatality. He was shot and killed by police after allegedly pointing a gun at them as they raided his home.

A drug-robbing Philly cop heads to prison; so does a Houston deputy who helped an Ecstasy dealer, but a lying Oklahoma cop will walk free, and a Texas prison is looking at prison for smuggling dope to prisoners.

The religious right is rising up to contest an Arkansas medical marijuana initiative, but the pot people have some ecumenical resources on their side, too.

John Ray Wilson was sent to prison Wednesday in New Jersey for the crime of growing his own medicine. Meanwhile, medical marijuana is now legal there and state-registered dispensaries are about to open. Go figure.

The Rhode Island Medical Society is calling on Gov. Chafee to quick blocking the licensing of medical marijuana dispensaries, but he doesn't appear to be ready yet.