Drug WarRant

Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee signs marijuana decriminalization bill

Today, Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee (I) signed legislation (PDF) into law that will reform how Rhode Island penalizes the simple possession of up to an ounce of marijuana (PDF). Currently, simple possession can be penalized with a criminal misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and/or a $200-$500 criminal fine. Under the provisions of the new law – which will take effect on April 1, 2013 – most violations of possession of up to an ounce of marijuana will be penalized with a simple civil fine of $150!

Via Transform Drug Policy — the Danish Parliament yesterday officially passed a law allowing safe injecting rooms.

The dog ate my homework. In police department full of failures to properly track and store evidence, cop takes marijuana evidence home (!) and then claims the dog ate it.

African American Church Leaders Endorse Initiative 502 To Legalize, Tax, and Regulate Marijuana for Adults

SEATTLE – Today Rev. Leslie Braxton of New Beginnings Christian Fellowship, Rev. Carl Livingston of Kingdom Christian Center, and Rev. Steve E. Baber of Skyway United Methodist Church announced their endorsement of Initiative 502, which would tax and regulate marijuana for adults 21 and over, dedicating revenues to healthcare, research and education, and substance abuse prevention. I-502 will appear on the November 6 general election ballot.

“It’s no longer enough to say the War on Drugs has been a failure. We have to recognize that it has done damage, especially to black Americans, and we have to change course,” said Rev.Braxton. “Marijuana law enforcement has become a pretext for pushing people into the criminal justice system where they get branded with criminal records that turn them into second-class citizens facing additional barriers to education and employment.”

NYPD Police Officer Indicted in Ramarley Graham Killing

A New York City police officer has been indicted on manslaughter charges in the Bronx shooting death of 18-year-old Ramarley Graham. Graham, a young black man, was shot and killed in the bathroom of his own home after a team of NYPD narcotics officers followed him home, broke in, and confronted him. […]

Although the indictment has not been officially unsealed, the New York Times reported that a grand jury has indicted Haste, 30, on charges of first- and second-degree manslaughter. More charges could be pending.

Graham was shot and killed after he and a pair of friends caught the attention of narcotics officers who had staked out a bodega on White Plains Road. They radioed their colleagues and said they believed he had a gun in his waistband as he walked toward his home. Officer Haste dashed to the scene, broke into Graham’s apartment, and shot and killed him in his bathroom.

No weapon was found, but police did say they found marijuana in a plastic baggie in the toilet bowl, suggesting Graham may have been trying to get rid of the evidence to avoid becoming another New York City pot bust statistic.

The shooting has provoked anger in the community and led to numerous calls for justice for Graham and other victims of overzealous policing in the city. It has also focused attention on the aggressive tactics of the NYPD’s Street Narcotics Enforcement Unit, teams of officers who surreptitiously surveil the streets looking for drug deals before bursting in to bust dealers and customers.

White House softball team smoked by pot lobby’s bats

While the ONDCP’s softball team always seems to have something else to do whenever they’re scheduled to play the powerful One Hitters, STOTUS (Softball Team Of The U.S.) at least showed up, although they lost 25-3.

“The One Hitters enjoyed slugging it out with the White House,” said Aaron Houston, executive director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, the group that sponsors the team. “Hopefully we can play them again when they aren’t totally absorbed in work.”

We almost missed the pun hidden there. Hint: David Maraniss’s latest book revealed that President Obama’s high-school pot smoking philosophy included “total absorption” of the precious weed.

Way to go, One-Hitters!

Rasmussen: 61% in Colorado Favor Legalizing, Regulating Marijuana

… and it’s in an important Presidential election state.

Here are the marijuana-based questions that they asked in the poll:

5* Should it be a crime for people to smoke marijuana in their own home or the home of a friend?

6* Would you favor or oppose legalizing marijuana and regulating it in the similar manner to the way alcohol and tobacco cigarettes are regulated today?

7* Suppose that marijuana was legalized and regulated so that it was illegal for people under 18 to buy, that those who drove while under the influence of marijuana received strict penalties, and that smoking marijuana was banned in public places like restaurants. With such regulations in place, would you favor or oppose legalizing and regulating marijuana?

8* Suppose that, if marijuana was legalized and regulated, it could be sold only in pharmacies. Drug dealers who sold marijuana on the street would be subject to strict jail sentences. Would that reduce the number of drug dealers in the country?

9* If marijuana was legalized and regulated, but could be sold only in pharmacies, would you favor or oppose legalizing and regulating marijuana?

I think you have to be a subscriber to get the breakdowns of responses.

24-Year-Old Gets 3 Life Terms in Prison for Witnessing a Drug Deal: The Ugly Truth of Mandatory Drug Sentencing

At the age of 24, Aaron was sentenced to three life terms for his role in a cocaine deal. That’s effectively three times the sentence imposed upon Faisal Shahzad, who tried to set off a car bomb in Times Square in 2010. Aaron was a student and football player at Southern University in Baton Rouge. He’d never been arrested. In 1992, he made the mistake of being present for the sale of nine kilograms of cocaine and the conversion of one kilo of coke to crack. Aaron would have earned $1,500 for introducing the buyer and seller. He never actually touched the drugs.

It’s a good article, written by someone else who is serving an exceptionally long time in prison for a small drug crime.

It points out the added injustice when the judge and pretty much everyone involved in the case thinks that the prisoner should be released, but there’s no mechanism to do so when Presidents fear to use their clemency power.

A travel day today, coming back from New York. Looking forward to catching up on drug policy news when I return.

Lobby E-Mails Show Depth of Obama Ties to Drug Industry

The New York Times article doesn’t specifically address the question posed in the title of this post, but it does show a clear willingness on the part of the administration to give in to the wishes of the pharmaceutical industry if it would help pass health care.

It certainly wouldn’t be surprising to discover that a discussion had occurred about preventing the proliferation of non-pharmaceutical medicines.

This, to me, is an important point. Too many people think that drug laws are about catching criminals, when, in fact, they’re more about creating criminals.

Marijuana law just creates criminals by Hakeem Jeffries at CNN

The consequences of an arrest are severe, especially for young people of color who are already disproportionately subjected to criminal justice system intervention and incarceration. An arrest creates serious barriers to going to college or getting a job, and that person’s future may begin to spiral downward. The damage to police and community relations cannot be overstated.

Another serious problem is that these needless and inappropriate arrests detract from arresting and prosecuting serious criminals. Millions of dollars in law enforcement resources are wasted. Thousands of lives are damaged with the contamination of having a criminal record.[…]

The connected and powerful — including many in high political office — have frequently admitted to smoking marijuana when they were young. We didn’t unmercifully penalize them. We should stop needlessly criminalizing tens of thousands of our young people for doing the same thing.

LEAP is Hiring: Assistant Media Relations Director

Pro-Legalization Cops Seek Assistant Media Relations Director

Continue reading →

This AP story has been getting a lot of play around the media: Colo. vote on pot could affect Obama-Romney race

Whether to legalize marijuana will be on the Colorado ballot in November. President Barack Obama and presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney have identical stances on pot legalization — they oppose it. And neither is comfortable talking about it.

Yet Obama and Romney find themselves unwittingly ensnared in the legalization debate — and both may want to take it more seriously if their race in Colorado is close.

Again, it’s good to see this on the national stage this year. Even when both candidates don’t want to talk about it, they can’t avoid it.

And one thing the article didn’t discuss… How will they avoid talking about it, if a Gary Johnson, for example, starts spending some time in Colorado talking about legalization?

Heading for New York for a week. Will check in often.

If you’re concerned about the lack of posts, take a look at the comments, where you’ll find the other folks who hang out on Pete’s couch – and a whole lot of great content and activity.