Utah Teens Less Involved But Are Not Uninvolved Typically in the past year, one of every four Utah high school students was offered illegal drugs at school. One of every nine was in a physical fight there. And one of every 13 was threatened with a weapon at school. And typically in just the past 30 days, one of every 18 carried a weapon to school. One of every 26 used alcohol at school. And one of every 27 used marijuana at school. That widespread use of drugs, alcohol and violence in Utah high schools is reported in a new study by the National Center for Educational Statistics, based on surveys of students in grades nine through 12 in Utah and across the nation in 2003. The good news for Utah is that such problems are below the national average in every category. [continues 764 words]
Utah's prison population grew 65 percent faster than the national average last year - and that was while the nation's prison population overall was skyrocketing to its largest increase in four years. At midyear 2003, Utah's prison population grew to 5,594 - up from 5,353 a year earlier on June 30, 2002. That increase of 4.5 percent for that 12-month period came while the national average was a 2.9 percent increase. Utah had the 12th largest increase by percentage among the states. [continues 501 words]
WASHINGTON -- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch said Tuesday that the time has come to quit thinking of drug traffickers and terrorists as separate types of groups. The Utah Republican said the two groups are increasingly connected. "If we really want to win the war against terrorism, we need to continue and expand our commitment to cutting off all sources of terrorism financing, including drug trafficking," he told a hearing about the connection between drugs and terrorism. "By doing so, we will not only cut off an important source of funding for terrorists, but we will reduce the amount of illegal drugs that poison our communities," Hatch said. [continues 428 words]
WASHINGTON - Mind-bending methamphetamine, smuggled from Mexico or made in small, local labs, is still the No. 1 drug threat in Utah. But Utah is starting to have some success against it, which other states are rushing to copy. That's according to a report about regional drug problems and successes released this week by the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy. "Utah has seen a decrease in the number of meth labs, while others are seeing an increase. There's a rush of queries by others asking Utah, 'How are you doing it,' " said Scott Burns, a Utahn who is now deputy director of that drug czar's office. Burns - who was the longtime Iron County attorney, and was a former candidate for Utah attorney general - said the major reason for Utah's success is that local, state and federal law agencies there have learned to work together against the problem. [continues 508 words]
Panel Wants States to Adopt Laws like Utah's WASHINGTON -- Substance abuse experts called Thursday for more states to adopt laws like one in Utah that give "zero tolerance" for drivers who take any illegal drugs. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Substance Abuse Policy Research Program said only eight states, including Utah, now outlaw driving while having any illegal drug in the body. The other 42 states have laws that outlaw driving while impaired by drugs but set no definitions on exactly when impairment occurs. In contrast, most states say drivers are legally drunk when they have a 0.08 percent blood-alcohol concentration. [continues 309 words]
WASHINGTON - Utahn Scott M. Burns vowed Tuesday to bring together state, local and federal officials nationally to fight drugs if he is confirmed as the deputy director for state and local affairs for the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Burns, the four-term elected Iron County attorney, who ran unsuccessfully twice for Utah attorney general, told the Senate Judiciary Committee he has spent his career trying to build such partnerships, including forming the first narcotics task force in Utah. "I have worked in the trenches. I hope to bring a message from the trenches, from state and local people, to you," he told senators during his confirmation hearing. "And I hope to take your message back to state and local government." [continues 361 words]
Chief Deputy Says Department Does Not Have The $1.5 Million To $2 Million Needed To Complete Construction At County Jail BAY MINETTE -- Commissioners are asking local officials to work together to solve the county's jail overpopulation problem, and saying the solution is dependent on Sheriff James B. "Jimmy" Johnson revealing how much money he has in his department's discretionary accounts. For the second time in eight months, the commission has asked Johnson to release specific information on how much money he has in several funds that the sheriff said are used solely for law enforcement or training needs. [continues 1051 words]
Counselors Say Watching People Stay Sober Is Rewarding FAIRHOPE -- For most, the holiday season is a happy time, centered around celebrating Christ's birth, spending time with family and giving gifts. But for some, it brings depression that can lead to drug or alcohol abuse. That's why RAPPORT is an especially important outreach in Baldwin County this time of year, offering people relief from those dark days if they're willing to take the first step, organizers said. "They have to do it for themselves. If they're doing it for someone else -- it doesn't matter how strong the program is -- it won't work," said Steve Norman, director of the intensive outpatient program, which is a branch of the Baldwin County Mental Health Center in Fairhope. [continues 551 words]
WASHINGTON — University of Utah professor Glen R. Hanson has been named the acting director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, one of the National Institutes of Health. His appointment follows the resignation of Dr. Alan I. Leshner, who served as director since 1994. He is leaving to become the chief executive officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Hanson is a professor in the University of Utah's department of pharmacology and toxicology and is recognized as an expert on psychostimulants. [continues 200 words]
WASHINGTON -- Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson called Tuesday for President Clinton to grant clemency to possibly hundreds of nonviolent drug offenders. Anderson told a Capitol Hill press conference that federal sentencing guidelines require punishment that often is far more severe than merited for minor drug violations. He said clemency by Clinton could be the first step to change those guidelines. "President Clinton, during these last hours of your eight-year term . . . please take a stand against the waste and injustice of our destructive sentencing laws," Anderson said. [continues 455 words]
WASHINGTON -- U.S. drug czar Barry McCaffrey, who has announced his upcoming resignation, says the Olympics made a great start this year in fighting drug abuse, but there's a long way to go before the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City. "We owe athletes in America a drug-free competitive environment," he told the Deseret News. "It's well begun, but there is a lot of work" to come. McCaffrey spoke at a press conference Tuesday to discuss his decision to retire Jan. 6 as head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy and to discuss some areas of remaining concern. [continues 414 words]
Note: Shadow Convention websites: http://www.drugpolicy.org/ http://www.shadowconventions.com/ ROCKY SLAMS 'WAR ON DRUGS' DURING 'SHADOW CONVENTION' Mayor Bemoans The Failure, Inhumanity of Drug Policies Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson charged Tuesday that the "war on drugs" was manufactured for political gain -- and both parties care more about appearing tough on crime than they do about truly reducing use of drugs. "The Republican and Democratic parties will not honestly address the absolute insanity of our approach to preventing and fighting drug abuse and addiction," Anderson said in prepared text for a speech to the "Shadow Convention." [continues 399 words]
The Senate sounded a bugle-call charge Wednesday to escalate the war on drugs by adopting sweeping legislation by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. On a close 50-49 vote, it approved a wide array of new legal weapons against methamphetamine labs; stiffened penalties for selling drugs near schools or to minors; reduced disparity in punishments for selling powder and crack cocaine; and banned posting recipes for illegal drugs on the Internet. "Drug use is a poisonous, nationwide epidemic," Hatch told the Senate. "We must fight this plague for the sake of our children and our grandchildren. [continues 514 words]
