WINDSOR, ONT. - A judge in Windsor, Ont., has ruled that Canada's law on possession of small amounts of marijuana is no longer valid. Justice Douglas Phillips made the ruling when he dismissed two drug charges against a 16-year-old local boy. In his ruling, Phillips said Parliament has failed to address problems with Canada's marijuana laws. In July 2000, the Ontario Court of Appeal struck down a federal law prohibiting the possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana. [continues 148 words]
When the Cape Girardeau patrolman Jeff Bonham learned the Missouri State Highway Patrol would no longer supply materials to the city's Drug and Alcohol Resistance Education, or DARE, program, he put out a call for backup. "I had no idea there would be a cut on our supplies," he said. "My first reaction was to go out and seek donations." His plea was answered by a $2,000 donation from Drury Hotels earlier this month. When Bonham approached the company, the owners immediately stepped up, said Eric Strand, vice president of sales and marketing. [continues 774 words]
WINDSOR, Ont. -- An Ontario Court judge threw out a marijuana charge against a 16-year-old boy Thursday in a decision lawyers say could soon spell the end of Canada's prohibition on possessing small amounts of pot. Justice Douglas Phillips dropped the charge after lawyer Brian McAllister argued in court that there is effectively no law in Canada prohibiting the possession of 30 grams of marijuana or less. McAllister warned that even though the ruling could be precedent-setting, anyone possessing small amounts of marijuana could still be charged. [continues 383 words]
Newspaper Story Results In Run On Local Supplier Of Salvia Divinorum For a businessman selling a product as quickly as he can get it in, Steve Agee is sure bitter. "I asked the guy not to discuss what I was discussing," says Agee, the "corporate president" of Knuckleheads Tobacco & Gifts in Madison. But the guy -- Reid Epstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel -- discussed it anyway, in a Dec. 21 article that was reprinted last Thursday, Dec. 26, in the Wisconsin State Journal. Says Agee, "He was a real jerk." [continues 746 words]
NORMAN -- A long-awaited 21-bed facility for juveniles addicted with drugs will open Monday, said Ben Brown, deputy commissioner of drug and substance abuse. The facility, to serve juveniles statewide, will be the only one operated by the state, which contracts with private vendors for about 60 more beds. It will be on the campus of Griffin Memorial Hospital in Norman, which is operated by the state Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Department. "This is needed so badly," Brown said. "Today, even if your family's a multimillionaire, there virtually is no treatment available in Oklahoma." [continues 241 words]
To the editor: Kudos to Bloomington physician Clark Brittain for making the case for compassionate-use medical marijuana legislation. Not only should medical marijuana be made available to patients in need, but marijuana prohibition itself should be subjected to a cost-benefit analysis. Unfortunately, a review of marijuana legislation would open up a Pandora's box most politicians would just as soon avoid. America's marijuana laws are based on culture and xenophobia, not science. The first marijuana laws were enacted in response to Mexican migration during the early 1900s, despite opposition from the American Medical Association. White Americans did not even begin to smoke marijuana until a soon-to-be entrenched government bureaucracy began funding reefer madness propaganda. [continues 120 words]
AUBURN -- Taylor Noggle knows that science can help convict the guilty, clear the innocent and protect the public. Noggle, the new director of the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences, wants to make sure Alabama uses that power to its potential. Noggle plans to ask the Alabama Legislature to nearly double the agency's funding for next year. The state faces budget problems, but Noggle said the increase to $24 million, up from about $14 million this year, is justified. The money would be used to bolster staff and reduce case backlogs that add to a bottleneck in the criminal justice system. [continues 905 words]
New Orleans -- A lawyer for one of two U.S. pilots who dropped a bomb killing four Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan last April says the U.S. air force had pressured the pilots to take amphetamines that may have impaired their judgment during the mission. Majs. Harry Schmidt and William Umbach face a possible court-martial for dropping the laser-guided bomb near Kandahar on April 18. A U.S. air force investigation determined the pilots "demonstrated poor airmanship" and ignored standard procedure by not making sure there were no allied troops in the area. [continues 279 words]
The books are closing on the second year of our still-new millennium and we've got some very serious concerns about the direction we are allowing our region to be swept. Drug use by our younger generation is an epidemic that promises to become a plague. Don't think us sanctimonious in our concern. We know that every generation has had its dark side. But this problem isn't your typical generational flirtation with civil disobedience. It's not about young people cutting ties with their parents' generation, rebelling against authority or making statements. [continues 165 words]
MARTIN - Martin Police Chief Jeff Powell was terminated from his job Christmas Eve by Mayor Thomasine Robinson in the wake of a state police investigation into Powell's purported destruction of thousands of narcotic pills without a court order. Martin City Attorney Stacy Marshall said the mayor informed him that Powell had been relieved of his duties and that long-time city policeman Jim Slone had been appointed temporary chief. A message left for Robinson Monday was not returned. Attorney Clyde Johnson, who represented Powell in a Dec. 18 court appearance on the matter, could not be reached Monday for comment. Last week, state police confirmed that an investigation had begun into Powell's claim that he destroyed 2,867 pills which were seized as evidence in a drug store burglary. [continues 262 words]
Involving the police, government, neighborhood representatives along with the apartment owners is a very important step in controlling the drug houses. Using the plan that number of cities have in effect sounds like a good beginning. Playing the devil's advocate, the thought I had is where did these drug dealers come from? Could it be possible that a number came from cities that used this set of laws? Where do these drug dealers go after they are evicted? Do they just move to another community that doesn't have the eviction process? [continues 70 words]
