Will this be the year a medical marijuana bill passes the Maryland General Assembly? Sen. David Brinkley, R-District 4, said that if re-elected, he plans to introduce a bill similar to the one that passed the Senate during the last session that would legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes. A version of the bill failed in the House of Delegates. Brinkley said the bill, which would license producers, distributors and users, would address the important issue of providing a reliable source for the product as an alternative to buying it on the black market. [continues 557 words]
PIKESVILLE -- Police and law enforcement officials hope that a new arrangement for testing blood samples of people suspected of driving under the influence of drugs will make it easier and cheaper to charge and prosecute those cases. Testing for police departments around the state will now be done by the toxicology unit of the State Police Forensic Sciences Laboratory in Pikesville, Col. Terrence Sheridan, superintendant of the Maryland State Police, said at a press conference Wednesday. The state had run into a problem because there were only two labs on the East Coast that could perform the tests, and those labs had become reluctant to send their experts to testify in Maryland courts because of the cost and time involved, Sheridan said. [continues 281 words]
Since several incidents in 2005, Salvia divinorum hasn't been prominent in Carroll County, according to drug professionals. In October 2005, a store on Bond Street in Westminster called Heads N Threads was raided and the owner and an employee were arrested on charges of selling and possessing drug paraphernalia. The raid was prompted by publicity surrounding Salvia and after several suspects in drug cases were reported to have bought drug paraphernalia at the store. Salvia divinorum was banned in county schools in May 2005. [continues 138 words]
Three Generations Arrested For Dealing Meth FARMINGTON -- Three generations of a Navajo family, including an 81-year-old great-grandmother, will make an initial appearance in federal court today on charges of dealing methamphetamine, according to Navajo Nation police. [Name redacted], 81, daughter [Name redacted], 63, and granddaughter [Name redacted], 39, were arrested Thursday at their Dilkon, Ariz., home, according to a release issued by the Office of the Navajo Nation President. [Name redacted]'s 1-year-old daughter was also in the home at the time. Her 5-year-old son was reportedly at a Navajo Headstart program when the arrest was made. [continues 303 words]
SHIPROCK -- Chapter officials of the two communities on the Navajo Nation affected by the Nov. 7 triple homicide in Hogback said citizens were "saddened." Duane "Chili" Yazzie, Shiprock Chapter president, and Anita Hayes, Hogback Chapter coordinator, both said the murder and recent apprehension of three suspects, two of which hail from Shiprock, has been a topic of discussion in their communities. ADVERTISEMENT A fourth suspect, Michael Johnson, 26, of Shiprock, is still at large and considered dangerous. The FBI announced Sunday that Eugina Cowboy, 22, and Darcy Robert Manus, 22, both of Shiprock, and Chuck Nahkai, 29, of Beclabito had been arrested in connection with the triple homicide. [continues 463 words]
FARMINGTON - The Navajo Nation Department of Behavioral Health will soon add rehabilitation counseling for methamphetamine addicts to its range of programs, following a two-day seminar in Farmington. Raymond Keeswood, prevention specialist for the Shiprock Outpatient Treatment Center, said the department has focused on education and use prevention since 2003, when "five or six kids" died in Tuba City, Ariz., as a result of meth. However, the department's counselors are now seeing a trend where clients who have become addicted to meth are coming in for rehabilitation services. Keeswood noted the counselors currently specialize in alcohol and marijuana addiction rehabilitation programs, but have not been trained to assist meth addicts. [continues 497 words]
