KENTUCKIAN WANTS TO PUSH FOR LEGALIZING POT IN 'FREE STATE' CONCORD, N.H. - The movement to bring thousands of people to New Hampshire to change it into a "free state" with fewer laws and smaller government is attracting all sorts, including a 20-year-old Kentucky man who is walking here in search of a life free from marijuana prosecution. Randall Wolfe of Corbin calls himself a dedicated member of the Free State Project. He drives to his job as a manager trainee at a local Taco Bell with the project's Web site spray-painted on the hood of his 1997 Dodge Neon. The New Hampshire state motto, "Live Free or Die," is along the side. He spends his spare time as a Kentucky recruiter for the project. [continues 522 words]
LEBANON - Lebanon officials have reinstated a zoning permit for a proposed methadone clinic that was initially opposed by some members of the city council and the mayor, according to an attorney for the clinic's operators. Methadone is used as a legal substitute for heroin in treatment programs for drug addiction. The Lebanon facility would be New Hampshire's fourth methadone clinic. City officials complained that the initial application was misleading because it represented the space as "retail" before they stopped construction last week. They had said they were unaware before last week that a methadone clinic was planned for the site, which is in West Lebanon. [continues 570 words]
SPRINGFIELD -- Anyone 18 or older could buy from pharmacies hypodermic needles without a prescription under a bill that narrowly passed the Illinois Senate Monday. Sponsors hope the bill will curb the spread of HIV/AIDS by giving more drug users access to clean needles and by educating them on how to properly dispose of needles. The measure passed the Senate 30-24 and now goes to the House for consideration. "Some people use drugs no matter what," said Sen. Steve Rauschenberger (R-Elgin), a co-sponsor of the measure. "What has been proven in other states is, if there is access to legally possess sterile needles, there is a reduced amount of hepatitis and HIV/AIDS in that population." [continues 212 words]
Officials Use Mug Shots To Shock Teens PEKIN, Ill. -- Penny Wood agreed last month to let authorities publish photographs of her that graphically depict the ravages of methamphetamine use, thinking that this unusual provision of a plea bargain agreement to escape a long prison sentence might deter others from using the homemade drug. Now, though, local distribution of the photos has become something of a modern-day scarlet letter for Wood, who says she can scarcely walk down the streets of this central Illinois river town without people pointing and whispering. She is the butt of jokes on local radio, and one of her grandsons said he worries that the "after" picture in which "Grandma looks purple" will show up in his elementary school. [continues 815 words]
