More than 4,200 Americans have been killed in Iraq since that country was invaded in 2003. More than 4,000 people have died this year alone in another war, this one much closer to home. Drug-related murders in Mexico - at more than 4,000 for the year - are a concern north of the border. They involve a bloody trade in illegal drugs flowing into the United States. Some killings by Mexican drug lords have involved Americans, and some have occurred on our soil. [continues 215 words]
FOSTORIA -- Fully-loaded 1995 GMC Suburban, new electrical and paint and one incarcerated owner. If interested, contact Fostoria's new Drug Abuse Resistance Education officer at city schools. The unveiling Tuesday night of a once infamous chrome-wheeled SUV as a DARE-mobile marked a new beginning for the truck and the program in Fostoria. Mayor John Davoli announced the program, inactive for five years, would restart in January and introduced the vehicle and the city's newly-trained DARE officer, Matt Noftz. [continues 143 words]
A rainbow of colors: red, blue, green, purple and white. If police officers only test white substances, they may miss finding other illegal drugs. Twenty people from various law enforcement offices attending a recent seminar at Sycamore Fire Station to learn how to identify and test various drugs. North Carolina resident Jack Thorndike, Nark sales and training representative from SIRCHIE Group, shared information about colors being added to various drugs to disguise them. Thorndike said if an officer stops someone for probable cause, but only finds a white or off-white substance, they should have it tested to make sure it is not crack cocaine. [continues 636 words]
Small rural towns are viewed by many as a quiet place to settle down and raise a family. Artwork created by Norman Rockwell has helped shape many perceptions of innocence and serenity in small towns. Unfortunately, those qualities which have attracted people to live in small towns have caught the attention of unwelcome residents - methamphetamine producers. Rural areas offer two advantages to producers of the drug. Production can occur without attracting attention and producers have access to anhydrous ammonia, which is used to produce the drug. Anhydrous ammonia is a fertilizer used on non-legume crops as a way of adding nitrogen to the soil. [continues 583 words]
Moving protest Activists to lobby legislators on medical uses for marijuana The "Journey for Justice" rolled into Tiffin Tuesday afternoon. The 140 mile trek from Oregon, in northwest Ohio, to Columbus is an attempt to call attention to those who use marijuana for medical purposes. The organizers feel legislators have little or no place in determining doctorpatient care. The idea for the trip came from Dan Asbury. Asbury is a quadriplegic who suffers from muscle spasms. He is serving two years' probation for growing marijuana for personal use. [continues 390 words]
