The other day I read George Will's "Sledgehammer Justice." I always thought he was a conservative, but after reading this piece, he has me confused (which, I admit, is not hard to do.) Is he a real conservative, or is he just another bleeding-heart liberal?

The subject he wrote about was prison sentences dealt to drug pushers. I could be wrong, but it seemed to me he thought life in prison -- or even 10-20 years -- in prison for pushing illegal drugs was too harsh. Hmmm.

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Since Jan. 1, it has been legal to buy and sell marijuana in Colorado and Washington states. News reports predict that this is the first step toward nationwide acceptance of this drug as a legal product on par with alcohol. If our country's experience with lotteries and gambling is any precedent, those reports are likely correct.

How can that be? Federal law provides for up to one year in jail for a first conviction for possession of any amount of marijuana. The answer is "prosecutorial discretion." In much the same way the federal government allows certain illegal aliens to continue to live openly in our country, a memorandum from the Department of Justice directs U.S. Attorneys to defer to the states (with some exceptions) in enforcing laws pertaining to marijuana.

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After weighing the pros and cons, the good citizens of Colorado voted to allow the sale and use of pot.

What are the cons? It is a means of impairing drivers. It is potentially addictive. It will be even easier for teens to obtain it. It will be bootlegged and marketed outside the state. It will probably lead to at least one federal case to set a precedent. It is purported to cause learning impairment in teens. It is one more thing that young people see us accept as normal behavior.

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Regarding George Will's recent column "Blunt force justice for drug offenses" regarding federal "draconian sentences": I applaud publicity of the problem but remain frustrated that the media fail to see the elephant in the room. That elephant is: Why do (sometimes innocent) defendants bend to the federal prosecutors' pressure to plead guilty in the face of Section 851 notice of enhancements or mandatory minimum sentences or threat of superseding indictments elevating risk of increased prison exposure? The answer: Because of a prosecutorial conviction tactic neither prosecutors nor defense lawyers have any incentive to reveal.

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Rep. Walter B. Jones Jr. has long marched to the beat of his own drum, politically speaking. A Republican who once led the effort insisting that the House cafeteria bill its crispy potato sticks as "Freedom Fries" to spite the French, he broke ranks with his party on the war in Iraq and has

So it is not surprising that Jones, who represents North Carolina's 3rd Congressional District, which includes a chunk of the Cape Fear region, has stepped forward on behalf of parents seeking to allow their children who suffer from life-threatening conditions legal access to an oral form of medical marijuana. These parents say they and their family doctors have tried every available treatment. Some of the most vocal advocates have been parents whose children who suffer uncontrollable epileptic seizures that have not responded to other medications.

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CHAPEL HILL - A top Orange County probation officer has been charged with operating a marijuana-growing operation in her Efland home.

Carlisha Lakwan Davis, 38, of 3306 Loganberry Court, Efland, was charged Dec. 9 with felony maintaining a dwelling for the sale, manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance, felony marijuana manufacturing and misdemeanor possession of marijuana, according to court records.

The charges stem from a June break-in, Orange County sheriff's investigator Randy Hawkins said. Davis' arrest was delayed because investigators "were making sure we had what we needed" to file the charges, he said.

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U.S. Rep. Walter Jones has taken up the case of a number of desperate North Carolina parents who are hoping state lawmakers will legalize medicinal marijuana for children with uncontrollable seizures.

In a statement, Jones said that several North Carolina parents of children with life-threatening illnesses have come to him with a "compelling argument that political leaders in North Carolina should consult with medical professionals to determine the efficacy of the use of medical marijuana in certain instances."

The Republican congressman, whose 3rd District covers parts of Pender and New Hanover counties, said these parents have "exhausted all other available options to provide relief for their kids."

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It seems to be simply a matter of time before the United States federal government legalizes marijuana for medicinal purposes. Whether it's 10 years or 50 years, it almost seems inevitable.

And even if the feds don't act, states are taking the proverbial bull by the horns and enacting legislation that is intended to help make the acquisition of medicinal cannabis easier. Since 1998, 20 states and Washington D.C. have taken steps to legalize medical marijuana.

Even more states, such as Maryland, have enacted laws that allow defendants in a court of law to claim medical necessity as a mitigating circumstance on charges of marijuana possession. And in North Carolina, the N.C. Medical Cannabis Act got past only the first reading before dying in committee in February. You can bet, however, that's not the last time such a bill is introduced.

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Five years ago, I answered a call familiar to pastors and others of faith; the call to a ministry.

Mine was received with great anxiety because it involved admitting to unlawful acts; the use of cannabis (a.k.a. marijuana) for medicinal purposes. After much prayer, and a couple of miracles, I accepted this calling and chose to write a column for The Richmond County Daily Journal to explain my calling and to ask for understanding and forgiveness for anyone offended by my choice.

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As a rule, the public holds law enforcement officers in high regard. Most live up to that standard. But when a cop sullies the uniform by breaking laws he was sworn to uphold, he betrays the people who put their trust in him.

The case of former New Hanover County vice and narcotics Lt. Joey LeBlanc is a reminder that police are human and subject to the same demons that tempt the rest of us. He faces 122 charges involving drugs, embezzlement, obtaining property by false pretenses, and altering or destroying evidence.

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During a 20-day period in December 2012, the then-second-in-command of the New Hanover County Sheriff's Office vice and narcotics unit forged court orders to acquire prescription pain medication from a College Road pharmacy 10 times, court documents released Tuesday allege.

Indictments handed up by a New Hanover County grand jury Monday indicate former lieutenant Joey LeBlanc's alleged criminal activity, all of which involved pain medication such as oxycodone or OxyContin, became increasingly common in December 2012 and January 2013. The final activity he was indicted on occurred May 7.

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That danged dog had better not drool on my Nabs.

Even as I stood on the side of Interstate 85 in Spartanburg, S.C., on Thursday night, surrounded by three cops and a dog, that was my first thought. I had been pulled over nabbed, so to speak - while driving through the Palmetto State on my way to Atlanta in a rental car.

I knew I wasn't speeding, so I wondered what creative reason the cop - - oops, make that cops; two more drove up before he reached me - would give for stopping me.

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North Carolina parents of children who suffer severe seizures are lining up for access to and pushing for legalization of medical marijuana where it's not already allowed.

They want people to know they're not radicals. And they're not going rogue. They are searching for options.

They freely admit they are desperate parents staring down nightmares with their children, having watched them develop early skills only to lose them at the hands of numerous seizures, only to have tried cocktails of medications with debilitating side effects and watch them not work.

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It didn't get a lot of attention, ended abruptly and took a back seat to the likes of tax reform and the budget, but the issue of medical marijuana legalization in North Carolina did get a hearing this year in the Republican-controlled legislature.

Rep. Kelly Alexander Jr., D-Mecklenburg, sponsored a bill he said would have "permitted dispensaries to be created in North Carolina, and would have permitted it (medical marijuana) to be taxed and appropriately regulated."

His efforts were quickly shut down - but not before a brief hearing.

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Any unexpected death is a devastating blow, but losing a loved one to an accidental drug overdose carries a unique burden - stigma, whispers, shame and the loss of support from friends and neighbors. I lost my son Michael to a drug overdose in 2012. Michael was a vibrant, well educated, working professional. He was in recovery from substance abuse and proud of where he was in his life, but as with most people who struggle with drug addiction, he relapsed. My life has never been the same since.

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North Carolina has always had a split attitude toward recreational drug use: Tobacco is OK, alcohol not so much. Now more attention is being focused on a third widely used drug - marijuana.

It is now legal to buy marijuana in Colorado and Washington. The venerable New York Times recently called for its national legalization.

Even the sharply conservative North Carolina legislature recently took a modest, noncontroversial step by allowing patients with persistent seizures to be treated with cannabidiol extracted from hemp, as long as they qualify for pilot studies. The law allows selected universities in the state to grow cannabis for study.

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The Sun Journal recently published an opinion entitled, "Tobacco, pot are on different paths". The opinion piece stated how acceptance of tobacco use is in a decline as compared to marijuana. Coastal Coalition for Substance Abuse Prevention (CCSAP) is concerned with the social acceptance marijuana is gaining. States legalizing marijuana can show us what might happen if North Carolinians began seeing marijuana as an acceptable drug.

The most common reason given to support less restricted marijuana use is "for medical purposes." The Colorado Department of Health and Human Services has published several studies on who is using marijuana for medical purposes in their state. They found that, "the average 'medical' marijuana user is a 32-year old white male with a history of alcohol, cocaine, and meth use, but NO history of a life threatening illness." Furthermore, only 3 percent reported using marijuana for cancer or HIV/AIDS. "The vast majority (94 percent) reported 'severe pain.'"

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The North Carolina House of Representatives Rules Committee buried a bill to legalize prescription marijuana because committee members heard from so many pro-marijuana constituents, the representatives were feeling "harassed."

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Only hard-core drug addicts overdose, right?

Actually, this statement may be one of the most dangerous misconceptions driving the overdose epidemic in our country. In the United States, accidental overdose, which includes alcohol, illegal drugs and prescription drugs, has now overtaken motor vehicle crashes as the No. 1 cause of injury death (i.e., non-disease-related death, like falling or homicide).

Opioid pain relievers, like Oxycodone and Hydrocodone, currently account for more overdose deaths than cocaine and heroin combined. Prescribed for acute or chronic pain, these drugs provide relief for thousands of people. But, as with any drug, they carry the potential for abuse and overdose. In order to fight this growing epidemic, we must challenge misconceptions about overdose victims.

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The war on drugs is costing us more than we're getting back. On average, it costs $30,000 a year to incarcerate an inmate. However, the nation spends an average of $11,665 per public school student. Is incarceration an appropriate punishment for all drug offenses?

Over 50 percent of people in jail were put there for drug law violation, most of which are for possession (85 percent to 90 percent).The war on drugs is often compared with Prohibition, and it's easy to see why. Prohibition brought an increase in consumption of hard liquor and saw more organized crime taking over legal production and distribution. Banning alcohol didn't stop people from drinking; it just stopped people from obeying the law.

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