Beacon Hill could be taking up a new bill soon that would legalize and tax marijuana, while also creating a bureaucracy to heavily regulate cannabis cafes, pot shops and growth operations. The bill, sponsored by state Rep. David Rogers (D-Belmont) and state Sen. Pat Jehlen (DS-omerville), is backed by the nonprofit Marijuana Policy Project, which also "plans to support a 2016 ballot initiative to regulate and tax marijuana like alcohol." "Voters in Massachusetts are ready to end marijuana prohibition," said Matt Simon, the project's political director. "We hope their elected officials are, too. If the status quo is maintained in the legislature, change will occur at the ballot box." [continues 97 words]
Action for Boston Community Development - an anti-poverty organization - is taking a not-in-my-backyard approach to the proposed downtown location for a medical marijuana dispensary. "What I'm concerned about is that it's everybody's backyard," said ABCD president John Drew. "You could probably have situated this shop in a better location. You're talking about in the middle of Boston. . I think it's a prescription for some real problems." The state Department of Public Health last week gave a green light for Patriot Care Corp.'s proposed pot shop at 21 Milk St. in the Financial District to advance to the next step in the process. [continues 106 words]
Pope Francis' tough stand yesterday against legalizing recreational drugs had Bay State lawmen hoping his words will stiffen public opinion against a push to legalize marijuana here, even as pot backers raised doubts that the Catholic Church carries much influence on the hot-button issue. "I applaud the pope for taking a stand. I hope what he says carries some weight. I'm hoping that people will stop and at least consider the pros and cons of drug legalization when someone of the pope's stature has weighed in," said Plymouth County Sheriff Joseph D. McDonald Jr. [continues 527 words]
Say DEA Chief Ripped Obama Remarks DEA chief Michele M. Leonhart slammed President Obama's recent comments comparing smoking marijuana to drinking alcohol at an annual meeting of the nation's sheriffs this week, according to two sheriffs who said her remarks drew a standing ovation. Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson said he was thrilled to hear the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration take her boss to task. "She's frustrated for the same reasons we are," Hodgson said. "She said she felt the administration didn't understand the science enough to make those statements. She was particularly frustrated with the fact that, according to her, the White House participated in a softball game with a pro-legalization group. ... But she said her lowest point in 33 years in the DEA was when she learned they'd flown a hemp flag over the Capitol on July 4. The sheriffs were all shocked. This is the first time in 28 years I've ever heard anyone in her position be this candid." [continues 324 words]
The disgraced former state drug lab chemist at the center of the state drug lab scandal that resulted in more than a 1,000 criminal cases being dismissed has been sentenced to three to five years in prison. Suffolk Superior Court Judge Carol S. Ball accepted Annie Dookhan's guilty plea during a hearing today. Dookhan, 36, of Franklin, mishandled evidence and faked test results at the state drug lab in Jamaica Plain. She pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, perjury and tampering with evidence. [continues 138 words]
Two weeks before the Bay State votes on controversial ballot Question 2, which would decriminalize possession of small amounts of pot, the regional Drug Enforcement Agency office is honoring the memory of an agent slain by Mexican drug lords, by encouraging people to stay away from all drugs. "We're reaching out to people about living drug-free," said acting Special Agent in Charge Kevin Lane. Yesterday, Gov. Deval Patrick proclaimed next week Red Ribbon Week in Massachusetts. The Red Ribbon is worn by DEA agents during the last week of October each year in memory of fallen DEA agent Enrique Camarena. [continues 278 words]
An overwhelming number of Bay Staters replying to a Suffolk University/WHDH Ch. 7 poll say the state's marijuana laws should go up in smoke. The poll regarding questions set to appear on the Nov. 4 ballot shows that 72 percent of Greater Boston residents favor snuffing out criminal penalties for suspects carrying less than an ounce of pot, and replacing them with civil fines. Under the measure, a person stopped with marijuana would be given a $100 ticket and forced to forfeit the drug [continues 150 words]
Two of the nation's leading advocates for legalized marijuana were arrested on Boston Common yesterday for lighting up a joint during the Boston Freedom Rally, a pro-hemp event that promotes decriminalizing the drug. R. Keith Stroup, 63, founder of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and Rick Cusick, 53, an editor at High Times magazine, were charged with possession of marijuana, a misdemeanor. "We were smoking a joint behind the booth here," Stroup said. "I'm sure the police would rather be chasing real criminals. We're both productive, hard-working taxpayers." [continues 293 words]
The U.S. Attorney's office is vowing to collect the roughly $165,000 it provided to three Boston police officers arrested for allegedly guarding FBI-staged cocaine deals. Spokeswoman Samantha Martin said while her office cannot do so unless the three men are convicted, if that happens, the government can seize the officers' valuables - even their homes - to recoup the cash. "Upon conviction we intend to use every power at our disposal," she said. Throughout the investigation, officer Roberto Pulido, 41, is accused of turning over the personal information on roughly 165 motorists to what he believed was an identity theft ring in exchange for gift cards to retail stores, according to the FBI affidavit that outlines the case. But in all except the earliest cases, the real supplier of the cards was the FBI, which spent $130,000 to keep Pulido believing that he was working for a criminal enterprise, the affidavit states. Pulido allegedly used the cards to buy a plasma television and other big-ticket items. [continues 117 words]
A drug treatment advocate and several vagrants who live in and around Boston Common and the Public Garden say a police crackdown on druggies that got under way in earnest yesterday is not solving the problem, instead simply pushing it to other neighborhoods. "Moving people around does not solve their addiction," said Gail Enman, executive director of the Cambridge and Somerville Program for Alcohol and Drug Abuse Rehabilitation. "They carry their addiction around with them." Police were out in force in the Common and Garden, largely in response to Monday's Herald expose of open-air drug activity in the premier Hub greenspaces. Undercover officers strolled in pairs, police radios and handcuffs tucked under T-shirts; mounted police staged horse trailers in one of the Common's worst locales for drug use, where last week brazen crack fiends smoked in broad daylight. "Once you squeeze the tube of toothpaste, it really is a dilemma," said Enman, who estimates 90 percent of the homeless her program treats have substance abuse problems. "If you move the problem, it just sprouts out someplace else." Even as the police push was on, junkies still congregated at St. Paul's Church across from Park Street T station on Tremont Street. Asked where addicts are headed now, a man said, "Who knows." Police on horseback questioned anyone who seemed to be camped out in the park. But none of the addicts or dealers photographed by the Herald over the past two weeks was spotted yesterday on the Common. One woman stood by a tree while two mounted officers and three cops arriving in cruisers donned gloves to search her bags for signs of drugs. Police put the woman in a cruiser and shuttled her to the Pine Street Inn. [continues 180 words]
Facing a surge in high school drug addiction, Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey yesterday proposed drug tests for students and special schools in Boston and Springfield where recovering teens can complete school in a drug-free environment. The plan was part of a broader push Healey announced at the State House yesterday that includes tougher criminal penalties for making crystal meth, $9.1 million in aid for teen substance-abuse treatment programs, and a call for high school drug testing with parental permission. [continues 222 words]
LAWRENCE -- A proposed law backed by 25 lawmakers would create 1,000-foot drug-free zones around after-school youth programs, and give drug dealers an automatic 21/2 years in prison if they operate near programs like the YMCA. State Reps. Barry R. Finegold, D-Andover, and William Lantigua, I-Lawrence, announced the bill yesterday at the Lawrence Boys and Girls Club. Club director Markus Fischer said 500 children per day pass through their center at 130 Water St., and are taught the dangers of drug use, but the club cannot protect them when they leave. [continues 224 words]
