Workshop Defines Scope Of The Mid-Delta's Problem And How Difficult The Battle Will Be A workshop on identifying drugs and identifying the signs of drug use doesn't really look or sound that sexy. But then there's nothing sexy about committing a crime while on drugs, or committing a crime to get drugs. The workshop Monday was intended to bring home the focus. Illegal drugs are a problem on college campuses, which put Greenville Higher Education Center square in the focus of the workshop. [continues 334 words]
Every 22 minutes, someone in this country dies from the use of drugs or alcohol. This sobering statistic isn't confined to just adults or young people but people across the age, social, racial, economic and religious spectrum. Drug abuse involving a whole range of drugs and beverages, from beer to hard liquor, is a phenomenon that has hit teenagers and young adults particularly hard. And society, families, school systems and the economy are paying the price for drug and alcohol abuse. [continues 435 words]
Program Serves A Need In The Community While Garnering Savings For Taxpayers, Too On June 24, the life of seven former drug abusers changed. These people graduated from the 4th Circuit District Drug Court in a ceremony at the Washington County Courthouse after the group completed a court-ordered and sponsored program that has now led to drug-free lives. According to information provided by the Drug Court, this is a program designed to identify non-violent drug offenders and provide them an opportunity to become drug free through a rigorous program of support and tough love. [continues 490 words]
On Thursday, seven former drug abusers graduated from the 4th Circuit District Drug Court in the Washington County Courthouse after completing a program that has led them to healthy, drug-free lives. Drug Court is a program designed to identify non-violent drug offenders and provide them an opportunity to become drug free. Participants must undergo a rigorous agenda including a 12-step program, random drug testing, meetings with judges and other various requirements. Although the program is designed to be taxing on the participants, Circuit Judge Margaret Carey-McCray, who is the Drug Court's administrator, said it is fair to all involved. [continues 466 words]
Alternative To Incarceration Rehabilitates Users And Requires Fewer Public Dollars Our jails and prisons are either full or near capacity and mainly because of get-tough sentencing legislation passed by almost every state in the nation. From "three strikes, you're out" to abandoning time off for good behavior, the criminal justice system is in meltdown. Taxpayers are bearing the brunt of this get-tough attitude on crime - from higher taxes to having more county and regional detention facilities being built to new state and federal prisons coming on line to house the burgeoning criminal element. [continues 539 words]
Ruling Erodes Constitutional Protections First came the U.S. Patriot Act passed by Congress mere months after the 9/11 events. Then, in 2003, came the addendums to the Patriot Act, which Congress has been asked to extend and approve. Much of the Patriot Act - after more careful review - has little to do with terrorism abatement and more to do with the intrusion of government and law enforcement agencies into the privacy of individuals. These intrusions border on, or are an outright stripping away, of some basic constitutional rights guaranteed to a free people in this country. [continues 657 words]
Editor: Thanks for publishing the letter (Delta Democrat Times, Feb. 25) by Gary Storck. For my mother and millions of other Americans medical marijuana is a matter of life or death. Cannabis stops my mothers seizures where as more than 25 prescription medications have failed. Surgery to remove part of her brain was also considered but wasn't an option. Our federal government would have Americans believe that medical marijuana is a cruel hoax or myth. There are more than 60 cannabinoids found in marijuana and synthetic THC, marinol, is but a single cannabinoid and doesn't provide the benefits of the natural plant. [continues 261 words]
To the editor: Jose Melendez hit the nail on the head with his illuminating letter about the war on drugs of Feb. 3, "Stop trampling on our rights." Perhaps the most tragic facet of this war on we, the people, is the federal prohibition of marijuana as medicine. For millions of Americans suffering from diseases as diverse as HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, cancer, glaucoma, epilepsy, chronic pain and rare disorders like Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, there exists no better treatment especially when all legal options have been exhausted than marijuana. [continues 169 words]
To the editor: Donald V. Adderton's characterization of the Goose Creek (S.C.) High School pot raids as "a little overzealous" makes me question his qualifications to responsibly edit the Delta Democrat Times. In an age where high school kids hopped up on Ritalin, Prozac, caffeine and several ounces of white sugar are dared to turn in their parents over joints that supposedly fund terror, we don't need any more propaganda from those who are supposed to be journalists. [continues 382 words]
To the editor: This is in response to the column in the Delta Democrat Times published on Jan. 20th ("Drugs force tough decisions, result in unfair conclusions") authored by D.V. Adderton. Mr. Adderton was referring to the police drug raid on Stratford High School in Goose Creek, S.C., and concluded that "critical times demand a drastic response because our youth need to be protected at all costs, no matter the end result." I have been following this obscene incident very closely with great interest from day one. I ask Adderton and the readers to think very hard and put yourselves in the place of those students. [continues 289 words]
To the editor: I respectfully disagree with the Delta Democrat Times' Jan. 18th editorial. These days zero-tolerance drug policies pose a greater threat to students than drugs. According to the "Monitoring the Future" survey, more than half of all high school seniors have tried an illicit drug. Denying a majority of the nation's youth an education is not in America's best interest. Most students outgrow their youthful indiscretions involving drugs. An arrest and criminal record, on the other hand, can be life-shattering. After admitting to smoking pot (but not inhaling), former President Bill Clinton opened himself up to "soft on drugs" criticism. [continues 115 words]
To the editor: The assertion "our youth need to be protected at all costs, no matter the end result," as stated in a column by Donald Adderton ("Drugs force tough decisions, result in unfair conclusions, Jan. 20, 2004 - Delta Democrat Times) is regrettable and irresponsible. North America is suffering because of the need for credible drug law reform and the Goose Creek (S.C.) High School incident screams it out loud. It is commendable to help youth resist drugs, alcohol, cannabis, coffee and cigarettes until they are older and responsible for their choices, but caging responsible adult cannabis users is not the correct way to do it. From observing the failure of the war on drugs, which is the ugly sequel to prohibition, "the end result" is an uncivilized embarrassment for all the world to see, which does not protect youth, and should not be allowed to continue. Stan White, Dillon, Colo. [end]
It is no big-kept secret that communities across the United States that battle with illegal drugs find the confrontation is an almost fruitless task. Yet there are some who are not afraid to take action, even when doing the so-called right thing will cost their jobs and professional standing. Drug use has been romanticized so endlessly in the media and hip hop culture that it has taken on a perverse icon status. The Mississippi Delta has not escaped its vile clutches. [continues 762 words]
To the editor: I will not comment on the merit of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, except that the Delta Democrat Times' comment about "[coddling the] lawless element" seems to imply that cops telepathically know that they are knocking the door down of a criminal's abode. Shame on this, as many innocents have been terrorized, and even killed, by this practice. No, instead I want to express my sheer amazement that the newspaper had the audacity to raise that Fascist-apology: "If you have nothing to hide there should not be a problem." That broad swath of a justification, if swallowed (and it has been in societies hostile to freedom), is the kernel of sheep-like submission to government force. Shame on you. Michael J. Petro, Phoenix [end]
To the editor: As I read the editorial in the Delta Democrat Times "The Court Made the Right Call," I was trying to decide if the newspaper was serious or being sarcastic. I just could not believe that anyone would think that 20 second warnings followed by a battering ram entry is desirable. There is no danger of the police turning into Rambos, that has already happened. It is definitely not true that if you are innocent you have nothing to worry about. Innocent people are killed in that type of drug raid all the time. [continues 71 words]
To the editor: Thanks to the Delta Democrat Times for publishing the outstanding letter from John Chase: "Remove illegal drug profit" (Dec. 23). I'd like to add that decriminalization of drugs is not the answer. The answer is full re-legalization of all types of recreational drugs and having them legally available in local pharmacies for pennies per dose. This would eliminate: the "forbidden fruit" appeal of drugs, the profit motive for drug dealers and thus drug dealers, as we know them today. [continues 100 words]
To the editor: For the U.S. Supreme Court to decide how long it takes to flush contraband down a toilet is to rearrange deck chairs on the Titanic. With due respect, the only solution to rid the country of the scum the Delta Democrat Times talks about is to take away their profit by undercutting the street price in state drug stores and make users take responsibility for their behavior. Meet them halfway by using part of the revenue to offer free, open-ended treatment to all who ask. But those who decline such help can live in the gutter until they either die or decide to accept help. [continues 75 words]
To the editor: Americans aren't gonna take it any more? What we're not going to take is the prohibition of certain politically selected substances. You better hope that when that drug task force busts down the door that they've gotten the right address. The list of innocent citizens who have been killed by errant drug raids is long, disheartening and growing each day. What I do in my home is nobody's business but mine as long as I'm not harming anyone else. The drug war is unconstitutional and should have never come to be. [continues 161 words]
Police Need 'Knock And Announce' Methods Law-abiding citizens who find themselves living in fortifications rather than homes because of the criminal element can take heart from this week's U.S. Supreme Court decision, allowing law enforcement officers the flexibility to enter a domicile for just cause after knocking and waiting at least 20 seconds. This is good news not only for Greenville and Washington County, but for every hamlet in Mississippi and across America. We believe it is about time that law enforcement has more crime-fighting teeth to rid this scum that relentlessly plies on our communities and intrudes on the normalcy of our daily lives. [continues 216 words]
When Frank Melton announced plans to ask the Mississippi Legislature to change the way proceeds are broken down from joint investigations, some Mid-Delta law enforcement officials were in favor. Others, however, don't agree with the director of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics. Melton has said he will lobby in January for all proceeds from drug raids that involve the state agency to be split, 50-50, between the bureau and local agencies. The reason for the even split, he said, is that the MBN is strapped for cash and no longer can afford to give up 80 percent of forfeiture proceeds from joint drug operations with local agencies -- which is now state law. [continues 552 words]
