Raise your hands everyone who loves freedom of speech. Whoa! Not so fast, Langley City Mayor Peter Fassbender! Put that hand down again. Fassbender apparently opposes the right of people to sell (or purchase) items that glorify marijuana. He's come out swinging against a store about to open up downtown. This store will not sell illicit drugs - at least, that's not the owner's stated intention. It is to sell the goofy pot kitsch that teenagers and twentysomethings like to plaster on their cars and bedroom walls. Bumper stickers and mugs, T-shirts and bath products. [continues 580 words]
Surrey North Delta Leader Surrey Man's New Joint Irks Langley Randy Caine is no stranger to struggles with the authorities. Last Friday, Caine opened Hempyz in downtown Langley. Billed as "your one-stop potleaf shop," the store is a gift and novelty shop with a pot leaf theme, but it doesn't sell marijuana paraphernalia like pipes and bongs. On opening day, the city - which denied Hempyz a business licence because, according to Mayor Peter Fassbender, "any business with hemp-related materials doesn't conform with our zoning bylaws" - fined Caine $100. [continues 259 words]
Members of the San Luis Obispo County Criminal Justice Administrators Association urge you to vote "no" on Proposition 5, misleadingly called the Nonviolent Offender Rehabilitation Act. Proposition 5 purports to expand treatment for people convicted of drug possession as an alternative to jail. But the reality of this 60-page proposition is that it would allow dangerous and violent criminals to go free, with no accountability for their crimes or for successfully completing treatment. We believe defendants who commit, for example, arson of a structure or forest land, commercial burglary, vandalism, sell drugs, steal our cars and our identities, traffic in child pornography, drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol, sexually exploit teenagers and the mentally disabled deserve incarceration. Under Proposition 5, if these criminals appear to have a problem with substance abuse or addiction, they will get probation and treatment, not jail. Thus, the real beneficiaries of Proposition 5 are those who would escape jail time for their criminal acts by claiming they weren't responsible - the-drugs-made-me-do-it defense. [continues 370 words]
The Sun-Times commentary by Joe Conason of Oct. 23 was a mixed blessing. On the positive side, it brought attention to a subject completely neglected during the presidential debates and by the media in interviews with the candidates. On the negative side, it was misleading. The writer proposes abandoning control of illegal drugs and investing money elsewhere. The result of that action would be more addiction, more crime and much higher social and economic costs. England tried this approach in the early 1970s and made heroin legal and obtainable at pharmacies, with the objective of reducing heroin imports and illegal sales. [continues 212 words]
Woman Buried In Shallow Grave On Sunday, Amber Young was excited about moving into her own place with her baby son. Two days later, the young woman was found in a shallow grave behind a marijuana grow operation. "They think she was in the wrong place at the wrong time," the Oshawa woman's sister, Nivek Young, said yesterday after speaking with police. "Monday morning I knew something was wrong. She always called me every day, and she never called." Amber Young, 21, was a family woman. She called her father, Kevin, in Toronto "15 times a day," her sister-in-law, Shannon Tansley, said from Newfoundland. "She'll just call him to say, 'I love you, Daddy,' and hang up." [continues 303 words]
On Nov. 4, California voters will decide on a ballot proposition that could dramatically alter the criminal justice system and jeopardize public safety. Proposition 5, the so-called "Non-Violent Offender Rehabilitation Act," poses the greatest threat to public safety in 20 years. Sponsored and bankrolled by billionaire George Soros, NORA aims to expand Proposition 36 drug treatment programs by earmarking $150 million in initial costs, $460 million by July 1, 2009, and $460 million plus an inflation adjustment every year thereafter. A Little Hoover Commission study showed that Prop. 36 has been an abject failure in treating the addicts it is seeking to cure, achieving only a 19 percent graduation rate. Forty-three percent of these graduates will commit another drug offense within two years. [continues 592 words]
Siskiyou County, Calif. - In late August, California Attorney General Jerry Brown released new medical marijuana guidelines in August, seeking to clarify how California law enforcement officers should deal with various aspects of the issue. Among the subjects addressed in the guidelines are returning marijuana seized by police to legitimate medical users and cooperation between federal and state law enforcement with regards to conflicting marijuana laws. Brown recommends that California law enforcement officers "not arrest individuals or seize [medical] marijuana under federal law" and states that seized medical marijuana from legitimate users must be returned upon an order from a court. [continues 1410 words]
Please vote "no" on Proposition 5. Here is why it will cost California a fortune while making it a more dangerous place to live: Proposition 5 is supposed to expand on its predecessor, Proposition 36. However, the outcome of Proposition 36 has been a huge disappointment across the state. Since its inception, more than 75 percent of Proposition 36 participants have failed - either by never even showing up or by dropping out of the program before completion. Proposition 5 will shorten parole for methamphetamine dealers and other drug dealing felons from 3 years to just 6 months. Police, prosecutors, and parole supervisors know that shortening parole for drug dealers will dramatically increase violent crime rates. Simply put, Proposition 5 will increase drug related crime by releasing the people who supply drugs into the community. [continues 196 words]
THIBODAUX - A Lafourche Parish councilman pushing for random statewide drug tests for public-school teachers said he plans to expand his proposal to include council members and other government employees. Councilman Lindel Toups, who represents Gheens, has urged his fellow council members to send a formal request for random drug tests to the state Legislature. Council members were set to vote on the matter Tuesday night, but concerns that it may violate the U.S. Constitution prompted them to delay a decision for two weeks. [continues 435 words]
Inter-Lakes officials will examine the possible issue of students coming to school under the influence of drugs after the School Board's chairman suggestion the students suspected of drug use be tested. School Board Chair Jack Carty said at Tuesday's board meeting that he asked for a legal opinion regarding a possible drug testing policy for students suspected of being under the influence. According to the current policy, students suspected of being on alcohol or drugs during the school day are sent to the nurse's office, reported to the principal's office and a parent or guardian is called to take the student home. [continues 362 words]
