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Drug WarRant
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Saturday, November 22, 2003 |
A new novel to check out...
I haven't read this new book by Ayelet Waldman yet, but it's high on my wish list, and the reviews have been outstanding. Waldman is a former public defender and author of the popular Mommy Track mystery series.
According to the Review in the Chicago Sun-Times:
Some defense attorneys burn out because they come to believe they are doing little more than hastening criminals back onto the street.
Author Ayelet Waldman, a former federal public defender in Los Angeles, had the opposite problem: She got tired of seeing "innocents" taking the fall in America's war on drugs.
"I thought I would be seeing kingpins going to jail, but the kingpins negotiate deals and go to jail for very little time," Waldman says. "It's the people who are on the lowest rungs on the ladder, and so have no information to sell, who go to prison for a long time -- the guy who carries the box or the woman who takes a phone message."
Lawmakers who set up the rules of engagement for America's "war on drugs" instituted stiff mandatory minimum sentences for those convicted of trafficking in illegal substances, so that a judge or jury can't try to single out a particular defendant for more lenient treatment.
"After a while, I thought, I can't do this anymore," she says. "Rapists, pedophiles get out of jail sooner than my clients would. I wasn't helping anything funneling these people through the system."
In Daughter's Keeper, Waldman follows one young woman, Olivia Goodman, whose undocumented Mexican lover, Jorge Rodriguez, thinks a quick drug deal or two will provide him with enough money to get established in the United States.
Jorge doesn't realize that the acquaintance who proposed he get involved with selling drugs in the first place is an informant for the federal Drug Enforcement Agency. Jorge is arrested, and in order to reduce his own sentence, he tells DEA agents that Olivia was also involved.
Olivia had tried to dissuade Jorge from selling drugs, but because she was in the car when he went to pick up the drugs and she conveyed a phone message about the deal, she faces 10 years in prison.
7:43:45 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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Illinois limits use of drug-sniffing dogs
Chicago Tribune: Court bars drug-dog use in traffic stops: 'Hunch' doesn't validate search
a contentious 4-3 decision, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that police cannot use drug-detection dogs to sniff vehicles during routine traffic stops.
Before police summon a dog, they must have a reasonable suspicion that the driver is carrying drugs, not merely a "vague hunch," Justice Thomas Kilbride wrote for the majority.
State police "are going to have to state a reason why they called in the dogs," said criminal defense attorney Ralph Meczyk, whose client, Roy Caballes, had been convicted of drug trafficking. "Everyone's liberties are affected," Meczyk said.
The ruling, which said the drugs could not be used as evidence against Caballes, also overturned his conviction.
Though Caballes' defense focused only on the legality of the search, opponents of racial profiling are claiming it as a victory, as well. It will curtail some powers of police who, they said, single out black and Hispanic motorists for drug investigations.
It'll be interesting to see what happens if this gets appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has considered dog sniffing not a search in past rulings.
7:22:22 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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Drug Policy Reformer enters Senate race in California
Judge Gray, a Drug-War Foe, Will Run for Senate: Now a libertarian, the longtime advocate of legalization will challenge Boxer in 2004.
This is extraordinary news. Gray is the author of "Why Our Drug Laws Have Failed and What We Can Do About It: A Judicial Indictment of the War on Drugs" - a truly excellent book. I've bought quite a few copies myself, because it's a good book to give to someone as an overview to learning about the problems of the drug war (and I always have a copy out on loan as well). Gray has been a federal prosecutor, a trial judge, and a California Superior Court justice, and has learned first hand the failure of the drug war. Seeing him enter the political ring is great news, and I'd love to see him on the floor of the Senate, fighting against the constant stream of lousy drug laws.
However, it's likely to be an uphill battle, running as a Libertarian.
Every single vote I get will legitimately be seen in favor of repealing drug prohibition," said Gray, 58, the day before announcing his candidacy at the Old Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana.
"The other side is going to want to get my votes, and to do that they'll have to change their drug policy. If that happens, I'll have won."
Gray is hoping to get 15% of the vote, a longshot for a third-party candidate. His campaign slogan targets the apprehension that mainstream voters might feel: "This time, it matters."
If you live in California, give him your support. Either way, visit his campaign site and consider a contribution. Every little bit helps.
In the years he has been waging his own war on the war on drugs, Gray said he has learned that when battling the conventional, you can't be in a hurry, and you can't get discouraged.
A few dents at a time, he said. That's how it's done.
5:02:01 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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Catching up
While I've been busy doing a musical and other fun stuff, a lot's been happening in the drug war. Some of this will be old news to some of you, but these are a few stories I felt important to include. For more review of events in the past week, be sure to check out the current issues of Drug War Chronicle and Drug Sense Weekly. Also, some material from Talk Left.
 Another Drug War Victim: File this under a stupid self-inflicted act if you will, but the fact is that it never would have happened if the victim had not been driven to it by desperation as a result of the drug war.
Texas Man Chokes to Death on Marijuana
A man changing a flat tire choked to death on a bag of marijuana he had stuffed down his throat in an apparent attempt to hide it from police who stopped to help him, authorities said. Nickolas Sandoval, 24, died Wednesday.
"Officers went from 'Oh, hey, here is someone with a flat tire' to 'Hey, this guy is choking,'" Lott told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Sandoval, of Ponder, was pronounced dead at a hospital. Cause of death: "asphyxiation due to aspiration of plastic bag," according to a spokeswoman for the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office.
Sandoval was convicted at least three times of marijuana possession, and pleaded guilty two years ago to a drunken-driving charge.
While this one won't go on my Drug War Victims page, it still is a tragedy.
Not Weapons of Mass Destruction
You may remember my piece about the North Caroline district attorney who decided to charge meth lab suspects with "manufacturing a nuclear or chemical weapon." Well, Judge James Baker has a little more common sense and threw out 15 of the charges. Good for him.
Ganja decriminalization may have a vote in parliament this session in Jamaica More here.
Americans for Safe Access targeting congressmen who voted against medical marijuana.
For the first time, a medical marijuana advocacy group is going after Congressmen where they live. Beginning Monday morning, every registered voter in four House Congressional districts will receive a phone call about their Representative’s opposition to an amendment that would have stopped federal raids on medical marijuana patients and providers. Over 600,000 voters will be called during the week.
The recorded messages feature either a medical marijuana patient describing her plight or one of the jurors who recanted their verdict in the Ed Rosenthal medical marijuana cultivation case. Both explain that the House member voted to continue the current policy -- despite polls showing 80% of Americans support medical marijuana -- and ask that voters spread the word. The campaign targets Representatives Wally Herger (R, CA 2nd), Elton Gallegly (R, CA 24th), Joe Baca (D, CA 43rd), and David Wu (D, OR 1st).
“We’re sure the congressmen are so busy with other matters that they don’t realize how important the suffering of everyday people is to their constituents,” said Steph Sherer, Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access, the organization sponsoring the calls. “We’re educating the voters about the Congressmen’s record, so those voters can educate their Congressmen about compassion.”
Another voice for Medical Marijuana
The Union of American Hebrew Congregations, which speaks for the largest Jewish denomination in the United States, the Reform movement, has adopted a resolution supporting the use of marijuana for medical reasons.
THEREFORE, the Union of American Hebrew Congregations resolves to:
- Urge elected officials in the United States to support federal legislation and regulation to allow the medicinal use of marijuana for patients with intractable pain and other conditions, under medical supervision;
- Urge the Food and Drug Administration to expand the scope of allowable Investigational New Drug applications in order to move research forward more quickly toward an approved product;
- Call for further medical research on marijuana and its constituent compounds with the goal of developing reliable and safe cannabinoid drugs for management of debilitating conditions; and
- Call upon congregations to advocate for the necessary changes in local, state and federal law to permit the medicinal use of marijuana and ensure its accessibility for that purpose.
Full resolution available online (pdf)
Rush Speaks -
via DesertCat (who was right so far)...
For people who are truly addicted, I mean hard-core, really addicted, putting them in jail doesn't do any good. There's no way. I mean the penalty may be what society thinks is just. It's not going to fix anything. It's not going to help those people get off the drug or get rehabbed or any of that. Jail is, you know, one thing that is not really productive to this.
Keep it up, Rush. You could be a very strong voice for reform.
Walters afraid to debate
Drug czar gets cool reception in S.F.
White House drug czar John Walters received a chilly welcome Monday as he brought his 25-city tour to the Bay Area -- dozens of protesters blasted his stance against medical marijuana, and even his host said he'd been disingenuous.
He also refused offers to debate, saying he'd only debate George Soros, Peter Lewis, or John Sperling (individuals who have donated to drug reform activities and who are not public speakers). While Walters occasionally talks about debating, he really is not willing to do so. And my offer still stands - any time, any place.
4:57:34 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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Wednesday, November 19, 2003 |
Horrible new bill to be proposed by Mark Souder
This critical alert from Drug Policy Alliance (Thanks to Richard Lake).
Now, just before Congress goes out of session, one of the country's harshest drug war extremists, Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN), is about to introduce some of the scariest legislation we've seen this year.
Rep. Souder's bill increases penalties for many drug offenses and takes away the right of judges to show mercy when it's appropriate. The bill also enacts new draconian penalties that could sentence compassionate Americans that grow and provide medical marijuana to decades in federal prison.
Although it's titled the 'Drug Sentencing Reform Act,' this dangerous bill is all sentencing and no reform. It will destroy the lives of thousands more non-violent Americans.
We know that Rep. Souder wants to introduce his bill within the next couple of weeks and is asking for co-sponsorship from other Representatives. Make sure your Representative doesn't support this bill. Call NOW and tell your Representative not to co-sponsor Rep. Souder's Drug Sentencing Reform Act because it contains no reform and ties the hands of judges.
Action to Take:
CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVE NOW!
To reach your representative by phone, call the US Capitol Switchboard at 1-800-839-5276 or call your representative's office directly by looking up the phone number here.
Tell your Representative: "I'm a constituent and I'm calling to urge Rep. [Name] not to co-sponsor Rep. Souder's Drug Sentencing Reform Act, which he is about to introduce. The Drug Sentencing Reform Act contains no reform and ties the hands of judges. It will punish nonviolent Americans and compassionate citizens that provide patients with medical marijuana. I would like Rep. [Name] to tell me where s/he stands on this bill. S/he can send a letter to me at [Address] or an e-mail to [Address]. Thank you for your time."
More Information:
The so-called Drug Sentencing Reform Act has yet to be introduced, but it will do the following:
** Tie the hands of judges by making it harder for them to reduce sentences for non-violent drug offenders. (It does this by expanding the so-called 'Feeney Amendment' to apply to drug offenses). This will mean longer sentences for non-violent offenses, with taxpayers like you picking up the cost!
** Mandates that most people on parole, probation or supervised release be subjected to random drug testing, even if their original offense had nothing to do with drugs. (If enacted, thousands of non-violent Americans could be sent to prison for years for smoking marijuana in the privacy of their own home and then failing a drug test.)
** Directs the U.S. Sentencing Commission to no longer allow lower sentences for non-violent drug offenders that have certain mitigating circumstances (such as being addicted to drugs) or for non-violent drug offenders that made a mistake and are otherwise good citizens.
** Enacts new draconian penalties for growing, distributing, and providing 'high-potency' marijuana to others, including medical marijuana - which often has a higher potency to better relieve the suffering of AIDS, Cancer, and other patients. If enacted, this provision will allow the federal government to send more medical marijuana patients and their caregivers to federal prison for years, in some cases decades.
** Read Rep. Souder's explanation of his bill here (pdf). Our analysis is based on Souder's explanation and our discussions with congressional staffers.
Side note: If you live in Indiana's third congressional district, you might start thinking about getting a new representative.
6:07:42 PM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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Tuesday, November 18, 2003 |
Alaska Appeals Court Refuses to Overturn Decision Allowing Personal Pot Possession
Couple more days before I have time for regular posting again, but I wanted to alert you to this development (via TalkLeft).
9:19:55 AM | drug policy | Related | permalink |
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