Portland NORML News - Saturday, April 24, 1999
-------------------------------------------------------------------

"Marijuana is Medicine" Rally April 30th in Salem (Stormy Ray, a multiple
sclerosis patient and chief petitioner for the voter-approved Oregon Medical
Marijuana Act, urges advocates for medical marijuana patients to help solve
the supply problem by lobbying legislators and showing up Friday at the
capitol to support House Joint Memorial 10, a resolution introduced by state
representative Jo Ann Bowman that would ask Congress to reschedule marijuana.
Plus the current text of HJM 10, and addresses for a short list of key
legislators.)

From: "Stormy Ray" (mbpdoors@cyberhighway.net)
To: "CRRH mailing list" (restore@crrh.org)
Subject: "Marijuana is Medicine" Rally April 30th in Salem
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 12:30:52 -0600

Dear OMMA Supporters,

What a united message was sent to the Oregon Health Division's hearing
officer. There was no doubt the patients are advocating for their needs. I'm
so glad we have this Oregon Medical Marijuana Act to protect patients that
choose to use medical marijuana. But, help is needed to get this wonderful
herb to patients in Oregon.

Voter Power has drafted a resolution whereby the Oregon Legislature
would urge the United States Congress to move marijuana from Schedule
I under the Controlled Substances Act. Rep. Jo Ann Bowman D-Portland
has agreed to introduce the resolution and other legislators have agreed to
be cosponsors. The conventional wisdom is that the right wing Republicans
who control the legislature will never pass it. However, we believe it is
important to lobby hard for this simple step. Feedback on the resolution
itself and on tactics for getting it passed would be appreciated. This
represents an opportunity for medical marijuana activists to flex a little
political muscle. There is no doubt that the public is with us on this
concept.

Voters have already accepted the concept of medical marijuana. The next step
is to create the supply system that should be available to patients. This
means rescheduling at the federal level. This resolution is step one in what
will be a protracted process. At the end of this battle patients will be able
to get marijuana from a pharmacy like other medicines and doctors will be
able to prescribe medical marijuana without fears about it adversely
affecting their careers.

Voter Power hopes to work with other organizations to coordinate a serious
effort to lobby for this Resolution "House Joint Memorial 10".

Come Join Us! April 30th, 1999

10:00 to 11:00AM "Marijuana is Medicine" rally on capitol steps
8:00AM to 5:00PM Galleria in capitol

If you can come, bring 2 friends. Let me know if you'd like to speak 2-3 min.
at the rally. Have 2 friends call their legislator 1-800-332-2313 and ask for
their support for HJM 10. Listed below is the committee members to contact.
Any Rep. can be contacted to be a supporter of HJM 10.

Here is the resolution: HJM 10 (House Joint Memorial 10)

Rescheduling Resolution

A resolution from the Oregon Legislature urging the United States Congress
to reschedule marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act.

(Long Version)

Summary:

This measure would memorialize the President and the Congress of the
United States to enact appropriate legislation to permit marijuana to be
prescribed by licensed physicians and to ensure that a safe, affordable,
regulated supply of marijuana can be available at pharmacies for medical
use.

WHEREAS, an increasing body of scientific evidence concludes that
marijuana is a safe and effective medicine with low toxicity compared to
most prescription drugs and it has been shown to be effective in the
treatment of glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, muscle spasticity,
the nausea, vomiting and appetite loss associated with chemotherapies
treating cancer, certain forms of chronic severe pain, and the AIDS wasting
syndrome; and

WHEREAS; the voters of Oregon have approved the concept of marijuana
as a medicine by passing the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act (ballot measure
67) at the November 3, 1998 general election, and

WHEREAS; the only way for a patient to obtain medical marijuana under
current Oregon law is to grow it themselves or find a caregiver who will
grow it for them, and

WHEREAS; this system is unlikely to help many patients who need medical
marijuana such as recently diagnosed cancer patients suffering from the
nausea associated with chemotherapy who do not have time to grow a
marijuana plant to maturity or find a caregiver, and

WHEREAS; this system is unlikely to help severely ill or handicapped
patients who would benefit from medical marijuana but are physically
unable to grow marijuana or find a caregiver, and

WHEREAS; this system will not help patients who are hospitalized but
whose physicians recommend that medical marijuana will mitigate their
symptoms; and

WHEREAS; patients should have the option of obtaining medical
marijuana at a pharmacy in the same way that they obtain other prescription
drugs, and

WHEREAS; doctors should be able to prescribe marijuana to patients
without fear of arrest or other penalty for conditions which the scientific
evidence shows will be ameliorated by medical marijuana, and

WHEREAS; the reason doctors cannot prescribe marijuana and pharmacies
cannot make marijuana available to patients is because it is mis-classified
as a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, which
falsely holds that medical marijuana is extremely dangerous and has no
medical utility, findings contradicted by scientific evidence, and

WHEREAS; the experience of thousands of patients around the country, as
expressed in numerous affidavits and testimony at public hearings,
indicates that medical marijuana does indeed mitigate their symptoms, and

WHEREAS; in 1988 Francis Young, an administrative law judge for the Drug
Enforcement Administration, ruled based on extensive evidence that
marijuana should be rescheduled, and

WHEREAS; the Drug Enforcement Administration ignored this ruling and

WHEREAS; Barry McCaffrey, the Director of the Office of National Drug
Control Policy, threatened doctors with losing their ability to prescribe
controlled substances if they expressed their validly held medical
judgment that marijuana might help relieve patients' symptoms based on the
best scientific research available, and

WHEREAS; the mis-scheduling of marijuana as a Schedule I controlled
substance inhibits research which will further clarify the extent of
marijuana's medical utility and methods of using it most safely, and

WHEREAS; the people of Alaska, Washington, California, Nevada, Colorado,
and the District of Columbia, in addition to Oregon, every jurisdiction
that has considered and voted on this issue, voted for medical
marijuana, and

WHEREAS; properly scheduling marijuana under the Controlled Substances
Act will ensure a regulated supply of pure unadulterated medical grade
marijuana of known potency, and

WHEREAS; not properly scheduling marijuana forces some patients to support
the illegal black market in marijuana, and

WHEREAS; rescheduling marijuana under the Controlled Substances Act is
the compassionate way to provide medical marijuana to patients who will
benefit from it:

It is the sense of the Oregon Legislature that medical marijuana ought to be
rescheduled from Schedule I, under the Controlled Substances Act, and
therefore the Oregon Legislature recommends to the United States
Congress and the President of the United States that marijuana be
rescheduled.

Therefore the Secretary of the Senate shall transmit copies of this
resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to
the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to each Senator and
Representative from Oregon in the Congress of the United States.

Kevin Mannix-R Chair 503) 986-1432 District #32
H-290 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Floyd Prozanski-D Vice-Chair 503) 986-1440 Distr. #40
H-495 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Gary Hansen-D 503) 986-1417 District #17
H-373 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Mark Simmons-R 503) 986-1458 District #58
H-292 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Ron Sunseri-R 503) 986-1422 District #22
D H-386 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Jo Ann Bowman-D 503) 986-1419 District #19
H-383 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

Juley Gianella-R 503) 986-1438 District #38
H-391 State Capitol, Salem, OR 97310

EVERY CALL, EVERY WRITTEN COMMUNICATION, and EVERY PERSON AT THE RALLY helps
us all. Disabilities know no barriers. God forbid you join our ranks to soon.
But if you do, I pray you never have to fight for your medicine the way
patients have had to. Help us get our message heard!

God Bless,

Stormy

Oregon Medical Marijuana Act
Chief Petitioner - Stormy Ray
(541) 889-3876
715 Canyon 2 Rd.
Ontario, OR 97914

***

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***

Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp

CRRH
P.O. Box 86741
Portland, OR 97286
Phone: (503) 235-4606
Fax:(503) 235-0120
Web: http://www.crrh.org/

***

From: LawBerger@aol.com
From: "CRRH mailing list" (restore@crrh.org)
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 21:01:17 EDT
Subject: Re: "Marijuana is Medicine" Rally April 30th in Salem
To: restore@crrh.org
Reply-To: LawBerger@aol.com

We have had a public hearing on this bill and are considering re-writing the
whereas clauses to gain the support of the majority party.

We *can* win, but urging Oregon constitutents to contact their legislators
remains our best hope.

Lee Berger
Portland
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Can you help? (A list subscriber summarizes Friday's 10-minute Oregon
legislative hearing on HJM 10, and also asks you to lobby lawmakers. The
chair of the committee, Rep. Mannix, indicated the rescheduling resolution
would stand a better chance of passing out of committee if the wording was
based from the standpoint that OMMA is the law and that marijuana in Schedule
I is federal interference with Oregon Law. With amendments, the resolution
may get a hearing before an April 30 deadline.)

From: "sburbank" (sburbank@orednet.org)
To: "1Sandee Burbank" (sburbank@orednet.org)
Subject: Can you help?
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 10:27:35 -0700

A 10 minute hearing was held on Friday, April 23rd regarding HJM-10, a joint
resolution calling for the Federal Rescheduling of Marijuana. The Chair of
the committee, Rep. Mannix, indicated it would stand a better chance of
passing out of committee if the wording was based from the standpoint that
OMMA is the law and that mj in Schedule I is federal interference with Oregon
Law.

The amendments are being written and with the help of Rep. Jo Ann Bowman and
staff, it may get a hearing. Resolution HJM 10 must have had a hearing and
be voted out of committee by April 30th.

Take a moment to contact your own legislators and Rep. Mannix and ask them to
support HJM-10. Call, fax or write, but do it NOW. Time is short!

Oregon voters have spoken. Marijuana should be available for medicine. Tell
your legislators the best way to deal with the issue is for the Federal
Government to reschedule marijuana so that patients have access to a legal
supply, not with a costly state registration process that still leaves
patients and their doctors in fear of the federal government.

The "Marijuana Is Medicine!" Rally scheduled for Friday the 30th is even more
important. We will be there the entire day from 8 AM to 5 PM.

AT 8 AM in the Galleria, main floor Capitol, Rep Bowman will make a short
speech regarding the importance of the HJM-10 and how the current federal
scheduling of marijuana effects patients.

A poster display will feature medical marijuana patients who are suffering
from the effects of the law, which puts them in prison, takes their homes and
other property, and separates them from their families. There will be
staffed information tables with the display from 8 AM to 5 PM.

At 10 AM till 11 AM there will be a press conference/rally on the front steps
of the State Capitol Bldg. Featured speakers will be Rep. Jo Ann Bowman,
sponsor of HJM-10, and Rep. Floyd Prozanski, who will be joined by several
patients and other speakers. Voter Power is sponsoring the day's events.

I will be in Salem all day on Friday, April 30th. I hope to see you and a
car full of your friends. If you can't be there, please call or fax your
legislators and Rep. Mannix and ask them to support HJM-10. We can win this
one!

Sandee Burbank

PS. Bring an umbrella in case it rains! We'll be outside from 10 till
11 AM. Pass the word!

2255 State Road, Mosier, OR 97040
phone or fax 541-298-1031
sandee@mamas.org
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Juvenile crime package revived (The Oregonian notes a group of Republican
Oregon state senators seeking to exploit for political purposes Tuesday's
bloody rampage at a Colorado high school has supposedly "revived" Gov. John
Kitzhaber's flagging $30 million "juvenile crime" prevention package and
vowed to fight for its success. In addition to $30 million for at-risk
youths, the plan also includes $20 million for alcohol- and drug-abuse
prevention programs and $7 million for early childhood intervention. That
the senators couldn't really care less about the high-school kids massacred
in Littleton is evidenced by the comments of Sen. Gene Derfler, R-Salem, who
says any money spent on prevention efforts after age 10 is "simply wasted."
The newspaper fails both to describe the "drug abuse prevention" programs to
be funded, and to explain why state politicians are linking "drugs" with
school shootings, when the only drugs involved seem to be antidepresssants.)

Juvenile crime package revived

Newshawk: Portland NORML (http://www.pdxnorml.org/)
Pubdate: Sat, Apr 24 1999
Source: Oregonian, The (OR)
Copyright: 1999 The Oregonian
Contact: letters@news.oregonian.com
Address: 1320 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97201
Fax: 503-294-4193
Website: http://www.oregonlive.com/
Forum: http://forums.oregonlive.com/
Author: Michelle Roberts, the Oregonian

Juvenile crime package revived

* In the wake of the Colorado killings, a group of Oregon senators predicts
action on the governor's prevention efforts

Spurred by this week's bloody rampage at a Colorado high school, a group of
Oregon senators has revived Gov. John Kitzhaber's flagging juvenile crime
prevention package and vowed to fight for its success.

Although the $30 million package had already been scheduled before Tuesday's
deadly shootings in Littleton to go before the Senate Judiciary Committee,
lawmakers predicted the tragedy would ease partisan wrangling and prompt
action on the bill.

"I scheduled this bill three weeks ago, but what happened in Colorado can't
help but affect our emotions in pondering this bill," said committee
Chairman Sen. Neil Bryant, R-Bend. "I want to assure everyone we would have
done this anyway."

Kitzhaber appeared before the committee Friday to testify on behalf of
amendments to Senate Bill 555 that outline his proposal to gear prevention
services to children ages 10 to 17 who are considered at risk of committing
crimes.

In addition to the $30 million for at-risk youth, the plan also includes $20
million for alcohol- and drug-abuse prevention programs and $7 million for
early childhood intervention.

"The sad events at Columbine High School are a powerful reminder of the
tragedy at Thurston High School almost one year ago," Kitzhaber said. "It
underscores the necessity that we act in a definitive fashion to try to
intercede with children who are at risk of exploding into these acts of
violence out of rage, alienation or frustration."

In the wake of the deadly shooting May 21 at Springfield's Thurston High
School, in which two students were killed and at least 22 injured, a
groundswell of bipartisan support for juvenile crime prevention emerged just
days into the 1999 Legislature.

The session kicked off with a three-day seminar exploring the issue. More
than half the legislative body attended the workshop, in which national
experts lectured about everything from juvenile crime rates to infant brain
development.

But philosophical differences soon emerged about how early those prevention
efforts should begin.

The issue reared up again during Friday's testimony, but lawmakers on both
sides said compromise was more likely given the renewed political pressure
to finance juvenile crime prevention.

"We may disagree on how best to get there, but I do not believe we can leave
this session without a significant investment in resources to try to prevent
these things," Kitzhaber said.

Sen. Gene Derfler, R-Salem, who also testified before the committee, said he
would fight to see that at least half of Kitzhaber's $57 million total plan
be earmarked for younger children.

"Our natural tendency is for dollars to go to the squeaky wheel -- the 11-
to 17-year-olds," Derfler said.

Kitzhaber's proposal divides the $30 million among Oregon's 36 counties,
which would determine individually how to use the money to target at-risk
youths.

Derfler criticized the county proposals as the "same tired old programs that
don't work," saying that money spent on prevention efforts after age 10 is
"simply wasted."

Sen. Peter Courtney, D-Salem, Senate Judiciary Committee co-chairman, said
he expected SB 555 to easily pass out of committee next week and go on to
the Ways and Means Committee. But he said there was plenty of room for the
kind of compromise Derfler and other Republican senators seek.

"We're not going to walk away from those county plans. . . . We can save
those kids," Courtney said. "But on the other hand, Derfler's 100 percent right.

"We might split it down the middle . . . but both sides are going to have to
give."

Sen. Lee Beyer, D-Springfield, agreed.

"I think it's going to be balanced" between early intervention and at-risk
youths, he said.

Earlier in the session, a House committee revamped Kitzhaber's original
proposal. But House Bill 2268, which tilted efforts more toward younger
children, has languished since March 1.

SB555, which will go to the Ways and Means Committee upon committee
approval, is closer to Kitzhaber's original proposal.

The Legislature rejected a similar juvenile crime measure from the governor
in 1997. The governor said he hoped his current plan would not be "weighed
under budgetary priorities."

"What will I tell the governor of Colorado . . . after all the brave
statements about letting it end here?" he said.

You can reach Michelle Roberts at 503-294-5041 or by e-mail at
Michelleroberts@news.oregonian.com.

***

[Sidebar:]

Senate Bill 555

THE ISSUE: Includes the budget for Gov. John Kitzhaber's $30 million
juvenile crime prevention program, part of a total $57 million package.

THE STATUS: Currently before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

THE PLAYERS: For: Kitzhaber, 503-378-3111; Sen. Peter Courtney, D-Salem,
503-986-1717. Against: Sen. Gene Derfler, R-Salem, 503-986-1950.

WHAT'S NEXT: Work session planned next week. If passed in committee, will
move to Joint Ways and Means.
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Judge shuts tap on strip club's free beer (The Oregonian says Marion County
Circuit Judge Albin Norblad issued a temporary restraining order Friday that
prohibits Scores Entertainment Inc., in Salem, from giving away beer. The
"nude dance club" doesn't have a state liquor license but argues that it
doesn't need one as long as it doesn't receive any financial consideration
for the beer. The TRO remains in effect pending a May 18 hearing.)

Newshawk: Portland NORML (http://www.pdxnorml.org/)
Pubdate: Sat, Apr 24 1999
Source: Oregonian, The (OR)
Copyright: 1999 The Oregonian
Contact: letters@news.oregonian.com
Address: 1320 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97201
Fax: 503-294-4193
Website: http://www.oregonlive.com/
Forum: http://forums.oregonlive.com/
Author: Cheryl Martinis, correspondent, the Oregonian

Judge shuts tap on strip club's free beer

* A circuit judge issues a temporary restraining order that prohibits the
Salem club's promotion for the time being

SALEM -- A Marion County judge on Friday halted, at least temporarily, a
free-beer promotion at a Salem strip club.

Circuit Judge Albin Norblad issued a temporary restraining order, effective
immediately, that prohibits Scores Entertainment Inc. from continuing to
give away beer pending a May 18 hearing on the subject.

Scores doesn't have a state liquor license but argues that it doesn't need
one as long as it doesn't receive any financial consideration for the beer.
Since April 7, the Northeast Salem business has offered up to two free beers
per person for customers ages 21 and older.

The state argues that the giveaway is illegal without a liquor license. The
state attorney general's office went to court Friday, asking a judge to
declare Scores a "public nuisance" for serving alcohol without a license and
to make the business stop serving the beer.

Norblad said state law on the subject is confusing but granted the
restraining order based on a city of Salem ordinance that he said clearly
prohibits the activity.

Kevin Lafky, a Scores attorney, said he disagreed with Norblad's decision.
He said that state law pre-empts a city ordinance and that the city
ordinance involves loitering.

Scores previously filed a lawsuit in Marion County Circuit Court. It asked
that the courts declare the free-beer promotion legal and prevent the state
from pursuing criminal or administrative action against the club.

In 1997, Scores started to apply for a liquor license with the Oregon Liquor
Control Commission. It withdrew its application in response to heavy
opposition from the neighborhood and an unfavorable recommendation from the
Salem City Council and liquor commission staff. It has operated since
opening in July 1997 with nonalcoholic drinks. The club is open to those age
18 and older.

The free-beer promotion has boosted business significantly, manager Dylan
Salts has said.

A key issue in determining whether the club needs an OLCC license under
state law is whether the club receives any financial consideration for the
beer. Scores has argued that the beer truly is free because customers who
accept the offer don't have to pay a cover charge and don't have to buy
anything else to get the beer.

Assistant Attorney General David L. Kramer argued that there is no such
thing as free beer. He said the consideration is in the form of increased
sales of other goods and services. The club sells food and soda and charges
customers $10 to view a "table dance," the state argued.

He said in a memorandum that since withdrawing its liquor license
application, Scores twice has thumbed its nose at Salem.

"First, it opened its strip bar to 18-year-old kids, enticing them with nude
dancing and charging them $4 to $10 for a soda pop," he wrote. "Apparently,
that did not work well enough. Now, they want to entice kids and adults to
the same establishment by promoting 'free' beer along with sex."

He argued that the restraining order was justified because the "unlicensed
distribution of alcohol, in a nude dance club open to minors, poses an
immediate and continuing threat of injury to the state."

In response to Norblad's ruling, the OLCC issued a statement saying that if
Scores' practice of beer giveaways was upheld, it would allow minors to
mingle with adults in a tavern-like atmosphere. Businesses licensed by the
OLCC must have areas posted that are off-limits to minors.

Do you have news of Marion, Polk and southwestern Yamhill counties? You can
reach Cheryl Martinis at 503-399-8540 or by e-mail at cheryl@open.org.
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Judge Rules Marijuana Test Invalid (A news release from best-selling author
Peter McWilliams says that after two days of exhaustive medical and
scientific testimony, federal Judge James McMahon ruled Friday in Los Angeles
in the case of Todd McCormick, McWilliams' co-defendant, that McCormick's
bail should not be revoked because there is no way to distinguish between
Marinol and marijuana in drug tests. McCormick originally secured bail after
agreeing to submit to urine tests the government claimed would distinguish
between Marinol and THC-V, which is unique to marijuana. McWilliams also
notes the Society of Neuroscience in October 1997 said "New research shows
that substances similar to or derived from marijuana, known as cannabinoids,
could benefit more than 97 million Americans who experience some form of pain
each year.")

From: "Peter McWilliams" (peter@mcwilliams.com)
To: "Peter McWilliams" (peter@mcwilliams.com)
Subject: Judge Rules Marijuana Test Invalid
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 19:35:48 -0700

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE--PLEASE CIRCULATE WIDELY

April 24, 1999

FEDERAL MAGISTRATE RULES THERE IS NO WAY TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN PRESCRIPTION
DRUG MARINOL(r) AND MARIJUANA IN DRUG TESTS

LOS ANGELES. Federal Magistrate Judge James McMahon ruled on Friday (April
23, 1999) that the test used to distinguish between the prescription drug
Marinol (r) and the pernicious drug marijuana in urine is invalid. There is,
therefore, no way in which to distinguish between Marinol (r) and marijuana in
drug tests.

The federal government had been using an experimental procedure to
distinguish between THC, found in both Marinol(r) and marijuana, and THC-V,
which is found only in marijuana. Using this test, the government was
attempting to revoke medical marijuana patient Todd McCormick's $500,000
bail and place McCormick in custody until his trial, not scheduled to begin
until September 7, 1999.

After two days of exhaustive expert medical and scientific testimony, Judge
McMahon ruled that the test was invalid.

Marinol(r) has been authorized as a treatment for cancer chemotherapy and
AIDS-related nausea, and for appetite stimulation in AIDS patients. Marinol(r)
can, however, be prescribed for any condition a physician determines might
be of value to the patient, since physicians can prescribe any legal
medication for "off label" uses. "Off label" is any medical use not listed
on the label of a prescription drug, but for which the drug has indicated
some medical potential.

Considering that the recent National Academy of Sciences Institute of
Medicine report on medical marijuana lists nausea, pain, anxiety, AIDS, and
MS as legitimate medical uses for THC, doctors should feel comfortable in
prescribing Marinol(r) widely.

How widely? A report from the Society of Neuroscience in October 1997 began,
"New research shows that substances similar to or derived from marijuana,
known as cannabinoids [of which THC is the most popular], could benefit more
than 97 million Americans who experience some form of pain each year."
(http://www.marijuanamagazine.com/toc/articles/manalgesic.htm)

"Until medical marijuana is made legal, and it will be," said federal
medical marijuana defendant Peter McWilliams (www.petertrial.com), "I
strongly suggest that my fellow patients try and use Marinol(r). After all,
General Drug Czar McCaffrey has called Marinol(r) 'the REAL medical marijuana
'--and we all know the Drug Czar is infallible."
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Arizona Shows The Way On Drugs (A New York Times staff editorial recaps
Wednesday's news about the Arizona Supreme Court study documenting the
benefits accruing from Proposition 200's requirement that drug offenders
receive treatment instead of prison. The newspaper says Congress and the
legislatures of New York and other states should take heed.)

Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 06:55:37 -0700
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US NY: Editorial: Arizona Shows The Way On Drugs
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: Rbtfield@aol.com
Pubdate: Sat, 24 Apr 1999
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 1999 The New York Times Company
Contact: letters@nytimes.com
Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
Forum: http://www10.nytimes.com/comment/

ARIZONA SHOWS THE WAY ON DRUGS

Arizona voters, tired of paying the exorbitant costs of imprisoning drug
users and addicts who might be helped more cheaply, voted twice to provide a
treatment alternative to jail. Now an Arizona Supreme Court study of the
first year of probation with mandatory drug treatment -- instead of
prison -- has shown the apparent wisdom of that decision. Congress and the
legislatures of New York and other states should take heed.

For a decade and a half, since crack cocaine and its murderous dealer wars
frightened the electorate in the mid-80's, the knee-jerk political reaction
has been to pass tougher criminal drug laws, build more prisons and put more
drug users and dealers in them. Many states now spend more on prisons than
on higher education. More than 1.8 million people nationwide are in prison,
400,000 of whom are addicts or chronic users. But punishment has not solved
the problem. Addicts, untreated, emerge from prison and quickly return to
drugs, resorting to robbery or even murder to get the money for them.

The approach approved by voters in Arizona diverted people who are convicted
of or plead guilty to nonviolent drug-related crimes from jail to probation
and treatment. The treatment and supervision are largely paid for by a tax
on a legal drug -- alcohol.

It is the kind of program that an increasing number of law enforcement
chiefs, including Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, the head of the national drug
policy office for the Clinton Administration, have been advocating.

The results of the new policy's first year of operation in Arizona suggest
that it is a success. The cost of prison, the State Supreme Court said, is
$50 a day. The cost of treatment, counseling and probation is $16 a day. The
amount saved, it estimated, is more than $2.5 million the first year, and
more than three-quarters of the people monitored on probation have stayed
free of drugs.

Arizona is a politically conservative state. Its voters showed that they
were tired of paying the costs of a bad idea. In requiring that drug
offenders be treated before being freed of supervision, they may have made
themselves safer. By treating drugs as a health problem, they have shown
states like New York, which spends $700 million a year to imprison drug
felons, a better way.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Drug Smugglers To Get No Dignity (The Globe and Mail, in Toronto, says the
Supreme Court of Canada ruled yesterday that subjecting travellers to a
"bedpan vigil" is a fair price to pay in balancing the right to individual
privacy with the state interest in detecting "drugs." The ruling overturned
the acquittal of Isaac Monney, a citizen of Ghana who arrived in Canada on a
flight from Switzerland and was detained in a "drug loo facility" before
providing officers with the self-incriminating evidence they were hoping
for.)

Date: Sun, 25 Apr 1999 17:22:23 -0700
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: Canada: Drug Smugglers To Get No Dignity
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: creator@mapinc.org
Pubdate: Saturday, April 24, 1999
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 1999, The Globe and Mail Company
Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca
Website: http://www.globeandmail.ca/
Forum: http://forums.theglobeandmail.com/
Author: Kirk Makin

DRUG SMUGGLERS TO GET NO DIGNITY

Bedpan vigils necessary in border searches despite embarrassment, top
court rules

Suspected drug smugglers must be prepared to suffer embarrassing
searches at the border as a necessary price of keeping contraband out
of the country, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled yesterday.

The court overturned the acquittal of a man who was kept in custody at
Toronto's Pearson International Airport on March 13, 1993, until he
had eliminated 84 condom-encased pellets of heroin.

The court said subjecting travellers to "a bedpan vigil" is a fair
price to pay in balancing the right to individual privacy with the
state interest in detecting drugs.

The defendant -- Isaac Monney -- was detained after arriving on a
flight from Switzerland. A customs officer found it odd Mr. Monney had
purchased his ticket with cash that day. His suspicions increased when
he saw Mr. Monney's passport showed he was born in Ghana, a source
country for narcotics.

Mr. Monney became nervous during questioning. He modified several
answers about his criminal record, his reasons for travel and the
route he had chosen. After being detained for several hours in a "drug
loo facility," he provided officers with the self-incriminating
evidence they were hoping for.

Yesterday's ruling overturned an earlier decision by the Ontario Court
of Appeal, which had itself overturned Mr. Monney's conviction at his
trial.

In concluding Mr. Monney had been the victim of an unreasonable search
and seizure, the Ontario Court of Appeal said that while the customs
officers had grounds to suspect Mr. Monney of being a drug courier,
these fell short of being reasonable grounds to believe an offence had
been committed. It also ruled that the search amounted to a forced
conscription of the suspect.

Writing for a unanimous court, Mr. Justice Frank Iacobucci said
yesterday that travellers crossing borders have a lowered expectation
of privacy than they would have in the streets.

It said that while they are embarrassing, bedpan vigils are analogous
to strip-searches and less invasive than body-cavity searches, X-rays
or the use of emetics.

"A passive bedpan vigil is the least intrusive means of monitoring the
alimentary canal in circumstances where there is a real danger of
losing evidence, and where the protection and safety of the public are
of primary concern," Mr. Iacobucci said.

Turning to the legitimacy of the customs officers' suspicions, the
court said the inability of a person to keep a story straight leads to
a reasonable conclusion he or she may be lying.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Easing Drug Laws (The New York Times briefly notes yesterday's news about a
Swiss government commission recommending that the sale and use of marijuana
be legalized under certain conditions.)

Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 12:37:17 -0700
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: SWITZERLAND: Easing Drug Laws
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: emr@javanet.com (Dick Evans)
Pubdate: April 24, 1999
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 1999 The New York Times Company
Contact: letters@nytimes.com
Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
Forum: http://www10.nytimes.com/comment/
Author: Elizabeth Olson, NYT

A Government commission has recommended that the sale and use of marijuana
be legalized under certain conditions. The recommendations were part of an
overall study of Swiss drug laws, which have failed to prevent a rise in
marijuana consumption. To prevent the country from becoming a drug haven,
purchasers would have to prove they lived in Switzerland.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

Swiss Panel Calls For Marijuana Legalization (A similarly brief Orange County
Register version)

Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 12:37:18 -0700
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US: CA: Swiss Panel Calls For Marijuana Legalization
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: John W. Black
Pubdate: Saturday April 24,1999
Source: Orange County Register (CA)
Copyright: 1999 The Orange County Register
Contact: letters@link.freedom.com
Website: http://www.ocregister.com/
Section: News,page 34

SWISS PANEL CALLS FOR MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION

Switzerland should legalize the sale and use of marijuana,but with
controls to keep the nation from becoming a drug haven, a
government-appointed panel urged Friday.

The committee's recommendation to the Cabinet will be considered as
part of a continuing study to revise Switzerland's drug laws, but would
probably need approval in a national referendum.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

News From Portugal - The Government Announces Decriminalisation (A list
subscriber forwards a correspondent's e-mail saying the Portuguese government
announced two days ago a decision by the council of ministers to
decriminalise the use and the possession of drugs for personal use, replacing
jail terms with fines, community service and driving restrictions. The
decision appears framed in the new national drug strategy.)

Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 13:43:22 +0000
To: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: Peter Webster (vignes@monaco.mc)
Subject: [] News From Portugal - The Government Announces Decriminalisation

Subject: News from Portugal - The government announces his commitment to
the decriminalisation of drug use and to the harm reduction policies
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 14:08:07 +0100
From: "Sergio Inacio" (drgmap@writeme.com)

News from Portugal - The government announces his commitment to the
decriminalisation of drug use and to the harm reduction policies

The Portuguese government announced in 22/04/99 the decision taken by the
council of ministers, to decriminalise the use and the possession of drugs
for personal use, and this way to abolish the imprisonment up to 3 months
that is stipulated as punishment. This decision appears framed in the new
national strategy of combating drug addictions that apart from the
decriminalisation expressed a devotion to the establishment or strengthens
the strategies of harm reduction, for example, allowing the opening of
shooting rooms. Returning to the decriminalisation of the use of drugs. This
decriminalisation doesn't mean that the use is not sanctioned, but the same
will become subject to a fine, work for the community, prohibition of
driving, or similar. Even though this change in the Portuguese drug policy
is not perfect, it is a small step that places Portugal in the vanguard of
the respect for the citizen's rights. This change, which will come into
effect after approval from the Portuguese parliament and transported to the
Portuguese law, may also contribute to the necessary development of a
European drug and addiction policy that is freed from the American
impositions via the organisms of UN

One last and particular appreciation, is that this decision came out in an
electoral period that usually are used to promote more repressive and
aggressive policies in a clear demagogue attitude.

For a new drugs and addiction policy

http://come.to/drgmap
-------------------------------------------------------------------

The Week Online with DRCNet, Issue No. 88 (The Drug Reform Coordination
Network's original online drug policy newsmagazine features - HEA reform
campaign gets boost; Report: District of Columbia drug policy a disaster;
Heroin in Australia: a conversation with Brian McConnell of Families and
Friends for Drug Law Reform; North Dakota becomes first state to legalize
hemp cultivation; Oregon Supreme Court to review forfeiture as double
jeopardy; Book: "No Equal Justice, Race and Class in the American Criminal
Justice System"; Report: In search of a new ethic for treating patients with
chronic pain; Seminar in NYC, Friday, 5/28)

Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 05:47:38 +0000
To: drc-natl@drcnet.org
From: DRCNet (drcnet@drcnet.org)
Subject: The Week Online with DRCNet, Issue #88
Sender: owner-drc-natl@drcnet.org

The Week Online with DRCNet, Issue #88 - April 24, 1999
A Publication of the Drug Reform Coordination Network

-------- PLEASE COPY AND DISTRIBUTE --------

(To sign off this list, mailto:listproc@drcnet.org with the
line "signoff drc-natl" in the body of the message, or
mailto:kfish@drcnet.org for assistance. To subscribe to
this list, visit http://www.drcnet.org/signup.html.)

This issue can be also be read on our web site at
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html. Check out the DRCNN
weekly radio segment at http://www.drcnet.org/drcnn/.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. HEA Reform Campaign Gets Boost
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#campaign

2. REPORT: District of Columbia Drug Policy a Disaster
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#drugstrategies

3. Heroin in Australia: A Conversation with Brian McConnell
of Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#ffdlr

4. North Dakota Becomes First State to Legalize Hemp
Cultivation
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#northdakota

5. Oregon Supreme Court to Review Forfeiture as Double
Jeopardy
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#doublejeopardy

6. BOOK: NO Equal Justice, Race and Class in the American
Criminal Justice System
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#noequaljustice

7. REPORT: In Search of a New Ethic for Treating Patients
with Chronic Pain
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#newethic

8. Seminar in NYC, Friday, 5/28
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/088.html#seminar

***

1. HEA Reform Campaign Gets Boost

The student campaign to repeal the drug provision of the
Higher Education Act of 1998 got a boost this past week,
with four new endorsements of the campaign's resolution.
Student governments at the University of Wisconsin at
Richland, Illinois State University at Normal, and the
University of Texas at Dallas, voted to adopt the
resolution; and thanks to the efforts of the student
activists at Richland, the United Council of University of
Wisconsin Students, representing 140,000 students at the 24
University of Wisconsin campuses, endorsed the resolution
unanimously last Tuesday. Other student government
endorsements include the Rochester Institute of Technology
(NY), Hampshire College (MA), Western Connecticut State
University, Pitzer College (CA), Western State College (CO),
and the Student Association of the State University of New
York. The HEA drug provision delays or denies all federal
financial aid for any drug offender, and the student
resolution calls for the provision's repeal.

Over 30 organizations so far have signed on to a letter to
the Congress calling for passage of H.R. 1053, a bill
sponsored by Rep. Barney Frank that if passed will repeal
the HEA drug provision. Signatories include the NAACP, the
United States Student Association, the American Civil
Liberties Union, the National Council of Negro Women, the
General Board of Church and Society of the United Methodist
Church, the Center for Campus Organizing and many more.
(Visit http://www.u-net.org/supporters.html for the complete
listing.)

Also this past week, students at Ohio State University, with
supporters from the organization For a Better Ohio,
demonstrated against the HEA drug provision. Visit
http://www.angelfire.com/oh2/ohiohemp/demo.html to view
photographs from the event.

Over 9,200 e-mails and faxes supporting H.R. 1053 have been
sent to Congress by visitors to DRCNet's online electronic
petition at http://www.RaiseYourVoice.com since it was
inaugurated last week. If you haven't yet filled out the
petition, please take two minutes right now to type in your
name and address and let your Representative and your two
Senators know how you feel! And please take a few moments
to tell your friends -- visit our referral page at
http://www.RaiseYourVoice.com/tellfriend.html to send a note
to them or to cut and paste our referral letter into your
own e-mail or mailing list or online forum posting. The e-
mail your friends receive will have your name in the
subject. And don't worry -- we keep no record of your
friends' e-mail addresses, and won't contact them ever
again, unless they decide to subscribe to our list. Many
petition visitors do decide to subscribe, so sending people
to http://www.RaiseYourVoice.com is a great way to build the
movement too!

For further information on the HEA reform campaign and how
to get involved, visit http://www.u-net.org/ or e-mail
lotlikar@drcnet.org.

***

2. REPORT: District of Columbia Drug Policy a Disaster

The District of Columbia spends more than any other US city
on drug law enforcement, yet it ranks among the worst in
rates of substance abuse, drug-related disease and crime,
according to a new report from Drug Strategies, a DC-based
research institute. "Facing Facts: Drugs and the Future of
Washington, DC" found that the District spends $1,257 per
capita on drug enforcement each year, but a scant $42.45 per
capita on drug treatment and prevention combined.

Drug Strategies President Mathea Falco told the Week Online
that such spending priorities were not justified by their
results. "Last year they only spent $22 million on
treatment and $2 million on prevention compared to well over
1/2 billion for drug enforcement," she said. "Despite these
massive investments in enforcement, the crime situation has
not improved, because most of the offenders in the city have
serious alcohol and other drug problems which have gone
unaddressed." The report also blamed bureaucratic
mismanagement, poor recordkeeping and a lack of cooperation
between the District and surrounding counties in Maryland
and Virginia for high rates of recidivism among drug-
addicted individuals.

Along with recommendations for increasing funding for
treatment and prevention programs, raising alcohol and
cigarette taxes, and increasing support for drug courts and
court ordered diversion programs, the report called for the
repeal of the Congressional ban on funds for needle exchange
programs (NEP's). "We believe NEP's that are well
administered and carefully controlled can make a huge
difference," said Falco. "In this we are joined by the
American Pediatric Association, American Medical Association
and the American Bar Association. This is definitely a
mainstream position."

AIDS is the third leading cause of death in the District,
and one in three of an estimated 15,000-20,000 residents
living with HIV or AIDS caught the virus by sharing needles.
Nevertheless, an amendment introduced last October by
Georgia Republican Bob Barr extended the ban on federal
funding of needle exchanges to include even privately funded
programs run by organizations that receive federal dollars
for other work they do. One of the District's only needle
exchange programs, run by the Whitman-Walker AIDS Clinic,
was forced to close as a result. The exchange program was
re-launched in December as a separate entity, Prevention
Works, with the help of a grant from the Drug Policy
Foundation.

Despite the report's grim vision of the District's drug war
wasteland, there may be some cause for optimism. At a press
conference held in the wake of the report's release, newly-
elected DC Mayor Anthony Williams and his cabinet pledged
another $26 million for treatment and prevention. "We hear
you," Williams said. "We will overlook this problem no
longer. Left on auto pilot with these statistics, this is
not a pretty picture. We cannot allow this to happen."
Falco praised Williams' comments, which she called "terrific
expressions of commitment." She added, "What's most needed
is for them to keep their commitments." No initiatives have
been announced, however, to scale back the prosecution of
the Washington DC's massive drug enforcement/prison program.

The full text of "Facing Facts: Drugs and the Future of
Washington, DC" is available on the Drug Strategies web site
at http://www.drugstrategies.org.

***

3. Heroin in Australia: A Conversation with Brian McConnell
of Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform

An escalating heroin problem and an attendant rise in
overdose deaths have put the drug policy debate center stage
in Australia. Alongside tragic stories of young, and
increasingly rural people dead from overdoses, the
Australian newspapers are filled with angry and frustrated
letters to the editors, editorials and political opinions
about the right course of action. Last year, a move by
public health officials to implement a heroin prescription
experiment similar to Switzerland's made it as far as the
first trial phase before it was quashed by Prime Minister
John Howard, after US State Department officials reportedly
threatened to close down Tasmania's pharmaceutical opiate
industry in retaliation. Earlier this year, Mr. Howard
invited FBI head Louis Freeh to Australia to make the case
for American-style zero tolerance drug policies.

But harm reduction advocates say the battle is far from
lost, and point to a range of innovative programs springing
up in states and territories across the country. In
Queensland, for example, clinical trials are underway for
Naltrexone, an opiate-receptor blocking drug that has
enjoyed some success in Europe. In New South Wales, a small
drug court is in the first stages of a scientific study. In
several states, first time drug offenders are now given the
option of treatment instead of jail. And Michael Moore,
Health Minister for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
has waged a very public battle with Prime Minister Howard to
re-launch the heroin prescription program, and to set up
"safe injection rooms" where addicts can find clean needles,
access to health care and counseling, and learn about
treatment options.

To get a better grasp of these developments, the Week Online
spoke with Moore and with Brian McConnell, president and a
founding member of Family and Friends for Drug Law Reform
(FFDLR). This week we present our conversation with Mr.
McConnell, who became involved with drug law reform after
his son died of a heroin overdose.

WOL: How has the tenor of the drug policy debate in
Australia changed over the past few years?

MCCONNELL: When Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform
was formed in 1995, there was virtually no discussion of
heroin as a problem. But since that time, people are more
concerned about the overdose deaths. In Victoria, they have
a very good system from the coroner's records of the
overdose deaths, and they can tally the number of deaths
very quickly, so you don't have to wait a year or two before
you get the results. One of the newspapers in Victoria is
running a tally of overdose deaths to road deaths, and right
now they are running neck in neck. And the debate is now
more robust. People are putting forward more thoughtful
suggestions for how it might be dealt with. Around the time
the Premieres' conference was going on [a national
conference of state and territorial leaders, at which heroin
policy was a hot topic this year], for that weekend and
Monday papers, we had a hundred and twenty-four pages of
clippings about heroin trials from newspapers from around
Australia.

WOL: What influence has the US had on drug policy?

MCCONNELL: By and large we seem to be tied to US policies,
and I think that is largely due to our Prime Minister.
Rather than call on experts that have some evidence with
success, he called on the FBI for advice on what to do.
Now, to say the least, that's curious. There is no evidence
that the FBI has done anything that's been successful in
this area. He is also keen on the zero tolerance in New
York and was keen on it with no facts, no figures. And zero
tolerance is a city jurisdiction and not the FBI's, so
that's curious as well.

WOL: What can be done by the federal Commonwealth
government in terms of legislation?

MCCONNELL: Drug issues are basically a state responsibility
-- outside of customs and border patrol type activities. It
is the customs end of it that is preventing a heroin trial
from taking place. But a lot of work can be done without
touching the legislation, much of it in the policy area.
Here in the ACT, my son's death is directly attributable to
the police being involved when he first overdosed. The
paramedics and police took him to hospital. When he awoke
the police were at the end of his bed. He was frightened
and discharged himself and went on a hurried holiday. Two
weeks later he was dead. The police in the ACT and in many
other states don't chase ambulances for overdoses anymore,
unless there is another reason. That puts it clearly in the
health arena.

WOL: Where does public opinion stand on heroin trials?

MCCONNELL: In the ACT, support for heroin trials is
marginally over fifty percent, with four to six percent
undecided, and its been that way for awhile now. What has
changed is the opinion in the rest of Australia. Back in
1996, those in favor nationally were at about thirty-five
percent, but it has now gone up to forty six percent. In
Victoria, a state where the Premiere and his government are
supportive of a trial and where there has been positive
press, the percentage in favor has exceeded fifty percent.

WOL: What has changed people's minds?

MCCONNELL: What has turned some public opinion around is
when people like myself and others have come out and said my
son or daughter died of a heroin overdose, and they didn't
have two heads, they weren't living in the gutter. They
were intelligent and well educated and had a job and all
those sorts of things. Here we are as a family and we are
trying to do something about it and we would like to prevent
this from happening in the future. It's a turnaround in the
debate and in some people's minds.

But it's still not far enough to do something. We are only
in the debate stage. We've got some action happening
because we are researching other treatment options. We're
certainly not as progressive as European countries because
there is still a stigma and a marginalization for drug users
here. A lot of the calls for changes to the drug laws and
the ways policies are administered are coming from the
police. The politicians are the last ones to come along.

(Visit Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform on the web
at http://www.adca.org.au/ffdlr. Next week, our
conversation with ACT Health Minister Michael Moore.

***

4. North Dakota Becomes First State to Legalize Hemp
Cultivation

(from the NORML Weekly News, http://www.norml.org)

April 22, 1999, Bismarck, ND: Governor Ed Schafer (R)
signed legislation Saturday allowing local farmers to
"plant, grow, harvest, possess, sell, and buy industrial
hemp." North Dakota is the first state to remove criminal
penalties for hemp cultivation.

House Bill 1428 reclassifies hemp containing no more than
three-tenths of one percent THC as a legal commercial crop,
and allows licensed farmers to grow it. The House and
Senate overwhelmingly approved the measure before the
governor signed it. The Legislature commissioned a study
two years ago that determined locally grown hemp could yield
profits as high as $141 per acre.

North Dakota's new regulations are modeled closely after
Canada's, which legalized commercial hemp cultivation last
year. Bill sponsor Rep. David Monson (D-Osnabrock) said
that local farmers are eager to grow hemp after seeing the
crop's economic success north of the border.

Farmers who wish to grow hemp must have no prior criminal
history, use certified seeds, and allow random inspections
of their crop for THC content. Farmers must pay a minimum
$150 fee to apply for a hemp license.

John Howell, CEO of New York City's Hemp Company of America
and a plaintiff in a 1998 federal lawsuit to legalize hemp
cultivation, said that "the future of hemp in America now
looks much, much brighter." He noted that federal permits
to grow hemp require applicants to answer whether
cultivation is legal in their state. "Until now, every
applicant had to check 'no' and applications were denied.
Now that Catch-22 cycle has been broken by North Dakota's
action."

The Legislature also approved measures allowing university
researchers who have federal permission to grow small
quantities of hemp, and urging Congress to acknowledge legal
distinctions between hemp and marijuana. Twenty-nine
nations, including France, England, Germany, Japan, and
Australia allow farmers to grow non-psychoactive hemp for
its fiber content.

The text of the North Dakota legislation can is online at
http://ranch.state.nd.us/LR/text/BILL_INDEX/BI1428.html.
More information on state-level legislation can be found
online at http://www.norml.org/laws/stateleg1999.html.

***

5. Oregon Supreme Court to Review Forfeiture as Double
Jeopardy

The Oregon Supreme Court recently agreed to review State vs.
Selness, which concerns a 1994 marijuana arrest. In that
case, the defendant's home was forfeited along with his
receiving jail time. The defendant claims that his
punishment was unconstitutional, on the grounds that it was
a case of double jeopardy.

The United States Constitution protects citizens from double
jeopardy: being punished for the same offense twice. The
Supreme Court has previously ruled that civil forfeiture is
not a punishment, and therefore does not constitute double
jeopardy. The Oregon State Constitution has a wider view on
double jeopardy, however, and the Oregon Supreme Court has
never previously ruled on civil forfeiture as a form of
punishment, leaving the possibility that the court may rule
in favor of the defendant.

One day prior to the Court's agreement to review State vs.
Selness, the Oregon Court of Appeals overturned a previous
ruling in a lower court that stated that the practice of
excluding drug offenders from certain neighborhoods prior to
sentencing is double jeopardy.

(Visit Forfeiture Endangers American Rights, online at
http://www.fear.org, for much more information about asset
forfeiture. The Cato Institute is sponsoring a half-day
conference, "Forfeiture Reform: Now, or Never?", on May 3,
9:00am - 1:30pm, Washington, DC, featuring US Rep. Henry J.
Hyde, ACLU's Ira Glasser, and others. For further
information, visit http://www.cato.org/events/ccs99/ on the
web, call (202)218-4633 or e-mail forfeit@cato.org.

***

6. BOOK: NO Equal Justice, Race and Class in the American
Criminal Justice System

In recent months, various criminal justice policies and
practices, and the racially disparate impacts they produce,
have begun to come to the fore of public attention. Last
week DRCNet reported that Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) had
reintroduced the Traffic Stops Statistics Act, and had
introduced legislation to end felony disenfranchisement
(http://www.drcnet.org/wol/087.html#profiling and
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/087.html#disenfranchisement).
Five weeks ago, we reported that Rep. Charges Rangel had
introduced legislation to reduce sentences for crack cocaine
offenses to the level of powder cocaine sentences
(http://www.drcnet.org/wol/083.html#rangel).

"NO Equal Justice: Race and Class in the American Criminal
Justice System," by Georgetown University law professor
David Cole, analyzes the nature and extent of racial
disparities in the criminal justice system and the dynamics
that contribute to them. Cole puts forward overwhelming
evidence that not only do disparities exist, but the problem
extends from the bottom of the system (cops on the beat
habitually using racial profiles) to the top (a Supreme
Court that has set unattainable standards for invoking
protections against racial discrimination).

Cole doesn't attribute the disparities to deliberate racism,
but rather to the unavoidable tension between law
enforcement efficiency and constitutional rights. Rather
than staking out a consistent position for balancing these
two concerns, Cole argues, police forces and the courts have
picked two different points on the spectrum -- one for the
majority and another for minorities. The majority, then,
doesn't pay the cost of the policies that it enacts -- a
cost measured in disparate police searches, no-knock
warrants, convictions and incarceration rates.

One of the reasons disparity in searches exists is that
courts have given police an astonishingly free hand in
conducting them. On pages 48-49, Cole lists drug courier
"profiles" that drug enforcement agents have presented as
"probable cause" for conducting searches:

arrived late at night
arrived early in the morning
arrive in afternoon
one of first to deplane
one of last to deplane
deplaned in the middle
purchased ticket at airport
made reservation on short notice
bought coach ticket
bought first-class ticket
used one-way ticket
used round-trip ticket
paid for ticket with cash
paid for ticket with small denomination currency
paid for ticket with large denomination current
made local telephone call after deplaning
made long-distance telephone call after deplaning
pretended to make telephone call
traveled from New York to Los Angeles
traveled to Houston
carried no luggage
carried brand-new luggage
carried a small bag
carried a medium-sized bag
carried two bulky garment bags
carried two heavy suitcases
carried four pieces of luggage
overly protective of luggage
disassociated self from luggage
traveled alone
traveled with a companion
acted too nervous
acted too calm
made eye contact with officer
avoided making eye contact with officer
wore expensive clothing and gold jewelry
dressed casually
went to restroom after deplaning
walked quickly through airport
walked slowly through airport
walked aimlessly through airport
left airport by taxi
left airport by limousine
left airport by private car
left airport by hotel courtesy van
suspect was Hispanic
suspect was black female

Cole explains that "[s]uch profiles do not so much focus an
investigation as provide law enforcement officials a ready-
made excuse for stopping whomever they please. The Supreme
Court has warned that the mere fact that someone fits a
drug-courier profile does not automatically constitute
reasonable suspicion justifying a stop. In practice,
however, courts frequently defer to the profile and equate
it with reasonable suspicion. As one judge said after
conducting a comprehensive review of drug-courier profile
decisions, '[m]any courts have accepted the profile, as well
as the Drug Enforcement Agency's scattershot enforcement
efforts, unquestioningly, mechanistically, and
dispositively.'"

Cole goes on to argue that while the majority doesn't pay
the cost of the criminal justice policies that it passes,
over time those costs come home in the form of decreased
respect for law and unwillingness to cooperate with the
system, leading to a diminished ability to control crime and
heightened social danger for all.

(Buy "NO Equal Justice" online -- just point your browser to
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1565844734/drcnet/
and follow the instructions, and DRCNet will earn 15% of
what you spend on the book! Or ask for "NO Equal Justice"
at your local bookstore.)

***

7. REPORT: In Search of a New Ethic for Treating Patients
with Chronic Pain

An article in last week's issue, "Doctor's Undertreatment of
Pain Draws Penalty," discussed the issue of pain treatment
and the war on drugs, surrounding the Oregon Board of
Medical Examiner's decision to take disciplinary action
against a physician for the undertreatment of pain, possibly
the first medical board in U.S. history to take such a step.
(See http://www.stopthedrugwar.org/pain.html for a general
discussion of the impact of the drug war on pain treatment,
and visit http://www.drcnet.org/wol/087.html#undertreatment
for last week's article.)

A report published in the Winter 1998 issue of the Journal
of Law, Medicine & Ethics examines the "ethic of
underprescribing" and steps that states and boards have
taken to begin to reverse it. Author Ann Martino concludes
that underprescribing for pain is the norm or prevailing
standard, and describes three principles that contribute to
the underprescribing ethic:

1. Just Say No -- a generalized fear of narcotics and
addiction, known as opiophobia, on the part of both
physicians and patients. Martino writes, "Opiophobia has
been heightened in recent years by the rhetoric accompanying
the government's War on Drugs. One of the central tactics
in the War on Drugs has been to focus broadly on the horrors
of addiction in media campaigns and anti-drug and prevention
programs, without drawing distinctions between drug
dependency and abuse or types of addictive drugs. It is
thus not surprising that many patients fear that taking any
drug in large doses for relatively long periods of time will
cause addiction." Additionally, doctors who do treat pain
aggressively often face the threat of investigation by
medical boards or the DEA, a circumstance that can ruin the
careers of doctors, even when cleared. Hence, internal
values and external consequences contribute to the Just Say
No ethic in pain treatment.

2. Grin and Bear It -- the conception of pain as a moral
good that builds character or an inevitability that should
simply be endured. Martino writes, "[A]lthough it is hard
to imagine that anyone who regularly engages in the practice
of chronic pain management would purposefully deny relief to
a patient experiencing unrelenting pain, the available
empirical evidence clearly shows that it happens all the
time."

3. Avoid Risks -- the decision or tendency to not prescribe
pain medication in adequate quantities, knowing that doing
so can result in trouble with medical boards, insurers or
enforcers. "The be investigated or sanctioned by a board
could result in a loss of stature, reputation, institutional
privileges, or access to insurance panels, even if no
restrictions or limitations are imposed on the license to
practice."

Martino discusses why efforts states have made at regulatory
relief, including Intractable Pain Treatment Acts by
legislatures and pain treatment guidelines by boards, have
not yet succeeded changing the opiophobic climate in pain
treatment. The report, titled "In Search of a New Ethic for
Treating Patients with Chronic Pain: What Can Medical Boards
Do?," includes illustrative quotes from doctors,
pharmacists, patients and family members, as well as a chart
listing the many causes of underprescribing. It can be
ordered purchased for $10, including postage, from the
American Society for Law, Medicine & Ethics, 765
Commonwealth Ave., 16th Floor, Boston, MA 02215, (617) 262-
4990, aslme@bu.edu, http://www.aslme.org.

To learn more about the pain issue and find out how to get
help or get involved, visit the American Society for Action
on Pain at http://www.actiononpain.org. (Use
http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/asap/index.htm
temporarily if you get an error message.)

***

8. Seminar in NYC, Friday, 5/28

Bridging the Gap: Creating a Continuum of Care for Drug
Users, Friday, May 28, 1-5pm, hosted by Mount Sinai
Hospital, co-sponsored by The Statewide Black & Puerto
Rican/Latino Substance Abuse Task Force, The Harm Reduction
Coalition, The Harm Reduction Care Network of New York, and
the Mount Sinai Based HIV Clinical Education Institute.
Topics include "Situating the Drug User at the Center to
Provide a Continuum of Care" and "Practical Applications of
Utilizing Harm Reduction Principles Within a Drug
Treatment Setting."

At the Stern Auditorium, Mt. Sinai Medical Center, E. 100th
Street & Madison Avenue, NYC. By subway take the 6 train to
96th Street. Stern is in the Annenberg Building on the
mezzanine level. Enter Mt. Sinai at the 100th and Madison
entrance, go up the stairs, then to your left through the
glass doors, and follow the signs to Stern. For further
information, contact Ralph Gonzales, (516) 979-7300 ext. 202
or e-mail nathan_perry@usa.net.

(Due to staff travel schedules there is no editorial this
week. All previous issues of the Week Online, including the
editorials, are archived online, and can be accessed at
http://www.drcnet.org/wol/archives.html.

***

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St., NW, Suite 615, Washington, DC 20036, or made by credit
card at http://www.drcnet.org/drcreg.html. Donations to
the Drug Reform Coordination Network are not tax-deductible.
Deductible contributions supporting our educational work can
be made by check to the DRCNet Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-
exempt organization, same address.

PERMISSION to reprint or redistribute any or all of the
contents of The Week Online is hereby granted. We ask that
any use of these materials include proper credit and, where
appropriate, a link to one or more of our web sites. If
your publication customarily pays for publication, DRCNet
requests checks payable to the organization. If your
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the materials gratis. In all cases, we request notification
for our records, including physical copies where material
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Articles of a purely educational nature in The Week Online
appear courtesy of the DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise
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***

DRCNet

***

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-------------------------------------------------------------------

DrugSense Weekly, No. 95 (The original summary of drug policy news from
DrugSense opens with the weekly Feature Article - Learn from the Civil Rights
Movement: Get organized, by Kevin B. Zeese, president of Common Sense for
Drug Policy. The Weekly News in Review features several articles about Drug
War Policy, Law Enforcement & Prisons, including - U-Conn star El-amin faces
a drug charge; Srawberry arrested for drugs, solicitation; Study slams
corruption on border; City settles firefighter's suit in controversial drug
case; Fairfax teacher suspended after arrest on drug charge in D.C.; Former
cop in court; 2 correction officers to serve time; Firefighter's back after
fine for pot; Students face drug charges; 89-year-old man sentenced for
selling crack; Ex-candidate faces trial in medical marijuana case; and,
Voices of our time: Joseph D. McNamara. Articles about Cannabis, Hemp and
Medicinal Marijuana include - Marijuana hoax; Ready for medical marijuana
research; and, Cannabis has herbal benefits research can help unlock.
International News includes - US company to build 2 plants for hemp
processing in Canada; and, Treatment demand stretches clinics. The DrugSense
Volunteer of the Month features Gerald Sutliff. The weekly Hot Off The 'Net
directs your browser to the Marijuana Policy Project's highlights of the IOM
report; "Marijuana Rx: The Patient's Fight for Medicinal Pot" online; and an
online transcript of the recent rebroadcast of "Sex Drugs and Consenting
Adults." The Fact of the Week documents that 1 in 3 young blacks is under the
control of the criminal justice system. And the Quote of the Week cites
Horace Mann)

From: webmaster@drugsense.org (DrugSense)
To: newsletter@drugsense.org
Subject: DrugSense Weekly, April 24, 1999 #95
Date: Sat, 24 Apr 1999 13:27:11 -0700
Organization: DrugSense http://www.drugsense.org/
Lines: 738
Sender: owner-newsletter@drugsense.org

***

DRUGSENSE WEEKLY

***

DrugSense Weekly, April 24, 1999 #95

A DrugSense publication http://www.drugsense.org

This Publication May Be Read On-line at:
http://www.drugsense.org/dsw/1999/ds99.n95.html

TO SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, DONATE OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS PLEASE
SEE THE INFORMATION AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS NEWSLETTER

Please consider writing a letter to the editor using the email
addresses on any of the articles below. Send a copy of your LTE to
MGreer@mapinc.org.

***

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

* Feature Article

Learn from the Civil Rights Movement: Get Organized
by Kevin B. Zeese, President Common Sense for Drug Policy

* Weekly News in Review

Drug War Policy- Law Enforcement & Prisons

(1) U-Conn Star El-amin Faces A Drug Charge
(2) Strawberry Arrested For Drugs, Solicitation
(3) Study Slams Corruption On Border
(4) City Settles Firefighter's Suit In Controversial Drug Case
(5) Fairfax Teacher Suspended After Arrest On Drug Charge In D.C.
(7) Former Cop In Court
(8) 2 Correction Officers To Serve Time
(9) Firefighter's Back After Fine For Pot
(10) Students Face Drug Charges
(11) 89-year-old Man Sentenced For Selling Crack
(12) Ex-candidate Faces Trial In Medical Marijuana Case
(13) Voices Of Our Time: Joseph D. McNamara

Cannabis & Hemp- Medicinal Marijuana

(14) Marijuana Hoax
(15) Ready For Medical Marijuana Research
(16) Cannabis Has Herbal Benefits Research Can Help Unlock

International News-

(17) Us Company To Build 2 Plants For Hemp Processing In Canada
(18) Treatment Demand Stretches Clinics

* DrugSense Volunteer of the Month

Gerald Sutliff

* Hot Off The 'Net

MPP release highlights of IOM report
Marijuana Rx: The Patient's Fight for Medicinal Pot On-line
"Sex Drugs and Consenting Adults" Transcript On-line

* Fact of the Week

One in Three Young Blacks Under Criminal Justice Control

* Quote of the Week

Horace Mann -

***

FEATURE ARTICLE

Learn from the Civil Rights Movement: Get Organized

by Kevin B. Zeese, President Common Sense for Drug Policy
zeese@csdp.org

The development of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights provides a
model that drug policy reformers can emulate to increase our
effectiveness, efficiently use our resources and put in place sensible
drug policies.

The Leadership Conference was founded in 1950 by three important civil
rights leaders, each from a different area of civil rights: A. Philip
Randolph, founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (the first
group of black workers to gain recognition as a union); Roy Wilkins,
the Executive Director of the NAACP; and Arnold Aronson, a leader of
the National Jewish Community Relations Advisory Council. Each had a
long history in coalition building and civil rights activism. When they
founded the Leadership Conference, they confronted a society where
segregation was an ever-present reality and equality a distant dream.

The United States military had only recently desegregated. In many
states and in the nation's capital as well, segregation was sanctioned
in law as well as in life. Discrimination was pervasive in government
and business. No Federal civil rights law had been enacted since
Reconstruction almost 100 years earlier.

The Leadership Conference formed with 30 organizations from civil
rights, labor, civil liberties and related organizations concerned with
social justice. They joined these organizations to create the nerve
center against discrimination in all of its forms. The founding
resulted in the civil rights movement getting organized and becoming
much more systematic and effective. At the time member organizations
marched in the streets, sat-in at lunch counters, and refused to ride
in the back of the bus. The Leadership Conference coordinated these
diverse activities and made them into a campaign to make simple justice
the law of the land. The Civil Rights Acts of 1957, 1960, and 1964, the
Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 - all were
pushed to passage with the help of the Leadership Conference and the
coalition it mustered and mobilized.

Their activities continue today dealing with the rights of other
minority groups (e.g., Native Americans, immigrants), gays, lesbians
and the disabled. The Leadership Conference has grown to more than 185
national organizations, representing persons of color, women, labor
unions, individuals with disabilities, older Americans, major religious
groups, gays, lesbians and civil liberties and human rights groups.
Together, over 50 million Americans belong to the organizations that
comprise the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights.

The reform movement has taken initial steps toward getting organized.
Several years ago we formed the Alliance of Reform Groups (ARO) an
information sharing network of leading reform organizations. Today, it
includes about 50 organizations. Initial steps have been taken to
create a stronger alliance amongst reformers through the Network of
Reform Organizations (NRG pronounced "energy"). NRG is made up of two
dozen organizations -- about the same number of organizations as the
Leadership Conference when it was founded. The organizations in ARO
jointly represent over 140,000 people not including the several hundred
thousand members of the ACLU. Obviously, most of the organizations are
small, but this only increases the need for unity.

Just as the civil rights movement deals with a variety of issues
reproductive freedom, the rights of African Americans, Hispanics and
other minority groups, the disabled, women's rights, the drug policy
reform movement also deals with diverse issues: availability of
sterile syringes, access to medical marijuana, the rights of marijuana
and other drug users, sentencing justice, employment fairness for
addicted people, health care (including methadone) for the addicted, an
end to drug testing abuse as well as those seeking to end forfeiture of
property and other issues. And as the civil rights movement forged
coalitions on specific issues with outside organizations we have also
recently involved women, youth advocacy, civil rights, civil liberties,
gay and lesbian, AIDS groups and others in reform projects.

The Leadership Conference defines itself as leading a peaceful
revolution. No doubt changing drug policy will require a similar
peaceful revolution. The Leadership Conference notes that "defending
and expanding social justice requires eternal vigilance by the widest
possible coalition of Americans of conscience." The drug policy reform
movement may be able to learn from the successful experience of those
who came before us.

Kevin B. Zeese, President, Common Sense for Drug Policy
http://www.csdp.org/

***

WEEKLY NEWS IN REVIEW

Mark Greer is editing the DrugSense Weekly for the next two weeks
giving Dr. Tom O'Connell, who normally provides the editorial comment
and article selection, a well deserved opportunity to vacation in
Europe.

***

Domestic News- Policy
Law Enforcement & Prisons

***

COMMENT: (1-11)

It is a fascinating exercise to occasionally go to the DrugNews
archive and scan recent headlines of drug related news articles at
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/ The news from the drug war virtually
screams about the mindlessness and foolishness of existing drug policy.

The most common theme that struck me this week is the number of people
that we would otherwise often look up to, respect, and even consider
heroes who have been victimized, incarcerated, or caught up in the
"War on Drugs." From athletes to the elderly, from cops to firemen and
from politicians to the Supreme court there seem to be so many who are
either on the wrong side of the law or who are foolishly promoting a
failed policy. This fact all by itself is a testament to the need for
reform. If our best and brightest are involved aren't our policies
very suspect?

***

(1) U-CONN STAR EL-AMIN FACES A DRUG CHARGE

Khalid El-Amin, who last month helped Connecticut win its first
national basketball championship, was arrested yesterday and charged
with possession of marijuana.

[snip]

Pubdate: Wed, 14 Apr 1999
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer (PA)
Copyright: 1999 Philadelphia Newspapers Inc.
Contact: Inquirer.Opinion@phillynews.com
Website: http://www.phillynews.com/
Forum: http://interactive.phillynews.com/talk-show/
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n417.a13.html

***

(2) STRAWBERRY ARRESTED FOR DRUGS, SOLICITATION

TAMPA, Fla., April 14 (UPI) - The troubled life of Darryl Strawberry
took another ominous turn Wednesday night when he was arrested on
charges of cocaine possession and solicitation for prostitution.

[snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: United Press International
Copyright: 1999 United Press International
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n421.a10.html

***

(3) STUDY SLAMS CORRUPTION ON BORDER

U.S. Employees On Payrolls Of Mexican Drug Lords, Report Says

Mexican drug lords are bribing federal agents to give them information,
wave their smugglers through border checkpoints and even employing them
to bring drugs into the United States, a federal report says.

After a yearlong study, the General Accounting Office reported that it
found that drug interdiction efforts in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and
California are compromised by federal agents and other field staff on
the payrolls of the Mexican drug cartels.

[snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: Houston Chronicle (TX)
Page: 1
Copyright: 1999 Houston Chronicle
Contact: viewpoints@chron.com
Website: http://www.chron.com/
Forum: http://www.chron.com/content/hcitalk/index.html
Author: Deborah Tedford
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n419.a13.html

***

(4) CITY SETTLES FIREFIGHTER'S SUIT IN CONTROVERSIAL DRUG CASE

GASTONIA -- The city says former Gastonia firefighter Karen Goff gave
police the key to her locker in 1997, where they found a powder that
tested positive for cocaine.

Goff's lawyers say the search was forced and that there was no test --
and no cocaine.

[snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: Charlotte Observer (NC)
Copyright: 1999 The Charlotte Observer
Contact: opinion@charlotte.com
Website: http://www.charlotte.com/observer/
Author: Tony Mecia, Staff Writer, tmecia@charlotte.com
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n419.a12.html

***

(5) FAIRFAX TEACHER SUSPENDED AFTER ARREST ON DRUG CHARGE IN D.C.

A 14-year Fairfax County high school teacher has been suspended without
pay following his arrest in the District on a charge of possessing
cocaine with the intent to distribute.

[snip]

Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: Washington Post (DC)
Page: B02
Copyright: 1999 The Washington Post Company
Address: 1150 15th Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20071
Feedback: http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/edit/letters/letterform.htm
Website: http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Author: Victoria Benning and Bill Miller, Washington Post Staff Writers
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n420.a08.html

***

(7) FORMER COP IN COURT

A former North Vancouver Mountie appeared in court on Wednesday to face
six marijuana trafficking charges.

Scott Randall Simpson, 38, is also charged with possessing marijuana,
psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and hashish and stealing a "cobra
fashioned smoking pipe."

[snip]

Pubdate: Mon, 12 April 1999
Source: North Shore News (Canada)
Copyright: 1999 by the North Shore News
Contact: editor@nsnews.com
Website: http://www.nsnews.com/
Author: Anna Marie D'Angelo
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n420.a05.html

***

(8) 2 CORRECTION OFFICERS TO SERVE TIME

BRONX, - Two former New York City Correction Officers assigned to
Rikers Island have been sentenced in Bronx Supreme Court to 2 to 6
years for attempting to smuggle drugs into the correction facilities on
Rikers Island.

[snip]

Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: United Press International
Copyright: 1999 United Press International
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n422.a11.html

***

(9) FIREFIGHTER'S BACK AFTER FINE FOR POT

An Edmonton firefighter who was fined $2,500 after being convicted of
growing pot in his basement is back on the job.

Edmonton fire Chief Jim Sales, after consulting with city officials,
has ruled that Dean Troyer can continue to work as a senior
firefighter, said a department spokesman yesterday.

[snip]

Newshawk: creator@mapinc.org
Pubdate: Thursday, April 15, 1999
Source: Edmonton Sun (Canada)
Copyright: 1999, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact: sun.letters@ccinet.ab.ca
Website: http://www.canoe.ca/EdmontonSun/
Forum: http://www.canoe.ca/Chat/home.html
Author: Tony Blais
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n423.a07.html

***

(10) STUDENTS FACE DRUG CHARGES

LONGWOOD, Fla., April 15 (UPI) - Thirty-two people, including a number
of Lake Brantley High School students, were arrested on drug charges in
Longwood Wednesday afternoon.

Police think they belong to a gang called the Forest City Mob. They are
accused of selling marijuana and cocaine.

[snip]

Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: United Press International
Copyright: 1999 United Press International
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n423.a10.html

***

(11) 89-YEAR-OLD MAN SENTENCED FOR SELLING CRACK

KINGSTON, N.Y. (AP) -- An 89-year-old man convicted of selling crack
cocaine has been sentenced to up to four years in state prison.

[snip]

Newshawk: when@olywa.net (Bob Owen)
Pubdate: Thu, 16 Apr 1999
Source: Associated Press
Copyright: 1999 Associated Press
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n423.a13.html

***

COMMENT (12-13)

Of course there are those who speak with a voice of reason and can
truly be called heroes. To wit:

***

(12) EX-CANDIDATE FACES TRIAL IN MEDICAL MARIJUANA CASE

Courts: Libertarian Entrant In Last Year's Governor Race Claims That
Smoking Pot Has Controlled His Rare Cancer.

OLYMPIC VALLEY, Calif.--Before the bust, Steve Kubby's claim to fame
was political trivia at best: Just who was last year's Libertarian
candidate for governor?

[snip]

Newshawk: Bob Owen and Steve Kubby http://www.kubby.com/
Pubdate: Thu, 15 Apr 1999
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 1999 Los Angeles Times.
Contact: letters@latimes.com
Fax: (213) 237-4712
Website: http://www.latimes.com/
Forum: http://www.latimes.com/home/discuss/
Author: Eric Bailey, Times Staff Writer
Also: newshawked by Jim Rosenfield and Peter McWilliams
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n424.a06.html

***

(13) VOICES OF OUR TIME: JOSEPH D. MCNAMARA

Technology's advancement a boon to personal freedom

From your perspective, what have been some of the most important
developments of the 20th century, and how will the world be different
100 years from now?

[snip]

Newshawk: Jane Marcus (jmarcus@leland.Stanford.EDU)
Pubdate: Tues, 13 Apr 1999
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 1999 Mercury Center
Contact: letters@sjmercury.com
Website: http://www.sjmercury.com/
Note: "Voices of our Time" is a feature of the San Jose Mercury News to mark
the new millennium. This week's edition is important because the commentator
is Dr. Joseph McNamara, an outspoken critic of the "war on drugs".
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n424.a08.html

***

Cannabis & Hemp - Medicinal Marijuana

***

COMMENT: (14-16)

The IOM report and last November's landslide elections continue to get
positive coverage and editorials calling for reform.

***

(14) MARIJUANA HOAX

"Some dismiss medical marijuana as a hoax that exploits our natural
compassion for the sick.," notes a new report from the Institute of
Medicine that details the therapeutic potential of cannabis. The IOM's
experts discreetly refrain from adding that it's an opinion shared by
the man who commissioned the report.

[snip]

Newshawk: Epeggs@aol.com
Pubdate: Wed, 24 Mar 1999
Source: Reason Magazine
Copyright: 1999 by Creators Syndicate Inc.
Contact: letters@reason.com
Website: http://www.reason.com/
Author: Jacob Sullum
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n432.a01.html

***

Our Opinion

(15) READY FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA RESEARCH

Seven states have approved the medical use of marijuana since 1996,
including California, yet an unruly debate persists thanks to the
federal government's stubborn obstruction of the will of the people.

[snip]

Pubdate: Sun, 18 Apr 1999
Source: Oakland Tribune (CA)
Copyright: 1999 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers
Contact: eangtrib@newschoice.com
Address: 66 Jack London Sq., Oakland, CA 94607
Website: http://www.newschoice.com/newspapers/alameda/tribune/
Note: Our newshawk writes: The Oakland Tribune several years ago advocated
decriminalization of marijuana for adults.
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n432.a06.html

***

(16) CANNABIS HAS HERBAL BENEFITS RESEARCH CAN HELP UNLOCK

As a child of the '60s, I was well aware of the recreational value of
cannabis. (Yes, I inhaled, but as a non-smoker, I didn't do it very
well.) Its virtues were extolled in music and films. The biggest joke
was that you were using it for "medicinal purposes."

Recently, there was an article in The News about an advisory panel that
has concluded that compounds found in marijuana are effective for
easing pain and relieving nausea. It turns out there are very real
medicinal virtues to this forbidden herb.

[snip]

Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Sat, 17 Apr 1999
Source: Buffalo News (NY)
Copyright: 1999 - The Buffalo News
Fax: 716-856-5150
Website: http://www.buffnews.com/
Author: Patra A. Mangus, a professional herbalist for the past 27 years. She
owns and operates Bi-Nutrients Herbal Information Center in Buffalo.
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n430.a02.html

***

International News

***

COMMENT:

As always there is some good news and positive signs that "the times
they are a changin'" (or that they are desperately in need of change).

***

(17) US COMPANY TO BUILD 2 PLANTS FOR HEMP PROCESSING IN CANADA

A U.S.-based agricultural company plans to build two hemp-processing
plants by 2001 in Canada's western province of Manitoba, the head of
the company's Canadian operations said.

"There will be two distinct plants located on the same site. One is
dedicated to food and one is dedicated to fiber," said Douglas
Campbell, president of the Canada division of Consolidated Growers and
Processors.

[snip]

Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Thur, 15 Apr 1999
Source: Journal of Commerce (US)
Contact: editor@mail.joc.com
Website: http://www.joc.com/
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n426.a05.html

***

(18) TREATMENT DEMAND STRETCHES CLINICS

DRUG treatment centres are being stretched to cope with the demand for
help by heroin addicts, the Dail Public Accounts Committee heard
yesterday.

At any one time, 600 people are on waiting lists seeking treatment at
clinics run or funded by the Eastern Health Board, the main provider in
the greater Dublin area.

[snip]

Newshawk: Martin Cooke (mjc1947@cyberclub.iol.ie)
Pubdate: Fri, 16 Apr 1999
Source: Examiner, The (Ireland)
Copyright: Examiner Publications Ltd, 1999
Contact: exam_letters@examiner.ie
Website: http://www.examiner.ie/
Author: Jim Morahan
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n433.a06.html

***

VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH - Gerald Sutliff

This month it is our honor and privilege to recognize one of our most
successful writers of Letters to the Editor, Gerald M. Sutliff.

Since May, 1996 Jerry has had 37 letters published that made it into
our published letters archive, and probably a few more that we missed.
You can review his published letters at the following URL:

http://www.mapinc.org/mapcgi/ltedex.pl?AUTHOR=Gerald+M.+Sutliff

Newspapers that have published Jerry's letters include: Contra Costa
Times (CA), Detroit News, Halifax Daily News (Canada) , International
Herald-Tribune (published worldwide), Journal-Inquirer (CT), Los
Angeles Times, Oakland Tribune (CA), San Francisco Examiner (CA),
Skagit Valley Herald (WA), Standard-Times (MA), Star Ledger (NJ), The
Bulletin (OR), The Examiner (Ireland), The Wall Street Journal, and the
Wellington Evening Post (New Zealand).

We asked Jerry to respond to a few questions:

DS: When and how did you first become involved with MAP?

Jerry: I met Cliff Schaffer in Santa Monica and he handed me a copy of
his 'Net plan to educate the world. A few months later I signed on to
DRCTALK and then joined up with MAP when Mark started it up.

DS: Do you recall when you first had a LTE published?

Jerry: Actually, I had a couple of LTE published in the Contra Costa
times before joining DRCTALK and MAP.

DS: About how many LTEs do you send to editors each month?

Jerry: It varies a lot, depending on my state of my other
responsibilities but I try for five a week.

DS: What tips would you give to those who may wish to join in the LTE
writing effort?

Jerry: Keep them short. Make your one point, don't preach and close.
(Take the time to let the letter age, proof again, send it and forget
it.) Try to tie in the subject of your letter to something you read in
the target paper. If you can complement or flatter, do so shamelessly.
Avoid sarcasm (that's a tough one (;~)]

DS: What else would you like to say to all the readers of the DrugSense
Weekly?

Jerry: Cliff's, David's and Mark's visions of using the power of the
Internet to change the perception of the public and the language of the
debate is now being realized through MAP more than any other source,
valuable though they all are without doubt. Talking to each other is
pleasurable, educational, frustrating - but talking to the public is
where the action is.

The 'net is not the Gutenberg revolution but it's close. After
Gutenberg people realized that they could learn (especially about God)
for themselves. That led to the Reformation. The 'net means people have
an even better way to "learn and decide for themselves."

DS: Thank you, Jerry, for all that you do and for providing an example
we can emulate!

***

HOT OFF THE 'NET

***

Chuck Thomas of MPP informs us:

It's finally done -- MPP's compilation of the best excerpts from the
Institute of Medicine's medicinal marijuana report. You can find it at
http://www.mpp.org/science.html

***

Alice O'Leary writes:

Your readers might also enjoying visiting our website which has
excerpts from our new book "Marijuana Rx: The Patient's Fight for
Medicinal Pot." (Thunder's Mouth Press: ISBN 1-56025-166-2) These
excerpts include the Foreword by Lyn Nofziger, former deputy chairman
of the Republican National Committee.

The address is http://www.marijuana-as-medicine.org

***

Peter McWilliams reports:

The complete transcript of the John Stossel ABCNEWS special "Sex,
Drugs, and Consenting Adults" is on-line at:

http://abcnews.go.com/onair/abcnewsspecials/transcripts/
stossel990415_trans.html

***

FACT OF THE WEEK

***

One in three black men between the ages of 20 and 29 years old is under
correctional supervision or control. (1995).

Source: Mauer, M. &; Huling, T., Young Black Americans and the Criminal
Justice System: Five Years Later, Washington D.C.: The Sentencing
Project

***

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

***

"Jails and prisons are the complement of schools; so many less as you
have of the latter, so many more you must have of the former"
-- Horace Mann

***

DS Weekly is one of the many free educational services DrugSense offers
our members. Watch this feature to learn more about what DrugSense can
do for you.

TO SUBSCRIBE, UNSUBSCRIBE, OR UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS:

Please utilize the following URLs

http://www.drugsense.org/hurry.htm

http://www.drugsense.org/unsub.htm

News/COMMENTS-Editor: Tom O'Connell (tjeffoc@drugsense.org)
Senior-Editor: Mark Greer (mgreer@drugsense.org)

We wish to thank all our contributors, editors, Newshawks and letter
writing activists.

NOTICE:

In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is
distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving the included information for research and
educational purposes.

REMINDER:

Please help us help reform. Become a NewsHawk

See http://www.mapinc.org/hawk.htm for info on contributing clippings.

***

NOW YOU CAN DONATE TO DRUGSENSE ONLINE AND IT'S TAX DEDUCTIBLE

DrugSense provides many services to at no charge BUT THEY ARE NOT FREE
TO PRODUCE.

We incur many costs in creating our many and varied services. If you
are able to help by contributing to the DrugSense effort visit our
convenient donation web site at
http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm

-OR-

Mail in your contribution. Make checks payable to MAP Inc. send your
contribution to:

The Media Awareness Project (MAP) Inc.
d/b/a DrugSense
PO Box 651
Porterville,
CA 93258
(800) 266 5759
MGreer@mapinc.org
http://www.mapinc.org/
http://www.drugsense.org/

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