“Sending people to prison for possessing marijuana has upended too many lives and incarcerated people for conduct that many states no longer prohibit. . . And while white and Black and brown people use marijuana at similar rates, Black and brown people have been arrested, prosecuted, and convicted at disproportionate rates.” Last week President Biden …
So why do we keep trying to arrest our way out of it? An alternate approach is the topic of Nicholas Kristof’s column in the Sunday New York Times: “Seattle has figured out how to end the war on drugs.” The war on drugs has been one of America’s most grievous mistakes, resulting in as …
Condemnation for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s decision to keep marijuana listed as a Schedule I drug has been universal. The DEA defines Schedule I drugs, substances, and chemicals as “. . . drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Those in the medical field have argued that it is …
Three perfect panels yesterday at “Cops, Docs, and Clergy,” a conference featuring speakers from those three areas of expertise who are calling for an end to our war on drugs. All aspects of our failed approach to the drug problem were covered. I was particularly impressed with Major Neill Franklin, executive director of Law Enforcement …
‘End The Drug War’ Trifecta — Cops, Docs, And Clergy Read More »
(12.5) We can not arrest our way out of this, and god knows we’ve tried. But public health problems are just not amenable to law enforcement solutions; It’s time for a new approach and on Saturday you can hear what some cops, docs, and clergy have to say about it. Clergy for a New Drug …
Here’s a new wrinkle in the misguided war on drugs. Doctors and dentists have been looking over their shoulders a while now with nothing less than their licenses on the line. Now, in an effort to curb the abuse of prescription painkillers, state regulators want to prohibit doctors and other healthcare practitioners from prescribing opioids …
“Once a town gets a SWAT Team, you want to use it.” Radley Balko — who writes on criminal justice, the drug war, and civil liberties for The Washington Post — was speaking to Slate about his recent book “The Rise of the Warrior Cop: the Militarization of America’s Police Forces.” And what happened in …
The images of children crossing into this country through the Mexican border are heartbreaking and the latest tragedy traceable to America’s futile war on drugs. The numbers astonish. According to The New York Times More than 52,000 minors traveling without their parents have been caught crossing the southwest border illegally since October, including 9,000 in …
Since the federal government declared its war on drugs several decades ago the clearance rate of homicides throughout the country has steadily declined. Data available from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (based on the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports) show that the percentage of homicides “solved” nationwide decreased from 72% in 1980 to 64% in 2008. …
Testimony will be heard today by the House Judiciary Committee concerning Marijuana Legalization Bill 7506. In addition to the compelling social justice issues, proponents will have a strong economic argument to make to Rhode Island legislators this year, supported by the early news out of Colorado and a recent report from OpenDoors, a nonprofit that …
I have a piece in today’s Providence Journal — “Drug war has failed; legalize marijuana” — in which I take the ProJo editorial board to task for their recent opposition to the legalization of marijuana. My advocacy concerning the war on drugs and the reform of marijuana laws is known to regular Dose readers — …
That’s what President Obama promised in his State of the Union address. And what exactly will these boots be doing? According to a recent CBS News report we’ll be needing lots of new boots to help investigate all the old boots. (See “Over the line: Fighting corruption on the border”.) More than 40,000 U.S. Customs …
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Kilmartin is asking for an increase of 8% in his budget for the next fiscal year. Governor Chafee wants him to find 7% in cuts. Providence Journal staff writer Tracy Breton reports on the staffing woes at the A.G.’s office in today’s paper, “Stretched to the limit, prosecutors plead case.” …
AG Kilmartin Asks For Bigger Budget, More Prosecutors Read More »
And why not? Let’s get on the gravy train. British Bank HSBC has apparently established that money-laundering for Mexican drug cartels (and terrorists) will now be considered a civil offense. According to the New York Times, Federal and state authorities secured a record $1.92 billion payment from HSBC on Tuesday to settle charges that the …
U.S. Now Officially Part Of The Mexican Drug Trade Read More »
In a noble but misguided effort to assist troubled neighborhoods, Providence Mayor Angel Taveras is going with the Whack-a-Mole approach to our war on drugs; why he thinks this method will succeed is not known. Over the last several decades, as a result of various combined law enforcement efforts, cartels have been moving their smuggling …
In light of recent progress being made on the national front regarding marijuana reform, this documentary about the failed war on drugs could hardly have come at a better time. Let’s broaden the discussion and keep the momentum going on this topic. As America remains embroiled in conflict overseas, a less visible war is taking …