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

Not Just for Hippies Anymore ('Willamette Week'
Comments On Oregon Medical Marijuana Ballot Initiative
Expected To Be Filed This Week By Oregonians For Medical Rights -
Campaign To Be Run With Soros Money By Sugerman Group,
Silverton-Based Consulting Firm That Successfully Organized
Last Year's Death With Dignity Initiative Effort)

Willamette Week
Portland, Oregon
February 18, 1998
http://www.wweek.com/
letters to editor:
mzusman@wweek.com

***

Not Just for Hippies Anymore

The marijuana legalization movement in Oregon, for years
dominated by politically unsophisticated pot proponents, is
looking more respectable. This week, Oregonians for Medical
Rights will file a proposed initiative to legalize the growing and
using of marijuana for "debilitating medical conditions"
including multiple sclerosis, seizures and nausea associated with
chemotherapy. The group plans to finance its
signature-gathering campaign with help from billionaire
businessman George Soros, who has already funded a
successful medical-marijuana initiative in California.

Chief petitioner Rick Bayer, who for 15 years practiced
internal medicine in Lake Oswego, says his interest in medical
marijuana began 20 years ago. As an internist at the VA
Medical Center, Bayer recalls smelling marijuana smoke
coming from a lymphoma patient's room. After talking to
Vietnam vets and researching the topic, Bayer concluded pot
can be good medicine.

The campaign will be run by the Sugerman Group, the
Silverton-based consulting firm that ran last year's Death with
Dignity campaign. "It fits in with how I think we're all so stupid
in dealing with dying people," says Geoff Sugerman.

This will be the second infusion of Soros cash into Oregon in
the last 12 months. Last fall, he and two other out-of-state
businessmen dropped $100,000 on a signature-gathering push
to reverse the 1997 Legislature's decision to recriminalize less
than one ounce of marijuana. That referendum has qualified for
the November ballot. -MO [Maureen O'Hagan]

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Moose Seeks Job As Chief In Capital ('Oregonian' Article
About Portland Police Chief
Whose Son Was Arrested With Crack Cocaine Recently)

oregonlive.com
The Oregonian, February 18, 1998
letters@news.oregonian.com

Moose seeks job as chief in capital

Portland's chief of police since June 1993
confirms that he has applied for the top post in
Washington, D.C.

By Susan Gage
of The Oregonian staff

Portland Police Chief Charles Moose has applied
for the job of chief of police in Washington, D.C.

Moose, 44, who has been Portland's chief for
nearly five years, said he sees an opportunity to
join a new team and effect some change.

"I feel like as a member of this nation, it's just
very appalling that we continue to have the
problems on the ground level in Washington,
D.C., with regard to law enforcement there," he
said Tuesday.

"There's a real opportunity to go in and join that
team and really make a difference. It's not
something that I've sat here and wanted that job
and dreamed about it."

Stephen D. Harlan, vice chairman of the District
of Columbia's financial control board, which is
coordinating the search, would not comment
Tuesday night.

Moose said he applied for the job by the Jan. 16
deadline, but only his wife knew he had applied
until Tuesday. The Washington Post named
Moose as one of several applicants in an article
last week.

Moose informed his three assistant chiefs of his
application Tuesday morning. He has not
informed the rest of the bureau. He said he's
letting the search process in the district run its
course, and his main concern is that his
application will be a distraction from the business
of the Portland Police Bureau.

"I said to the mayor that I'm going to go through
this process, but she won't find me asleep at the
wheel or not working hard."

Mayor Vera Katz had no comment Tuesday.

Moose said it would be difficult to leave Portland.

"Portland's been very good to me, there's no
doubt about that," he said. "That's the toughest
part, but at the same hand I have often wondered
how I could do in an environment that I didn't
know as well as I know Portland."

Leo Painton, president of the rank-and-file police
union, the Portland Police Association, said he is
fed up with inconsistent decisions that come from
the chief and mayor, who also is the police
commissioner. He is indifferent about the
possibility of Moose leaving.

"Maybe it's time for a change, I don't know,"
Painton said. "At this point, I don't care one way
or another.

"I wish him luck, I guess. If he thinks it's bad
here. ..."

Painton said it will be difficult to predict the
reaction from his membership.

"It might be, 'So we're getting a new chief, so
what else is new?' " Painton said. "He's been here
longer than most chiefs."

Richard Brown, a member of the Chief's Forum
and a Northeast Portland activist, said Portland
would miss Moose because of his upstanding
ethics and his commitment to community
policing.

"I'd hate to see him leave, but I think he can do a
lot for policing and doing it from D.C. may be
better," Brown said.

On the other hand, he said, Portland should be
able to attract a good chief, and one who is
dedicated to community policing, should Moose
leave.

"If he leaves, we'll get somebody else," Brown
said. "The show must go on."

Moose said that as an outsider, he thinks he could
apply some of the strategies and techniques he's
seen work in Portland, which is regarded as a
national model of the philosophy of community
policing.

"Police and the community need to work
together," he said. "From my observation, it's
been a missing piece. But certainly there is all the
work that needs to be done with the staff and the
community before that could be implemented."

Moose has had a difficult two years, leading the
bureau through the deaths of two officers who
were shot and killed in the line of duty, and
dealing with controversies from the bureau's use
of cell phones to release of his own personnel file.
He said none of these contributed to his decision
to apply.

"Life plays into decisions," he said. "Is there any
trigger incident? No, there's not."

At times, those controversies have tested Moose's
patience. If selected for the district job, he'd be in
a national spotlight.

"I'd just be a little fish there, they have other
people to watch," Moose said. "However that
plays out, I just feel that if you're doing your job,
then people will pick up on that. If you're not, the
community or the media, or both, will discover
that and you really shouldn't be in the job."

This isn't the first time Moose has applied for a
high-profile job in the district. In September 1994,
Moose dropped out of consideration for the
federal Community Oriented Policing Service
program, a key component of President Clinton's
crime package.

At the time, Moose said he couldn't see himself in
that job.

This time, Moose said someone he knew in the
district area contacted him about the police chief
job, but he also went through the application
process on his own.

"You're not sure where fate takes you, but when
I looked at it, and as I thought about it, and as I
talked to the person who contacted me, it just
seemed to make sense right now," he said.

The district position became vacant with the
unexpected resignation of Larry Soulsby on Nov.
25 following a troubled 28-month term in which
the department faced criticism about unsolved
murders, lost evidence, excessive overtime and an
extortion scandal involving Soulsby's roommate.
The acting chief, Sonya T. Proctor, is a candidate
for the job, according to The Washington Post
article.

The Post reported that Moose was one of nearly
50 applicants and that a list of 10 finalists would
be chosen this week. Among the other applicants
identified in the story were Willie L. Williams,
former Los Angeles and Philadelphia police chief;
Benny N. Napoleon, second in command at the
Detroit Police Department; Joseph Samuels Jr.,
Oakland chief; and Terrance Gainer, Illinois State
Police director.

Moose was born and raised in North Carolina and
came to Portland in 1975 as an officer. He
became deputy chief in 1992 and chief in June
1993.

Asked about his chances for the new job, Moose
said, "I'd like to think that it's going to be a fair
and open process. If that's the case, I think I'd
have an excellent chance."

David R. Anderson and Michele Parente of The
Oregonian staff contributed to this report.

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Drugs A Health Problem, Not Criminal Problem (Letter To Editor
Of 'The Oregonian' By Dr. Richard Bayer, A Chief Petitioner
For Oregonians For Medical Rights' New Medical Marijuana Ballot Initiative)

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 15:02:27 EST
Originator: drctalk@drcnet.org
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: Anti-Prohibition Lg (aal@inetarena.com)
To: Multiple recipients of list (drctalk@drcnet.org)
Subject: PUB: LTE The Oregonian
Sender's note: Dr. Bayer, is one of the Chief Petitioners for Oregonians for
Medical Rights, a group working to provide medical access to cannabis.
He is a League supporter and as his letter attest, a stand-up
antiprohibitionist. Congratulations on your letter Dr. Bayer, keep up
the great work. Together we will succeed.

Pub: LTE
2/18/98
The Oregonian
(Portland)
letters@news.oregonian.com

DRUGS A HEALTH PROBLEM, NOT CRIMINAL PROBLEM

You have covered a great tragedy in which the life of another police
officer was lost while trying to enforce prohibition of marijuana in
our gun-crazed society. It is time that our police officers quit
paying the price for our failed political policy of interdiction of
drugs.

It is time for a national debate on drug policy. Many of us look at
substance abuse as a public health problem instead of a criminal
problem and believe we should be focusing on prevention rather than
interdiction and incarceration.

Joseph McNamara, former police chief of Kansas City, Mo., and San
Jose, Calif., had an essay published in National Review. Two of his
sentences sum up my point: "It's the money, stupid," and, "Sadly, the
police have been pushed into a war they did not start and cannot win."

In spite of massive government spending, record levels of arrests,
overflowing jails and dead police officers, cheaper and more plentiful
drugs are now available.

Please support efforts to look at substance abuse from a medical
perspective rather than a moral or law enforcement perspective. We do
not need any more of our brave police officers dying because of the
failed political policy of prohibition in the United States.

Richard Bayer, M.D.
Southwest Portland

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Medical Marijuana - Legal, But How Long? ('USA Today'
Notes State, Federal Governments Around The Country, Even In California,
Are Still Doing All They Can To Keep Medicine Away From Sick People)

Date: Wed, 25 Feb 1998 00:45:30 -0700
From: Steve Kubby 
Subject: USA Today: MEDICAL MARIJUANA--LEGAL, BUT HOW LONG?
USA Today: MEDICAL MARIJUANA--LEGAL, BUT HOW LONG?
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nfront.htm
(published) Wed, 18 Feb 1998

MEDICAL MARIJUANA: LEGAL, BUT HOW LONG?
by John Ritter, USA Today (Section: The Nation)

In 1996, California voters approved the drug for people who have a doctor's
recommendation, but the Justice Department has sued to keep it out of their
hands

SAN FRANCISCO -- More than a year after California became the first state
to legalize marijuana for medical purposes, its use by the terminally ill
is under assault from state and federal authorities.

As a result, medical marijuana advocates say many patients who need the
drug have a hard time getting it, and doctors are reluctant to recommend it
to patients for fear of losing their federal licenses to write
prescriptions.

Proposition 215, approved by California voters in 1996, permits doctors to
recommend marijuana for their patients. Technically, doctors don't
prescribe it because that would violate federal law.

But the U.S. Justice Department, maintaining that federal law prohibits any
use of marijuana, has sued to shut down the California cooperatives that
supply it to the sick. Marijuana advocates say this could have a chilling
effect on efforts in other states to legalize medical pot.

"The bottom line has been reinforced once more: Medical users can be sent
to prison." says Chuck Thomas, spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project
in Washington.

California's attorney general, Dan Lungren, also has been battling in state
courts for months to close the marijuana cooperatives. The co-ops, called
cannabis clubs, grow or purchase large quantities of marijuana, test it and
then sell it, at low cost, to members. In the state Legislature, there's a
move to put another measure before the voters to repeal 215.

Meanwhile, activists in at least six states and the District of Columbia
are gathering signatures to try to put medical marijuana measures on
November ballots. The six are Maine, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada and
Florida. In Washington, D.C., the issue is on the ballot for the second
time. Voters there turned down an initiative last November.

Arizona voters approved medical marijuana when California did in 1996, but
the state Legislature immediately nullified the vote. Bills to legalize
medical pot failed in a dozen legislatures last year.

Perhaps 40 marijuana co-ops operate openly around the country, many more
underground.

Nationally, the Washington based Marijuana Policy Project estimates that
tens of thousands of patients use pot to relieve the side effects of AIDS
and cancer drugs, chronic pain and glaucoma symptoms.

AIDS patients Jon Freeman has a written doctor's recommendation and buys
marijuana at the Cannabis Buyer's Cooperative in San Francisco. The co-op
and five others around the state are named in the federal civil lawsuit.

Freeman says he'd have few options if the government shuts off his supply
of the only drug that allows him to function.

"I'd have to buy it on the street, but it from some dope dealer," says
Freeman, 32. "That would be dangerous, and you never know about the
quality. You don't know what it's been sprayed with."

California's law leaves it up to doctors to judge which patients would
benefit from marijuana. But with a doctor's letter of recommendation, a
patient can legally grow for personal use.

Proposition 215 provides an automatic defense against a criminal charge of
possession.

After Proposition 215 passed, federal officials threatened to revoke the
prescription-writing authority of any doctor who recommended pot for
patients. But doctors filed a class-action suit and last April won a
preliminary injunction against federal sanctions. Marijuana clubs and
co-ops emerged in the 1980's to provide reliable, non-street sources of
marijuana to the sick.

They operated underground or with the tacit approval of local police before
215. But because the measure made no mention of co-ops, their legal status
is disputed.

Lungren, a Republican candidate for governor, has argued that 215 legalizes
patient use only, not co-ops. A state appeals court ruling in December
backed him up, but the San Francisco co-op is appealing to the state
Supreme Court.

Many local authorities oppose co-ops. Last month, the Orange County
district attorney brought felony charges against the operator of a Santa
Ana marijuana co-op.

Dennis Peron, the San Francisco co-op founder and co-author of 215, has
been a lightning rod in the state's ongoing pot wars. He calls the federal
suit "a slap in the face of California voters."

"We're selling pot to sick and dying people," he says. "If they close us,
what they'll get is 8,000 people trying to buy pot in the park." A March 24
hearing is scheduled in federal court in San Francisco.

"Dennis has refused to play by the rules and it's hurting the rest of us,"
says Scott Imler, director of the Los Angeles, Cannabis Resource Center in
West Hollywood. "It's unfortunate for the movement."

Imler, co-author with Peron of 215, thinks at least half of San Francisco
club members aren't legitimate patients.

But Peron has his defenders. "I support Dennis because none of us would be
here if he hadn't done what he did," says Jeff Jones, director of the
Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative. "He's doing very good community
service."

Federal court papers say undercover agents repeatedly bought marijuana at
the six clubs, but Peron claims entrapment. He says agents had doctors'
letters, but when the club called to verify them, "the narcs were on the
other end of line."

In fact, some California co-ops work hand in hand with the authorities.
"If the goal is to make sure medical marijuana doesn't get out of hand,
then co-ops are the way to regulate it," says Dan Abrahamson, a lawyer for
doctors in the class-action suit "Generally, police find it
counterproductive to crack down on good co-ops."

Gregory King, a Justice Department spokesman in Washington, says civil
instead of criminal charges were filed against co-ops in "a deliberate
attempt to take a measured approach."

Still, medical marijuana supporters think doctors now will be even more
reluctant to recommend pot, and more patients will be driven underground to
acquire it.

Freeman says the AIDS drug AZT makes his bones ache and leaves him
nauseated. It makes him feel agitated and takes away his appetite.

"The medicine makes me not want to get out of bed," he says.

"But I can come down here and smoke, and I want to eat and that helps me
maintain my weight. I buy pot here, and I know it's going to help my body."

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

Feds Say Arrests Break Green Bay Drug Ring - Nine Indicted On Charges
Of Selling Cocaine As Gang Expanded From Chicago
('Milwaukee Journal Sentinel' On Federal Bust In Wisconsin)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 16:43:45 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: Olafur Brentmar 
Subject: MN: US WI: Feds Say Arrests Break Green Bay Drug Ring
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Frank S. World" 
Pubdate: Wed 18 Feb 1998
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Contact: jsedit@onwis.com
Fax: (414) 224-8280
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/

Feds say arrests break Green Bay drug ring
Nine indicted on charges of selling cocaine as gang expanded from Chicago

By Dave Daley
of the Journal Sentinel
February 18, 1998

Federal authorities say they have dismantled a major drug ring that moved
into Green Bay two years ago, arresting a man they called the leader of a
Chicago street gang and eight other alleged gang members and associates.

Indicted on Tuesday was Earl Miller, 35. Federal authorities claimed that
he was a "five-star general" in the Conservative Vice Lords that they say
is a branch of the drug-trafficking Chicago street gang called the Vice
Lords.

Jack Riley, head of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration's Wisconsin
office, called Miller "the franchise holder" for the Chicago gang's attempt
to expand its operations into the Green Bay area.

"You had a guy looking for virgin territory, and he found it," Riley said.
"This is the first time we've seen the Conservative Vice Lords up in Green
Bay in force. We've had bits and pieces before, but this is the first time
we've seen an NFL team there, so to speak."

Riley called the case one of the biggest gang investigations in Wisconsin
outside of Milwaukee.

"They're going to move where they can sell their wares," Riley said. "They
really turned their neighborhood into a drug marketplace."

A federal grand jury in Milwaukee on Tuesday also returned drug-trafficking
indictments against eight others, including two of Miller's brothers, Floyd
Miller, 31, of Ashwaubenon, and Garry Miller, 30, of Green Bay.

In a criminal complaint filed in federal court against Earl Miller, the
Drug Enforcement Administration alleges that after being released from an
Illinois prison, Earl Miller moved to Green Bay in the summer of 1996,
where he joined his two brothers already in the city.

Out of an apartment in the 300 block of Leeland Street on the city's west
side, the three began dealing in powder and crack cocaine, with Earl Miller
traveling to Chicago weekly to obtain as much as 5 ounces of cocaine, the
complaint says.

The complaint says that Earl Miller liked dealing in Green Bay because he
could sell cocaine for $2,500 an ounce there, compared with the going rate
of only $800 an ounce in Chicago.

The complaint also says that one of Earl Miller's cocaine suppliers in
Chicago was a member of the Blackstone gang who was selling half a kilogram
-- about 18 ounces -- for $10,000. A second supplier was a Conservative
Vice Lords gang member operating out of Rockford, Ill., the complaint says.

Among the eight others indicted was Earl Miller's girlfriend, Alshanda
Sims, 19, who kept some of his cocaine at her Green Bay apartment and also
sold powder and crack cocaine herself, the complaint says.

Riley said arrests also were made in Chicago and Florida and more arrests
were expected.

Earl Miller and the other eight who were indicted Tuesday are in Wisconsin
jails. All face up to life in prison if convicted. Riley credited the Brown
County Sheriff's Department and the Wisconsin Department of Justice's
division of narcotics enforcement with helping in the investigation.

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

Tavern League Rejects Proposal On License Fee ('Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'
Says Tavern League Of Wisconsin Rejects Compromise Over New
Law Requiring Municipalities To Charge $10,000 Fee For New Tavern Licenses)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 16:43:45 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: Olafur Brentmar 
Subject: MN: US WI: Tavern League Rejects Proposal On License Fee
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Frank S. World" 
Pubdate: Wed 18 Feb 1998
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Author: Amy Rinard of the Journal Sentinel
Contact: jsedit@onwis.com
Fax: (414) 224-8280
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/

TAVERN LEAGUE REJECTS PROPOSAL ON LICENSE FEE

Leader brushes aside compromise that would let communities set cost

Madison -- A compromise offered by three Waukesha County legislators to
resolve the controversy over a new law requiring municipalities to charge a
$10,000 fee for new tavern licenses was rejected Tuesday by the Tavern
League of Wisconsin.

Pete Madland, president of the Tavern League, said he wanted to see the new
law left in place for at least one year before lawmakers consider changing
it.

The Alliance of Cities and League of Wisconsin Municipalities have endorsed
the compromise announced last week by Assembly Majority Leader Steven Foti
(R-Oconomowoc), Rep. Frank Urban (R-Brookfield) and Sen. Margaret Farrow
(R-Elm Grove).

Under that compromise, communities would be allowed to set the fee for
liquor licenses anywhere from $500 to $10,000.

But Madland and others in the tavern industry made it clear during a
hearing before the Assembly State Affairs Committee on Tuesday that the new
law is needed to add value to existing taverns, many of which are
struggling financially.

They said the law will encourage people who want to open a bar or a
restaurant that serves alcohol to buy an existing tavern business instead
of applying for a new liquor license. The fee to buy an existing license
remains at $500.

The law, which went into effect Dec. 1, also is designed to make existing
licenses more valuable by reducing by half the number of unused liquor
licenses available in each municipality.

"You have a chance to keep the status quo and help out 13,000
small-business owners, or you can change the law to please a bunch of
municipal officials who don't like being dictated to," Madland told
legislators. "To me it's a no-brainer."

Municipal officials, including several from communities where the new law
has been ignored or circumvented, said the law should be repealed. They
argued that setting of liquor license fees should be a local decision.

Charles Hargan, Germantown village president, said he felt bad for the
small, family-owned taverns in financial trouble.

"But there are also ma and pa farms struggling, and ma and pa stores," he
said. "We can't go out and help everybody."

Delafield City Administrator Scott Botcher said at issue is what kind of
role state government should play in the state economy.

"I don't believe the state of Wisconsin can be the big brother to every
small-business owner," he said.

Brookfield Mayor Kate Bloomberg also said that reducing the number of
liquor licenses available in each municipality could force some communities
to choose between small entrepreneurs and big operators when granting
licenses.

But Jay Ross, president of the Waukesha County Tavern League, echoed the
sentiments of many of the tavern owners who testified Tuesday when he
criticized municipal officials for refusing to obey the new law.

The committee took no action Tuesday on a bill proposed to repeal the new
law or on the proposed compromise.

Foti said he would continue to push for legislative action on the
compromise. He said waiting a year to see how the existing law works "is
not common sense."

Foti said he was optimistic the Assembly would act on the issue before the
floor session ends in March. The legislation also could be taken up if a
special session of the Legislature is held in April or May, he added.

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

Owner Facing Trial Keeps Liquor License ('Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'
Says Utilities And Licenses Committee Recommends Milwaukee Grocer
Keep Liquor License Pending Outcome Of Trial For 42 Cases Of Stolen Whiskey
Found In Basement)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 16:43:45 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: Olafur Brentmar 
Subject: MN: US WI: Owner Facing Trial Keeps Liquor License
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Frank S. World" 
Pubdate: Wed 18 Feb 1998
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Author: Tom Held of the Journal Sentinel staff
Contact: jsedit@onwis.com
Fax: (414) 224-8280
Website: http://www.jsonline.com/

OWNER FACING TRIAL KEEPS LIQUOR LICENSE

The owner of the Foodtown Super Market will keep his liquor license, at
least until a jury decides whether he was responsible for the 42 cases of
stolen whiskey found in his store's basement.

The Utilities and Licenses Committee recommended Tuesday that the grocer's
license be renewed for one year, pending the outcome of the criminal case
against him. Tareq Hamed, who has owned the store for three years, is
scheduled to be tried May 11 on a charge of receiving stolen property in a
criminal case that dates to January 1997.

Police discovered the cache of Crown Royal locked in a storage room at
Foodtown, 6608 W. Fond du Lac Ave., while investigating the theft of the
top-shelf whiskey from Capitol-Husting Co. Inc., 12001 W. Carmen Ave.

Workers at the liquor distributor admitted stealing the whiskey and selling
it to a man at Foodtown. One of the workers told aldermen on the licensing
panel that Hamed himself paid for the whiskey with $8,000 he removed from
the store safe.

But Hamed denied any knowledge of the alleged transaction and has
maintained that he does not know how the liquor wound up in his basement.

Last month, the licensing panel voted to deny the renewal of Hamed's
license, but the full Common Council didn't agree and sent the issue back
to the committee. Aldermen feared Hamed would sue the city if he lost his
license but was acquitted of the felony charge.

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

Johnnie Mae Brown - Update (Adam J. Smith Of Drug Reform Coordination Network
Asks Activists To Take 10 Minutes To Write Letter To Parole Board
About Incarceration Of Woman In New Jersey For Fleeing Drug Treatment
In 1972)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 17:56:45 EST
Originator: drctalk@drcnet.org
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: "Adam J. Smith" 
To: Multiple recipients of list 
Subject: FWC: johnnie mae brown: update

Friends,

As reported (twice) in previous issues of The Week Online, a strong
response is needed in order to gain the freedom of Johnnie Mae Brown,
currently being incarcerated in New Jersey on a warrant issued in 1972 for
fleeing drug treatment. In reading the update below, please note that
letters should be polite, as the parole board has not yet heard this case.

PLEASE PLEASE take the ten minutes necessary to write a letter (contact
info below) in support of this woman, whose life is being destroyed after
more than 8 years of productive sobriety. A more detailed account of Ms.
Brown's story can be found at http://www.drcnet.org/rapid/1998/1-30.html

It would be wonderful if you could also send a copy of your letter to Ms.
Brown herself, who is desperate to know that people are working to secure
her release. You can tell her (but not the parole board) that you heard
about her case from us.

thanks for your concern.

- adam

JOHNNIE MAE BROWN: UPDATE

Johnnie Mae Brown, a friend of Imani Woods, has been incarcerated in the
Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Clinton, N.J. since early
December. She was convicted in 1972 on simple drug possession charges
and "escaped" from the drug treatment facility to which she was remanded
by the court some time later. Since then Johnnie "got sober", has been
employed by the city of New York for eight years and has had her own
apartment. Returning from a vacation to Portugal, Spain and Morocco
(sounds good, doesn't it?) she was arrested at JFK airport, held at Riker's
Island for a few days and then was extradited to N.J.

Johnnie Mae will, at some point, be given a hearing with the parole board.
That could happen early in March. Should the parole board decide to let
her go, she could be released in early April. None of that is guaranteed
although indications make it seem likely. To Johnnie Mae, another two
months in this human warehouse could seem like an eternity. She doesn't
know if she'll still have a job when she is released. Friends are trying to pay
enough towards her rent that she'll still have her apartment. And, her high
blood pressure, which she had been controlling with proper diet and
exercise, has been acting up.

Your help and support are still needed. Johnnie has received several letters
from supporters who have also written thoughtful (not angry and
demanding) letters to the parole board. These gestures are going a long
way towards keeping her centered and hopeful, and we think the letters to
the parole board are helpful. It is very important to keep in mind that
Johnnie's fate is in the hands of the parole board. She may not have a
lawyer present at a hearing and the attorneys I've spoken with here say
there is little hope for relief from a court -- arguments could be made on
compassionate grounds, but this IS New Jersey.

Johnnie Mae can receive books (apparently magazines are being
confiscated) and food (as long as it is in the original sealed package).
Money orders made payable to her can be deposited into her commissary
account so that she can have snacks and toiletries. Her friends would be
grateful for some help with paying her rent, as well.

If you can lend some support, call or email me and/or write directly to her
and/or the parole board member whose office is at the prison. Copies of
letters to the parole board should be sent to Johnnie Mae or me, as well.
We are trying to document as much of this experience as possible.

Thanks for your attention and consideration.

Diana McCague
The N.J. Harm Reduction Coalition
P.O. Box 1470, New Brunswick, NJ 08903
(732) 247-7014
DMcca1003@aol.com

Letters should be addressed to:
Cheryl Rondelli, Parole Director
Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women
P.O. Box 404
Clinton, NJ 08809-4404.

Johnnie Mae Brown, #98-29
(same address)

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

Alternative To Drug Tip-Line (Letter To Editor Of 'The Aegis,'
In Bel Air, Maryland, In Response To '1-888 To Help Bust Your Friends'
Suggests Offering Middle And High School Students $1,000 For Each Friend
They Turn In For Illegal Drugs Is Likely To Have Harmful Social Consequences)

Subj: PUBLISHED in The Aegis, February 18, 1998
From: "Kevin Fansler" (kfansler@erols.com)
Date: Fri, 27 Feb 1998 10:44:07 -0500

This letter appeared in the February 18, 1998 edition.

The Aegis: Letters to the Editor
10 Hays Street
P.O. Box 189
Bel Air, MD 21014-0189

Title: Alternative to drug tip-line.

In the February 3 of the Aegis, were two letters protesting an Aegis
January 21 front-page article headlined "1-888-to help bust your
friends" as an unappreciated attempt at humor. But the tragic truth
hinted at by the humor is apparent to me and viewpoints different from
those of the proponents for our present drug policy need to be heard.

In middle and high school, students bond into bands with some students
moving more-or-less freely from one band to at least one other band.
Social interaction promotes appreciation and understanding of other
students. On the other hand, isolated students can foment tragedies, as
occurred at a school where a student shot and killed fellow students.

The use of the reward tip-line will encourage more secrecy. More
restricted communications will increase isolation of bands and their
individual members, possibly increasing drug use. Non-using students
must avoid being setup by budding entrepreneurs or enemies for the $1000
reward. The world becomes a more hard-edged nasty place to live in.

At the same time such implicit prohibitions can increase the allure of
the forbidden fruit for some of the most skeptical and adventurous of
our youth. Do we want to misdirect the flower of our youth?

If one of our children is arrested, the chances of being jailed with
violent adult offenders are rising with "get tough" legislation that has
been approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee. A child is eight times
more likely to commit suicide in an adult jail than in a juvenile
detention center.

What should we do then? Decriminalize drugs thereby destroying the
thriving black market where our underage youth are procuring drugs mixed
even with cement. Marijuana is sometimes sprayed with harmful
weed-killers supplied by our government. But decriminalization will not
occur for several years, not until people discover that to win the war
on drugs America would need to become one of the evil empires that we
have decried.

Meanwhile and even after decriminalization of drugs arrives, the family,
community, and the schools must instill hope, meaning, and a purpose to
our children's lives. We must also demand that they behave in a civil
respectful manner to both their elders and their peers. For us to do
otherwise would constitute neglect. The present drug policy is not only
a cornerstone in the edifice of our neglect but also forms a wedge
between the young and the old.

We can give them a real world that is more attractive than the virtual
world offered by heavy use of drugs and alcohol.

Sincerely

Kevin Fansler

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

Going To Pot ('Cityview,' In Des Moines Says New Law Proposed
By Republican Iowa State Representatives Jeff Lamberti, Joseph Kremer
And G. Willard Jenkins Would Make A Third Conviction For Marijuana Possession
A Crime Equivalent To Serious Assault Or Pedophilia)

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 18:43:14 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)
Subject: MN: US IA: Going To Pot
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Carl E. Olsen" 
Source: Cityview (Des Moines, IA)
Contact: cityview@mail.commonlink.com
Fax: 515-288-0309
Pubdate: Wed, 18 Feb 1998
Page 10

GOING TO POT

A new bill would treat even casual pot smokers with the same severity as
pedophiles

[With photo: A person convicted two or more times for simple marijuana
possession could face up to two years in prison and a $5.000 fine.]

By Geoff S. Fein

In an attempt to stop drug dealers who have learned to get around the law,
some legislators want to increase penalties for simple marijuana
possession. If the bill passes, even the occasional user might face long
prison sentences and big fines.

The proposal from Representatives Jeff Lamberti (R-Ankeny), Joseph Kremer
(R-Jessup) and G. Willard Jenkins (R-Waterloo), would make a third
conviction for smoking marijuana a crime equivalent to serious assault or
indecent contact with a child. Currently, a person convicted of simple
possession faces a maximum sentence of six months in jail and/or a fine of
up to $1,000.

The problem with the law, Lambertie says, is that there are no increased
penalties for repeat offenders. "If you haven't learned after two times,"
Lamberti says, "how many times are we going to give you?"

Under the proposal, a second conviction for simple possession would result
in up to a year in jail. Two or more convictions could mean a prison
sentence of up to two years and a $5,000 fine. (A similar conviction for
possession of any other illegal drug could result in a sentence of up to
five years and up to a $7,500 fine.)

The goal, Lamberti says, is to stop dealers who have learned to skirt the law.

"They've figured out that if they carry smaller amounts of drugs they can
only be arrested for simple possession. They're thumbing their nose at the
law."

"City leaders said they wanted stiffer penalties for repeat violators,"
Jenkins adds.

Leon Mosley, a Black Hawk County Supervisor, says if legislators want to
stop drugs sales, they'll have to come up with laws that hit dealers in
their wallets.

"The answer is not a little fine. If you're dealing with thousands of
dollars, the fine should be appropriate," he says. "We've got to quit
thinking they are poor kids. We need to make the penalty fit the crime."

Some, like Carl Olsen, head of the Iowa chapter of the National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, say the current law is too
severe and attempts to increase the penalties are draconian.

"This is incredibly harsh. It's like a witch hunt. If you don't want
people to use it, come up with reasonable regulations."

And Olsen disagrees that smoking marijuana is hazardous.

"There are a lot like me who used marijuana and have had no serious health
risks," he says. "It doesn't justify this sort of treatment."

Moreover, the proposal would ensnare dealers and casual users alike.
Defense attorneys say increased prosecutions could burden an already
overcrowded court system, particularly when those facing second and third
possession charges opt for jury trials instead of pleading.

Since the onset of the War on Drugs in the '80s, the country's prison
population has exploded. About 60 percent of the inmate population are in
for drug offenses.

Yet Polk County Attorney John Sarcone says smoking pot isn't a victimless crime.

"We're not going to provide a marketplace for selling dope," he says.
"Marijuana is not the benign drug that people think it is."

Defense lawyers fear the proposal will hurt people in need of treatment.
Instead of rehabilitation, users will end up behind bars.

"To put someone away for a felony for an addiction is an overreaction,"
says Des Moines attorney Dean Stowers.

Attorney Maggi Moss says legislators have focused on the wrong direction.
They should be making laws tougher on violent criminals, not on drug users.

"We need to get tough on crime, but not on a guy smoking a joint," she
says. "Any state with any amount of insight should know that to build more
prisons to house drug offenders... it doesn't work."

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

DrugWar! (Live Call-In World Wide Web Netcast Via RealAudio 5-6 PM Friday,
February 20, Features Author Peter McWilliams)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 09:18:35 EST
Originator: drctalk@drcnet.org
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: Peter Webster 
To: Multiple recipients of list 
Subject: DRUG WAR!

Forwarded:

DrugWar!

Via live streaming Real Audio.

Join media assaultant Chavo Slim and mystic-barrister-groundskeeper Richard
Glen Boire as they dissect the nation's #1 Big Lie, the drug war.

DrugWar! is a lively, hyperkinetic Netcast covering the facts and philosophy
behind drugs and their prohibition. Drug War! features discussion and debate
with prominent and not so prominent guests from the panoply of the drug war
arena.

Culture jamming and curmudgeon-style ranting form the arsenal of the day.
All in a bed of cool sounds and live callers. Join in, be heard.

Next show is February 20, 1998, from 5-6 Pacific Coast Time. Our guest will
be author Peter McWilliams.

Click this link: http://home.cwnet.com/specmind/page15.html to go to the
DrugWar! web page.

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

Second Athlete Tests Positive For Marijuana In Nagano ('Reuters'
Says Unnamed Olympic Athlete Won't Face Sanctions - IOC's De Merode
Says There Is Evidence Of Widespread Marijuana Use By Athletes -
Four Positive Tests At Summer Olympics, One In Seoul In 1988,
One In Barcelona In 1992 And Two In Atlanta In 1996,
Though No Marijuana Positives At Previous Winter Games)

Date: Fri, 20 Feb 1998 17:56:27 EST
Originator: drctalk@drcnet.org
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: Todd McCormick (todd@a-vision.com)
To: Multiple recipients of list (drctalk@drcnet.org)
Subject: No action will be taken against the athlete

Wednesday February 18 11:21 PM EDT

Second athlete tests positive for marijuana in Nagano

By Stephen Parry

NAGANO, Feb 19 (Reuters) - A second athlete has tested positive for
marijuana at the Winter Olympics but will not face sanctions, the IOC
announced on Thursday.

Prince Alexandre de Merode, chairman of the medical commission of the
International Olympic Committee (IOC), declined to name the athlete or
the sport involved when he announced the positive test at a news
conference.

No action will be taken against the athlete following a ruling by an
independent arbitration panel that overturned the disqualification
of Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati, who tested positive for
marijuana earlier in the Games.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that Rebagliati's gold medal
should be restored because there had been no legal basis for testing for
marijuana.

Referring to the second positive test, de Merode said: ``We didn't publicise
it. There was no reason to enter into any further detail. The CAS ruling
prevents me from commenting any further.''

He added that the IOC had been tracking marijuana use at the Olympics for the
past 10 years and said there had been four positive tests at the Summer
Olympics -- one in Seoul in 1988, one in Barcelona in 1992 and two in Atlanta
in 1996 -- although no action was taken against the athletes concerned. There
had been no marijuana positives at previous Winter Games.

In response to a question, de Merode also disclosed that the medical
commission had received a confidential report from the IOC-accredited
testing laboratory in Montreal in December which indicated a high level of
marijuana in a urine sample taken from Rebagliati.

But he said this did not relate directly to the Rebagliati affair at the
Nagano Games and added: ``I am not going to question the discretion
of the Canadian authorities.''

However, the Montreal finding threw into question Rebagliati's claims in
Nagano that he had given up cannabis 10 months ago and had tested
positive at the Games because he had inhaled second-hand smoke.

The news conference was held after the first meeting of the newly-formed IOC
working group set up to clarify policy on the use of marijuana in sport. The
group, chaired by IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch, was set up in
direct response to the muddled rules revealed by the Rebagliati case.

Marijuana is not believed to enhance performance but the IOC is seeking
to prevent it ``and other socially reprehensible drugs'' being used in sport.

De Merode said there was evidence of widespread marijuana use by
athletes. He added that the IOC wanted to convey the message that
marijuana, as well as other hallucinogenic drugs such as crack-cocaine
and heroin, endangered health and threatened sports performance.

He noted that the use of marijuana in a sport such as gymnastics could
cause loss of balance resulting in pulled hamstrings and other injuries.

The marijuana working group is seeking to close existing loopholes by
drawing up a new unified doping code to be presented at a meeting of
the IOC executive board in Sydney in April, including a ban on marijuana.

This would only be effective with the support of the international
sports federations who have different rules on different drugs, including
marijuana.

De merode said he was confident that unanimous support could be achieved.
But others within the IOC have suggested that the inclusion of marijuana
could threaten the process of obtaining a common approach to
performance-enhancing drugs such as steroids and growth hormones.

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

IOC Divided Over Marijuana Issue ('Reuters'
Quotes International Olympic Committee Leaders In Nagano, Japan,
Saying They Are Determined To Push For Bans On 'Social' Drugs
Such As Marijuana Despite Fears It Might Hamper Progress
Of International Campaign Against Performance-Enhancing 'Doping')

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 18:50:22 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)
Subject: MN: Japan: WIRE: IOC Divided Over Marijuana Issue
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Dick Evans" 
Source: Reuters
Pubdate: Wed, 18 Feb 1998

IOC DIVIDED OVER MARIJUANA ISSUE

NAGANO, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Olympic leaders said on Wednesday they were
determined to push for ``social'' drugs like marijuana to be banned despite
fears that the initiative might hamper the progress of an important
international campaign against doping.

Leading International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Kevan Gosper said he
supported a proposal by medical chief Prince Alexandre de Merode to put the
drugs on the IOC's list of banned substances even though they are not
performance-enhancing.

Some IOC officials believe the move threatens to hamper key talks this year
between the IOC and sports federations about a new medical code aimed at
introducing common bans for cheats. Some international federations are
against marijuana bans.

But IOC executive board member Gosper said: ``If we backed off because of
opposition from international federations it would be a sign of weakness.
Our job is to set a standard.''

Another IOC official, unwilling to be identified, countered: ``It could
cause complications in harmonising the rules.

``The number one goal of the new medical code should be to stop doping. We
are against marijuana but it should not be on the list of prohibited
substances as a doping agent.''

De Merode made the proposal after the muddled Ross Rebagliati affair
involving marijuana at the Nagano Olympics.

The Canadian snowboarder was stripped of his gold medal by the IOC after a
positive test but won an appeal after skiing officials said they had not
asked the IOC to test for marijuana.

The IOC presently tests for social drugs only if a federation demands it.
De Merode's attempts to toughen the rules have received a mixed reception,
however.

``From informal discussions within the IOC I see a tendency for marijuana
and other drugs to be banned regardless of the performance-enhancing
question,'' Germany's IOC executive board member Thomas Bach said. ``I
sense support for this.''

But the other IOC official said: ``This is a health problem. It has nothing
to do with doping.''

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

Rebagliati Warns Kids Against Marijuana ('Vancouver Sun'
Quotes 26-Year-Old British Columbian Snowboarder
Who Nearly Lost His Olympic Gold Medal After Traces Of Marijuana
Were Found In His Urine, Saying He Won't Smoke Pot Again
And Warning Children Against Same - Will Leave
Issue Of Legalizing Pot Up To Politicians And Won't Tell Adults -
Such As His Friends - Whether To Smoke Or Not)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 08:00:43 -0800
From: Matt Elrod 
To: mattalk@listserv.islandnet.com
Subject: Canada: Rebagliati warns kids against marijuana
Newshawk: creator@mapinc.org
Source: Vancouver Sun
Contact: sunletters@pacpress.southam.ca
Pubdate: February 18, 1998
Author: Lori Culbert Vancouver Sun

REBAGLIATI WARNS KIDS AGAINST MARIJUANA

The Whistler snowboarder, who came home to a hero's welcome Monday
night, says he won't smoke pot again.

Whistler's snowboarding gold medallist Ross Rebagliati says he won't
smoke pot again and warned children against smoking marijuana.

"I don't want to see kids think that they could smoke drugs and live a
good life," Rebagliati said early today after he arrived late Monday
night at Vancouver International Airport.

The 26-year-old snowboarder nearly lost his Olympic gold medal last week
after traces of marijuana were found in his urine. Rebagliati has said
he hasn't smoked since April but that he inhaled second-hand smoke at a
recent party.

Rebagliati told dozens of reporters from across Canada that he'd leave
the issue of legalizing pot up to politicians and wouldn't tell adults --
such as his friends -- whether to smoke or not.

He doesn't think the publicity around the issue has hurt him, and
maintains Jay Leno invited him on The Tonight Show Monday night because
he is the first person to win a gold medal in snowboarding.

"I think any press is good press. I think good press is better than bad
press, but I don't think this has hurt much," he said.

Rebagliati maintains snowboarding was ready to become a full-fledged
Olympic sport without having a demonstration period. However, he said he
was not warned by officials that second-hand smoke is dangerous.

Rebagliati has hired an agent and has heard from companies, such as
Nike, that want him to endorse their products. There have even been acting
offers. So far he hasn't agreed to anything, he said.

"Everybody's interested," said the boarder who had no sponsors when he
left for Nagano.

Today he heads to his hometown of Whistler for a massive celebration,
which is expected to attract as many as 5,000 people. His goal for later
this year is to win the World Cup title in snowboarding.

Rebagliati's mother, Lynda Partone, greeted her son at the airport. The
jubilant mother said she never lost faith that her son would keep his
medal, but added if Rebagliati knew the danger of second-hand smoke he
would have taken extra precautions.

"Next time [athletes] go to the Olympics I hope they all know the rules
and dangers of second-hand smoke," Partone said, adding that she knew --
but didn't approve -- that her son smoked pot until last April.

Dozens of Canadian flag-waving fans came to the airport to greet the new
hero. Monica Walker, 19, of West Vancouver said Rebagliati is a role model
for any Canadian. "Marijuana, which is not a performance-enhancing drug,
shouldn't have been an issue," she said.

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

My Favourite Letter (List Subscriber Passes Along Letter From Ninth-Grade
Student To 'Toronto Sun' Regarding Olympic Snowboarder And Cannabis
Consumer Who Won Gold Medal)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 11:19:43 -0500 (EST)
From: "Kelly T. Conlon" 
To: mattalk@islandnet.com
Subject: My favourite letter

Published in the Toronto Sun, 18th Feb. 1998;

THE CONTROVERSY over an Olympic athlete with minute amounts of marijuana
in his system being a possible bad example for youth is minor in comparison
to the example set by Sen. Andrew Thompson. As a young person I have
always been told that by attending school regularly and maintaining my
integrity I might be able to attain a good life. Sen. Thompson, a member of
one of our country's most important institutions (one we are studying in
Grade 9), mocks the good intentions of hard-working youth by missing
449 of 461 Senate sessions while collecting an annual salary of $75,000. I used
to want to grow up to be an Olympic athlete but perhaps if I take Thompson's
example I might try for the easy life in the Senate!

Lee Wakelin

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

Rebagliati On Jay Leno (List Subscriber Posts Synopsis Of Appearances
On 'Jay Leno' And "Conan O'Brien' Television Talk Shows
By Olympic Snowboarder Whose Gold Medal Was Almost Stripped
Due To Positive Urine Test For Cannabis)

Date: Wed, 18 Feb 1998 02:13:25 -0800
To: mattalk@islandnet.com
From: Chris Clay 
Subject: Re: Rebagliati on Jay Leno

At 11:09 AM 2/17/98 -0500, Kelly T. Conlon wrote:

>Talkers,
>
>Did anyone happen to catch Ross Rebagliati on Jay Leno last night? I saw a
>short clip this morning of his appearence on CBC Newsworld.
>
>This is quickly becoming one major PR fiasco for the prohibitionists.

Someone wrote a review on another list I'm on... See below. - Chris

>Did anyone catch Ross Rebagliati on Jay Leno last night?

Yes, he was very charming, and politely explained his saga. He mentioned
that a member of the French royal family, who is head of the 25-member IOC
medical board, was very helpful. He said that he had not smoked marijuana
since April 1997. Leno congratulated him for his honesty. The requisite
anti-drug "what have you learned from this" question was answered in
characteristic vagueness. "You make choices in life...some are good, some
are bad...situations can come up...you will have to deal with it." In other
words, be careful, you may be caught someday. He was expecting 20,000
people at a welcome home parade in today his hometown of Whistler, BC, pop.
6500. Leno got a laugh with his Ross Nickelbagliatti joke, but did a lousy
job at the "Clinton smoked but didn't inhale, you inhaled but didn't smoke"
joke. He came out in his letterman jacket, showed the medal.

Bagliatti said his reaction to finding out he tested positive, was, "Holy
smokes, this isn't good."

Holy smoke?" Leno said.

RR: "The last time I smoked was April 1997 (giggles from the audience)

JL: No no I think you're being very honest--so you had smoked but..

RR: Yeah, I'm not here to hide anything. That's the fact. I stopped.
There's rules, and you've got to follow the rules, and I'm all over that.

Leno asked how much marijuana they had found in his system, and Rebagliati
replied, a billionth of a gram. Leno Turns to his band leader and asks,
"Kev, how much is a billionth of a gram going for?

Kev (laughs) "not much, Jay".

He reiterated being exposed to second hand smoke in Whistler.

Leno replied, "So unlike Clinton, you inhaled and didn't smoke, he smoked
and didn't inhale (laughter and applause)

Leno reiterated: "I admire your honesty. You said you smoked as a young
man, you put it away becuase of the Olympics."

Rebagliati said wen he got the news that he would keep the medal it was
6:30 at night at a Japanese police station after 7 hours of interrogation
("they wanted to know what's the deal")

Prince Samaron (sp?) head of the
medical commission voted for him from the beginning.

The fact that it's not a stimulant or a performance enhancer was mentioned.

RR: "You have a life to live. You have to live with the consequences. Some
things are going to come about that you don't expect and you have to deal
with that later.. . .I wouldn't have given it back.

It's a great victory for human rights, as well as dispelling forever the
myth that marijuana smokers are dysfunctional. (Anyone who disagrees can
challenge Ross to a run down the hill.)

Much funnier was Conan O'Brien's "Tokey the Anti-Drug Bong" Tokey's my name
and hating drugs is my game. Kids, don't smoke marijuana it causes memory
loss, impotence (ooh), delayed reaction time, and marijuana can lead to
harder drugs. ... (Conan asks what the smoke is) that's my sweet, sweet
marijuana smoke. I mean I'm a bong, it happens, it's natural.. . I might be
giving the kids a mixed message... Man, it does smell good. (laughter)

HEMP NATION
http://www.hempnation.com/

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

Howard Under Fire Over Plans For Police ('Canberra Times' Says
Australian Prime Minister John Howard's Promise To Review Funding
For Federal Police Is Too Slow For Critics, Who Want Immediate Action,
Saying Federal Government Cut Funding For Law Enforcement By $110 Million,
$44 Million In Last Budget, Reducing Spending On Drug Interdiction
To Extent That Some Ports Have No Customs Presence At Night)

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 20:08:25 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)
Subject: MN: Australia: Howard Under Fire Over Plans For Police
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: "Russell, Ken KW" 
Source: Canberra Times
Contact: letters.editor@canberratimes.com.au
Website: http://www.canberratimes.com.au/
Pubdate: Wed 18 Feb 1998
Author: Peter Clack

HOWARD UNDER FIRE OVER PLANS FOR POLICE

A promise yesterday by Prime Minister John Howard to review funding for the
Australian Federal Police was met by a barrage of doubts and criticism from
NSW Premier Bob Carr, the Opposition and from the AFP Association.

Mr Howard told yesterday's opening of the 15th Asian Regional Conference of
Interpol in Canberra of his plans to appoint an independent expert to
assess the AFP's resourcing needs. The report would be made within four
months and lead to a new budget charter for the AFP. Mr Howard acknowledged
a need for extra funds for the AFP in the short term.

But Mr Carr said the Federal Government had slashed funding for law
enforcement by $110 million, $44 million of it in the last federal Budget.
"I've got increased police numbers on the streets of Sydney but there's an
avalanche of heroin and cocaine coming into this country and the Federal
Government has actually reduced spending on the interception of hard
drugs," Mr Carr said.

Some of the state's ports had no customs presence at night, which was Mr
Howard's fault, he said. The AFPA's chief executive officer, Luke
Cornelius, said the AFP was in crisis, struggling with a shortfall so far
this financial year of $18.1 million. Mr Cornelius said $9 million would
have to go on a 'corporate credit card' to be paid out of next year's
funding.

The association wanted to know when the report would lead to actual funds
for the AFP. The association had estimated last year that successive
federal governments had seriously eroded the AFP's ability to do its job,
by costing up to 750 federal agents their jobs in 10 years.

Shadow attorney-general Nick Bolkus said having an independent review of
the AFP was "a massive failure of leadership". "I challenge Mr Howard to go
and explain to the parents of the kids who are now shooting up on heroin,
taking designer drugs like ice, and dying in our streets that, after two
years of budget cuts, this is the best he can come up with," he said.

Mr Bolkus said the review was a vote of no confidence in AFP Commissioner
Mick Palmer, who was regarded as Australia's finest law-enforcement
officer.

Mr Howard told the police from 34 countries, in Interpol's 75th year, of
how 'in recent times' some Australian police services had come in for
criticism.

"Despite the misdeeds of some who have brought opprobrium on the ranks of
their colleagues I know the majority . . . are dedicated, hard working and
honest Australians . . ." he said. He applauded Mr Palmer for his
three-year appointment last year as the delegate for Asia on the 13-member
executive committee. He thanked the AFP and all Australian police officers
for the contribution they had made to maintain society and national
security. He said transnational crime was a serious issue and the
production of illicit drugs was increasingly costly, now estimated at
$US300 billion to $US500 billion ($A454 million-$A757 million) a year.

There were 634 heroin-related deaths in Australia in 1996 and illicit drugs
were now linked to 40,000 hospital bed days a year. Spending on illicit
drugs now amounted to $7 billion a year.

"More than those statistics, however, the drug problem is about real people
with broken lives and broken homes," Mr Howard said. "It's about families
who want so much to care and face terrible odds in trying to do so."

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

Prime Minister's 'Expert' Plan Of Action For War On Drugs
('Sydney Morning Herald' Says Howard Announced Yesterday
An 'Independent Expert' Will Examine Cash-Strapped Australian Federal Police
- AFP - And Develop Plan To Equip It To Fight Booming Drug Trafficking
And Global Crime Networks - Customs Will Not Be Part Of Review, Due To
Large Funding Increases Last Year)

Date: Tue, 17 Feb 1998 23:33:03 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: Olafur Brentmar 
Subject: MN: Australia: PM's 'Expert' Plan Of Action For War On Drugs
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: Ken Russell
Pubdate: Wed 18 Feb 1998
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
Author: Tom Allard and David Humphries
Contact: letters@smh/com.au
Website: http://www.smh.com.au/

PM'S "EXPERT" PLAN OF ACTION FOR WAR ON DRUGS

An "independent expert" will examine the cash-strapped Australian Federal
Police (AFP) and develop a plan to equip it to fight booming drug
trafficking and global crime networks, the Prime Minister announced
yesterday.

But Customs will not be part of the review, despite claims that budget cuts
have seen a dramatic reduction in its ability to stop illegal drugs
entering Australia. The Premier, Mr Carr, claimed this week that only 2 per
cent of flights to Australia were checked by Customs and many ports in NSW
had no Customs presence at night or during weekends.

In an address to an Interpol conference yesterday, Mr Howard flagged an
immediate injection of funds to boost the AFP's resources before the
independent expert delivers a report on longer-term funding needs "within
three to four months".

Funding has run down so low in the AFP that officers have been asked to
delay purchases and pay for them on credit card so the expense can be
pushed through to the 1998-99 financial year.

The AFP Commissioner, Mr Mick Palmer, has asked for a prompt injection of
money to combat the crisis and Mr Howard said an unspecified amount would
be handed over "shortly".

"Australia deserves a Commonwealth law enforcement agency that is second to
none in the world," Mr Howard said. "A reform process to enable the AFP to
develop into such an agency is under way but it will not succeed unless
resourcing decisions are geared to the vision we have for the AFP."

The Australian Federal Police Association, which has run a vocal campaign
to boost AFP funding, applauded the Prime Minister's initiative.

But it warned that the timetable for the independent expert's review meant
that any boost to funding would miss the cut-off for the 1998-99 Budget, to
be delivered in May.

The Customs Officers' Association (COA) is also complaining about the
effect of budget cuts and reduced manpower at ports and airports. It says
only three in every 10,000 containers is scrutinised at ports.

Customs received the bulk of a $44 million increase in funding in the
Federal Government's "Tough on Drugs" initiative late last year. That came
on top of an $18.3 million increase in the last Budget.

But the COA and the Federal Opposition said the additional funds were
inadequate to maintain proper manning levels at Australia's ports of entry.

"As a result of Mr Howard's budget cuts to the AFP and Customs we now have
more people in Darwin checking to see that fruit flies don't leave that
city than we do have people intercepting drugs at the wharves," said Labor
spokesman Senator Nick Bolkus.

"And the fruit fly inspectors are working round the clock, whereas the AFP
and Customs officers are forced to work nine to five."

A spokeswoman for the Minister for Customs, Mr Truss, said Labor claims
that the Customs budget had been cut were simply untrue - funding had
increased in every year the Coalition had been in power.

As for manning levels at the front line, she said Customs relied more and
more on intelligence gathered by the AFP and other sources, rather than
routine searches of planes and ships.

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Cannabis Campaign - Report Boost For Cannabis (Britain's 'Independent'
Notes Battle To Reform Cannabis Laws Carried On By "Independent On Sunday'
Has Been Helped By Latest Dutch Usage-Rates Statistics
From Centre For Drug Research At The University Of Amsterdam,
Showing Decriminalising Marijuana Does Not Lead To Use Of Harder Drugs
And That Teenagers And Children Are More Likely To Experiment
With Alcohol, Tobacco)

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 21:51:04 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: Olafur Brentmar 
Subject: MN: UK: Cannabis Campaign: Report Boost For Cannabis
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: Alan Randell
Pubdate: Thu 18 Feb, 1998
Source: Independent, The (UK)
Author: Charles Arthur, Science Editor
Contact: Email: cannabis@independent.co.uk
Mail: Independent on Sunday, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5DL
England
Editor's note: The IoS Cannabis Campaign has web pages at
http://www.independent.co.uk/sindypot/index.htm

REPORT BOOST FOR CANNABIS

Research has established that decriminalising marijuana does not lead to
the use of harder drugs such as cocaine and heroin, and that teenagers and
children are more likely to experiment with alcohol and tobacco.

Long-running surveys carried out in the Netherlands, where marijuana was
decriminalised in 1967, have found that even in the age group where
cannabis use is highest - those between 20 and 35, of whom 12.5 per cent
are "regular" users - only 1.3 per cent had used cocaine in the previous
month, with the majority of those being aged over 30.

The latest sample of more than 2,000 people in 1994 found that nobody under
20 had ever used heroin, and there were just four people who "regularly"
used heroin, all aged between 25 and 50. Cocaine and heroin use are not
legal in the Netherlands.

The findings, from ongoing surveys carried out over the past 10 years by
the Centre for Drug Research at the University of Amsterdam among the
city's residents, provide more ammunition for the Independent on Sunday's
campaign to decriminalise cannabis in Britain.

It also shows that the Government's insistence that decriminalising the
drug would be a catastrophe does not stand up to close examination.

A leading scientific magazine is expected tomorrow to publish further
research which indicates that cannabis has fewer health effects than other
legal drugs such as tobacco.

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

Iranian Police Kill 35 Drug Smugglers ('Reuters' Notes Death Penalty
For Drugs Gets Results - One In Sixty To 120 Iranians Said To Be An 'Addict')

Date: Thu, 19 Feb 1998 18:32:43 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)
Subject: MN: Iran: WIRE: Iranian Police Kill 35 Drug Smugglers
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: David.Hadorn@vuw.ac.nz (David Hadorn)
Source: Reuters
Pubdate: Wed, 18 Feb 1998

IRANIAN POLICE KILL 35 DRUG SMUGGLERS

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iranian police have killed 35 drug smugglers and seized
more than a ton of drugs during raids in southern Iran, a newspaper said
Wednesday.

The evening daily Kayhan said troops and police carried out the raids in
remote mountainous areas in Kerman province over the past few days.

Brig. Gen. Ali Eashaqi, a local police commander, said his forces would
take action against residents who provided the smugglers with food, water,
and fuel, it said. Eshaqi said authorities would carry out economic
programs in the poor region to create alternative sources of income.

Iranian officials say there are half a million drug addicts in the country
of 60 million. Local media have put the number at up to one million.

Iran is a key transit route for drugs smuggled from Afghanistan and
Pakistan, the ``Golden Crescent,'' to Europe and oil-rich Gulf Arab states.

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

[End]