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An Oregon initiative - the Innocent Property Initiative (John Flanery, the
chief petitioner for a state ballot measure that would require a conviction
and prevent forfeiture proceeds from being used by law enforcement, posts the
text of the proposed law.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 12:03:08 -0800 (PST)
From: John Flanery (jflan@efn.org)
From: "CRRH mailing list" (restore@crrh.org)
To: CRRH mailing list (restore@crrh.org)
Subject: An Oregon initiative

Howdy!

I'm the chief petitioner for the Innocent Property Initiative. The
initiative will do two things: 1) prevent forfeiture until the owner(s)
have been convicted of a crime, and 2) prevent the proceeds from being
used by law enforcement. Activists who would like to get involved may
e-mail me at jflan@efn.org. The text of the initiative follows:

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
Section 1.

(a) Neither the State of Oregon nor any political subdivision within the
state shall deprive a property owner of that property by In Rem Forfeiture
until the owner has been convicted of a crime involving the property.

(b) Neither the State of Oregon nor any political subdivision within the
state shall deprive a person with an interest in a property of that
interest by In Rem Forfeiture until that person has been convicted of a
crime involving the property.

(c) This section shall not apply to any contraband whose ownership cannot
be established.

(d) This section shall not prevent the placing of property in protective
custody pending forfeiture if there is probable cause that:

(A) the property is or will be subject to forfeiture; and

(B) the property may disappear or suffer harm if not taken into
custody; and

(C) seizure of the property would not place an undue hardship on the
owner.

(e) Law enforcement shall obtain a court order before placing property in
protective custody, if at all practical.

Section 2. Forfeited assets, and revenues from their sale, lease, or
operation, shall neither be used for, nor fund costs associated with, law
enforcement or forfeiture; neither shall they be used by, or fund, any
agency with agents who are also agents of the seizing agency.

Section 3. These sections shall govern all In Rem Forfeiture by the State of
Oregon and any political subdivision within the state, including but not
limited to forfeitures arising from prohibited conduct described in ORS
475A.005 (11).

Section 4. Any seizing agency or forfeiting agency which transfers seized
property for forfeiture to any agency not governed by these sections shall
remit to the Oregon Treasury an amount equal in value to the transferred
property. Monies so remitted shall not fund costs associated with law
enforcement or forfeiture.

Section 5. These sections shall supersede any other provision of the Oregon
Revised Statutes with which they conflict. If any subsection, clause, or
part of these sections is held invalid under the United States
Constitution or the Oregon Constitution as to any person or circumstance
by any court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining subsections,
clauses, and parts shall not be affected and shall remain in full force
and effect.

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Bill would use lottery money to treat addicts (The Associated Press says SB
118, a bill that would dedicate 1 percent of lottery proceeds to programs to
help problem gamblers, has cleared the Oregon state senate Trade and Economic
Development Committee. The measure would raise $6 million, 50 percent more
than the current budget. It would also create a permanent funding source to
help gambling addicts.)

Newshawk: Portland NORML (http://www.pdxnorml.org/)
Pubdate: Mon, Mar 29 1999
Source: The Associated Press (OR)
Copyright: 1999 The Associated Press
Website: http://www.oregonlive.com/
Forum: http://forums.oregonlive.com/
Author: Brad Cain of The Associated Press

Associated Press

Bill would use lottery money to treat addicts

* The measure, which has cleared a committee vote, would increase by 50
percent the funding to help chronic gamblers

SALEM -- After cleaning out her bank account, selling her possessions and
stealing from her employer to support her video poker habit, Jann knew she
had hit bottom.

"I had used up all of my resources and abused the trust of everybody around
me," she said. "You get very suicidal."

For Jann, a Grants Pass woman who asked that her last name not be used,
facing up to her gambling addiction was one thing. Finding help was another
problem altogether.

It took her two months from the time she called the state's gambling
addiction hot line to get her first counseling session with a local
addiction program.

"There's just not enough treatment available," she said.

Now it appears the Oregon Legislature is ready to help more of the people
who, in the process of making the Oregon Lottery's video poker game a huge
financial success, have become addicted to the game's fast-paced action.

A bill to dedicate 1 percent of the lottery's proceeds to programs to help
problem gamblers has already cleared the Senate Trade and Economic
Development Committee.

The measure, SB118, would raise $6 million for those programs -- a 50
percent boost above current spending -- but more importantly create a
permanent funding source to help gambling addicts.

Sen. Avel Gordly, who is a member of the Senate trade panel, said she thinks
most lawmakers will feel obligated to support the increase, since it was the
Legislature that allowed the lottery to launch video poker.

"We created this monster. Now we need to take care of the people who are
having problems because of it," the Portland Democrat said.

A good deal of the money would go to enable local mental health programs to
serve more people whose gambling has gotten out of control. Those programs
are serving about 750 people a year, and state officials hope to more than
double that number with the new infusion of lottery dollars.

There's little doubt about the need for treatment programs.

A recent study conducted for the state estimated that 47,200 Oregon adults
are suffering from gambling addiction. And calls to the state's gambling hot
line have risen to more than 5,200 a year.

Although the number of addicts who actually seek help is relatively small,
those who do are kicking the gambling habit, said Mike McCracken, director
of the Association of Oregon Community Mental Health Programs.

McCracken noted that more than 60 percent of the clients who complete their
treatment successfully abstain from gambling.

Oregon Lottery officials are supporting the Senate bill because it would
enable the state to provide free treatment to any gambling addict who wants it.

Lottery spokesman David Hooper said that in the past, some of the local
addiction programs have been forced to charge clients for services.

"Obviously, if you're a problem gambler, the last thing you need is to get a
bill for treatment," Hooper said. "We do not want that to be an obstacle to
people receiving treatment."

Plus, he said, the state also hopes to begin putting some dollars into
treatment of juveniles with gambling problems, an area that currently is
getting little attention or funding.

A longtime critic of state-sponsored gambling, Ellen Lowe of Ecumenical
Ministries of Oregon, said she's glad to see the Lottery and the Legislature
getting serious about helping people who become addicted to video poker and
other lottery games.

"It's an official acknowledgment of our responsibility," Lowe said. "This
revenue producer does have negative effects on the state. We just can't
abandon those who've become addicted to the lottery."

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Project puts 80 inmates to work in woods (The Oregonian says that starting in
May, about 80 Oregon prisoners will spend two months in a new work program in
a remote area of the Deschutes National Forest, living in tents pitched in
the woods about 30 miles outside Bend and working 10 hours a day, six days a
week. Creating work for Oregon inmates will have cost the state $34 million
by the end of the budget biennium.)

Newshawk: Portland NORML (http://www.pdxnorml.org/)
Pubdate: Mon, Mar 29 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 of The Oregonian staff

Project puts 80 inmates to work in woods

* The pilot program is an effort to provide training in isolated areas for
prisoners who have shown good behavior

About 80 Oregon prisoners soon will be behind burlap instead of bars under a
new inmate work program being launched in a remote area of the Deschutes
National Forest.

Starting in May, inmates will spend two months living in tents pitched in
the woods about 30 miles outside Bend.

The minimum-custody inmates will work 10 hours a day, six days a week,
pulling weeds, clearing logs and debris from the forest floor and conducting
wetland restoration projects. About 20 inmates will be trained in chain-saw
operations and earn certification in the trade.

"This will be hard, labor-intensive work," said David S. Cook, Oregon
Department of Corrections director. "Now, we can't do these kinds of
projects because it takes too long and costs too much to transport inmates
to remote areas every day. This will help us be more responsive to the work
needs of the state."

The pilot project, which will run from May 3 to June 25, is an effort to
create work for inmates in places they could not otherwise reach. The
Deschutes National Forest is more than 60 miles from the nearest state
prison, making a daily commute too costly and time-consuming.

In an effort to head off criticism about safety concerns, Michael Taaffe,
administrator of Inmate Work Programs, said the department has taken several
steps to ensure no problems occur at the camp.

The camp's exact location will not be released in an effort to avoid
unauthorized visitors, curiosity seekers and people trying to sneak
contraband to prisoners. Nor will the makeshift prison be visible from any
primary road.

"I'm certain there are individuals who will not feel comfortable, but
generally we've had a very good working relationship with the community in
planning this program," Taaffe said. "Community leaders have not raised any
significant negative opinions towards this at all."

There will be one corrections officer for every 10 inmates, with more staff
members supervising inmates during off-work hours. As with all work crews,
camp supervisors will be unarmed.

It is not uncommon for inmates to walk away from work crews, but they are
usually caught quickly and without incident, corrections officials said.

All the inmates selected for the program will have proven records of good
behavior, Taaffe said, and most of them will be near release. No sex
offenders will be selected for the camp.

Prisoners will not be allowed visiting privileges while they are stationed
in the forest.

Linda Swearingen, chairwoman of the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners,
said she supports the program and does not foresee any negative effect on
tourism or safety in the small towns that dot the forest edges.

"These folks are going to be back in our communities in a short time
anyway," she said. "We need to look at other ways to provide restorative
justice to our community, and I think this is a positive alternative."

Bend Mayor Jim Young said he hadn't been told of the program, but he said
that he didn't think it "sounded particularly threatening."

"These types of programs go on all around the country," Young said. "I don't
foresee any major problems, especially since they'll be so far out."

Work sites will be marked

The tent site will be posted as an inmate work camp and will be off-limits
to all visitors. Work sites also will be marked, and inmates will be
identified by their blue jeans stamped with an orange "INMATE" logo.

The pilot project is a partnership among the Corrections Department, the
U.S. Forest Service and the Oregon National Guard, which will prepare meals
but not provide added security.

Taaffe said the camp will help the Corrections Department better comply with
Ballot Measure 17, passed by a 3-1 ratio by voters in 1994. The measure
amended the Oregon Constitution to require every inmate to work a 40-hour
week. But nearly five years later, only 60 percent of the state's eligible
inmates are working full time. If the pilot program goes well, the
department hopes to expand it to other areas in the state.

Gov. John Kitzhaber sparked a debate in December when he proposed slashing
financing for the program until the Legislature addresses how much and for
how long inmate work should be subsidized by state tax dollars.

He also expressed concern that inmate work was hurting civilian businesses
by creating competition for jobs.

Kitzhaber's chief spokesman, Bob Applegate, said Friday he had not heard of
the program and could not comment.

Creating inmate work in Oregon has required a combination of significant
general fund support -- $34 million by the end of the budget biennium -- and
the aggressive pursuit of private partnerships and contracts.

Kitzhaber and several other legislators are urging that the inmate work law
be clarified.

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

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Heroin Use Booming In Spokane (The Seattle Times says a Washington Department
of Social and Health Services report released last week shows the number of
Spokane County residents admitted for heroin treatment nearly quintupled
between 1992 and 1998, from 78 to 367. Spokane County, in rural Eastern
Washington, is the state's per capita leader in treating heroin addicts.
Rates exceed those in Seattle during the mid-1990s' heroin boom. Roger
Silfvast, head of Community Detox, said heroin prices have fallen to $20 to
$25 for a large quarter-gram dose as dealers flood the market.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 21:12:30 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US WA: Heroin Use Booming In Spokane
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: John Smith
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 1999 The Seattle Times Company
Contact: opinion@seatimes.com
Website: http://www.seattletimes.com/
Author: AP

HEROIN USE BOOMING IN SPOKANE

The Heroin Business Here Is Booming.

The number of Spokane County residents admitted for heroin treatment
nearly quintupled between 1992 and 1998, jumping from 78 to 367,
according to a state Department of Social and Health Services report
released last week.

Spokane County is the state's per capita leader in treating heroin
addicts. Rates exceed those in Seattle during the mid-1990s' heroin
boom.

Spokane's county-run methadone clinic, the only one in Eastern
Washington, is so packed that, for the first time, it's having to turn
people away.

"It's very similar to the spike we saw in crack cocaine," said Mike
Forness, program manager for the Deaconess Chemical Dependency Unit.
"Now it's heroin."

The full extent of the problem isn't known because good statistics on
use of the drug and fatal overdoses aren't available. However, local
agencies treating substance abuse say low-cost, high-quality heroin is
flooding Spokane.

At Spokane's Community Detox, requests for help from heroin addicts
have risen sharply in the past eight months. People in the agency's
detox unit for heroin addiction outnumber alcoholics 2 to 1.

The region is likely being deluged by the same Mexican heroin that's
been popular in Seattle, said Ken Stark, head of the state Division of
Alcohol and Substance Abuse.

Roger Silfvast, head of Community Detox, said heroin prices have
fallen to $20 to $25 for a large quarter-gram dose as dealers flood
the market.

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Taking A Hard Look At State's Jammed Jails (According to a staff editorial in
the Orange County Register, one might have imagined that with a Democratic
majority in both houses and a Democratic governor, and with prisons filled to
the bursting point with some people who have little or no business being
there, that the California legislature would be full of bills seeking to
reform the prison and criminal justice system. Instead it's a mixed bag -
and some of the legislation that in the past might have been viewed as
"liberal" is being carried by conservative Republicans. It is time for
Californians to take a step back from the urge to incarcerate, and to take a
look at the ongoing and projected costs of locking up so many people for
non-violent and victimless crimes.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 13:46:03 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US CA: Taking A Hard Look At State's Jammed Jails
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: March 29 1999
Source: Orange County Register (CA)
Copyright: 1999 The Orange County Register
Contact: letters@link.freedom.com
Website: http://www.ocregister.com/

TAKING A HARD LOOK AT STATE'S JAMMED JAILS

One might have imagined that with a Democratic majority in both houses and a
Democratic governor, and with prisons filled to the bursting point with some
people who have little or no business being there, that the state
Legislature would be full of bills seeking to reform the prison and criminal
justice system in a relatively liberal direction. Instead it's a mixed bag -
and some of the legislation that in the past might have been viewed as
"liberal" is being carried by conservative Republicans.

For example, Republican Assemblyman Scott Baugh of Huntington Beach has
introduced a bill (AB 1247) to carry out a cost-benefit study of
California's "three strikes" law that is similar to bill (SB 873) introduced
by liberal Democratic state Sen. John Vasconcellos of San Jose.

Republican Assemblyman Tom McClintock of Thousand Oaks has co-authored a
bill, AB 1440, (along with Democrats Carol Migden, John Burton, Richard
Polanco and John Vasconcellos) that would require the Department of
Corrections to institute a more liberal policy regarding interviews of
prisoners by members of the media - in response to a restrictive policy put
in place by former Attorney Gen. Dan Lungren and reaffirmed by the Davis
administration.

Scott Baugh, of course, has experienced the "business end of government"
during his unwarranted criminal prosecution for minor campaign violations,
which should have been investigated by the state Fair Political Practices
Commission. He told us Friday that he thinks the way is open to study the
"three-strikes" law but the Legislature isn't ready to revise it seriously.
Democratic state Sen. Tom Hayden's proposal (SB 79) to apply the
"three-strikes" provision only to serious and violent felonies rather than
enhancing sentences for non-violent felonies such as drug offenses, while a
worthy idea, probably has little chance of passage this year.

Widely publicized allegations of brutality and abuse of prisoners by prison
guards at Corcoran State Prison near Bakersfield (and in other institutions)
has spawned SB 12 by Bay-area Republican Sen. Richard Rainey to require and
pay for more training for correctional officers. It might help a little but
the old syndrome on government programs - if they're succeeding they need
more money and if they're failing they need even more money - may be at work
here. When government employees make mistakes it always seems to be the
taxpayers who get the bills.

Several bills (AB 3, AB 34, AB 54) would extend the death penalty to more
offenses. One silly proposal would end TV and conjugal visits for state
prisoners. Two bills (AB 741, SB 786) would limit the use of habeas corpus
rights by prisoners.

Orange County legislators should view all these proposals in context. Over
the past dozen years the number of Americans in jails and prisons has
doubled, and California has led the way with the strictest "three strikes"
law in the country and a huge boom in prison construction. The rapid growth
in California's prison problem has contributed to lax management and
"growing pains" problems that are a factor in abuse by prison personnel.

It is time for Californians to take a step back from the urge to
incarcerate, take a look at the ongoing and projected costs of locking up so
many people for non-violent and victimless crimes, and think about moving in
the other direction. The evidence that throwing more people in jail really
reduces crime is shaky at best, non-existent at worst - and the cost to
taxpayers continues to spiral.

It's time to think about ways to reduce the prison population rather than
working to increase it.

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Congress nothing but trendy (Denver Post columnist Diane Carman observes that
the Congressionally mandated loyalty oaths of the '60s and '70s have been
replaced by the war on drugs. And once again federal financial aid programs
are being manipulated for political gain. A new provision of the Higher
Education Act denies financial aid to any student convicted of a drug
offense, including marijuana possession. Murderers and rapists, on the other
hand, can continue to receive financial aid under the act. Furthermore, the
act makes no provision for enforcement. Obviously, Congress doesn't care
about the fair and efficient administration of this program - or the justice
system in general. Their reality has been completely distorted by the war on
drugs and the political high they get from exploiting it.)

From: GranVizier@webtv.net
From: "CRRH mailing list" (restore@crrh.org)
Date: Tue, 30 Mar 1999 09:37:39 -0500 (EST)
To: november-l@drugsense.org, restore@crrh.org
Subject: By Diane Carman
Content-Disposition: Inline

http://www.denverpost.com/news/carman0330.htm

Congress nothing but trendy

By Diane Carman
Denver Post Staff Columnist

March 30 - Oh, for the good old days when all Congress obsessed about on
college campuses was communists.

Back in the 1960s and '70s, to get a National Defense Student Loan you
had to be poor, get good grades and sign an affidavit saying you would
not become a commie pinko traitor. For most of us then, our favorite
Lennon was John, so it was a slam dunk. "I promise to protect and defend
... yada, yada, yada ...'' Sure, where do I sign?

But Congress is nothing if not trendy. National Defense Student Loans
were replaced by a patchwork of financial aid programs, and before long
the loyalty oath went the way of the Smith Corona typewriter.

Now it's the war on drugs that has Congress in a wild-eyed frenzy. And
once again federal financial aid programs are being manipulated for
political gain.

A new provision of the Higher Education Act passed last year will deny
financial aid to any student convicted of a drug offense. Possession of
a controlled substance would cost a student at least one year of aid;
sale would result in a minimum of two years' lost financial assistance.
It goes into effect in the fall of 2000.

Rapists, on the other hand, can continue to receive financial aid under
the act.

Go figure.

A kid could lose financial aid for a year for a misdemeanor marijuana
possession charge - a crime, for sure, but c'mon. There already are
serious penalties.

Meanwhile, aid checks would continue for persons convicted of far more
serious offenses.

Take your average binge-drinking lunkhead who steals laptop computers
and stereo components for fun. Or the hackers who break into the
university computer system and falsify grade records. Or the full-ride
scholarship athletes who get into a brawl and destroy hotel rooms at
out-of-town games.

Or a murderer.

The act makes no mention of financial aid sanctions against students
convicted of these crimes.

Furthermore, the act makes no provision for enforcement. In that realm,
financial aid officials at the universities are completely on their own.

"The act states something like 'If you have been convicted of a drug
offense, please contact your financial aid officer,' '' explained Bob
Collins, associate director of financial aid at the University of
Colorado-Boulder. "It's ludicrous.''

It would be funny if it wasn't so annoying. With more than half of
Colorado's college students receiving some form of assistance, financial
aid officers have to be vigilant in observing the rules so that they
don't risk any interruption in funds.

"What are we supposed to do?'' he said. "Say a student goes to Miami
over spring break and gets arrested. Who's going to investigate this? Do
we have to run monthly criminal background checks on students to comply
with the law?

"And the act says that aid can be reinstated if a student completes a
qualified drug rehabilitation program. How are we supposed to know which
drug rehab programs satisfy this requirement?''

Obviously, Congress doesn't care about the fair and efficient
administration of this program - or the justice system in general.

Their reality has been completely distorted by the war on drugs and the
political high they get from exploiting it.

Diane Carman's commentaries appear Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
E-mail: dcarman@denverpost.com

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

2 Colo Deputies Face Drug Charges (According to UPI, the FBI says Ouray
County Undersheriff John Radcliff, his wife, the sheriff's two daughters and
a deputy sheriff are among 19 people charged with methamphetamine trafficking
in western Colorado.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 19:56:53 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US CO: Wire: 2 Colo Deputies Face Drug Charges
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: United Press International
Copyright: 1999 United Press International

2 COLO DEPUTIES FACE DRUG CHARGES

DENVER, March 29 (UPI) - The FBI says Ouray (u-RAY') County
Undersheriff John Radcliff, his wife, the sheriff's two daughters and
a deputy sheriff are among 19 people charged with methamphetamine
trafficking in western Colorado.

Radcliff and deputy Leroy Todd are accused of using their positions to
protect the operation, and that three other suspects threatened
witnesses called before a federal grand jury probing the case.

The undersheriff's wife, 29-year-old Lisa Radcliff, was charged with
conspiracy to distribute. Lisa Wakefield Blansett and Laura Wakefield
Huddleston, the sheriff's daughters, were also charged with conspiracy.

Radcliff and Todd are also charged with using and carrying firearms
while commiting a crime.

Colorado Bureau of Investigation chief Carl Whiteside says, ``I don't
think any law enforcement agency is immune from that type of corruption.

Peter Mang of the CBI tells UPI the charges follow a three-year
federal and state probe of an operation that imported methamphetamine
from California and distributed it in western Colorado.

Three of the suspects are also accused of threatening witnesses called
before a federal grand jury probing the case in an attempt to
influence their testimony.

Law officers say the indictments are based on alleged crimes related
to the operation of the distribution ring over a three-year period.
Three of the suspects are from California.

Ouray County is about 250 miles southwest of Denver.

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

Next Hash Bash May Be Just For Tourists (The Detroit News previews the 28th
annual Hash Bash beginning at noon Saturday at the University of Michigan at
Ann Arbor. Michigan state Senator Beverly Hammerstrom, a Republican from
Temperance - no kidding - has introduced a bill to nullify Ann Arbor's $25
fine for marijuana possession and enforce the state's $100 penalty.
Hammerstrom's bill won easy approval in the Senate last week, and is expected
to get a receptive hearing in the House.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 21:03:40 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US MI: Next Hash Bash May Be Just For Tourists
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: compassion23@geocities.com (Frank S. World)
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: Detroit News (MI)
Copyright: 1999, The Detroit News
Contact: letters@detnews.com
Website: http://www.detnews.com/
Author: David Coates

NEXT HASH BASH MAY BE JUST FOR TOURISTS

Ann Arbor's Annual Pot Party Faces A New Legislative Challenge

James Millard, left, and Adam Brook have several Hash Bash
celebrations between them. Ann Arbor's party is starting to draw more
sightseers than smokers.

By B.G. Gregg / Detroit News Lansing Bureau

LANSING -- Don't look for a haze of marijuana smoke to settle over the
University of Michigan's Diag on Saturday, when the 28th annual Hash
Bash kicks off at noon.

Most of the 5,000 or so who are expected at the Diag will be
sight-seers, who won't themselves light up.

"Most of the people just want to check it out," said Jason Berckley,
23, of Ann Arbor, a recent U-M graduate and musician. "It's become
kind of a tourist thing."

Some of those "tourists" will be young teens. And that scares some
state lawmakers, who have introduced a bill to erase Ann
Arbor's $25 fine for marijuana possession from the books and make it
equal to the state's $100 penalty.

"When a local unit of government penalizes an individual with a $25
fine, it is in essence making the statement that this is not an
important issue, " said its main sponsor, state Sen. Beverly
Hammerstrom, R-Temperance.

"We need to take action and change the fact that more teen-agers today
are using marijuana and it has replaced alcohol as the drug of
choice... It is time to send a clear message to our youth that we are
serious about the war on drugs and that this is an important issue
across the state."

Hammerstrom's bill won easy approval in the state Senate last week,
and is expected to get a receptive hearing in the House.

It prohibits municipalities from adopting local drug ordinances with
penalties softer than the state's -- up to 90 days in jail and a $100
fine for possession.

Michigan's other big college town, East Lansing, also has a liberal
pot law: a $25 fine, plus community service.

Hammerstrom and Sen. Mike Rogers, R-Howell, whose districts border Ann
Arbor, say the bill targets Ann Arbor and the Hash Bash, an annual spring
rally to promote the legalization of marijuana.

"It is a mockery of our drug code here in Michigan," said Rogers, a
former FBI agent. "Laws in the state need to be consistent."

Hammerstrom said she has heard radio announcements aimed at attracting
teens to the Hash Bash.

"We spend hundreds of thousands of dollars telling young people drug
use is bad, and, with something like this, we're sending a message to
young people that it is no big deal," she said.

Adam Brook, 31, an Ann Arbor resident, says lawmakers shouldn't trash
the Bash.

"If they're worried about kids under the age of 18 being there, those
kids have parents who are responsible for them," said Brook, who has
helped organize past Hash Bashes.

"I've got a state senator coming after an event I put on because
parents can't keep control of their children."

Hash Bash started in 1972 as a way to celebrate the change in
Michigan's pot law from a felony to a misdemeanor. It has grown to an
event that features music and internationally known speakers who lobby
for the legalization of marijuana.

The event died briefly in the mid-'80s during the height of the
nation's war on drugs, but was revived in 1988 by High Times magazine.
While there have been a few clashes between police and participants in
past years, the event has been largely peaceful.

Matt Bauder, an Ann Arbor resident who graduated from U-M last year,
said the Hash Bash is not what it used to be.

"It is almost white trash that goes," he said. "It's not even Hippies
anymore. A long time ago, it meant something. Now it just seems like
an excuse to party." In recent years, the Bash has averaged about 40
to 50 citations for drug possession, plus some additional arrests for
intoxication, illegal sales of merchandise, and various other
offenses. Nearly all the offenders are nonstudents.

Jim Smiley, interim director of Public Safety at the University of
Michigan, said those who are cited on university property are slapped
a $100 fine, but it can be reduced in court.

Those who are cited on city property receive a $25 fine. The fine was
approved by city voters, and is part of Ann Arbor's city charter.
Another referendum would be necessary to reverse it.

Ann Arbor Mayor Ingrid Sheldon said city residents voted for a $5 fine
for marijuana possession in the early '70s because many young people
were being sent to prison for having small amounts of marijuana.

In 1990, city residents voted to increase the penalty to $25. Because
it would take another vote to change the fine, she said the courts
might have to decide what to do if Hammerstrom's bill passes.

The mayor has mixed feelings about a state law that would negate what
her voters enacted.

"I know the benefits to public health and I like a consistent
approach, but my main concern is that this was something that was
voted on by the people," she said. Some residents agree.

"It should be up to local control," said Stuart Segal, 42, a
psychologist with U-M's Services for Students with
Disabilities.

"We've always been comfortable in Ann Arbor with the low
fine."

There's some support in the state Legislature for leaving Ann Arbor
alone. Sen. Alma Smith, D-Salem Township, called

Hammerstrom's bill a publicity ploy and an attempt to look tough on an
issue that impacts more than one city.

Rogers, she said, is "trying to pin it on Ann Arbor. Ann Arbor is not
the problem."

But some Ann Arbor residents side with lawmakers who say the Hash Bash
sends the wrong message to kids.

"If marijuana should be legalized -- like maybe for medical reasons or
a medical breakthrough -- I don't think getting together and smoking
is the way to say it," said Keren Charles, 19, a U-M sophomore
majoring in political science.

One thing is certain: The proposed legislation has stirred up more
publicity than the Hash Bash has seen in years. Brook has been
interviewed on radio stations throughout the country and in Canada,
and he's talked to reporters from several newspapers.

"We cancelled our budget for Hash Bash advertising as soon as Mr.
Rogers brought us national attention," he laughed.

The debate

These arguments surround legislation to prohibit cities from passing
drug ordinances with lighter penalties than state law. Bill backers
say:

* It would make penalties throughout the state uniform.

* It would send a message that drug use is not OK.

* It may cut attendance at Ann Arbor's annual Hash Bash, which draws
several thousand people. Bill critics say:

* Municipalities have the right to set their own laws.

* The state shouldn't overturn a 1990 vote by Ann Arbor residents to
adopt a $25 fine for marijuana possession.

* Marijuana is harmless and should be legal.

State pot law

* Up to 90 days in jail and $100 fine. Ann Arbor's pot
law

* $25 fine

Proposed state law

* Cities couldn't pass drug ordinances with softer penalties than
state has.

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

Behind the Blue Wall (An e-mail message publicizes a web site about New York
Police Department officer Kenneth Eurell, convicted on federal RICO charges.
The site also is said to detail Eurell's cooperation with the DEA against
Colombian drug dealers and his former partner, Michael Dowd.)

From: "Police Corruption" (bluewall@rantmail.zzn.com)
Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 17:19:33 -0500
To: pdxnorml@pdxnorml.org
Subject: your website

Dear webmaster,

We are now accepting police and drug related links for
our website. All you need to do is send us your;

Title:
URL:
Description:
and place a link to our site in exchange.
Review our site...

Our site's information is as follows:

Title: Behind the BlueWall...life of NYPD officer Kenneth Eurell

URL: http://www.angelfire.com/ny2/bluewall/main.html

Description: True life story of New York police officer
Kenneth Eurell convicted of federal RICO charges. From cop
to criminal and his cooperation with the DEA against Colombian
drug dealers and his former partner Michael Dowd.

If you decide to exchange links please let us know
where the return link is located.

Thank you for your time,
webmaster

webmaster of Bluewall@rantmail.zzn.com

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

Exclusionary Rule Challenge Fails (The Associated Press says the U.S. Supreme
Court today rejected an appeal from a Florida woman, Alishia Pryor, who said
her 11-year sentence for possessing and intending to distribute crack cocaine
was twice as long as it would have been if authorities hadn't taken into
account evidence they seized illegally. In a series of recent rulings, the
court has narrowed the exclusionary rule, which, since 1914, supposedly bars
evidence obtained by violating the Fourth Amendment. As a result, prosecutors
can now use evidence illegally seized by police in deportation cases, grand
jury and civil tax hearings and certain other legal proceedings. The justices
never ruled that the exclusionary rule doesn't apply to sentencing, but the
11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals did so in rejecting Pryor's first appeal.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 18:27:55 -0500
To: "DRCTalk Reformers' Forum" (drctalk@drcnet.org)
From: Paul Wolf (paulwolf@voicenet.com)
Subject: AP: Exclusionary Rule Challenge Fails
Reply-To: paulwolf@voicenet.com
Sender: owner-drctalk@drcnet.org

AP

Exclusionary Rule Challenge Fails

March 29, 1999

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Supreme Court today rejected a
Florida woman's appeal to decide whether a judge-made rule
that keeps illegally seized evidence out of criminal trials
applies when a convicted criminal is sentenced.

The justices, without comment, turned away an opportunity
to clarify the reach of the so-called exclusionary rule,
which the Supreme Court created in 1914 to deter misconduct
by law enforcement officers.

The rule bars evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth
Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and
seizures.

In a series of recent rulings, the court has narrowed the
circumstances in which the rule can be invoked. As a result,
prosecutors now can use evidence illegally seized by police
in all deportation cases, grand jury and civil tax hearings
and in some other legal proceedings.

The justices never have ruled that the exclusionary rule does
not apply to sentencing, but the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals did so in upholding Alishia Pryor's prison sentence
for her crack cocaine conviction.

Pryor pleaded guilty in 1997 to possessing and intending to
distribute the 22.4 grams of crack cocaine police found in her
car while arresting her.

Police that same day also searched Pryor's home, where they
found another 391.3 grams of the illegal drug. But authorities
concede that the court warrant police used to enter her home
was defective.

Court records do not disclose Pryor's hometown, but her federal
prosecution took place in the district court based in
Tallahassee.

As part of a plea bargain, prosecutors agreed not to use as
evidence any of the cocaine taken from Pryor's home. But that
evidence was used when Pryor was sentenced to 11 years and
four months in prison.

Her self-authored appeal said federal sentencing guidelines
would have yielded a prison term about half that long if her
sentence had been based only the cocaine found in her car.

``Evidence obtained illegally ... should not be included in
the information at sentencing,'' Pryor's Supreme Court appeal
contended. The 11th Circuit court rejected that argument.

Asked by the justices to respond to Pryor's appeal, Justice
Department lawyers said the appeals court was right.

``In declining to extend the exclusionary rule to sentencing
proceedings, the court of appeals ... correctly balanced the
competing interests,'' the government lawyers said.

``Extension of the exclusionary rule to sentencing would not
likely provide a significant deterrent to illegal searches and
seizures,'' they said. ``Police officers already are deterred ...
by the knowledge that the direct and indirect fruits of such
violations will be excluded at the criminal trial.''

The case is Pryor vs. U.S., 98-7046.

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

Judge - Company's Drug Policy Violates ADA (The The Legal Intelligencer
says a lawsuit filed on behalf of John A. Rowles, an epileptic, over drug
testing in the workplace has led Chief U.S. District Judge Sylvia H. Rambo to
rule that employers can be sued for wrongful discharge when their policy
requires employees to disclose any prescription drugs they are taking that
force them to reveal their medical conditions.)

Date: Tue, 30 Mar 1999 03:21:26 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US: Judge - Company'S Drug Policy Violates ADA
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: Patrick Henry (resist_tyranny@hotmail.com)
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: The Legal Intelligencer
Copyright: 1999 American Lawyer Media
Author: Shannon P. Duffy
Website: http://www.palawnet.com/

JUDGE - COMPANY'S DRUG POLICY VIOLATES ADA

In an epileptic man's suit over drug testing in the workplace, a
federal judge has ruled that employers can be sued for wrongful
discharge when their policy requires employees to disclose any
prescription drugs they are taking, forcing them to reveal their
medical conditions.

In her 32-page opinion in Rowles v. Automated Production Systems Inc.,
Chief U.S. District Judge Sylvia H. Rambo found that while employers
have an interest in a productive and drug-free workplace, there must
nevertheless be limits to drug testing.

"At some point, an individual's privacy interests trump an employer's
efficiency concerns," Rambo wrote.

"That point is when the invasion of privacy is `substantially and
highly offensive to the reasonable person'," she wrote, quoting from
the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' 1992 decision in Borse v. Piece
Goods Shop Inc..

In Borse, the 3rd Circuit envisioned two ways in which an employer's
urinalysis program might intrude upon an employee's seclusion --
either by the manner in which the test was conducted, since there are
"few activities ... more personal or private than the passing of
urine," or because the test could reveal "a host of private medical
facts," including whether an employee was epileptic or pregnant.

The 3rd Circuit recommended a fact-intensive analysis in wrongful
discharge suits based on a drug testing policy's alleged tortious
invasion of an employee's privacy.

The Borse opinion set forth a balancing test that would pit the
employee's privacy interest against the employer's interest in a
drug-free workplace.

The ultimate question, the court said, was to determine "whether a
reasonable person would find the employer's program highly offensive."

Rambo found that John A. Rowles presented just such a case and that a
jury must now decide whether the drug testing policy at APS was highly
offensive.

In another significant ruling, Rambo granted partial summary judgment
to Rowles' claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

As a matter of law, Rambo said, APS violated the ADA by having a
policy of prohibiting the use of certain prescription drugs -- even if
their use has no effect on job performance.

Rowles is represented by attorneys Lisa M. Rau of Kairys Rudovsky
Epstein Messing & Rau and Thomas H. Earle of the Disabilities Law
Project. For his epilepsy, Rowles takes an anticonvulsant, Dilantin,
and Phenobarbital to control his seizures.

In September 1996, Rowles applied for engineering position at APS and
consented to drug tests as a condition of being hired as a machine
design engineer.

APS immediately gave him a computer so he could begin work on an
urgent project, he says, and he was asked to take the drug test when
he reported to work in October 1996.

But Rowles says that when he finally got the chance to peruse the
company's drug policy, he realized that he wasn't being tested only
for illegal drugs. Instead, he says, the policy seemed to suggest that
he could be fired for taking his Phenobarbital prescription.

Rowles says he told his superviser of his epilepsy and prescription,
and that he had serious reservations about submitting to a drug test
because the company's policy seemed to prohibit the use of any
"controlled substance" -- even those prescribed by a physician.

When the time came for the drug test, Rowles refused to take it,
saying he feared that he would be fired for his use of prescribed
Phenobarbital. APS fired him for refusing to take the test and did not
offer to rehire him or allow him to take the test.

Rau and Earle argued that APS's policy violates the ADA because it
requires an employee to disclose any prescription drugs; and because
it prohibits the use of legally prescribed drugs without any showing
that testing for those drugs is "job related" and a "business necessity."

Rambo found that the ADA treats drug testing differently depending on
the stage at which the employer conducts the test. No drug testing is
allowed before the employer makes an offer, but some testing is
allowed post-offer, but pre-employment.

After an employee has started working, she said, the ADA gives
employers "considerably less latitude" in conducting examinations and
drug tests of current employees.

Rowles insisted he should be treated as a current employee since his
drug test at APS came after he was working there for several weeks.

But Rambo agreed with the lawyers for APS who said the test was
legally post-offer, but pre-employment since Rowles was given forms
that said his employment was conditional upon passing drug test.

As a result, Rambo found that Rowles fell into a category of employees
who enjoy the lowest level of rights in the drug-testing context. His
status as a worker on the threshold of joining the workforce placed
him in that unusual window of time in which an employer has the
opportunity to do some drug testing.

Despite placing his case in that category, Rambo found that APS's drug
testing policy had at least one indefensible provision since it
prohibited the use of certain drugs, even if they were prescribed by a
doctor.

APS insisted that its policy was designed only to weed out use of
illegal drugs.

But Rambo said "the court declines to ignore the text of APS's drug
and alcohol abuse policy."

Under the clear language of the policy, she said, clearly provides for
the firing of an employee who takes Phenobarbital, even if it was
prescribed to control seizures. An employee like Rowles, she said,
"must take the medication while at work, yet doing so is a direct
violation of the policy."

But Rambo stressed that her grant of summary judgment was only partial
and that Rowles must still show that his termination resulted from the
illegal policy.

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

No Green Light Yet (Newsweek magazine suggests the Institute of Medicine
report on medical marijuana was so timid that the White House drug czar,
General Barry McCaffrey, decided he didn't have to act on its conclusions
that cannabis does not have a high potential for abuse, but does have medical
value, conclusions that flatly contradict the rationale for its being a
Schedule 1 controlled substance.)

From: GranVizier@webtv.net
From: "CRRH mailing list" (restore@crrh.org)
Date: Mon, 22 Mar 1999 14:03:35 -0500 (EST)
To: november-l@drugsense.org, restore@crrh.org
Subject: MMJ-No Green Light Yet
Newshawk: ccross@november.org
Source: Newsweek
Pubdate: March 29, 1999
Online: http://www.newsweek.com/nw-srv/printed/us/na/na0113_2.htm

With Pat Wingert and Debra Rosenberg in Washington, Anne Underwood in
New York and Joshua Hammer in Los Angeles
Special Delivery

MEDICINE

No Green Light Yet
A long-awaited report supports medical marijuana. So now what?

By Claudia Kalb

For Scott Imler, it was finally time to exhale. Six months ago, Imler
feared his Los Angeles Cannabis Center would be shut down by federal
authorities. Last week, after the Institute of Medicine released its
findings on the medical merits of marijuana, Imler and his staffers were
toasting the report with bottles of Chianti: "Sweet vindication," he
said.

Back at the Office of National Drug Control Policy in Washington, drug
czar Gen. Barry McCaffrey had a very different reason to be relieved.
Sources say that if the IOM had given blanket approval to marijuana as
medicine, McCaffrey would have supported downgrading the drug from its
current Schedule I status (high potential for abuse, no medicinal value)
to Schedule II (which would allow doctors to prescribe it). Instead, the
general politely thanked the report's investigators.

"I think what we will aggressively support," he said, "is continued
research." The IOM report, commissioned by McCaffrey in 1997 amid
bitter clashes between state "medical marijuana" initiatives and a
federal war on weed, had something for everyone. The study concluded
that cannabinoids - marijuana's active components - can be useful in
treating pain, nausea and appetite loss caused by advanced cancer and
AIDS. For very ill patients with no other treatment options,
investigators recommended short-term use of smoked marijuana under
strict medical oversight. But the IOM in no way gave marijuana a clean
bill of health: scientists said the drug's benefits were hampered by the
toxicity of smoking.

Marijuana's future lay not in the plant, investigators said, but in
development of synthetic cannabinoids and in new, smokeless delivery
systems-ideally an asthma-type inhaler.

"We were asked, 'Is there a medical use for marijuana or cannabinoids?'"
said Dr. Stanley Watson, a principal investigator. "Our answer comes
out a reserved yes."

While the report pleased many, some found the "yes" far too timid.
Harvard doctor Lester Grinspoon, a longtime crusader for medical
marijuana, called the findings a "political compromise."

While praising the IOM for giving the drug legitimacy, Grinspoon says
its emphasis on pharmaceutical research will delay treatment and may be
wholly unrealistic. R&D for new drugs can cost $300 million - and only
about one in five will make it to market. "Drug companies won't get
involved," says Grinspoon, "unless they can be sure they'll make money."

Stalwart anti-drug warriors, on the other hand, considered parts of the
report reefer madness. IOM investigators said that they found no
conclusive evidence that marijuana is a "gateway" drug, nor that
recommending it medicinally would increase general use-both central
tenets of the administration's opposition to legalizing medical
marijuana.

Rep. Bill McCollum, who last fall introduced a House resolution urging
states not to pass marijuana referenda (it passed 310-93) says "nobody,
but nobody, who uses heroin or cocaine didn't start out using marijuana."

He and others worry that advocating smoking marijuana - even for very
sick patients - is "a very, very bad thing."

Once the smoke clears, what next? "I don't know," McCaffrey said last
week. He says he intends to respect the IOM's report and will ask the
National Institutes of Health to "sort it out." Marijuana advocates say
they will use it to fuel state initiatives; anti-drug groups promise to
continue their war.

As for drug development, Unimed Pharmaceuticals - which manufactures the
pill Marinol, the only legal cannabinoid synthetic - says it is devising
an inhaler. Several other small companies are developing smokeless
cigarettes, new pills and even a marijuana suppository.

Still, all of that is years away. Patients like Greg Scott, who is
battling AIDS, say marijuana helps keep them strong - "I'm living
proof," says Scott, "that marijuana is good medicine." But the Feds will
need more proof than that.

The study concluded that the future of medical marijuana is in its
chemical compounds - not in the plant itself. The state of cannabinoid
delivery:

Smoking: Offers immediate delivery and patients can "titrate" dose as
needed. But report deems fumes too dangerous-and smoking's illegal
under federal law.

Inhaler: Will eliminate toxicity of smoke while maintaining quick entry
into the bloodstream. The study encourages development, but product
approval is still years away.

Pills: Legal and smokeless. But they can take over an hour to enter
bloodstream. And some patients can't stomach concentrated dose.

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

Net Becomes Battleground In Drug War (The Washington Times admits the two new
web sites sponsored by the office of the White House drug czar, General Barry
McCaffrey, are just a reactionary response to all the "Web sites put out by
people who think drugs should be legalized." But Allen St. Pierre, the
director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, says
the Internet is dominated by those who want to see drugs legalized because
this is the general consensus.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 21:15:25 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: US: Net Becomes Battleground In Drug War
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: Washington Times (DC)
Copyright: 1999 News World Communications, Inc.
Contact: letter@twtmail.com
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/

NET BECOMES BATTLEGROUND IN DRUG WAR

New Sites Rebut Pro-Pot Messages

Children searching the Internet for information about drugs will find
about 1 million "hits," many of which tell them how to buy, sell and
grow marijuana.

Yahoo and Altavista search engines feature Web sites ranging from how
to smoke banana peels to passing a drug test with drugs in your system
to properly tending a marijuana garden.

But the White House and members of Congress hope to combat this
message and drug use among youth with the introduction of two
innovative Web sites where parents and children can find information
on fighting drugs.

"We must ensure that this medium of distributing information works for
us and not against us," said Rep. Jim Kolbe, Arizona Republican.

Mr. Kolbe is one of many representatives who support America Online,
ABC/Disney and the White House Office of National Drug Control
Policy's media campaign for drug prevention, which is now moving into
the on-line community with the two Web sites.

"Unlike advertising the traditional media outreach, the Internet
transcends geographical and economic boundaries and allows new
communities to come together in an interactive, substantive way," said
Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, director of the White House drug control
office and leader of the National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign.

The first Web site, ABC/Disney's www.Freevibe.com, is geared toward
children ages 10-13 with an interactive, trendy appeal to drug-related
information. Questions such as "How to say no" and "Why people take
drugs" are addressed and kids will also find games, news and links
that discourage drug use.

America Online's Parents Drug Resource Center guides parents in
recognizing and preventing drug use by their teens. Warning signs for
parents are physical changes as well as differences in personality
and behavior. They can talk to other parents who have dealt with
similar situations. The AOL keyword for the site is "Drug Help."

"The Center is . . . reaching into every community, even on-line
communities, to help kids learn the truth about drug use so that they
can lead clean, healthy lives," Gen. McCaffrey said in a note to
parents on the Web site.

This is a step in the right direction, said Sue Rusche, director of
the National Families in Action. It is unsafe for children even to
research the Internet on the subject of drugs, she said.

"We are deeply concerned about the Web sites put out by people who
think drugs should be legalized and advocate for that, but we are
delighted to hear of new Web sites providing good information for
parents and kids," she said.

The Internet is dominated by those who want to see drugs legalized
because this is the general consensus, said Allen St. Pierre,
director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana
Laws.

"AOL polls show that people are in favor of reform," he said. "These
media groups and the government want to put these voices aside."

Mr. St. Pierre said the two newly released sites are misleading
because they are not based on scientific information.

Claims of marijuana as a gateway drug that is addictive are false,
according to scientific and governmental research, he noted. Also, he
added, this research shows that marijuana does not cause physical
withdrawal or hurt the body.

"Government is not going to get the desired effect," Mr. St. Pierre
said. "The harder they push, the more kids use drugs."

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

Mexican Politicians Face Probe (The Associated Press says in the past, men in
top business and political positions were allowed to flee abroad until things
cooled off in Mexico, but international pressure to clean up Mexico's drug
mess has prosecutors cracking down on once mighty members of Mexico's
freewheeling elite. The reputation for corruption earned by Mexican law
enforcement, however, has helped make it possible for some Mexicans to
believe that members of the ruling class are now the victims of a
witch-hunt.)

Date: Mon, 29 Mar 1999 21:18:25 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: Mexico: Wire: Mexican Politicians Face Probe
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: General Pulaski
Pubdate: Mon, 29 Mar 1999
Source: Associated Press
Copyright: 1999 Associated Press
Author: Mark Stevenson

MEXICAN POLITICIANS FACE PROBE

MEXICO CITY (AP) In a striking turn, once mighty members of Mexico's
freewheeling elite are finding themselves under investigation for
fraud, corruption and even murder.

Men in top business and political positions were allowed in the past
to flee abroad until things cooled off at home, but international
pressure to clean up Mexico's drug mess has prosecutors cracking down.

The targets, however, are also firing back, waging vocal public
campaigns to portray themselves as victims of government persecution
and corrupt police.

After long shunning publicity, they now file human rights complaints
against prosecutors, stage protest rallies and call journalists at
home begging for them to write articles about their alleged plight.

And with the reputation for corruption that dogs Mexico's law
enforcement, many Mexicans are ready to believe that members of the
ruling class that long enjoyed government favors are now the victims.

Conspiracy charges are increasing as more of Mexico's elite feel legal
heat for the first time. The victims of "government witch hunts" are
many: a state governor, the brother of a former president, a
presidential candidate, a top banker.

Raul Salinas, brother of former President Carlos Salinas, claims he
was railroaded by his family's political enemies in his conviction for
the 1994 murder of a rival. He accused the judge of fabricating charges.

"We have been made ... political hostages," he said during an appeals
hearing last week.

Gov. Mario Villanueva, meanwhile, was questioned last week by
prosecutors about allegations of drug smuggling in his Caribbean coast
state, Quintana Roo.

Villanueva claims the accusations are part of a political campaign to
punish him for supporting old-guard presidential candidate Manuel Bartlett.

Bartlett, in turn, contends political motives are behind allegations
he participated in the 1985 torture-killing of a U.S. narcotics agent.

Also last week, Carlos Cabal Peniche, a banker who fled to Australia
after being charged in a $700 million fraud case, said from a Sydney
jail cell that he is a victim of political persecution because he
didn't give President Ernesto Zedillo enough support during his 1994
campaign. He also claimed he is being made the fall guy for Mexico's
banking crisis.

After decades of bungled cases, preferential treatment for
well-connected suspects and corruption in law enforcement, the image
of prosecutors is so tarnished that many Mexicans are receptive to
conspiracy theories.

Hundreds of supporters cheered Villanueva when he emerged from the
questioning session in the state capital, Chetumal.

A cartoon published by a Mexico City newspaper summed up the public's
feelings. It shows a man reading two newspaper headlines:

"'Prosecutors say governor involved in drug trafficking.' That could
very well be true," he says. "'Governor accuses prosecutors of making
false accusations.' That could very well be true."

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

Bin Laden Buys Child Slaves For His Drug Farms In Africa (The Daily
Telegraph, in Britain, accuses Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted
terrorist, of buying child slaves from Ugandan rebels and using them as
forced labour on marijuana farms in Sudan to fund his international terrorism
network.)

Date: Tue, 30 Mar 1999 16:30:34 -0800
From: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org (MAPNews)
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
Subject: MN: Africa: Bin Laden Buys Child Slaves For His Drug Farms In
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Reply-To: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Organization: Media Awareness Project http://www.mapinc.org/lists/
Newshawk: Martin Cooke (mjc1947@cyberclub.iol.ie)
Pubdate: 29 March 1999
Source: Daily Telegraph (UK)
Copyright: of Telegraph Group Limited 1999
Contact: dtletters@telegraph.co.uk
Website: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/
Author: David Blair in Kampala

BIN LADEN BUYS CHILD SLAVES FOR HIS DRUG FARMS IN AFRICA

OSAMA BIN LADEN, the world's most wanted terrorist, is buying child
slaves from Ugandan rebels and using them as forced labour on
marijuana farms in Sudan to fund his international terrorism network.

New evidence indicates that bin Laden, who masterminded the bombings
of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania last August, has made
Sudan the centre of his global empire.

Sudan, whose Islamic government has close links with bin Laden, is the
long-standing patron of the Lord's Resistance Army rebels who have
abducted at least 8,000 children from northern Uganda since 1994 and
forced them to serve as soldiers or sexual playthings. Others have
been sold into slavery in Sudan in exchange for guns and ammunition.

Brig Katumba Wamala, commander of the Ugandan forces fighting the
rebels, said: "We know that large numbers of children abducted by the
LRA are being sold into slavery in Sudan."

Many are bought by bin Laden, via Arab slave traders. "Bin Laden is
the main buyer of these children. He has very big marijuana farms in
Sudan and he buys the children as slave labourers," said Brig Wamala.

Evidence comes from children who have escaped the slave dealers. "We
have the testimony of abducted children and we also have intercepted
radio conversations," said Brig Wamala.

Radio intercepts show that bin Laden pays one Kalashnikov assault
rifle for every child he buys. Joseph Kony, the LRA leader, is in
desperate need of weapons and has recently complained of being cheated.

"It is on the record that Kony was complaining about the exchange
rate. Once the Arabs gave him 98 guns for the 100 children he had
given them. He complained very bitterly. It is a very lucrative
business," said Brig Wamala. Ugandan intelligence sources have tracked
the fate of children sold into the Sudanese slave trade. After being
abducted, they are forced to march to Jabelin, the LRA's headquarters
34 miles south of Juba, the main city in southern Sudan.

"Here a selection is made on the basis of physical appearance," said
the source. "The girls and some of the boys are taken away for what is
called special training. They are sold into slavery, while the rest
are used as soldiers."

Many of the girls are taken to Nsitu camp, 15 miles south of Juba,
from where they are distributed to Arab slave dealers. Once sold, the
children are taken to Juba airport and flown to other regions of
Sudan. Both of these camps are supplied by the Sudanese government.
According to a source who visited them in July 1997, Nsitu is less
than 200 yards from a Sudanese army base. Within the perimeter of
Jabelin camp, Sudanese government troops are housed alongside LRA rebels.

Ugandan intelligence has monitored the close links between bin Laden
and the Sudanese government. "After being expelled from Saudi Arabia,
bin Laden lived in Sudan from 1994 until 1996," said an intelligence
source. "He has a wide range of business interests there, covering
farms, banks, factories and infrastructure. These are used to fund
terrorism in Africa and elsewhere."

The marijuana farms worked by bin Laden's child slaves are located in
the Nile Valley, north of Khartoum. In the same area, he has several
large sunflower plantations, where slave labour may also be used.
Ugandan intelligence believes that bin Laden has invested UKP30
million in front organisations for his terror network. He has also
helped to finance major infrastructure projects in Sudan.

Uganda believes that bin Laden's web of terror is aimed at toppling
African governments, as well as striking at British and American
interests worldwide. "Sudan has offered itself as a training ground
for terrorists. We know of 17 terrorist training camps and the target
is to install Islamic fundamentalist governments in east and central
Africa by 2002," said the source. "That is why bin Laden is helping
them to sponsor rebels and kidnap and enslave our children."

Children who escape from the rebels have been encouraged to draw and
write about their experiences as part of the recovery process. Their
work featured in a book, Where Is My Home? Children in War, published
by children's charities in Uganda last year.

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