Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 3:59 pm | By: Amanda
Thank you for contacting me regarding our nation’s criminal justice system. I appreciate hearing from you, and I welcome the chance to respond. As a former prosecutor, I fought to appropriately punish those who violated our laws. The fact is, however, that more than seven million Americans are currently under criminal justice supervision, and many of these offenders are guilty of only nonviolent drug crimes. The rate of incarcerated drug offenders has soared by 1200% since 1980. Too many of these former offenders reenter our communities without the substance abuse treatment and basic life skills needed to contribute to society, and two-thirds are rearrested for a felony or serious misdemeanor within three years of their release. This pace is unsustainable; it is destroying our communities and wasting taxpayer dollars. We need to create a judicial system that provides equal and fair verdicts, as well as a humane incarnation and reentry system that truly emphasizes the rehabilitation of those who will be released.
Last year Congress passed, and the President signed into law, the Second Chance Act. This law created programs that combine intensive parole supervision with job training, substance abuse treatment, and other support services to help high-risk offenders become productive citizens. Now we need to follow through by funding the Second Chance Act’s programs and ensuring they are properly implemented.
The Second Chance Act was an important step in the right direction, but more reform is needed. That is why I am cosponsoring the National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009 (S.714). This legislation would create and authorize a commission to conduct a top-to-bottom review of our nation’s criminal justice system and offer concrete recommendations for reform. S.714 has been referred to the Committee on Judiciary. White I do not serve on this committee, I will bear your comments in mind should it be considered by the Senate.
Again, thank you for sharing your concerns with me. It is a privilege to represent you. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future regarding other matters of interest or concern.
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009 at 6:46 pm | By: Radical Russ
(St. Louis Today) Cottleville — Officials in Cottleville want Missouri to join the growing number of U.S. states that have legalized marijuana for medicinal use.
Mayor Don Yarber said Monday the city’s Board of Aldermen unanimously approved a resolution last week urging state legislators to legalize medical marijuana for Missourians who have a doctor’s approval.
“I’m only proposing this for medical use,” Yarber said. “I’m not part of a movement or anything else to get marijuana legalized.”
A Missouri House bill died in this year’s session without a committee hearing. In Illinois, a similar bill passed in the Senate but was not voted on in the House before the end of the spring session.
One supporter of Cottleville’s stance on the issue is Kenneth R. Wells, 54, of St. Charles County, who is awaiting trial on drug charges. Investigators found marijuana plants in Wells’ basement after a fire broke out at his St. Charles County home in January 2008.
Wells spoke at last week’s board meeting in Cottleville, saying marijuana has helped relieve side effects from medications he takes for chronic epilepsy.
In an interview this week, Wells said he was surprised that such a resolution was approved in a Republican county. “This is one of the reddest counties in the country,” he said. “To get a resolution like that in Cottleville is just unheard of.”
Actually, a resolution like this is one of the most traditionally Republican political stands I can think of – smaller government, individual responsibility, states rights are all a factor in medical marijuana policy. It also frees up police resources from busting medical patients to busting real criminals, so it is a “tough on crime” measure as well. Republicans could make significant political gains if they outflanked Democrats on the issue of medical marijuana, especially since it enjoys supermajority support among voters.
Tuesday, July 21st, 2009 at 10:00 am | By: Lynnette
Thank you for contacting me regarding the use of marijuana for medical purposes. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
As you may know, in July 2007, the House rejected the Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment, which would have prevented federal enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) against medical marijuana users and providers in the twelve states that have legalized its use. These states have enacted laws allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, and many thousands of patients are seeking relief from a variety of serious illnesses by smoking marijuana or using other herbal cannabis preparations. However, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration refuses to recognize these state laws and still investigates and arrests, under federal statute, medical marijuana providers and users in those states and elsewhere.
As a result, Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced H.R. 2835 Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act. This bill would change marijuana’s classification from schedule I to schedule II substance of the CSA. It would also guarantee that, in states where marijuana can be legally prescribed, no provision of the CSA or the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act could be used to prohibit or restrict physicians from prescribing or recommending marijuana for medical use, individuals from obtaining, possessing, transporting, manufacturing, or using marijuana in accordance with such a prescription or recommendation, and pharmacies or other authorized entities from obtaining, possessing, or distributing marijuana to patients.
H.R. 2835 is currently pending before the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Although I do not serve on this committee, I will keep your thoughts in mind should this bill reach the House for a vote.
Again, thank you for sharing your views with me. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future if I may be of further assistance.
Monday, July 13th, 2009 at 2:44 pm | By: Radical Russ
(Kansas City Star) COTTLEVILLE, Mo. | The little St. Charles County community of Cottleville is encouraging the state to legalize the use of medical marijuana.
Cottleville Mayor Don Yarber said Friday that the Board of Aldermen unanimously passed a resolution Thursday urging Missouri legislators to legalize access to medical marijuana for Missourians who have a doctor’s approval.
Yarber says he believes marijuana can bring some relief to certain terminally ill people or cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. He says the resolution doesn’t condone general marijuana use, and says people shouldn’t confuse the two issues.
A Missouri branch of the National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws says Columbia and Cliff Village have previously passed local legislation supporting medical marijuana.
NORMLizers, there is an old saying in reform, “Think Globally, Act Locally” that applies here. We get discouraged when we live in a pot-hating state and we may think passing something as sensible as medical marijuana statewide will be impossible.
That may be true now, but it doesn’t mean you have no place to focus your efforts. Local initiatives (in places that have them) and city councils are perfect places to plant the seed of reform. Find your local college town, especially if the college is its only reason for existence, and see if you can pass a lowest-law enforcement measure or even a symbolic measure like a resolution encouraging the state to pass medical marijuana. Start in the smaller towns; you need to gather less signatures and convince fewer voters.
It may feel only symbolic, but understand that symbols are powerful things. A state legislator who has towns in his district passing symbolic measures has to think twice about opposing them. A newspaper running a story about activism in your state has to mention them. Remember, it was local NORML activists in Massachusetts working hard for years to pass non-binding symbolic resolutions in city after city that set the stage for the passage of decriminalization statewide last year.
Tuesday, June 9th, 2009 at 2:20 pm | By: Radical Russ
Marijuana advocates are setting their sights on several Missouri cities — including Springfield — as possible battlegrounds next year in the debate over decriminalization of the recreational drug.
A 2008 effort to collect enough voter signatures for a decriminalization initiative in Joplin fell about 1,000 names short.
Now organizers of that effort are looking at several possible locations to try again in 2010.
Joplin activist Kelly Maddy says the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws is eyeing Springfield, Blue Springs and Cape Girardeau for future campaigns.
“We want to make it a high-impact city where we can have the greatest impact on the state,” Maddy said.
A final decision isn’t expected until later this year.
In even the most conservative of states there are cities and towns, especially the ones with colleges, that are ripe for lowest-priority or decriminalization. We’ve seen positive marijuana reforms in Arkansas (Eureka Springs), Missouri (Joplin), and Idaho (Hailey) recently. Some will say, “yeah, what does it matter though, since the state law and federal law say it’s illegal.” It’s true: sometimes your initiative will be merely symbolic, but symbols count. It took 30 such symbolic measures over years in Massachusetts towns to lead up to decriminalization statewide last year. It took symbolic measures in Michigan to lead up to medical marijuana last year.
Check to see if your city allows citizen petitioning and referendums. You usually don’t have to gather a lot of signatures and since city elections don’t usually attract a lot of voters, you and your supporters can get them passed if you get out the vote.
Friday, May 15th, 2009 at 2:20 pm | By: Radical Russ
Current NBA player Darius Miles*:
FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS — NBA player Darius Miles, who grew up in East St. Louis, is free on $100 bond after being arrested Wednesday night on suspicion of possession of a small amount of marijuana and driving on a suspended license.
Miles, 27, who plays for the Memphis Grizzlies, was stopped by a Fairview Heights police officer about 10:20 p.m. Wednesday.
Police reported that his 1996 Chevrolet Impala had turned onto the 5700 block of Old Collinsville Road without its turn signal activated.
The officer then determined that Miles’ license had been suspended, and less than 2.5 grams of marijuana were found in the vehicle after it was towed by police.
Darius was one of the infamous “Jail Blazers” up here in Portland, around the same time Damon Stoudamire was perfecting the genius move of sneaking marijuana wrapped in tinfoil through an airport metal detector and Qyntel Woods was running dog fighting in his home. You know I don’t care that he had less than an eighth in his car, it’s the idea of an NBA player with plenty of money and people that can’t get his driver’s license in order or have someone drive him around that bugs me. (When I was 17 I had my drivers’ license suspended and didn’t get it back until age 19. I didn’t drive one bit in two years, and that was back in Boise, Idaho, which desperately lacks public transportation. If I could tough it out while working minimum wage jobs, going to college, and eating Top Ramen, Darius Miles can find someone to drive his NBA-salaried ass around town.)
If Miles’ car were towed in California, Oregon, Alaska, Nevada, Colorado, Minnesota, Nebraska, Mississippi, North Carolina, New York, Maine, Massachusetts, or Ohio and 2.5g of cannabis were found, he’d only face a ticket. In Missouri, however, he’s facing one year, $1,000 fine, and a criminal record. Whoops! Fairview Heights is just over the border in Illinois, facing 30 days or six months and $1,500 fine and a misdemeanor record.
Former NBA player Corey Blount:
Corie Blount, who played for the Bulls from 1994-95 and again from 2002-04, will spend a year in an Ohio prison after being busted with possession of insane amounts of pot.
Blount was arrested last December after 11 pounds of pot were intercepted being delivered to his grandmother’s house. Another 18 pounds of pot and a stash of cash were found at his home.
So, Corie Blount will essentially be going to prison for possessing 29 pounds of weed. That’s right … 29 pounds … of weed.
“Although Judge Craig Hedric did not sentence Blount to the maximum 10 years in prison, he rejected Blount’s claim that the marijuana was intended for personal use and to share with friends.
“‘Cheech and Chong would have had a hard time smoking that much,’ Hedric told Blount.”
Blount was also fined $10,000, had to surrender two vehicles and more than $30,000 in cash that was seized during the initial bust.
When your name is “Blount”, maybe you ought to be more careful about shipping and storing large quantities of weed.
Now, if you’re thinking “Wow, only 1 year for 29 pounds of weed?!?”, check the Ohio law. Ohio has the greatest amount of personal weed possession decriminalized, up to 100 grams (3.53 ounces) is a minor misdemeanor, no criminal record and a $100 fine. Blount’s possession of 13,154 grams puts him in the 5,000g-20,000g third-degree felony range of 1-5 years and $10,000 fine.
For comparison: if Darius Miles had been pulled over in Ohio, he could’ve had 40 times the marijuana and still paid a $100 ticket. If Corey Blount had been living in Missouri, he’d be facing a possible 7 years in prison instead of one Illinois, he’d be facing 4-15 years, $25,000 fine, if convicted of felony possession, or 12-60 years and $400,000 fine if convicted of felony trafficking across state lines. In Florida, Darius Miles could go to jail for a year and Corey Blount would be considered a felony drug trafficker and get a mandatory minimum of at least three years, plus five years for the possession and $30,000 in fines. Under federal law, should the US attorney wish to prosecute, Miles would face one year and Blount might face five years and a $250,000 fine.
*Interesting trivia (to me): Darius Miles was born in Belleville, Illinois. — “R”R
This bill changes the laws regarding the classification of marijuana as a controlled substance and allows its use for medicinal purposes. In its main provisions, the bill:
(1) Removes marijuana from the Schedule I classification for controlled substances and reclassifies it under Schedule II;
(2) Prohibits the arrest, prosecution, or penalty in any manner of a qualifying patient who possesses a written certification for the medical use of marijuana if the quantity doesn’t exceed an adequate supply. A qualifying patient younger than 18 years of age is also exempt from arrest, prosecution, or penalty if a parent or guardian consents in writing to and controls the medical use of marijuana;
Tuesday, March 31st, 2009 at 11:52 am | By: Radical Russ
This one is a nice short email in response to a constituent asking for support of “House Bill 277. This bill seeks to enact statewide legal protections shielding those seriously ill patients who use cannabis therapeutically with a doctor’s recommendation from criminal prosecution.”
I appreciate your input, but I don’t see a strong movement in Missouri for this type of legislation.
I want a NORML chapter in all fifty states, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. I want double the number of chapters. So I really need your help.
Just this last two weeks, I have received emails from budding activists (pun intended) looking to start NORML Chapters in Colorado, North Carolina, Alaska, Alabama, Florida (Miami), Missouri, Virginia, Idaho, New Hampshire, Kentucky, Mississippi, Vermont, Texas, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Kansas, as well as four new college chapter inquiries and inquiries from Australia, Japan, Guam, and Mexico (Cuidad Juarez).
I work to put the people in the same state in touch with each other because the hardest thing about forming a NORML Chapter isn’t finding the guy or gal to lead, it’s finding the other four people to form your board.
So Stashers, if you’re in one of the above-named states or countries and you’d like to get on board with a new local chapter, send me an email to stash@norml.org with the subject “Join a Chapter” and I’ll hook you up.
Cliff Village — population 34 or 55, depending on who does the counting — weighed in on the national debate about medical marijuana by passing its own go-ahead earlier this month.
But before you bring your bong to town, consider that Cliff Village has no illusion that it has become a doobie sanctuary.
“This is symbolism, pure and simple,” said Mayor Joe Blundell. “I would like to be the brave one who grows the first plant, but they’ve built a lot of cages for the people who stick their necks out.”
Rather, his ordinance was intended to show grassroots support for a measure that has been repeatedly introduced — and consistently doomed — in the Missouri General Assembly.
Columbia passed a similar ordinance in 2004, and not just for show. Dan Viets, a Columbia lawyer and the Missouri coordinator for NORML, said that the ordinance had the practical effect of “lowering the anxiety of patients about possessing marijuana” and that police in the college town have played along with the local law.
Cliff Village is no college town. It’s barely a town at all. It has no employees and levies no taxes. It gets about $1,300 a year in distributions of state fuel taxes for road repairs and $120 to $200 more in cable TV franchise fees.
The 30-year-old mayor said the law came from his own frustration with pharmaceutical painkillers to deal with the aftermath of a train accident that left him in a wheelchair.
“When I got introduced to this flower, it not only alleviated my pain, it got me out gardening,” Blundell said. “I’m not just stoning myself out. It allowed me to function.”
Although Blundell said he’s not smoking dope these days — he thinks the ordinance raises his profile too much to risk it — he wanted to make a statement.
You know, it’s like media just can’t resist a pot pun. This is a serious issue of people exercising their democratic process to end the unjust arrest of sick people using cannabis to make their lives tolerable, and the opening line conjures visions of a Cypress Hill concert.
Just once I’d like to see any other serious public health issue addressed with the same tone, bias, and mocking headlines as medical marijuana. Imagine:
…a new outpatient alcoholism treatment center opens up outside Joplin = “A new facility for sloppy drunks who can’t hold their liquor was dedicated today outside Joplin…”
…women protest the closing of a Planned Parenthood location = “Promiscuous sluts gather to protest closing of baby killing clinic…”
…a new study uncovers hidden health risks for children with attention deficit disorder = “Hyper kids’ health in danger, new study says…”
Sorry to be course about it, and you know I don’t believe any of those statements. I do it to point out that news stories refer to us as “potheads”, imply that medical marijuana is just “rolling up a fat one”, and generally treat the issue with a heavy law enforcement / culture warrior bias, but if the same standard were applied to other controversial health topics like alcoholism, abortion, or ADHD, news reporters and editors would lose their job.
RevRayGreen: I'll post a pic of me and my son....gimme a minute
Missippi Hippy: Guess what... I'm gonna be a new... ummmmm well, my pet piggie Ganja is in labor and they ain't mine in the same sense. See what your wife [...]
RevRayGreen: days they didn't talk back..or act disrespectful..
RevRayGreen: feel so lucky my son is 18 going 19 and my daughter 16 going on 17..relish the days that can't talk back
Urb Age: Congrats Spof thats awesome. My little Clara is about to hit 20 months. Im not the activist I used to be, but its made me a better man.
Urb Age: Heck I was gonna go up there, but just not feeling well this weekend..Dang it, I hate it when that happens..
RevRayGreen: wishing I was hanging at NORML cafe...
JohnH: Just a quick comment about tokin' and sperm motility....been tokin since age 14 and have 8 kids ranging in age from 30 to 9...(what can I say, I found 2 [...]
slash5city: really ..oprah 35 yr or more in the closet toker ...outed ....o my god !!
SneakerPimp: that would be huge news just imagen the headline
RevRayGreen: maybe Oprah smokes and keeps it on the DL...
SneakerPimp: and good afternoon
mr reuben: I could do without seeing Rob K. on tv. But Bruce and Eithan get a big thumbs up from me.
SneakerPimp: waitn for NSL and congrast for spofett.
mr reuben: I don't respect her opinion bluzguy.
Missippi Hippy: Something about the last year in a contract... folks become more ballsey... and Oprah has big ones.
Marijuana-Related Health Costs Minimal Compared To Those Of Alcohol, Tobacco; California Medical Association Says Pot Prohibition Is A "Failed Public Health Policy"; Oregon: State NORML Affiliate Opens First 'Cannabis Café'. […]
American Medical Association Calls For Scientific Review Of Marijuana's Prohibitive Status; Dutch Marijuana Use Lower Than European Average, Study Says […]
"Truth In Trials Act" Reintroduced In Congress; Maine: Voters Approve Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Measure; Colorado: Breckenridge Voters Overwhelmingly Decide To End Pot Penalties. […]
Some of the nation’s top athletes discuss why today's pros are turning to cannabis — and away from alcohol and painkillers — off the field, and question why pro sports leagues are continuing to sanction those who do. Moderator: Steve Bloom, Author, Pot Culture; editor, celebstoner.com * Toby Grear, MMA fighter * Sean Neumann, Documentary Filmm […]
Cannabis Law Reform's Missing Link: Law Enforcement Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper; LEAP and NORML Advisory Board; Author of Breaking Rank Putting the Mexican Cartels Out of Business Mexican drug cartels now employ over 100,000 soldiers and are responsible for nearly ten thousand deaths per year. Their largest source of income is marijuana. […]
Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) on Marijuana Law Reform
waitn for NSL and congrast for spofett.
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