Drugs & Prohibition

Ex-sheriff charged with drug distribution, selling guns from evidence

"A former sheriff is due in court Monday for a pre-trial hearing. Former Carter County Sheriff Tommy Adams is charged with two felonies of distribution of a controlled substance, for methamphetamine and cocaine. He's also charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Adams pleaded guilty in April 2012 to federal charges for stealing firearms that had been seized as evidence, then selling some of them. Adams' former deputy, former Carter County Deputy Steffanie Kearbey, pleaded guilty to the same federal charges." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEx-sheriff charged with drug distribution, selling guns from evidence

US drugs prosecutors switch sides to defend accused Colombian traffickers

"US prosecutors and other senior officials who spearheaded the war against drug cartels have quit their jobs to defend Colombian cocaine traffickers, saying their clients are not bad people and that United States drug policy is wrong. Senior former assistant US attorneys and Drug Enforcement Administration agents are turning years of experience in investigating, indicting and extraditing narcos to the advantage of the alleged traffickers they now represent. Feitel and Klapper spoke of recognising the humanity of their clients and called for alternatives to a four-decade-old 'war on drugs' which costs billions of dollars and incarcerates thousands." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUS drugs prosecutors switch sides to defend accused Colombian traffickers

Massachusetts cops reinstated with back pay after testing positive for cocaine

"Officers Ronnie Jones, George Downing, Shawn Harris, Richard Beckers, Jacqueline McGowan and Walter Washington each had very different explanations as to why there might have been cocaine detected in their hair follicles, yet all were summarily fired in the last decade. The board’s ruling reinstates them to their jobs with back pay dating to October 2010. Reasons for the presence of cocaine given by officers included a recent prescription of lidocaine, living near a crackhead, keeping drug evidence in the same pocket as food and accidental physical contact after mistaking the drug for powder from a doughnut." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMassachusetts cops reinstated with back pay after testing positive for cocaine

Charges Dropped Against Innocent Man: Video Evidence Shows Officers Planted Drugs On Him

"A man who claims a police officer planted drugs on him will have the charges dismissed one day before his case was set to go to trial. But the DeKalb County Solicitor General’s Office said the dismissal has nothing to do with a surveillance video Alphonzo Eleby said proves the officer set him up. His attorney said surveillance video from the location shows the officer call the officer guarding Eleby over to the SUV he had been searching. As she searches the vehicle, Zenobia Waters said the video shows the officer circle back to her client and toss marijuana next to him. She said the officer then picks the drugs up and repositions them." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCharges Dropped Against Innocent Man: Video Evidence Shows Officers Planted Drugs On Him

Budget Cuts Could Pull Navy Out of The War on Drugs

"Currently the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates USS Gary (FFG-51) and Thach (FFG-43) patrol the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific looking for drug runners using either high-speed 'go-fast,' boats or slow-moving, hard-to-detect drug submarine-like craft to smuggle hundreds of tons of cocaine and other drugs from South America into the United States. With the frigates out of the picture, the amount of drugs entering the country will increase, U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Robert Papp told USNI News following Tuesday’s State of the Coast Guard address." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBudget Cuts Could Pull Navy Out of The War on Drugs

United Nations report: ‘Designer drug’ use, abuse and production surging

"Designer drugs are multiplying at a worrying rate and increasingly sending users to hospital, a UN-affiliated report said Tuesday, calling for international efforts to stem the spread of these substances. Aggravating the problem further was the fact that these drugs were not subject to international control regimes and were readily available on the Internet, requiring states and international institutions to find new ways to identify the drugs and stop their distribution. Another problem was the rise in prescription drug abuse, including painkillers, sedatives and others used to treat epilepsy, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and mental illnesses." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUnited Nations report: ‘Designer drug’ use, abuse and production surging

United Nations says changing U.S. marijuana laws violate international drug conventions

"Cannabis decriminalisation measures across the United States, including the medical use of marijuana in California, have been sharply criticised by the United Nations, which has warned Washington they violate the international drug conventions. The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), which polices the drug treaties, has also warned about the growing public health threat from the 'unprecedented surge' in 'legal highs' and called for concerted global action to curb the growing trade." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUnited Nations says changing U.S. marijuana laws violate international drug conventions

The IRS wants to tax your illegal income

"Dealt some drugs? Stole some cash? There's a line on your income tax form to declare it. As ridiculous as it sounds, the federal government requires that money acquired through illegal means be reported and taxed just like legitimate income. It's right there on the official IRS tax instructions: 'Income from illegal activities, such as money from dealing illegal drugs, must be included in your income on Form 1040, line 21, or on Schedule C or Schedule C-EZ (Form 1040) if from your self-employment activity.' If you tell the IRS you made $1 million from stealing money or dealing drugs, does the agency tip off the cops?" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingThe IRS wants to tax your illegal income

Connecticut Towns Pay Out Big for Deadly SWAT Drug Raid

"Five Connecticut towns whose SWAT team killed an unarmed man during a 2008 drug raid have agreed to pay $3.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the man's family. Another lawsuit, filed by the man who owned the home that was raided, is pending. Police videos showed them throwing a flash-bang grenade through a window, smashing down the back door, and yelling out, 'Police, warrant!' When it was over, Guizan lay dead on the floor with six gunshot wounds and Terebisi, who had been pinned by one of the officers, was handcuffed and dragged out of the house. Sweeney received the Monroe Police Officer of the Year award for his part in the raid." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingConnecticut Towns Pay Out Big for Deadly SWAT Drug Raid

America – Land of the Free?

"A major and fallacious official justification for attacks on financial privacy and on tax havens has been the lie that the war on drugs could be won if we all surrendered our privacy. Over $5 billion in cash and private property has been confiscated by police under forfeiture laws — and in 85% of the cases no charges were brought against the persons from which property was grabbed. In most cases, federal, state and local police kept the loot. In the United States, where illegal drug use is highest, a vast police-prison-government lobby has arisen. It devours about $80 billion a year in taxpayer funds, supposedly to combat drugs. What a costly hoax!" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAmerica – Land of the Free?