Friday, January 18, 2008

Ohio Town Protests Police Shooting

Residents of Lima, OH, are protesting the recent killing of a young woman and wounding of her 14-month-old child during a police SWAT-team raid.

The Toledo Blade reported on Jan. 17, 2008 ("Angry Lima Slams Shooting Inquiry") that "On Jan. 4, Tarika Wilson, 26, was shot to death and her 14-month-old son, Sincere, was wounded when members of the Lima Police Department's SWAT team searched Wilson's East Third Street home and arrested her boyfriend, Anthony Terry, 31, on drug charges. At some point during the 8:15 p.m. raid, Sgt. Joseph Chavalia, a 30-year veteran of the department, fired at Wilson, who was holding her young son in her arms. Her five other children were in the house at the time."

According to the Blade, "Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann came to town yesterday to assure Lima residents that his office would do a thorough and unbiased investigation into the fatal shooting of a local woman by a Lima police officer. Instead, he got an earful. For more than two hours, Mr. Dann and representatives of the FBI and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigation listened as black and white residents expressed their distrust of the Lima police department, told stories of how they allegedly had been harassed by officers, and demanded to know how they could expect the state law enforcement agency to impartially investigate the actions of another law enforcement agency."

The Blade noted that "The state's findings are to be turned over to Defiance County Prosecutor Jeff Strausbaugh, who was appointed special prosecutor. Mr. Strausbaugh said he will review BCI&I's findings and determine whether or not the case should be presented to an Allen County grand jury for possible criminal charges against Sergeant Chavalia. 'I want an investigation that's been done independently, competently, and very thoroughly,' Mr. Strausbaugh said, adding that he was 'independent' of Lima and Allen County. FBI spokesman Scott Wilson said agents from the Toledo office also are investigating the case for possible federal civil-rights violations. Their findings will be turned over to the U.S. Department of Justice. Officials declined to discuss any details of the investigations. Several people in the audience asked why the probe should take so much time when it should be clear what happened. 'You've given us nothing,' said Thelma Flint. 'This case is open and shut. She was murdered. She was with her children.'"

Thursday, January 17, 2008

Colorado Couple Sue Police Over Seized Medical Cannabis

A Ft. Collins, CO couple are suing police over medical marijuana which was seized and destroyed.

The Ft. Collins Coloradan reported on Jan. 17, 2008 ("Fort Collins Couple to Ask City for Reimbursement for Dead Marijuana Plants") that "The attorney for James and Lisa Masters, whose 39 medical marijuana plants were seized by Fort Collins police and later destroyed, plans to file a motion this afternoon asking the city pay the couple for the destroyed plants. Police confiscated the plants in an August 2006 raid on the Masters’ Fort Collins home. Criminal charges against the couple were dismissed in June 2007. A judge in November ordered police to return the seized plants. The plants were dead when police returned them in December."

The Coloradan noted that "U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration estimates put the value of the plants at thousands of dollars each, according to attorney Brian Vicente."



Marc Emery Takes Deal, Will Do Five Years In Prison

Canada's self-styled "Prince of Pot," Marc Emery, has reportedly accepted a deal offered by US prosecutors and will serve five years in prison on cannabis-related charges.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported on Jan. 16, 2008 ("'Prince of Pot' Given Prison Time") that "Although the plea deal has not yet been formally adopted, Emery said Tuesday that he's agreed to the prosecution's terms: that he serve a minimum of five years behind bars. Most of that time would be done in a Canadian prison, he said. Emery had been facing a mandatory minimum term of 10 years and up to life if convicted in U.S. District Court for a crime that's rarely prosecuted in Canada. The plea agreement calls for him to plead guilty to a three-count indictment issued in 2005 by a Seattle grand jury. He was charged with manufacturing more than a ton of marijuana and conspiring to distribute seeds and launder the profits."

According to the Post-Intelligencer, "Emery said the plea deal is contingent on sparing two longtime associates, also charged in the indictment, any jail time. Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Greenberg on Tuesday declined to comment on the plea bargain outlined by Emery. He said an extradition hearing scheduled to begin Monday in Vancouver so far hasn't been canceled."

The P-I noted that "As support for his allegation that his prosecution was politically motivated, Emery prominently displays on his Web site a statement from Karen Tandy, the administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration at the time. To the dismay of the federal criminal justice establishment in Seattle, Tandy issued a statement after Emery's arrest in July 2005, saying: 'Today's DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture magazine, and the founder of a marijuana legalization group -- is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also the marijuana legalization movement. Hundreds of thousands of dollars of Emery's illicit profits are known to have been channeled to marijuana legalization groups active in the United States and Canada. Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on.'"




Wednesday, January 16, 2008

PA School Boards Consider Drug Testing For New Hires

Two school districts in Pennsylvania are considering adoption of a drug testing policy for new teacher hires following the 2007 arrest of a principal in a nearby district for drug trafficking.

The Express-Times reported on Jan. 14, 2008 ("Boards Consider Drug Tests for Teacher Hires") that "The Easton and Bethlehem Area school districts are considering pre-employment drug-testing policies for their teachers and staff similar to one passed three months ago by the Northampton Area School District. The Bethlehem district considered a random drug-testing policy last year shortly after Acerra was arrested. District officials relented when a solicitor said it would violate the constitutional rights of teachers. But testing them before they are hired would be acceptable, legal experts say. Steven Miller, Northampton Area School District's solicitor, said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld the right of school districts to drug test teacher and staff applicants, in the 1998 case Knox County Education Association vs. Knox County Board of Education."

According to the Express-Times, "Easton Area School Board members will discuss a pre-employment policy at their Thursday board meeting. Bethlehem Area Superintendent Joseph Lewis said he has written a policy draft and will present it to his board in upcoming months. Neither board is considering a random drug-testing policy. Although federal guidelines require bus drivers to submit to random drug tests, the Bethlehem board solicitor found last year teachers and staff are protected from random tests by the Fourth Amendment."

The Express-Times noted that "Easton Area's Acting Superintendent Joseph Kish said if a district wanted to try implementing random testing, the teachers union would have to agree to it during contract negotiations. Easton Area's teachers contract was approved last month with no such provision. Kevin Deely, Easton Area Education Association president, said the union had no problems with Easton implementing a drug-screening policy for prospective employees. 'That's the district's prerogative,' Deely said. 'We don't want teachers in the classroom who are abusing substances and the district obviously doesn't want that either.'"

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

California Considering Early Release of 22,000 Prison Inmates

The state of California is considering a plan by that state's governor to ease prison overcrowding through the early release of more than 22,000 inmates.

The San Francisco Chronicle reported on Jan. 12, 2008 ("22,000 Prisoners Could be Set Free Early to Save Millions") that "Less than six months ago, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger promised that there was no way any California convict was going to get a break on his prison term. 'I am here to tell you that the early release of inmates is totally unacceptable,' the governor said July 28. 'They should only be let out when they have served their sentences and are ready to return to society. Period.' But with the state facing a $14.5 billion budget deficit over the next 18 months, Schwarzenegger on Thursday announced that more than 22,000 nonviolent offenders will be released as much as 20 months early over the next year and a half in an effort to slash $260 million from the Department of Corrections budget. About half the inmates eligible for the early release program are expected to be drug offenders, with most of the rest in custody for property crimes like forgery, auto burglary and car theft, corrections officials say."

According to the Chronicle, "The state expects to save another $110 million by placing the former inmates on 'summary parole,' which means they won't have to meet with parole officers and can't be returned to prison for a parole violation. A panel of federal judges, upset about overcrowding in the state prison system, is ready to slap a cap on the prison population, the governor said, just as the state's fiscal crisis is forcing 10 percent, across-the-board cuts in state spending."

The Chronicle noted that "The new parole rules for such nonviolent offenders also mean they can't be quickly returned to prison violating parole. If police discover someone on summary parole with narcotics, for example, they can't simply ask a judge to send him to prison. They will have to file new charges and put the parolee on trial, a long and often expensive proposition. If Schwarzenegger gets his way, plenty of ex-convicts are going to be back on the street and local officials are worried about what that will mean. Even nonviolent offenders often return to their communities with drug problems, no jobs and no place to stay, said Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson."