Tag: police state

Florida Lawmakers Approve Bill To Punish Medical Marijuana Patients For Having Open Containers Of Cannabis In Cars

Citing statistics showing that impaired drivers contribute to more than 30 percent of fatalities on Florida roads, Jacksonville Republican Rep. Dean Black introduced legislation Thursday that would ban medical marijuana patients from possessing open containers of cannabis.

The prohibition would apply if they were driving or a passenger in a vehicle, with the penalty being the loss of their medical marijuana card after committing a third such violation.

The bill (HB 1003) would work the same way Florida law does now in banning driving with open containers of alcohol, Rep. Black told members of the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Thursday.

“We are trying to make sure that we establish—like we did with alcohol—a taboo. It’s wrong. It has to stop,” he said.

Black cited an Ohio study published last fall showing that, over six years, 40% of drivers who died in motor vehicle collisions had tested positive for THC in their system—and said he had plenty of anecdotal evidence that this is also happening in Florida.

“I was in Tallahassee and watched two people who were in front of me at a light on Monroe Street, and they were passing a bong between the windows of their car,” he said, eliciting laughs from some lawmakers. “It’s ridiculous. It’s killing people.”

Among the concerns opponents expressed is that the bill says that a county or municipality “may” adopt an ordinance that imposes more stringent restrictions than simply the removal of one’s medical marijuana card.

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EU Targets VPNs as Age Checks Expand

Australia’s under-16 social media restrictions have become a practical reference point for regulators who are moving beyond theory and into enforcement.

As the system settles into routine use, its side effects are becoming clearer. One of the most visible has been the renewed political interest in curbing tools that enable private communication, particularly Virtual Private Networks. That interest carries consequences well beyond “age assurance.”

A January 2026 briefing we obtained from the European Parliamentary Research Service traces a sharp rise in VPN use following the introduction of mandatory age checks.

The report notes “a significant surge in the number of virtual private networks (VPNs) used to bypass online age verification methods in countries where these have been put in place by law,” placing that trend within a broader policy environment where “protection of children online is high on the political agenda.”

Australia’s experience fits this trajectory. As age gates tighten, individuals reach for tools that reduce exposure to monitoring and profiling. VPNs are the first port of call in that response because they are widely available, easy to use, and designed to limit third-party visibility into online activity.

The EPRS briefing offers a clear description of what these tools do. “A virtual private network (VPN) is a digital technology designed to establish a secure and encrypted connection between a user’s device and the internet.”

It explains that VPNs hide IP addresses and route traffic through remote servers in order to “protect online communications from interception and surveillance.” These are civil liberties functions, not fringe behaviors, and they have long been treated as legitimate safeguards in democratic societies.

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EU Court Confirms Right to Confiscate Cars Imported From Russia in Violation of Sanctions

The EU Court confirmed the right of EU countries to confiscate cars imported from Russia in violation of sanctions.

“The prohibition, laid down by that provision, on purchasing, importing or transferring into the European Union applies to any good falling under the Combined Nomenclature codes listed in Annex XXI to Regulation No 833/2014, as amended by Council Regulation (EU) 2022/1904 of 6 October 2022, without it being necessary to verify, for each individual transaction, whether the purchase, importation or transfer in question generates significant revenues for the Russian Federation,” the statement, published on Thursday, said.

The sanctions on goods from Russia also apply to individuals, the court said, adding that cars imported from Russia in violation of sanctions not subject to registration in bloc, can be seized.

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Greece Announces Massive Closure Operation of 60 Illegal Mosques in Athens Operated by Bangladeshis and Pakistanis

The Greek government has launched an exhaustive operation to identify and shut down all illegal mosques in the municipality of Athens, estimated at around 60, most managed by immigrants from Bangladesh and Pakistan.

This initiative, announced by the Minister of Migration and Immigration, Thanos Plevris, includes the simultaneous deportation of foreigners operating these sites, emphasizing that those who do not comply with Greek law will face automatic expulsion.

The operation is activated following a landmark case in the Agios Nikolaos area, where the residence permit of a Bangladeshi citizen accused of running an illegal mosque was revoked.

This individual was sentenced to prison for operating a place of worship without permission, and the site was sealed by the authorities. Plevris, during a meeting of the parliamentary committee on legal immigration, stated that «what happened in Agios Nikolaos will happen everywhere,» promising the closure of all irregular places of worship along with the revocation of legal documents of their operators.

The measure is part of a broader effort to combat illegal trafficking and promote legal migration, with cooperation between ministries to seal these spaces and deport those involved.

Athens has only one legal mosque, but estimates indicate that nearly 60 unauthorized sites are operating, converted into basements, apartments, warehouses or parking lots without basic specifications such as ventilation or adequate sanitation.

These places, mostly frequented by Bangladeshi and Pakistani communities, have proliferated in the last decade, with previous figures exceeding 100 in Attica.

The conservative government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis has prioritized national security and border control, contrasting with left-wing policies that, in the past, have allowed the expansion of illegal immigration, overburdening resources and generating risks for social cohesion.

This massive purge represents a blow against migratory irregularity, aligned with previous efforts such as the deportation of hundreds of Pakistanis who infiltrated illegally by sea in 2025.

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Congressional Report Warns Britain Is Exporting Censorship Worldwide

The government of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been directly named in a new United States congressional report that condemns Britain for adopting what it calls “copycat censorship laws,” warning that the country’s digital regulations now pose “a direct threat” to free speech.

The document, published by the United States House Committee on the Judiciary, describes an expanding campaign led by the European Commission to impose “strict digital censorship laws” on global technology platforms.

Lawmakers in Washington identified the Online Safety Act as the clearest example of this approach spreading beyond the European Union.

The Act was introduced with the stated goal of improving online safety, but it requires platforms such as X, Reddit, and TikTok to install age verification systems and remove material deemed harmful by regulators.

US lawmakers say these provisions give the British government broad authority to dictate what can and cannot be said online.

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ICE observer says her Global Entry was revoked after agent scanned her face

Minnesota resident Nicole Cleland had her Global Entry and TSA PreCheck privileges revoked three days after an incident in which she observed activity by immigration agents, the woman said in a court declaration. An agent told Cleland that he used facial recognition technology to identify her, she wrote in a declaration filed in US District Court for the District of Minnesota.

Cleland, a 56-year-old resident of Richfield and a director at Target Corporation, volunteers with a group that tracks potential Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) vehicles in her neighborhood, according to her declaration. On the morning of January 10, she “observed a white Dodge Ram being driven by what I believed to be federal enforcement agents” and “maneuvered behind the vehicle with the intent of observing the agents’ actions.”

Cleland said that she and another observer in a different car followed the Dodge Ram because of “concern about a local apartment building being raided.” She followed the car for a short time and from a safe distance until “the Dodge Ram stopped in front of the other commuter’s vehicle,” she wrote. Cleland said two other vehicles apparently driven by federal agents stopped in front of the Dodge Ram, and her path forward was blocked.

“An agent exited the vehicle and approached my vehicle,” Cleland wrote. “I remained in my vehicle. The agent addressed me by my name and informed me that they had ‘facial recognition’ and that his body cam was recording. The agent stated that he worked for border patrol. He wore full camouflage fatigues. The agent stated that I was impeding their work. He indicated he was giving me a verbal warning and if I was found to be impeding again, I would be arrested.”

Cleland acknowledged that she heard what the agent said, and they drove off in opposite directions, according to her declaration. Cleland submitted the declaration on January 21 in a lawsuit filed by Minnesota residents against US government officials with the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Cleland’s court filing was mentioned yesterday in a Boston Globe column about tactics used by ICE agents to intimidate protesters.

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Europeans Testify On How Europe Is Banning Americans From Saying What They Believe

he European Union now constantly violates fundamental Western rights to freedom of speech and freedom of religion and claims the power to ban speech across the globe, European witnesses testified to the U.S. Congress Wednesday morning.

“European laws [are] now being exported by the European Union. … American speech is already being affected,” testified Lorcán Price, an Irish lawyer for Alliance Defending Freedom International.

Under “hate speech” policies that Europe is applying across the world, “Speech that is lawful today can become criminalized tomorrow. This should concern every person that values freedom,” testified Finnish Member of Parliament Päivi Räsänen. Irish comedian Graham Linehan also testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee. In September 2025, Linehan was arrested at Heathrow Airport by British authorities for criticizing transgender policies. Because of that arrest, he testified, “I became the target of a series of harassment campaigns that cost me my career, my marriage, and eventually drove me from my homeland.”

These Republican witnesses testified alongside Democrat witness Deepinder Singh Mayell, the leader of Minnesota’s branch of the American Civil Liberties Union. Democrats on the committee focused on blasting federal immigration enforcement and insisting that attacking and harassing law enforcement is protected “free speech.” Mayell refused to answer when Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, asked if illegal alien child rapists and murderers should be deported.

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A City Fined Her Over $100,000 for Parking on Her Own Grass. The Florida Supreme Court Won’t Hear Her Case.

What price should someone pay for three minor code violations?

For Sandy Martinez of Lantana, Florida, the answer is: over $165,000, plus interest, a sum so high that selling her house would be insufficient to pay off the debt, according to her complaint filed against the city in 2021. The Florida Supreme Court effectively closed the door on the case in December when it declined her appeal and left in place a decision that ruled the fines were not “excessive.” But Martinez’s little-known story is a microcosm of the broader debate over what, exactly, transgresses the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on fines that are unconstitutionally severe, especially as local governments are known to rely on such penalties to raise revenue.

Whether there is a disconnect between common sense and the law is open to interpretation. The bulk of her debt—over $100,000—comes from a parking job.

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France’s Raid on X Opens New Front in Europe’s War Over Online Speech

French prosecutors staged a morning raid at the Paris offices of social media platform X, part of a criminal investigation coordinated with Europol.

The operation, launched in 2025, targets allegations ranging from the alleged distribution of sexual deepfakes to algorithmic manipulation.

The cybercrime division in Paris is exploring whether X’s automated systems may have been used in an “organized structure” to distort data or suppress information.

The alleged offenses are as follows:

  • Denial of crimes against humanity (Holocaust denial)
  • Fraudulent extraction of data from an ⁠automated data processing system ​by an organized group
  • Falsification of the operation ‌of ‌an automated data processing system by an organized group
  • Defamation of a person’s image (deepfakes of ​sexual nature, including minors)
  • Operating of an illegal online platform by an organized group

Prosecutors have now summoned Elon Musk and former CEO Linda Yaccarino for questioning in April. “Summons for voluntary interviews on April 20, 2026, in Paris have been sent to Mr. Elon Musk and Ms. Linda Yaccarino, in their capacity as de facto and de jure managers of the X platform at the time of the events,” the office said.

Yaccarino, who left in mid-2025, might find herself reliving the company’s most volatile months, when X faced regulatory crossfire across the continent for refusing to comply with what it called political censorship demands.

The case actually began with two complaints in January 2025, including one from French lawmaker Eric Bothorel, who accused X of narrowing “diversity of voices and options” after Musk’s takeover.

Bothorel cited “personal interventions” in moderation decisions, a line that seemed more about ideology than algorithms.

As the investigation grew, prosecutors took interest in Grok, X’s AI system, which allegedly produced “Holocaust denial content” and “sexual deepfakes.” The Paris prosecutor’s office soon announced it was examining “biased algorithms.”

Musk called the whole affair a “politically-motivated criminal investigation,” and considering Europe’s recent appetite for speech regulation, it’s not a stretch to see why he’d think that.

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Washington State Senators Approve Bill To Legalize Marijuana Home Grow For Adults

Washington State lawmakers have advanced a bill to expand the state’s voter-approved marijuana legalization law by allowing recreational consumers to grow their own cannabis plants.

Weeks after Sens. Rebecca Saldaña (D), Noel Frame (D) and T’wina Nobles (D) filed the legislation, the Senate Labor & Commerce Committee on Tuesday approved the measure in a voice vote. It next heads to the Senate Rules Committee before potentially reaching the floor.

The vote comes about a week after the Senate panel held an initial hearing on the proposal, with law enforcement representatives voicing opposition to the reform and military veterans testifying in support of allowing personal home cultivation.

Under SB 6204, adults over 21 years of age would be allowed to cultivate up to six marijuana plants at home. No more than 15 cannabis plants could be produced at any one time in a single housing unit, regardless of how many adults live there.

People could lawfully keep the marijuana produced by those plants despite the state’s existing one-ounce limit on possession.

Property owners would be allowed to prohibit tenants from growing cannabis in rental units, and probation and parole officers would be able to bar people from cultivating marijuana as a condition of their supervised release.

Home cultivators would be required to keep plants from public view and grown in such a way that they could not be smelled from public places or private properties of other housing units. Violating those rules would be a class 3 civil infraction.

It would be a class 1 civil infraction for a person to grow more than six but fewer than 16 cannabis plants, while it would be a class C felony to produce more than 16 plants, under the bill.

No cannabis plants could be grown in housing units that are used to provide early childhood education and early learning services by a family day care provider.

The committee on Tuesday approved an amendment from Sen. Mark Schoesler (R) to allow municipalities and counties to ban or enact moratoriums on cannabis cultivation in housing units in areas that are zoned primarily for residential use.

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