Tag: the war on (some) drugs

Mexican cartels are fifth-largest employers in the country, study finds

Organised crime groups in Mexico have about 175,000 members – making them the fifth-biggest employer in the country, according to new research published in the journal Science.

Using a decade of data on homicides, missing persons and incarcerations, as well as information about interactions between rival factions, the paper published on Thursday mathematically modeled overall cartel membership, and how levels of violence would respond to a range of policies.

The authors argue that the best way to reduce the bloodshed would be to cut cartel recruitment – whereas locking up more members would actually increase the murder rate.

“More than 1.7 million people in Latin America are incarcerated, and adding more people to saturated jails will not solve the insecurity problem,” wrote the authors.

The number of homicides in Mexico more than tripled between 2007 and 2021 – when the government reported 34,000 victims, or nearly 27 victims for every 100,000 inhabitants – making it one of the deadliest countries in Latin America.

At a national level, two organised crime groups – the Sinaloa cartel and the Jalisco New Generation cartel – battle for domination. But analysts have identified 198 armed groups in Mexico, many of which are subcontractors to bigger players but also undertake local turf disputes.

The paper, titled Reducing cartel recruitment is the only way to lower violence in Mexico, was cautiously welcomed by security analysts in the field. “It is a first of its kind,” said Victoria Dittmar, a researcher for the Insight Crime thinktank, who did not take part in the study. “I haven’t seen any other estimates of how many people we believe are somehow related to criminal groups.”

But Dittmar said the figure would depend on the definition of a cartel and what constitutes membership, since working for a crime faction is very different to being formally employed.

“It can be very difficult to say who is a member of a criminal organisation, and who isn’t,” said Dittmar. “What about a politician that receives money? Or someone who cooperates with the group just once?”

Keep reading

Michigan Lawmaker Renews Push To Legalize Certain Psychedelic Plants And Fungi

A bill recently introduced in Michigan would legalize psychedelic plants and fungi so long as activities like cultivating and distributing the substances are done “without receiving money or other valuable consideration.”

Senate Bill 449, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Irwin (D), would apply to five substances—psilocybin, psilocyn, dimethyltryptamine (DMT), ibogaine and mescaline—along with the plants and fungi known to produce them. If approved, it would exempt individuals from penalties for possession and use of the substances as well as noncommercial manufacturing, processing and delivery.

Simple possession of any of the covered substances is currently a misdemeanor in the state.

Irwin, who introduced a similar bill in 2021, told Marijuana Moment in an interview Thursday that it’s urgent lawmakers revisit the proposal, noting the potential of psychedelics to treat PTSD, depression, anxiety and other mental health conditions, especially in veterans. He called the prospective policy change “just simply good public policy.”

“This is a reintroduction of an important policy that hasn’t gotten its due consideration in Michigan or most other states,” he said. “These are substances that have a long history of use by humans in medicinal, religious and cultural practices. Furthermore, these substances do not have a high propensity for abuse, nor are they physiologically very damaging.”

Irwin acknowledged there’s “a long road ahead of us in terms of passing this bill,” but he said he’s optimistic that, over time, advocates will win over hesitant lawmakers.

At the local level, several municipal governments in Michigan have moved to decriminalize psychedelics, including Detroit, Ann Arbor, Ferndale and Hazel Park. Only Massachusetts has seen more local jurisdictions pass the reform.

Last year, a group of activists failed to qualify a psychedelics legalization initiative for the ballot, saying they will refocus their efforts on the 2024 election.

Keep reading

LEADING DEMOCRAT IN MARYLAND SENATE RACE ONCE BLAMED MURDERS ON DECRIMINALIZED POT

EIGHT MONTHS BEFORE Maryland voters will cast their ballots in a rare U.S. Senate primary, the bulk of the state’s Democratic machine has already consolidated behind one candidate. Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks emerged as a front-runner shortly after announcing her candidacy, garnering endorsements from major Democratic officials and organizations before her campaign had any issue platforms listed on its website. 

The race presents a unique opportunity to fill a safely blue seat with a new candidate for the first time in 16 years. If Alsobrooks is successful, she would become Maryland’s first Black senator. While Democrats have embraced Alsobrooks’s historic campaign with enthusiasm, however, her record on criminal justice has largely gone overlooked.

During past campaigns for Prince George’s state’s attorney, Alsobrooks positioned herself as staunchly “tough-on-crime.” In addition to pushing the notion that cannabis decriminalization led to drug dealers murdering each other, she has supported DNA collection of people without criminal convictions, putting police in schools, and harsh penalties in a variety of situations, among other positions opposed by justice system reformers. 

Keep reading

House Democrats File Marijuana Legalization And Expungements Bill

A top House Democrat has reintroduced a bill to federally legalize, tax and regulate marijuana, with provisions to expunge prior cannabis convictions.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, refiled the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act on Wednesday. There are 33 initial cosponsors—all Democrats.

The comprehensive legalization legislation has passed the House twice in recent sessions—but this marks the first time it’s being introduced with Republicans in control of the chamber, raising serious questions about whether it will move. The Judiciary Committee, which is the primary panel of jurisdiction, is chaired by anti-cannabis Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH).

Even the prospects of a modest marijuana banking bill that’s set for committee action in the Senate next week are uncertain in the House under the GOP majority. That said, a GOP-led House panel did advance legislation on Wednesday to prevent the denial of federal employment or security clearances based on a candidate’s past cannabis use.

In any case, advocates have long touted the MORE Act as an example of the type of wide-ranging cannabis reform legislation that would not only end prohibition but take steps to right the wrongs of prohibition and promote social equity.

Keep reading

PREGNANCY-RELATED ARRESTS SPIKED DURING LAST 16 YEARS, REPORT FINDS

Nearly 1,400 people were arrested for actions related to their pregnancies from 2006 through June 2022, according to a report released today by Pregnancy Justice, a nonprofit that defends pregnant people from criminalization. Most of those arrests occurred in five southern states—Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Mississippi. Most cases involved allegations of substance use, even when there was no harm to the fetus or infant.

“Pregnant people are increasingly targeted for criminalization in ways that do not exist for people who are not pregnant, with dire consequences for themselves and their families,” Lourdes A. Rivera, president of Pregnancy Justice, said in a press release. “Halting criminalization requires repealing ‘fetal personhood’ laws and ending the collusion between the criminal and family regulation systems.”

The report reveals a substantial increase in the criminalization of pregnant people over the past decade and a half. In 2013, Pregnancy Justice released a report that found that law enforcement had criminalized 413 pregnant people in the three decades between 1973 and 2005. Pregnancy Justice’s new report found a threefold increase in criminal cases during the last 16 years.

The report links the rise of fetal personhood laws—which give fertilized eggs, embryos, and fetuses the same legal rights as people—to the heightened criminalization of pregnancy. Nearly 77 percent of cases where pregnant people were criminalized occurred in states that expanded the definition of child abuse to include fetuses, fertilized eggs, and embryos.

The report defines pregnancy criminalization as an instance in which someone is arrested for reasons related to their pregnancy or where terms of a person’s bail, sentencing, or probation are heightened because they became pregnant after being charged with an unrelated crime. Pregnant people were most often accused of child endangerment, substance possession, drug use, feticide, murder, or manslaughter, legally unauthorized abortion, failure to report a birth or death, tampering with remains or abuse of a corpse, fetal assault, or drug delivery.

Nine out of ten cases tracked by Pregnancy Justice involved allegations that a person had used substances, including marijuana, cocaine, or methamphetamine, while pregnant. One-quarter of such cases involved legal substances, such as prescription opiates, nicotine, and alcohol. One-third of the cases involved people accused of using marijuana.

“The playbook that legislators, politicians, and law enforcement officials have been establishing in the context of criminalizing pregnancy and substance use is going to be applied to abortions,” Emma Roth, senior staff attorney at Pregnancy Justice, said in an interview.

Keep reading

With Oklahoma’s Hemp Production ‘Way Down,’ Lawmakers Consider Benefits Of Expansion

Oklahoma legislators are studying whether industrial hemp production would benefit rural development in the state.

Growing hemp became legal in Oklahoma after Congress passed the 2018 Farm Bill, which removed industrial hemp from the Controlled Substances Act’s classification of marijuana and declassified hemp as a Schedule I narcotic.

While there was a lot of initial interest in 2018, Oklahoma has seen a decline in interest from potential growers since then, according to Kenny Naylor, the director of Consumer Affairs for the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture.

“Unfortunately our numbers have gone way down,” Naylor told the Senate Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee Monday. “In 2018, everybody wanted to grow hemp.”

As of this year, Oklahoma has 21 licensed hemp growers and 22 licensed hemp processors.

Aside from a saturation of the CBD market and limited processing ability, which have both cooled the interest in growing hemp, according to Naylor, other factors were a matter of bad timing.

“I think COVID-19 hit right at the wrong time and shut everything down, and that definitely caused problems,” said Naylor. “And then for Oklahoma specifically, people switched to marijuana.”

It was initially cheaper to get licensed to grow medical marijuana, though Naylor said he doesn’t believe that is the case anymore.

Keep reading

Ketamine Therapy Is Now Being Offered Across the US by an Insurance Provider

Ketamine-assisted therapy is now available as a health benefit across the U.S.

Enthea, a benefits company focused on providing insurance coverage for psychedelic treatments, announced it is offering ketamine-assisted therapy to its benefit plans nationwide. The company already has ketamine-assisted therapy on benefit plans in California, New York, and Texas. 

But the number of Americans receiving this type of treatment as a benefit is limited. Currently only 1,500 people are offered it while the company hopes that number will reach 200,000 by the end of 2024. 

Ketamine is the only psychedelic that can legally be used to treat mental health conditions, and there’s been an influx of clinics offering the drug, sometimes in conjunction with psychotherapy, in the last few years. Sessions range from $300 to $1,500 a session without insurance—usually several sessions are recommended. 

Enthea’s ability to offer ketamine as a benefit nationwide is due to new partnerships with two companies—Skylight Psychedelics and Innerwell—that facilitate psychedelic experiences at clinics around the country, remotely, and in people’s homes, according to a news release. 

Employers looking to offer the benefit to its workers can add it on to existing plans, similarly to dental and vision plans, Enthea said. 

Keep reading

Fentanyl-Laced Coke and Meth Is Not Fuelling America’s Overdose Crisis

“Overdose deaths from fentanyl-laced cocaine and meth have risen 50-fold,” screamed the Daily Mail about a new study into the US opioid crisis.

The Mail, reporting on the study published last week in the scientific journal Addiction, warned that “many users unwittingly consume fentanyl, as it is frequently used as a cutting agent in cocaine and other illicit drugs to extend the supply and the high”.

Reporting on the same study, carried out by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), ABC News told its readers: “Many people who use drugs like cocaine recreationally may not be aware these drugs are laced with fentanyl… this could be fueling unintentional overdoses, according to experts.”

But is this really happening?

Keep reading

Seattle Leaders Pass Law To Prosecute Drug Possession And Public Use

The Seattle City Council voted 6–3 Tuesday to align the city’s municipal code with a 2023 state law making public drug use and possession a gross misdemeanor and give the City Attorney’s Office authority to prosecute those crimes.

Councilmembers Lisa Herbold, Andrew Lewis, Debora Juarez, Sara Nelson, Alex Pedersen and Dan Strauss voted in support. Councilmembers Tammy Morales, Teresa Mosqueda and Kshama Sawant voted against.

Supporters argue the legislation is a critical tool for addressing a worsening drug crisis and that language in the bill is meant to push people with substance use disorders to treatment. Opponents say it’s a return to a failed drug war tactic that will incarcerate drug users and disproportionately impact Black and brown residents rather than provide people the help they need.

Tuesday was the Council’s second attempt to align city municipal code with state drug possession laws. In June, a bill co-sponsored by Councilmembers Sara Nelson and Alex Pedersen at the behest of City Attorney Ann Davison was voted down 5–4. In a last-minute turn that killed the June bill, Councilmember Andrew Lewis said that while he supported aligning state and city law, he could not support a bill without a stronger plan for treatment.

In the intervening months, Councilmembers Lisa Herbold and Lewis co-sponsored a new version of the bill that places greater emphasis on diversion and treatment and attempts to outline the “last resort” conditions under which officers should arrest drug users.

In its simplest terms, the passage of the Council bill puts the state drug possession law into Seattle’s Municipal Code. The law states that public drug possession or use is a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in prison and a maximum fine of $1,000. For someone with two prior convictions for drug possession, the maximum penalty can increase to 364 days.

By adopting the language of the state law into city code, the council granted the Seattle City Attorney’s Office authority to prosecute drug possession charges. When drug possession was a felony in Washington, that authority resided with the King County Prosecutor.

Keep reading

Fake Sudafed Is Bullshit, Just As You Suspected

Two decades ago, it became clear that Congress was intent on trying to curtail illicit methamphetamine production by restricting access to pseudoephedrine, a meth precursor that was also widely used as a decongestant in cold and allergy remedies such as Sudafed. Pfizer, the manufacturer of Sudafed products, responded by announcing that it would start selling alternatives containing a different active ingredient: phenylephrine.

What’s the difference between pseudoephedrine and phenylephrine? “SUDAFED products with phenylephrine are available for over-the-counter purchase without restrictions,” explains Johnson & Johnson, which acquired the brand from Pfizer in 2006, while “products that have pseudoephedrine as an active ingredient face restrictions.” Johnson & Johnson does not mention another distinction that might be of interest to consumers: Pseudoephedrine works, while phenylephrine does not. Or so a unanimous panel of experts advised the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Tuesday.

The main problem with phenylephrine: When taken orally, it is so thoroughly metabolized in the gut that almost none of it ends up in the bloodstream. “The new data appear compelling that the monographed dosage of oral [phenylephrine] results in no meaningful systemic exposure or evidence of efficacy,” says an FDA briefing document that was presented to the advisory committee. “Furthermore, the review suggests that higher doses…have also not shown efficacy. These findings are supported by in vitro and in vivo clinical pharmacology data showing that orally administered phenylephrine undergoes high first-pass metabolism resulting in less than 1% bioavailability.”

Keep reading