Dekalb County Sheriff’s Deputy Fired

NewsChannel5.com, TN
05/29/06

The sheriff said Deputy David Sharp had sex with a woman he was supposed to be arresting.

This deputy had been with the department for more than two years and had a spotless record as well. That spotless record changed Friday night.

The deputy, who's 36 years old, admitted he made a big mistake. The mistake he made could bring criminal charges against him.

Deputy David Sharp was serving arrest warrants this past Friday night. When Sharp went to the victim's home, off Short Mountain Highway, he noticed marijuana.

The deputy told the victim if she would perform a sex act, that he would not charge her with the drugs, and he would not make her probation officer aware of the drug use.

The victim then told Dekalb County Sheriff's officials what happened.

The Dekalb County Sheriff said it’s difficult to believe something like this happened. However, the Sheriff said the evidence they have shows what happened.

The evidence the victim brought to the department was her shirt, with the Deputy's semen on it. Deputy Sharp also admitted to what happened.

“Based on what we found, I felt I had no choice but to terminate him,” Sheriff Lloyd Emmons said.

Now there could be criminal charges filed against David Sharp. The District Attorney is looking into that.

In the most favourable light, it's official misconduct. At the worst, it could be rape by an authority figure.” Sheriff Emmons said.

Moonshine, marijuana and prison populations

CHUCK AVERY
Palladium-Item, IN
05/29/06

When I was a kid, one of my favorite comic strips was "Snuffy Smith."

The strip started as "Barney Google," but soon after he was introduced, Snuffy took over. Today Barney seldom appears.

Snuffy lived somewhere in the Kentucky hills with his wife Loweezy and the kids, Jughaid and Tater. His vocabulary -- words and expressions like "bodacious," "time's a-wastin,'" and "vittles" -- fascinated me.

I especially enjoyed the episodes featuring the federal agents attempting to shut down Snuffy's moonshine operation. Whenever Snuffy got the word that the "pesky revenoo'ers" were around, he grabbed his blunderbuss and lit out for his still, which was well hidden in the woods. I was pleased when, in the shootouts that resulted, Snuffy routed the government men.

Later I learned I was on the wrong side. As we became a more politically correct society, these violent episodes were toned down and eventually they disappeared from the strip altogether.

I never thought much about the moonshine laws in those days, but some years later I read that the reason these isolated farmers made whiskey was because there were no accessible markets for their surplus corn. They could let it rot or convert it to a non-perishable, easily-marketable commodity -- whiskey. When the authorities declared the process illegal, they canceled a part of the farmer's income.

Thus Snuffy's animosity.

I sometimes wonder how authorities arrive at the conclusion that something should be declared illegal. In the case of Snuffy's corn liquor, I suspect it had to do with controlling the market in order to collect taxes.

And, of course, to protect us against ourselves. (I should say that I tried "white lightning" once in the late '50s. Didn't like it.)

Today, if someone grows a certain weed in his backyard, dries it and smokes it, he has broken three laws; one against growing it, one against possessing it and one against using it. (I should say I tried smoking hemp once in the '60s. Didn't like it. My father told me he tried it in the late '30's. He didn't like it either. I don't know about my kids. Haven't asked them.)

The politicians' routine for handling problems is to form a committee, then pass a law containing the word "mandatory" or "illegal." We have a problem with drugs; pass a law. We have too many people smoking too much; pass a law.

People who discriminate against foreigners, other races, women, gays, minors; pass some laws. Purchasing sexual services, drinking too much, not wearing seat belts -- law, law, law.

Indiana has twice as many people in prison as they had a decade ago; some counties have three times as many. A large percentage of these people have been jailed as a result of the get-tough-on-drugs laws and mandatory sentences.

Of course, one might argue that drugs would be even more prevalent had we not started using stiff mandatory sentences for users and dealers.

Perhaps. On the other hand, it's difficult to see how some of them could be any more available.

When my youngest son was a senior in high school, we had a discussion about the legalization of drugs. I argued against it, using the availability argument. My son's retort was that for kids under 18, marijuana was easier to get than either cigarettes or beer.

Imprisonment isn't working; let's try something else.

------------------------------
Excellent! Thank you Mr. Avery.

Utah prison chiefs say no to drug law

School, church zones misused to beef up sentences, they say

By Lisa Rosetta
The Salt Lake Tribune
05/29/06

[...] Stories like Tafoya's have prompted Kurt Garner, vice chairman of the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole, to ask the Legislature to rethink the state's drug-free-zone penalty enhancement, which applies to both the possession and sale of drugs within 1,000 feet of schools, child-care facilities, parks, churches, shopping malls, sports facilities or parking lots.

The law, designed to keep drugs away from children, has instead created disproportionately long sentences for some offenders, coerced others into pleading guilty to weak cases that would have otherwise been challenged at trial or dismissed, and been inconsistently enforced by police and prosecutors.

Garner said in one rural county, police arrested a man who had used drugs, put him in a patrol car and drove him past a school - a drug-free zone - so they could seek the stiffer penalty.

In other counties, police have deliberately set up undercover buys in church or school parking lots, or initiated stops in front of a parking lot to trigger the more serious charge, Michael Sibbits, former chairman of the Board of Pardons and Parole, wrote in a letter to the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Interim Committee.

Most offenders slapped with the enhanced penalty have never dealt drugs or used drugs around children - the very people the law is supposed to protect. [...]

[...] A report by the Justice Policy Institute also showed:
* In Massachusetts, less than 1 percent of the drug-free-zone cases examined involved sales to youths, and 71 percent occurred when school was not in session.
* In Connecticut, legislative research staff found there was no appreciable decline in drug use or drug trafficking since the introduction of mandatory drug laws, including the state's drug-free-zone law.
* In Washington, prosecutors and defenders alike acknowledge that, rather than sanction those who sell drugs in the presence of children, the state's drug-free-zone laws are used as leverage to encourage guilty pleas. Faced with prison time, many defendants choose to plead guilty rather than challenge the case at trial. Among those cases that did make it to trial, only 22 percent resulted in a drug-free-zone penalty enhancement.
* In Illinois, 99 percent of youths transferred to the adult court in Cook County for drug-free-zone enhancements were black or Latino.[...]

Green Party candidate stares down the odds

Tobin A. Coleman
Stamford Advocate, CT
05/29/06

Clifford Thornton Jr. doesn't mince words -- he knows his Connecticut Green Party candidacy for governor has little chance.

But Thornton, 61, hopes his campaign will spur discussion on the war, on drugs and on related issues of race and class.

"There's no one out there who is speaking to these issues," said Thornton, who was nominated last month as the Green Party candidate at a convention in New Haven. "No one is talking about the war on drugs. No one is talking about education and how it relates to the drug war. No one is talking about the failure of our infrastructure."

"I want to get these people to talk about the issues," the Glastonbury man said. "How many people are talking about the war in Iraq? How many people are talking about the war right here? How many people are talking about the race issue?"

Thornton is the first black man to run for governor from an established party in Connecticut.

US Defense Secretary to visit Vietnam

Xinhua, China

HANOI, May 29 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will make a trip to Vietnam on June 4-6, according to a local media report on Monday.

The three-day visit following a trip to the United States by Vietnamese Defense Minister Pham Van Tra in 2003 aims to beef up the two countries' cooperative relations, the report said.

Since the normalization of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States in 1995, the cooperation between the two countries have been improved rapidly, especially in the fields of politics, economy, healthcare, education, science and technology, as well as in the fields of drug trafficking and transnational crimes. Enditem


Something lost in the translation?

Fishboat was carrying huge cargo of pot: police

CBC British Columbia, Canada
05/26/06

The RCMP say they have found about 1,600 kilograms of marijuana aboard the fishboat seized earlier this week in Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

The RCMP say they recovered 165 bales of Mexican marijuana from the fishboat. RCMP Insp. Paul Nadeau said 142 bales of pot were found hidden at the top of fishholds, while another 23 bales were hidden behind a false wall.


It's surprising that there would be a market for this pot in B.C.

CANDIDATE Q&A: GOVERNOR

Montgomery Advertiser, AL
05/26/06

The Montgomery Advertiser asked the follwing question of the candidates for governor in the June 6 primaries. (Note: Loretta Nall is not included because she has already secured the Libertarian nomination and so will not be participating in a primary)
"What do you see as the biggest issue facing the state, and how would you address it if elected? Please explain why."
Here is one outstanding response. For the full story click the above link.

Lyon: The biggest issue facing the state is that of illegal drug abuse amongst our children which leads to our children's death, bad health and increases juvenile crime.

Answer to problem: Legislation requiring all high school students, public and private to be subject to random drug testing and if student fails, child and parents must appear their county juvenile court judge for treatment of the child and parenting skills classes for the parents. If that fails, juvenile judges given broad discretion to end that family's drug abuse problem.

All one needs to do is follow the media to see why this, along with obesity, are Alabama's first and second problems, respectively. Drug abuse leads to juvenile crime. We're all adversely affected. Obesity leads to health problems that cost all Alabamians money in increased cost for health care. Most Alabamians who are healthy would rather be subjected to second hand smoke than to second hand fat, especially at the beach or swimming pool.

Mahopac High students distressed by drug raid

By DIANA BELLETTIERI
The Journal News.com, NY
05/26/06

MAHOPAC — Fifteen-year-old Jaclyn Fitzpatrick said she won't soon forget how her body shook with panic when Mahopac High School went into a sudden lockdown.

Wednesday was a typical morning. She was sitting in her third-period math class when a loudspeaker announcement suddenly interrupted the lesson. It was Principal Aaron Trummer ordering students and staff to lock down the building — and it was not just a drill.

Students and teachers scrambled to bolt doors, push bookshelves against them, pull down window shades and flip off classroom lights throughout the building.

Fitzpatrick sat against a wall with her knees in her chest, expecting to hear gunshots blast down the hallway.

"I was getting really scared," said Fitzpatrick, a sophomore. "I thought it was a psycho that came into the school and was looking for someone to hurt."

About 30 minutes later, students and staff learned that drug-sniffing police dogs from the Westchester County Narcotics Unit had swept through the three-story building, checking the air outside every locker for illegal substances. They found nothing.

Newton drug bust puzzling: Authorities say little about raid involving federal immigration officials

By Gordon Fraser
Eagle Tribune, MA
05/26/06

NEWTON — Federal and local authorities are keeping quiet about a daytime drug bust Saturday by Department of Homeland Security agents on Puzzle Lane, off of Route 108.

A state trooper and witnesses, confirmed that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement — the primary investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security — conducted the operation.

But federal officials would not reveal details of the operation, including what was found and who was involved.

Newton police Chief Lawrence Streeter has said in several interviews conducted since Tuesday that he knows nothing about a federal drug bust in town. But a neighbor who claims he saw the raid said he called the Newton police as the operation was going on and a Newton officer said the department was aware of it.

Joseph Amidio said he was working Saturday in his backyard at 6 Pleasant Crossing — a road running parallel to Puzzle Lane — when at least four unmarked cars pulled onto his road and two men in camouflage and bulletproof vests ran through his yard. They were carrying walkie-talkies, Amidio said, but he did not know if they had firearms.

When Amidio, a computer technician, confronted another agent, who was blocking Amidio's driveway, the agent identified himself as a member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and said Amidio was in no danger. The agent did not present any identification, Amidio said.

See title link for full story

High-tech eyes in the sky

By Sara Jean Green
Seattle Times
05/27/06

Late last year, the State Patrol received a $982,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Defense's Terrorist Readiness Initiative Fund and equipped two of its Cessnas with FLIR — Forward Looking Infra Red — camera systems that can zoom in on suspects and detect body heat, said Lt. Tristan Atkins, who supervises the patrol's aviation section.

The FLIRs use microwave downlinks to provide real-time images to command staff at the patrol's King County headquarters in Bellevue or to portable receivers to help field commanders coordinate raids and rescues. The images captured by the camera can be instantly recorded and used as evidence in the event of a criminal trial.

81 year old blind man accuses police of brutality

WREG, TN
05/23/06

MEMPHIS - 81 year old Davie Bland says he wound up in the hospital because of police brutality. Bland has a broken arm and several bruises. He is recovering at the MED. "What I really would like to know is why did they come and jump on me," says Bland.

A police report shows officers responded to the Memphis Towers Apartment Complex on Court Avenue because of a complaint about loud noise. The report says Bland approached officers in an aggressive manner, they tried to arrest him, but he started punching and scratching. The report says one officer suffered a laceration.

Bland says he thought the officer was a volunteer delivering a meal from MIFA. He says he's blind and could not see who was knocking on his door. Witnesses say the officers forced Bland to the ground, then sprayed him with pepper spray.

A meeting was held at the apartment complex Tuesday where residents expressed anger about the arrest. City leaders were also on hand, promising the Memphis Police Department is aware of the situation and is investigating.

Bland's family members say they have filed a complaint with Memphis Police Internal Affairs Department.

Drug force apologetic for raid error

GEORGE HESSELBERG
Wisconsin State Journal, WI
05/25/06

Profuse apologies and promises of restitution, repair and investigation were made by officials Wednesday in the wake of a botched drug raid at a Dodgeville apartment building.

A six-agency illegal drug task force on Monday initially broke into the wrong apartment and handcuffed an innocent couple as they were preparing to retire for the night. After officers realized their error, they eventually took four people into custody at the adjacent apartment.

Marquardt said he is investigating how the tactical unit mixed up the apartments and broke the big front window and ignited a "flash bang" device outside the window, then entered through the apartment door and handcuffed the couple. Marquardt said he didn't know if the door was smashed in.

Keep Your "Head-Up" To Drugs and Alcohol

Program aimed at local high school students

By Chanin Rotz-Mountz
Fulton County News, PA
05/25/06

...Junior and senior high school students across the county came face-to-face with these photos and more last week in the series of four programs known as Heroin Education And Dangerous Substance Understanding Program (HEADS UP). Led by the Narcotics Bureau of the Philadelphia Police Department in conjuction with the Fulton County Probation Department...

...Among the topics touched upon, Pagano indicated cigarette smoking is comparable to heroin in terms of addiction. Five million deaths occur worldwide as a result of smoking and is still deemed the number-one killer, with marijuana lagging close behind.
In regard to marijuana, the substance contains 423 poisonous chemicals and can cause permanent brain damage....

Tuskegee Sheriffs Candidates "Nall Right on Drug Policy"

On May 21, 2006 I was invited to attend and speak at the Candidates forum hosted by The National Coalition of 100 Black Women in historic Tuskegee, Alabama.

I was the only gubernatorial candidate to show at the event. Lt. Governor Lucy Baxley did not show due to laryngitis. I had a touch of it myself but refuse to let such things stop me from addressing any crowd of Alabama voters who are kind enough, fair enough and interested enough to bother extending an invitation to the Nall for Governor campaign.

There were other candidates there for state and local office. Three of these candidates were law enforcement officers and their presence there worked so heavily in my favor by the end of the day that I am still somewhat speechless.

Here's how it all went down.

Being the highest ranking candidate there I was given the floor first. The audience was largely African-American Democrat with a white Democrat thrown in for good measure. I never know what kind of reaction I will get from an African-American auudience when I come out with my positions on drug policy reform. They have lived in the war zone for many years and it can sometimes be difficult to get them to look at the issue from a different angle.

On the first go round I stated my platform planks in a two minute opening statement. I got a glazed over/shocked look from the crowd but no response other than that. Not a good way to start the day. Everyone else then took their turn at the podium.

There were three candidates for Circuit Clerk. One of these candidates was a veteran narcotics task force officer who made it a point to say over and over how much good he had done his community by fighting drugs.

There were two candidates for Sheriff. The incumbent, Leon E. "Chief" Frazier, and David M. Warren, who is also the husband of a state legislator. Both of them started out anti-drug and seemed somewhat perplexed that my message was so different from theirs.

After all the candidates were done speaking the audience submitted qestions on 3x5 cards. My first question was,
"What will be your first action if elected Governor?"
My answer was, "Make marijuana enforcement the lowest law enforcement priority for the entire state and fight for the release of all non-violent drug offenders."

Next up were the circuit clerk candidates and the question asked of them was, "We have murder cases that are over 5 years old that have never been investigated, we do not have enough judges, the court docket is so backlogged that no one gets a timely trial and the forensics lab is overloaded with drug cases. What are you going to do about this?"

At this point there was a great deal of "riding a bicycle around the room" from the candidates because they did not know what to say.

The candidates for Sheriff were up next and they were asked what their top priorities were.
The incumbent: "I have cleaned up Macon County while I have been in office. I have reduced the drug trade and violent crime and if you re-elect me I vow to eradicate drugs in Macon County."

The challenger said something along the same lines but made no outrageous promises of complete drug eradication like the incumbent did.

The rest of the candidates answered their questions and then it was time for the final round of questioning and closing statements. I knew that somehow I had not connected with my audience like I usually do and I was not feeling great about any of it.

When I was called back to the mic I suddenly got very hot and my heart was racing. I looked into the eyes of my audience and I said,

"I want you to know that what I am saying to you today is not about the right to get high. It is not about the right to use drugs. It is about evaluating what we are doing to see if it is meeting its stated objective. I think we can all agree that the drug war has failed. We all want the same things. We want safe neighborhoods where there are no gangs, no violence, no people selling drugs to any kid that wants them in an unregulated market. We want to keep families together. If I were to sit down with our law enforcement officials today and have a rationbal discussion about the drug war you would see that we are all really on the same page. I am not anti-cop but I do readily admit that the drug war has fostered disrespect and contempt for law enforcement. I want our officers to be safe and to protect all of us from real crime."

"If you want your court system unclogged and able to deal with crimes like rape and murder then you have to address it by ending the drug war. If you want the forensics lab to devote its time to solving violent crimes with actual victims then you have to address it by ending the drug war. The drug laws actually create the crime that they were designed to protect us from. People who smoke marijuana do not belong in jail. Marijuana should be legal and available to adults. That would solve our prison crisis as most people in prison in Alabama for drug crimes are there for marijuana. It costs us $95 million a year just to house the marijuana smokers in Alabama's prison system. That is a lot of money that we could use to make things better for our state and our communities."

The incumbent sheriff was up next and some brilliant attendee in the back submitted the following question to him.

"Just how exactly will you completely eradicate drugs from Macon county?"

The whole room giggled at that question and I spoke up and said "I swear I had nothing to do with it."

The sheriff gets to the mic and stands there for a minute looking at everyone, me included, and then he sighs big, shakes his head and says for all to hear, "It can't be done. Drugs cannot be eradicated from Macon county or anywhere else. Even if we put our military on the borders to stop "those Colombians" from bringing their junk in, even if we had missiles that could fly down people's chimneys we would never be able to eradicate drugs from anywhere."
Then he sat down.

His opponent was next up to address the question. Mr. Warren looked at the audience and then at me and he said, "No matter what else you might think of Mrs. Nall's platform she is absolutely RIGHT on drug policy. It has filled our prisons to bursting, and it's YOUR KIDS who are taking the hits and getting sent to prison or shot down in the streets. We need to address drugs with treatment cause it ain't a problem for law enforcement. We got to do this different and I will do it different. If we want our courts to work, our prisons to work and our communities to be safer then we have to address drugs from a different perspective focused on treatment for those who need it. Prison is no place for a drug addict."

This gentleman has my endorsement now. When he spoke those words he was like a preacher getting down on Sunday morning. He was feeling it and he knew it was right. I think he was just waiting for someone to give him an opening. The incumbent Sheriff even admitted that the drug war can never be won. The audience responded well to those little doses of truth and I felt them come alive and begin to get excited. I'd also liek to add that Mark Allen Treadwell who is running for Circuit Court Judge ( and if he wins could potentially be the judge in my appeals case) was in attendance and was clapping along once the truth got rolling off the tounges of the candidates. That gives me hope that things really are about to change here.

Afterward the veteran of the Narcotics task force made it a point to shake my hand and wish me luck. The two candidates for Sheriff were engaged with other folks, they looked like they were discussing the sudden shift in drug policy and I thought it best to leave them to their constituients, and so I did not get the opportunity to speak with them. I will, however, be publicly endorsing Mr. Warren for Macon County Sheriff and I will be getting LEAP to send both of these gentlemen some literature.

So, yeah, maybe I do live in a trailer and I possess nothing more than a GED but I see the fruits of my labor pay off in a way that makes me richer than any person I know. There is no reward greater than success when your goal is justice for all.

There are many other things going on in Alabama right now. I am involved in a ballot access petition drive that has to be completed by June 6 in order for me to get my name on the ballot. Please watch this video of Democratic Candidate Joe Copeland and me and keep in mind that he gets automatic access to the ballot while I have to use all of my resources to overcome massive hurdles because I refuse to sell out and run as a Democrat or a Republican. I deserve to be on that ballot as much as anyone else, my ideas make more sense than anyone elses and if I get my name on there I will win this election.

PLEASE MAKE A CONTRIBUTION to put me on the ballot in Alabama. I can make miracles happen with your support.

In Liberty,
Loretta Nall
Vote Nall Y'all...It's Just Common Sense

.

Nanny State Makes Poor Babysitter for Americans

By Radley Balko
Fox News
05/24/06

Masked Gunman Kills Clayton Man

WSBtv.com, GA
05/24/06

RIVERDALE -- Police are searching for a masked gunman who shot and killed a Clayton County man early this morning.

Investigators say the attacker kicked in the door of a unit at the Belmont Landing Apartments at 8104 Webb Road.

He shot a 21-year old male resident of the apartment in the face with a high powered rifle. A female in the apartment managed to escape unharmed.

Police are withholding the name of the victim.

Detectives told Channel 2 Action News that they found marijuana inside the apartment.

_______________________________________
Wow. The cops are really going to go after this guy because it looks like he's trying to steal their act.

No felony charge for Simpson

By THOMAS MURPHY
Sports Reporter
Mobile Register, AL
05/24/06

TUSCALOOSA -- The Jefferson County Sheriff's Department reduced a felony handgun-possession charge against University of Alabama linebacker Juwan Simpson to a misdemeanor on Tuesday.

The reduction came after a screening of the charges determined the value of a handgun found in Simpson's vehicle during a traffic stop was less than $500, said Sgt. Randy Christian, a spokesman for the sheriff's office.

The pistol, a Taurus 9mm automatic, had been reported stolen in Decatur.

"During the screening process they obtained the original report and they saw the owner had valued the gun at $400," Christian said. "They called around to some sporting goods stores and they all said the price was below $500."

The value of the gun has major implications for Simpson. The original arrest report for Simpson estimated the gun's value at more than $500, which made it a Class C felony under the Code of Alabama. Receiving stolen property that does not exceed $500 is considered a Class A misdemeanor.

If Simpson is found guilty on the misdemeanor charge of receiving stolen property, he could be sentenced to up to one year in jail. Sentencing parameters on the felony charge would have been not less than one year and up to 10 years in jail, Christian said. Probation sentences are also a possibility if Simpson is found guilty.

Simpson now faces three misdemeanor charges in the incident: receiving stolen property in the third degree, possession of marijuana in the second degree and carrying a handgun without a permit.

Simpson was pulled over by an officer with the violent crimes task force for driving erratically on Interstate 20/59 near Bessemer on Saturday. When the sheriff detected the smell of marijuana, he brought in a drug-sniffing dog that turned up what the officer described as a small bag of marijuana.

A search of the vehicle also turned up the weapon.

Simpson was released on $7,000 bond late Saturday night. He has not made a public statement on the incident.

_______________________________________
I don't care if the guy had some pot and I don't care if he had a pistol. That's none of my business as it does not confront me. The question is did he know the pistol was stolen when he bought it? If he knew it was stolen then he is wrong because stealing is wrong. If he didn't know it was stolen then he hasn't done anything except break some stupid government rules.

Correctional officer arrested on drug charges

WBAY, WI
AP
05/23/06

FOND DU LAC, Wis. A Dodge Correctional Institution officer faces drug charges as part of a growing operation at his home across from Laconia High School in Rosendale.
Paul Krumwiede is charged with making, possessing and trafficking marijuana as well as possession of illegal mushrooms.

Authorities say they've even got the pictures to prove it.

Officers said they uncovered 132 marijuana plants, 500 grams of mushrooms, more than 16-hundred grams of marijuana, steroids and multiple "how-to" books on growing marijuana.

Officers say they also found pictures of the 32-year-old Krumwiede with marijuana plants.

He faces 37 years in prison and 85-thousand dollars in fines.

The criminal complaint says Krumwiede told officers he's been growing pot for three years and does so for profit.

The phony threat of liberal drug laws

By Steve Chapman
Chicago Tribune 05/22/06
Baltimore Sun 05/24/06

CHICAGO // Recently, Mexican President Vicente Fox vetoed a bill passed by the Mexican Congress that would have removed criminal penalties for people caught with small amounts of marijuana or other drugs. This came after the Bush administration vigorously complained, predicting it would encourage Americans to pour southward as "drug tourists."

But that option is off the table for the moment. So Americans who want to get high without fear of going to jail will have to go some other place where cannabis can be consumed with impunity. Such as Nebraska.

Four people arrested in Onslow drug raid

ROSELEE PAPANDREA
Jacksonville Daily News, NC
05/24/06

More than 60 marijuana plants with a street value of about $151,000 and $39,000 in cash were seized Monday in a drug bust in Richlands that included the arrest of a father and son who run a produce stand.

The Onslow County Sheriff’s Department spent about nine months investigating Leslie Powell, 45, and some of his sons who live at 1200 Beulaville Highway, Richlands, said Onslow County Sheriff Ed Brown.

“This investigation involving the Powells has been ongoing since September 2005,” Brown said.

On Monday, about 25 deputies went with search warrants to two residences on Beulaville Highway before the sun came up, Brown said.

“Another team of deputies were out waiting for Leslie C. Powell to leave his home,” Brown said. “Everyone assigned to the operation understood all actions were to occur simultaneously triggered by the arrest of Leslie Powell.”

Leslie Powell was arrested at about 8:30 a.m. Monday and charged with 23 drug crimes including possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver cocaine, possession with intent to manufacture marijuana and possession of a firearm by a felon. Leslie Powell was placed in Onslow County Jail under $800,000 bond, Brown said.

Once Leslie Powell was arrested, deputies headed to four different locations with search warrants.

“For the next eight hours, deputies and canines searched dwellings, outbuildings and wooded areas,” Brown said.

Authorities seized 63 marijuana plants, 11 grams of cocaine, marijuana growing material, assorted drug smoking devices, cash, cell phones, a “marijuana way” sign and a rifle. Deputies also seized several magazines including High Times and Weed World, which provide tips about growing marijuana. Possession of the magazines is not illegal.

Brown said that each marijuana plant, which were found behind Leslie Powell’s residence, has a street value of about $2,400 once it reaches full maturity.

The Powells ran a produce stand on N.C. 24 between J&N Grocery at Haw Branch Road and the Duplin County line. The produce was a front for the drug business, authorities allege.

Nicholas Calvin Powell, Leslie Powell’s son, was also arrested Monday. Nicholas Powell, 22, of 1200 Beulaville Highway in Richlands, and Amanda Yost, who lives at the same residence, were both charged with manufacturing marijuana, possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver marijuana, maintaining a dwelling for a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was placed in jail under $350,000 bond. Yost was placed under $200,000 bond, Brown said.

Crystal Gail Autry, 30, of 1216 Beulaville Highway in Richlands, was charged with possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver marijuana, manufacturing marijuana, possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver cocaine, manufacturing cocaine, maintaining a dwelling for a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Her bond was set at $200,000, Brown said.

Authorities expect to make more arrests in connection to this case, Brown said.

----------------------------------------
Amazing. A handful of sprouted seeds, a handful of white powder, four people facing 37 charges.

Marijuana Does Not Raise Lung Cancer Risk

By Salynn Boyles
Web MD
Fox News
05/23/06

Snakes On A Candidate

A Nation in Chains

by Chris Floyd
lewrockwell.com
05/23/06

The main engine of this mass incarceration has been the 35-year "war on drugs": a spurious battle against an abstract noun that provides an endless fount of profits, payoffs and power for the politically connected while only worsening the problem it purports to address – just like the "war on terror." The "war on drugs" has in fact been the most effective assault on an underclass since Stalin's campaign against the kulaks.

--------------------------------
Prison Song
System of A Down
2001

They're trying to build a prison

Following the rights movements
You clamped on with your iron fists,
Drugs became conveniently
Available for all the kids,

Nearly 2 million Americans are incarcerated
In the prison system of the U.S.

They're trying to build a prison, (for you and me to live in)

Minor drug offenders fill your prisons
You don't even flinch
All our taxes paying for your wars
Against the new non-rich

The percentage of Americans in the prison system
Prison system, has doubled since 1985,

They're trying to build a prison,
For you and me

All research and successful drug policy show
That treatment should be increased,
And law enforcement decreased,
While abolishing mandatory minimum sentences,

Utilizing drugs to pay for secret wars around the world,
Drugs are now your global policy,
Now you police the globe,

Drug money is used to rig elections,
And train brutal corporate sponsored
Dictators around the world.

They're trying to build a prison, (for you and me to live in)

Pooches for Peace, Do Dah Day and Ballot Access

Do Dah Day 2006 in Birmingham, AL

Police smash European drug smuggling ring in Spain

Swissinfo, Switzerland
05/22/06

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish police arrested 26 people and seized over 15 tonnes of marijuana when they smashed a drug smuggling ring on Spain's south coast, officials said on Monday.

Police seized guns, 17 vehicles and one million euros cash in one of the biggest drug busts on Spain's Costa del Sol -- dubbed the "Costa del Crime" by British tabloids for its reputation as a hot spot for organised crime.

The gang has smuggled up to 200 tonnes of drugs since 2003 to Britain, Ireland and other countries in Europe inside pallets used for transporting goods, police said.

Spanish, French, British and Portuguese police investigations showed the gang bought real estate in an effort to launder its profits.

The operation follows a report by European police agency Europol last month which highlighted increased cross-border cooperation among organised crime groups to boost drug sales.

FSU Hoops Recruit Arrested

The Ledger, FL
05/22/06

Five-star basketball recruit Jon Kreft was arrested on drug charges Thursday in South Florida, jeopardizing his future at Florida State.

Kreft, 19, was arrested by Coral Springs police and charged with felony cocaine possession. The 7-foot, 240-pound center was also charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession and drug paraphernalia possession.

Ranked by Rivals as the No. 29 prospect in the 2006 recruiting class, Kreft starred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. He committed to FSU almost two years ago, before his stock began to soar. Now he's in danger of losing his scholarship.

"We'll wait until the police report and all the details are on our desk, and then we'll make a decision based on those facts," FSU athletic director Dave Hart told the Tallahassee Democrat.

FSU rules prohibit student-athletes from competing while under felony charges. Hart said he would not support admitting a student-athlete facing felony charges.

Cannabis Party declares Vote of No Confidence

Monday, 22 May 2006, 9:31 am
Press Release: Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party

Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party

22 May 2006

Cannabis Party declares Vote of ‘No Confidence’ in Government

New Zealand's legalise cannabis party has little faith in the Labour Government's latest annual budget. Party Leader Michael Appleby is concerned that the government was so focused on road-building without a complementary emphasis on fuel policy. Phasing out our dependence on fossil fuels would be helped by increasing locally-sourced 'greenhouse-neutral' biofuels.

The bulk celluose in hemp is an ideal source of ethanol and biodiesel, without even using the valuable seed which is THC free and nutritionally rich, containing essential fatty acids Omega 3 & 6. Mr Appleby also suggested that the stalk from all the cannabis "grown and blown" in New Zealand could be beneficially pooled into the biofuel resource.

In their latest budget the Government is also funding one thousand extra police to help combat crime. But at the same time they continue to manufacture crime through their support for prohibition policy and thus New Zealand's irrepressible illicit trade in the popular herb.

"The 1000 police would not be needed if the criminality was taken out of cannabis use," said Mr Appleby. "Changing this hypocritical law would also help combat the current resistance that is all too evident amongst youth to government health promotion efforts surrounding the use of alcohol and other drugs."

The National Drug Policy (currently open for public submissions http://www.ndp.govt.nz) acknowledges that at least 14% of surveyed Kiwis are marijuana consumers. As many as 20,000 p.a. of these Kiwis are suffering cannabis criminal convictions. Estimates of the size of the domestic market have been put at one billion dollars p.a. – the equivalent of 100 tonnes of cannabis buds - at $300 for 30g.

Government has been well aware for the last decade that there is no evidence that criminalisation is limiting use, and no evidence that there is a risk of a significant increase in use if cannabis was decriminalized, (Cannabis the public health issues, MOH 1995-96, p40).

"The reason they are not changing the cannabis laws is not because of the evidence but because of a political agreement" says the Party. "They held the inquiry, heard the evidence and then shelved it because they didn’t like the legislative implication - there is actually no evidence that supports continuing total prohibition of cannabis."

The fact that there was no policing of hundreds of blatant 'civil disobedience' cases - at rallies all around the country - marking International J Day recently shows that the law is hollow and fraudulent.

ENDS

Nelson spreads ‘The Tao of Willie’

At 73, he's still puffing strong and enjoying life on the road

MSNBC
Reuters
05/22/06

NEW YORK - At 73, country music legend Willie Nelson is still doing headstands and smoking joints in the back of a tour bus at hundreds of concerts and, far from slowing down, he’d like to tour with the Rolling Stones.

“They like country music, we get along fine and Keith (Richards) is a good buddy of mine, so that would be good,” Nelson said, adding that he’s not much of a dancer compared to Stones front man Mick Jagger but he might give it a try.

Pedaling for pot

BY GRIGS CRAWFORD
Colorado Daily, CO
05/21/06

Bicycling members of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) will be blazing through the Boulder area today in part of their Journey for Justice, advocating the right of patients and doctors to use medical marijuana.

The group left Folly Beach, South Carolina on April 7, hoping to smoke across the country and reach San Francisco on June 1.

“We want to see legislation pass where medical marijuana is no longer illegal,” said Mark Pedersen, ASA's traveling coordinator. Over the phone while heading west on Highway 24 through Kansas last Friday, Pedersen added, “We're proving we're not going to quit until this becomes a blatant public issue.”

The group has already been raided once unsuccessfully by police and drug-sniffing dogs in Kansas.

Russia to Supply Ammunition to Afghanistan at U.S. Request

MOSNEWS, Russia
05/22/06

U.S. defense officials have secretly requested a “prodigious quantity” of ammunition from Russia to supply the Afghan army in case a Democrat president takes over in Washington and pulls out American troops. Pentagon chiefs have asked arms suppliers for a quote on a vast amount of ordnance, including more than 78 million rounds of AK47 (the well-known Kalashnikov submachine gun) ammunition, 100,000 rocket-propelled grenades and 12,000 tank shells — equivalent to about 15 times the British Army’s annual requirements, The Daily Telegraph reported Monday.

The order also suggests the Afghan army will be equipped with T62 tanks, Mi24 Hind attack helicopters, and Spandrel anti-tank missiles.

Defense specialists said Russian arms chiefs at first “fell about laughing” because they thought the order was a joke when it arrived this month. But with the Americans said to be pressing for a price and an earliest delivery date, the request is being rapidly processed and exports could begin before the end of this year.

Some observers pointed to the irony of the deal, because when the Soviet Union occupied Afghanistan the Americans sold Stinger surface-to-air missiles to the Mujahideen to enable them to shoot down Moscow’s aircraft.

Congratulations to Soares for speaking out

Albany Times Union, NY
Letter to the Editor
WILLIAM P. McMILLEN
05/22/06

It would seem like the only thing more dangerous than possessing small quantities of drugs is speech designed to provoke an intelligent discussion about drug policy.

You won't get that from Albany Police Chief James Tuffey or Albany County Sheriff James Campbell or, I'm afraid, from the Times Union. The mere suggestion that the violence inherent in drug prohibition has parallels to that of alcohol prohibition, or that the prohibition inflates the cost of drugs, which leads to the commission of crime for their purchase, immediately brings forth denunciation of the speaker.

I wonder how many prominent and influential people are silenced on this issue, intimidated by the political correctness and the hysteria over the fearful dangers to their children.

Wake up! The drug war is a failure; the very things you fear are here and they are made worse, driven by the "war on drugs."

I'm sure thousands of people know this be true, but unless hundreds speak out, the dozens with the courage to do so will be drowned out by those who fear an honest debate.

Congratulations to David Soares for speaking out. May he not be intimidated.

WILLIAM P. McMILLEN, Libertarian Party Chairman, Albany Chapter

Kim Hendrix Interviews Loretta Nall and Joe Copeland

WSFA TV
NBC 12
Montgomery, AL
windows media video
filmed 05/19/06
aired 05/21/06
(link fixed)

Tide linebacker Simpson arrested

STEVE KIRK
Birmingham News, AL
05/21/06

University of Alabama starting linebacker Juwan Simpson was arrested Saturday by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and charged with receiving stolen property, possession of marijuana and carrying a pistol without a license.

Simpson, 21, was booked at the Bessemer Jail. He is free after posting a bond of $7,000, according to a deputy at the jail. The bonds included $5,000 for receiving stolen property and $1,000 each for marijuana possession and the firearm charge.

Simpson, a senior and Decatur native, has started at linebacker for two years. He was a 2005 Academic All-Southeastern Conference selection who earned his undergraduate degree in financial planning in December. He is pursuing a second degree in criminal justice, according to UA media relations.

At the conclusion of spring practice April 1, Crimson Tide coaches presented Simpson with the Derrick Thomas Community Award, named after the late ex-Alabama linebacker who was actively involved in charitable works.

After starting every game for the Crimson Tide last fall, Simpson is one of four returning starters on defense for the 2006 team.

UA head coach Mike Shula could not be reached for comment.

U.S. in Pursuit of "Prince of Pot"

Stephen Leahy
Inter Press Service, Italy
05/20/06

TORONTO - Canadian Marc Emery, known as the "Prince of Pot", says the U.S. extradition request hanging over him for selling marijuana seeds over the Internet is a "sadistic" move by the George W. Bush administration to silence the drug legalisation movement.

"It's a cruel and sadistic [U.S.] government intent on punishing free-thinking people," Emery told Tierramérica. "The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) acts as an all-powerful death squad that fills up prisons and wastes billions of dollars," he said.

Emery's extradition hearing is likely to be held in December, and expected to be granted, given Canada's new Conservative government, which has a staunch anti-drug, pro-U.S. stance. If so, Emery faces more than 20 years in prison.

Always in the spotlight, Emery sold marijuana seeds over the Internet over an 11-year period, with annual sales reaching three million dollars, by his own account. But he never sold marijuana, even though DEA agents posing as buyers often tried to entice or trick him into doing so.

His business collapsed in July 2005 when the DEA and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) confiscated all his property and practically everything else related to his seed sales.

Emery says he is not a drug dealer, but a political activist fighting to end the prohibition on marijuana. He is editor of Cannabis Culture Magazine and the leader of the British Colombia Marijuana Party, a registered political party in that west coast province.

The Prince of Pot has given more than four million dollars of his seed profits to pay the legal fees of pot growers fighting prosecution and to help organise conferences in favour of drug legalisation.

Children's safety drives DEA chief

Despite a push in the U.S. for legal marijuana, Tandy wants to rid nation of pot, other drugs

By MICHAEL HEDGES
Houston Chronicle
Washington Bureau
05/20/06

WASHINGTON - Like most mothers with teenage daughters, Karen Tandy worries about her children's possible exposure to illicit narcotics.

But the Hurst native and Texas Tech University law school grad is uniquely positioned to do something about those concerns as the head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

"It is every parent's worst nightmare," she said of the prospect of drug abuse.

"I have two teenaged daughters and I'm no different than any other parent — I worry about my kids. They are great kids, but peer pressure can be a big issue."

Her use of maternal instinct may partly explain why during her 32 months as DEA chief, Tandy has been an unapologetic advocate for tough enforcement of laws against marijuana, a substance critics say is less destructive than heroin or cocaine.

"We have more teens in (counseling) for marijuana than for all other drugs combined, including alcohol," she said recently in her office in the agency's northern Virginia headquarters.

She spoke the truth in the above quote but then someone went back and added a word to try to disguise the true meaning.

Her attitude has angered cannabis advocates and others, who accuse Tandy of over-zealousness in dealing with issues such as medical marijuana use.

She drew fire last year from pro-pot groups and others for her handling of the prosecution of Marc Emery, a Canadian who has been charged with selling marijuana seeds across the border into the Pacific Northwest.

Accused of interference
Joel Connelly, a columnist with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, needled Tandy for what he said was a clumsy interference that made Emery a minor martyr in Canada, where pot laws are more lenient.

"She came here and big-footed the local prosecutors in the worst sense of that term," Connelly said in a telephone interview.

Tandy, 52, shrugged off the criticism.

"I think you'd have to look at the amount of seeds he is charged with supplying to the U.S. that were grown and abused," she said of Emery. "What is of greatest concern to me is the havoc wreaked when kids who have been smoking marijuana get behind the wheel."

Regardless of the occasional critic's shot, Tandy retains her passion for running the government's largest anti-drug bureaucracy — the kind of job that can be stressful and emotionally exhausting.

"This job is a calling, not just for me but for all of the 11,000 people in this agency. I have the best job on Earth," she said.

________________________________________________
The public feuding between Tandy and Emery has reached a fever pitch. These two really need to get a room.

Green Party prepares for races

By RAY HACKETT
Norwich Bulletin, CT
05/21/06

HARTFORD -- The Democrats and Republicans aren't the only candidates on the November ballot.

The Green Party of Connecticut endorsed four candidates at its convention in April, including the first black candidate for governor.

Clifford Thorton, 61, of Glastonbury will lead the Green ticket. Also running under the Green Party banner for statewide office are Nancy Burton, a public interest lawyer, for attorney general; Mike DeRosa for secretary of the state, and S. David Bue for state treasurer.

Ralph Ferrucci was nominated as the party's candidate for U.S. Senate.

Thornton is harsh critic of the war on drugs. His mother died from a heroin overdose when he was 18, and he expects that will be the most important part of his campaign. He claims stiff penalties for users and selling has resulted only in sending parents and other potential taxpayers to prison. He supports decriminalizing all drugs, the legalization of cannabis and hemp, and the use of heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and ecstasy for medical use.

$4b later, drugs still flow in Colombia

By Indira A.R. Lakshmanan
Boston Globe, United States
05/21/06

TUMACO, Colombia -- Six years and $4 billion into the US-backed campaign to wipe out cocaine at its source, Colombia appears to be producing more coca than when the campaign started, according to US government estimates.

As Congress opens debate this month on another $640 million for next year for Washington's most ambitious overseas counternarcotics effort, a growing number of critics say the costly program has neither dented the cocaine trade nor driven down the number of American addicts. Two of the program's major missions -- to dramatically reduce coca growing in Colombia and provide alternative livelihoods for drug farmers -- have fallen far short of hoped-for goals.

Onetime supporters, including some Republican lawmakers who championed the plan at its creation, are now demanding to know why the most expensive US foreign aid program outside the Middle East and Afghanistan is not winning the war on drugs.

Oklahoma tops in incarcerating women

Report: War on drugs responsible for increase in female inmates

CNN
AP
05/21/06

Birmingham Cops Run Over Everyone In Sight

Get Out of the Road If You Want to Grow Old

Police Chase Ends With Pedestrian Being Hit
NBC 13
05/18/06

Homewood Police Motorcycle Officer Hits Pedestrian
NBC 13
05/19/06

___________________________________
I hope these cops have managed to calm down some because today is the Do Dah Day Parade in downtown Birmingham featuring Loretta riding in a Mustang convertible with Piddles the Wonder Dog.

She and Piddles have survived a previous police encounter together so maybe they will know how to handle themselves if things get crazy. This is when our investment in tuition for Piddles' Defensive Driving course will pay off.


5 things to know about Do Dah Day
ALEC HARVEY
Birmingham News
05/19/06


Puppicide
Radley Balko
The Agitator
05/17/06

systemofadown.com

Sheriff's Daughter, Grandson Arrested In Drug Raid

Sheriff Says Daughter's Choices Unfortunate

KCCI.com, IA
05/19/06

DES MOINES, Iowa -- A drug investigation leads to several arrests, including the daughter and grandson of a southwest Iowa county sheriff.

The bust happened in Sidney, Iowa, in Freemont County.

Lisa Ann Countryman, 41, is charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and sponsoring a drug gathering. Her son, Kevin Daniel Countryman, 19, was also arrested.

He faces several drug charges, including possession of marijuana. Nine other arrests were made.

The Freemont County sheriff said that his daughter's choices are unfortunate.


_____________________________________________________
When the Communists took power in Russia and formed the Soviet Union they based their new government on a U.S. style constitution. The central planners in Moscow liked the U.S. constitution but realized that there were a couple of important changes they needed to make right off the bat.

Their first change was to institute policies designed to make the citizens more loyal to the government than they were to their own families. The government is jealous of the citizens' primary loyalties and is therefore inherently anti-family.

The second major change the Communists made was to alter the role of the State Senators so that they no longer represented the States but were subject to popular election.

Our central planners in Washington must admire the communists because they have brought about the same changes here.

Jonah Goldberg: War on drugs and illegal immigrants not a crazy comparison

By JONAH GOLDBERG
The Union Leader, NH
05/19/06

What an amazing piece of fluff this is. The crackdown on kool-aid has led to an increase in the abuse of cotton candy as a substitute.

Whites should acknowledge failings, too

Editorial
BY LEONARD PITTS JR.
Miami Herald, FL
05/19/06

...my recent column on the use of the justice system as a cudgel against black children

...the death of Martin Lee Anderson, an unresisting 14-year-old black kid who was hit, choked and restrained by up to nine guards in a Panama City ``boot camp.''

...one individual said Martin Lee Anderson's guards ``did us all a favor.''

According to The Real War on Crime: The Report of the National Criminal Justice Commission, blacks account for 13 percent of all regular drug users but 35 percent of those arrested, 55 percent of those convicted and 74 percent of those imprisoned for drug possession.

Governor Riley Opening Last Stretch of U.S. 280 to Four Lane Traffic

Alabama Department of Transportation



Scared, angry drivers weigh in on Alabama’s truck problem
By Greg Cusimano
decaturdaily.com
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2005


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Loretta Nall for Governor Campaign
c/o Alabama Libertarian Party
2330 Highland Ave.
Birmingham AL 35205
Phone: 251-650-2271
Cell: 256-625-9599
Email: cnall1@charter.net
Website: Nall for Governor


May 18, 2006-- Dadeville, AL - Gov. Riley will celebrate
opening the last section of US280, completing four
lanes from Birmingham to the GA line.

I doubt he’ll make any comment about those made
homeless and otherwise damaged by misuse of eminent
domain by the State of Alabama. While cases of this
sort of abuse by the State Lands Division against
mostly black and poor white citizens of our state were
more publicized – similar abuse by ALDOT is lesser
known because of the efforts of Bob Riley and friends.

Instances of this abuse took place on US280 in
Congressman Riley’s district, yet he did nothing to
defend civil rights of property owners impacted by
this federal highway project. Specifically, owners
were kicked out of their homes before they were paid
(still holding legal title to their property) so that
others could live in their house while owners were
homeless. At least one case is still ongoing in the
courts almost a decade later – no surprise given
ALDOT’s history of such great disregard for civil
rights.

When asked to stop this abuse, then Congressman
Riley’s responded by saying, “You know the road is
coming – get out of the way.” Mr. Riley may be
wealthy enough to let others live his home without
compensation waiting to finally be paid – but most
Alabamians are not.

This is an issue the Libertarians have always held
dear – the terrible treatment of our citizens must
stop. Of course, Messrs. Riley, Siegleman, et al like
to conspire with contractors they get campaign
contributions from to force people out of their homes
(before they are paid) to rub it in owners’ faces and
financially beat them into submission. It leaves more
money to abscond with in their manipulated bidding
process while claiming to save the taxpayers money.

The 5th Amendment states the private property cannot
be taken for private use and can not be taken for
public use w/o just compensation. Making people
homeless before they are compensated is wrong. Taking
private property (owners still have legal title to)
for housing highway workers without consent of the
owner is wrong.

It is time for a change, Vote Nall Y’all – it is just
common sense.

For more information please contact the Nall for Governor Campaign at 256-625-9599 or 256-874-2985.

###

.


Google Blog Search: alabama riley

Legal jurisdiction limited

By Evan Belanger
Cullman Times Online, AL
05/18/06
___________________________________________
As the debate over illegal aliens continues, local law enforcement officials complained this week that, despite public perception, the law does not give them jurisdiction to deal with illegal aliens.

In an interview Monday, Sheriff Tyler Roden told The Times that deporting an illegal alien is "not a simple process."

He said, in most cases, the Sheriff's Office has no jurisdiction to do anything unless it's determined that some other law has been broken.

"Coming into the U.S. illegally is a violation of federal law, not a state law," he said. "Unless they break a state or local law, we have to let them go."

_____________________________________________
While hesitant to say large volumes of illegal aliens lead to higher crime rates, Roden did say "immigration problems contribute to drug flow" in Cullman County, particularly in marijuana and crystal meth.
______________________________________________

Sheriff Roden says he cannot arrest illegal immigrants unless they have broken a State law, then implies that they are breaking State law by bringing in controlled substances. So which is it?

This kind of leap in logic is common.

Prohibitionists, for example, use fear-based tactics to justify the drug war. Many people feel that a person possessing marijuana in his own home should be arrested on the basis that he somehow poses a threat to them. He might decide to jump in the car and cause a traffic accident. Or he may decide to drive down to the playground and give his pot to your children. Of course someone possessing alcohol in his home might decide to do these same things. Someone possessing a rock in his yard might decide to pick it up and throw it at you.

While the idea of the pre-emptive strike is obviously absurd in many scenarios, a big dose of government propaganda and fear-mongering is usually enough to convince people to abandon their reason.

Yreka police seize marijuana plants

By Brad Smith
Siskiyou Daily News, CA
05/16/06

YREKA - Late Friday morning, the Yreka Police Department executed a search warrant at 426 Jackson Street, right across the street from the Jackson Street School. A number of marijuana plants were seized.

Trenton Lee Hayden and Sara Simpson are being charged,î said Detective Dave Gamache, lead investigator. Those charges are the cultivation of marijuana, the possession of marijuana for sale and child endangerment.

Wherin lies the danger?

Court rejects appeal for Sioux hemp farm

Chicago Tribune, United States
05/18/06

SIOUX FALLS, SOUTH DAKOTA -- An American Indian treaty and U.S. law do not allow industrial hemp to be grown on an Indian reservation, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Industrial hemp is related to marijuana and can be used to make food, clothing, paper, rope and other products. It contains only a trace of the drug found in marijuana but is illegal to grow.

Alex White Plume, vice president of the Oglala Sioux tribe, and members of his family planted hemp three times on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation from 2000 to 2002, but it was confiscated by federal agents.

A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said it empathized with the White Plumes but concluded their enterprise was illegal.

The family's lawyer, Bruce Ellison, argued that it had a right to grow hemp without a permit because of an 1868 treaty that encouraged Indian farming.

Police surround home during city drug raid

BARRIE BARBER
THE SAGINAW NEWS, MI
05/17/06

The explosion of a grenade designed to cause a distraction hastily drew Tracy W. Kahary out of his apartment and into a scene involving police surrounding a Saginaw home.

Kahary said he counted about 20 officers, many clad in SWAT gear, and carrying automatic rifles in the twilight Tuesday as they circled around a townhouse at 721 N. Bates, near Throop.

Township Police Detective Sgt. Jack Doyle said a drug investigation tip led his department, with the help of the Saginaw Emergency Services Team, into the city.

The 15-officer raid, with two state Department of Corrections agents, began about
8:15 p.m., he said.

Officers with lights mounted on their rifles searched the area around the home, with at least one frequently pointing the weapon's white light at the grass while a chilly spring rain fell.

A Saginaw police canine team assisted in the search.

Officers found small amounts of drugs, Doyle said. As of this morning, they had made no arrests.

Residents claim raid cost them income

Auburn Citizen, NY
05/17/06

Four area residents served a notice of claim Tuesday stating they suffered lost income because of an Auburn Police Department drug raid April 9.

Ethel Bowman, James W. Smith, Precious U. Wingate and Smith, on behalf of his son, Diondrie, also said in the claim they suffered substantial property loss, police brutality, emotional distress and gross negligence, among other issues.

Seventeen male officers dressed in “camouflage” and “ninja masks” and one unmasked female illegally entered 8 Wallace Ave. at 6:30 p.m. April 9, the claim said.

According to the claim, the four were thrown to the floor and had guns placed to their heads; suffered “harassment and humiliation” for more than an hour; the whole house was searched and furniture was destroyed; police refused to show a warrant, did not wear their badges and did not arrive in marked vehicles.

The plaintiffs are entitled to punitive damages, but the exact amount cannot be determined because the effects of the raid continue, the claim said.

What's next, militarization of the Andes?

The Japan Times
By JUAN GABRIEL TOKATLIAN
director of political science and international relations
at Universidad de San Andreas
BUENOS AIRES
05/17/06

Need VOLUNTEERS Saturday May 20

The Nall for Governor campaign is recruiting as many volunteers as possible for DooDah Day which happens this Saturday May 20 in BHAM on Highland Avenue.

As I understand it many thousands of people attend every year and with 10-20 volunteers we could put a sizeable dent in the signature gathering bucket.

Schedule is HERE

So, who's in? I need to know when you can start and how long you can gather sigs that day. Please let me know if you can volunteer a couple of hours.

I'd like to have people at both parks and all along the route. At present I have myself and three others who are in BHAM for the purpose of gathering signatures.

Email me if you plan to help with this effort and I will tell you where to meet the rest of us on Saturday.

Loretta.

Puppycide

Radley Balko
theagitator.com
05/17/06

Driving under another influence: pot

Contra Costa Times, CA
LINI S. KADABA
Knight Ridder Newspapers
05/17/06

Some gems from this one:

"Unlike most drugs, evidence of marijuana use lingers in the body. It takes eight days to eliminate 90 percent of it, according to a study cited by Wilkie Wilson, professor of pharmacology at Duke University and co-author of Buzzed: The Straight Facts about the Most Used and Abused Drugs from Alcohol to Ecstasy.

Researchers say that marijuana, which has become more potent over the years, affects judgment, concentration, perception, coordination and reaction time - all skills needed for safe driving. The greatest risk is in the first 24 hours."

A little confusion there between evidence of use and effects of use. And if this man knows where to get some pot that gives you a 24-hour buzz then he's sitting on a goldmine.

"In a study of injured drivers at a Baltimore trauma unit, conducted in 2003, marijuana was the most popular companion drug to alcohol, especially among those under 35, said psychologist J. Michael Walsh, president of the Walsh Group, a Bethesda, Md., consultancy involved in the research.

That finding is worrisome, Walsh said, because marijuana combined with a beer or two can produce a blood-alcohol level nearly twice the legal limit in many states. It's more than seven times Pennsylvania's limit for drivers under 21."

So there you have it. Marijuana increases your blood alcohol level. This is complete nonsense and Mr. Walsh should be ashamed of himself for telling such obvious lies.

MSNBC Coverage of Nall Campaign

U.S. Political Consultants Dick Morris and Rob Allyn Are the Virtual Rapists of Atenco

By Al Giordano
The Narco News Bulletin
05/16/06
_____________________________________
I don't really understand the above-linked story but I know that Dick Morris wants to escalate the drug war and likes to suck toes. While I don't begrudge the man his right to suck a good clean toe, I do frown upon his efforts to cynically promote the escalation of a failed and destructive policy for purely political gain.

Nall for Governor Media Updates

It appears that the Alabama media is picking up on my recent "Flash for Cash" campaign. Here is a blurb form yesterday's Mobile Press-Register.

More or less

There's been some discussion lately about whether all the pollsters and consultants have sapped the fun and spontaneity from politics. Folks who espouse that opinion apparently haven't viewed Alabama Libertarian Loretta Nall's ads.

One posted on the Mobile Libertarian Party's site boasts a photo of Nall, who's running for governor, leaning forward in a low-necked top, displaying her cleavage.

The slogan reads, "More of these boobs, and less of these boobs!!" Small photos of Gov. Bob Riley, Roy Moore, Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley and Don Siegelman are included.

The ad can be seen here .


I'll be writing them today with the full story of how that came to be on my campaign t-shirts .

I finally tracked down a copy of the MSNBC segment in which I was featured. They charged the begeezus out of me for it but I will have a copy later today and will post it here.

I am also in the media today for oppostiton to National Guard troops on the Mexican border. That is being covered in just about every newspaper and on every TV and radio station in the state. Clearly, I am the only non-Republican running in this race.

On Thursday I will be interviewed by WSFA Channel 12 in Montgomery. Part of the interview will air on the 5 pm newscast on Sunday. The entire unedited interview, which will be 15-20 minutes in length, will beplaced on the WSFA website for the remainder of this election season.

National Guard Bureau - Counterdrug Office Partners

The Government spying on Americans is nothing new. Use the above link to view some examples.

Nall Opposes National Guard Troops on Mexican Border

Libertarian Party nominee Loretta Nall said she objects to using the Guard to militarize the border with the peaceful neighbor. "The last thing I want to do is make it more like a police state," she said.

Instead, she advocates embracing illegal immigrants who are working in the United States. "We should naturalize them and make them part of the tax base," she said.


Riley, Moore support use of National Guard along Mexican border

By PHILLIP RAWLS
Associated Press Writer
Montgomery Advertiser

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -- Republican Gov. Bob Riley and his opponent, former Chief Justice Roy Moore, voiced support Monday for President Bush's plan to use the National Guard along the Mexican border.

"If we'd done this years ago, we'd have put a stop to illegal immigration," Riley said.

But some candidates for governor are concerned about using the National Guard in a major border role, particularly with 500 Alabama National Guard deployed overseas, 300 in training to go, and 200 scheduled to mobilize in June and July.

Chip Hill, a spokesman for former Democratic Gov. Don Siegelman, said, "He would never agree for the Alabama National Guard to be used as border patrol agents on the Mexican border."

Democratic Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley said using the National Guard should only be temporary.

"I believe long-range planning should be something other than continuing to increase the demands on the citizen soldiers, which make it very difficult on their family lives and professional careers," she said.

Bush is planning to use the Guard to support the Border Patrol while it builds up its resources to protect the 2,000-mile border with Mexico.

A spokesman for Alabama's National Guard said there has been no word on whether any Alabama units might be involved.

In Alabama, the governor names the Guard's top officer, the adjutant general, and calls out the Guard to help after natural disasters, such as hurricanes.

Libertarian Party nominee Loretta Nall said she objects to using the Guard to militarize the border with the peaceful neighbor. "The last thing I want to do is make it more like a police state," she said.

Instead, she advocates embracing illegal immigrants who are working in the United States. "We should naturalize them and make them part of the tax base," she said.


Riley issued a statement saying he doesn't know the specifics of Bush's plan, but "I do support placing military forces on our border. When I served in Congress, I voted to authorize the placement of military troops on our border, so I'm glad to see we're finally moving in that direction."

As for Alabama's Guard, Riley said he sees no significant impact because any deployment would be a national effort.

Moore, who faces Riley in the Republican primary on June 6, has been critical of Bush's handling of the illegal immigration issue, but now thinks he's waking up to the problem.

"I'm glad he's suddenly realizing the policy we've been pursuing the last five or six years has been detrimental to our society," he said.

Moore, who spent five years in the active Army and one year in the Reserves, believes the Guard can handle the extra responsibility.

"It is the duty of the federal government to defend our borders from an invasion, whether it's a foreign army or a foreign nationality," Moore said.

Moore is among those who see another part of Bush's plan, the guest worker program, as an amnesty program for those who entered the United States illegally.

"We've got to be very careful not to pretend to right a wrong with another wrong which will further damage our society," Moore said in an interview.

Siegelman's spokesman said the former Democratic governor has no problem with states that border Mexico using their National Guard units to protect the border or with the national military doing it, but he doesn't believe non-border states should be involved.

"It's the Mexican border. It's not the border of Alabama," Hill said.

In Alabama, Siegelman would advocate rounding up illegal immigrants, sending them home and punishing the businesses that hired them, Hill said.

Siegelman faces Baxley and five other Democrats in the primary election June 6.

Baxley said Monday she's glad to see the president act.

"Securing our country's borders is the responsibility of the federal government, and any action by the president in this matter is long overdue," she said.

Baxley said long-term enforcement is needed along the Mexican border, but long-range planning must provide for the replacement of the Guard..

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Troops can't kick Chicago gang ties

BY FRANK MAIN
Crime Reporter
Chicago Sun-Times, United States
05/15/06


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Of course there are gangs in the military. It's a perfect fit.

This reminds me of my one and only experience with a gang which happened when I was stationed at Fort Bliss in El Paso and one of these "social clubs" held a party in the clubhouse of the apartment complex my wife and I were living in. I don't know which social club it was but they were all black and their color was red. There was red and black everywhere you looked.

Me and Loretta was hangin out with a couple from West Virginia whom we had struck up a friendship with based on our mutual Appalachian heritage. My buddy Rodger's wife walked up to the office to check her mail and came back in tears saying someone had insulted her as they were leaving the party. I don't remember what they said but it was something nasty.

So Rodger said "Well, let's go straighten this out".

While I did not relish the idea of walking up into the middle of 30-40 gang members all showing their colors at an official function, I understood that Rodger was from further back in the hills than I was and so he was naturally stronger in the basic American principles of honor, dignity and standing on a point. So I couldn't wuss out.

So there we went, two skinny hillbillies walking up the sidewalk going to get some justice from this gang.

We asked for the guy in charge. He came out and talked to us. He was calm and courteous and seemed concerned with this apparent breach of discipline in his troops. He asked for a description of the vehicle the suspects had left in, said he knew who it was, apologised for their behavior and ensured us that they would be properly disciplined for their infraction.

Charity manager fired for fumbling money

CLARK KAUFFMAN
DesMoinesRegister.com, IA
05/15/06

The manager of a charitable fundraising enterprise in Davenport has been fired for alleged financial mismanagement, drug use and having sex with a woman on his desk.

Chris T. Coppinger of Davenport was fired in March from Mohassan Grotto 22, where he worked as co-manager of the organization's charitable bingo operation.

He was fired after his supervisors allegedly found $1,000 in cash and checks in his office, along with a condom and a jar of urine that appeared to have been hidden. Coppinger was subsequently accused of smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol in the building; having pornography on his work computer; having sex with another person on his desk; and ordering a 15-year-old co-worker to urinate in a jar. He also was fired for failing to deposit cash and checks the organization had collected.

At a hearing dealing with Coppinger's request for unemployment benefits, Coppinger admitted to drinking and having sex with a woman on his desk, but he testified that many other members of the organization had engaged in sex on that same desk. He offered no witnesses to support that claim and was denied benefits.

UT football player jailed in Bell County

ERIC RANSOM
Fort Worth Star Telegram, TX
05/15/06

AUSTIN - Deputies of the Bell County sheriff's office arrested University of Texas football player Ramonce Taylor on suspicion of marijuana possession early Sunday morning.

While responding to an incident in Little River, about 60 miles north of Austin and 10 miles southwest of Temple, deputies found approximately five pounds of marijuana in Taylor's backpack.

At 1:34 a.m., officers responded to a report of "a large fight involving as many as 100 people at a pecan farm," according to a statement from Bell County Sheriff Dan Smith.

Meanwhile, the sheriff's office received a call from Taylor, who said his car had sustained a broken window. The officers met with Taylor, who is from Temple and played at Belton High School, at a convenience store in Little River.

While talking with Taylor, the deputies received information from officers at the scene of the fight that Taylor allegedly had taken part in the fight and had threatened to return to the scene with a firearm.

Officers asked Taylor if he was armed -- he said he wasn't -- and placed him in handcuffs. Taylor then gave the officers permission to search his car. Deputies found a live .40-caliber round of ammunition on the car's console and a backpack containing approximately five pounds of marijuana in the rear of the vehicle, according to a statement issued from the sheriff's office.


That's what you get for calling the cops for help.

Abuse-prone Americans don't need legal marijuana

Gregg Weedon
Letter to the editor
The Free Lance-Star, VA
5/15/2006

This is in response to Kirk Muse's letter ["Czech this out: Marijuana use does not ruin a society," May 8].

Do we not have enough people being injured and killed due to alcohol-related accidents? I believe so, but I don't think Mr. Muse does.

He and others who support marijuana legalization seem to think we need to add another mind-altering substance that would inevitably lead to even more problems on our roads and more substance abuse.

We as a society tend to abuse a lot. We have child abuse, substance abuse, food abuse, and we're currently reeling from our abuse of natural resources.

Why would we exert so much control with marijuana? I fail to see that we would. It would be just another crutch for people to use in order to escape responsibility and fail the people who depend on them.

And it's pointless to compare the U.S. to the Czech Republic. They are two totally different cultures developed over time under very different conditions.

It's apples versus oranges. If you edit enough information, you can always whittle it down to what you want to read or hear. But that doesn't tell the whole story.

If Mr. Muse's argument is that marijuana is not such a big deal, then why are some people so hell-bent on having it legalized?

Gregg Weedon
Spotsylvania

Soft Drugs With Hard Consequences

Deutsche Welle, Germany
05/14/06

Sebastian is a 36-year-old sitting down to lunch in a popular restaurant in Cologne. He lights up a joint, as he puts it, "to relax from work." The restaurant is in a hip part of town, so he says no one even notices his pot-smoking. "I don't look like a junkie hanging around the train station," he says.

Erkan is 24 years old, tall and athletic. He is a car salesman, loves to play soccer and has been a regular marihuana-smoker for years. He does not believe he is addicted: "You can't get addicted to smoking pot as long as you exercise enough. Having a proper job keeps you from getting addicted, too." He believes only people who do not make the most out of their lives become addicted to drugs.

I'm glad this scientist fellow is hard at work keeping the pot crop clean and healthy, but shouldn't he be wearing a hair-net? It's always annoying when you find those scientist-beard-hairs in your bag.

Gone to Pot: The Association Between Cannabis and Psychosis

By Asif R. Malik, MD, and Deepak Cyril D'Souza, MD
Psychiatric Times, CA
05/14/06


Nice study here. I'm sure the ONDCP will be frustrated to find that their destructive efforts have inadvertantly achieved a positive result in helping scientists to understand the true nature of schizophrenia.

City Building Inspector Arrested For Allegedly Growing, Selling Pot

NewsNet5.com, OH
05/13/06

OLMSTED FALLS, Ohio -- A city employeee whose job takes him into homes throughout Lorain faces numerous felony charges, NewsChannel5's Paul Kiska reported.

Olmsted Falls police arrested Edwin Heyduk Jr., 47, a building inspector, and a 17-year-old family member on several drug charges last week.

According to the indictment filed in Cuyahyoga County, Heduk faces four charges, including the cultivation of marjiuana, drug possesion, drug trafficking and possession.

Heyduk and the 17-year-old will be arraigned Tuesday.

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I guess we are suppossed to be scared by the idea that his job took him into people's homes. Yep, at any moment he could have gone crazy on marijuana and started leaping about your kitchen demanding to know which drawer the steak knives were kept in because demons had ordered him to eat your liver.

The long arm of the drug war

Washington quashes yet another mild reform in a neighboring country.

Brian Doherty
Reason magazine
Los Angeles Times
05/12/06

Bush Dips Into the 20s

So maybe it's time to repost my Bush AntiChrist video from 2004.
Windows media file. 2:27 12MB
Copy distribute disseminate catapult
Act now to ensure your high ranking on the NSA list.
Be the first on your block to win a free trip to Cuba.

3 charged in Greenville slaying all have records

By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
The Jersey Journal, NJ
05/12/06

Hudson County homicide detectives have charged three young men with murdering a Jersey City man gunned down in his Greenville home in February.

Rashee K. Tate, 21, of Wade Street, Hykeem Forrester, 20, of Lexington Avenue, and Donald Lee, 22, of Ocean Avenue, have each been charged with murdering Thomas Jessup, 24, of Stegman Avenue, Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said yesterday.

The three men had pushed their way into Jessup's home Feb. 24 to steal money and marijuana, DeFazio said, and shot him multiple times.

"Clearly these three fellows planned to commit the robbery and they apparently went to the door and then pushed their way in when Mr. Jessup answered," DeFazio said, adding that the victim was home alone. "Once again it demonstrates the confluence of drugs and gun violence."

Students to file suit

By PAULA PANT
Colorado Daily, CO
05/12/06

Three CU-Boulder sophomores plan to file a federal lawsuit against CU for closing Farrand Field during the annual marijuana-smoking celebration on April 20 and then posting photos of the trespassers online.

All three plaintiffs - sociology major Makenna Salaverry, integrative physiology major Megan Malone and art history major Somerset Tullius - were photographed on Farrand Field on April 20, although none of the photos depict them smoking marijuana or possessing any form of drug paraphrenelia.

The CU Police Department offered a $50 reward for each photo that was identified.

The students have retained attorneys Perry Sanders Jr. and Robert J. Frank, famous for representing rapper Christopher “Biggie Smalls” Wallace in a suit against the Los Angeles Police Department.

According to Mason Tvert, campaign director of Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation, a nonprofit which advocates marijuana as a safer alternative to alcohol, the suit alleges that CU interfered with the students' right to assemble and right to free speech by closing Farrand Field.

25 cited for alcohol, drugs at arena concert

Toledo Blade, OH
05/12/06

Twenty adults and five juveniles were cited for misdemeanor alcohol and drug offenses during an enforcement sweep at the Sports Arena in East Toledo during the Kid Rock concert Wednesday. About $200 in marijuana was seized.

Those arrested or cited into court included adults ranging in age from 24 to 47 and teenage juveniles. They had addresses as close as Toledo and as far as Van Buren, Ohio, and Detroit, police said.

Two adults were cited for disorderly conduct-intoxication. They and the other adults were cited for a variety of offenses including open container, public indecency, possession of marijuana, and obstructing official business, police said.

Reverse Amnesty: A Modest Proposal

by Rod D. Martin
TheRealityCheck.Org, CT
05/12/06

excerpt:

Let’s take all the honest, hardworking Mexicans who want to come. Anyone who’ll learn English, pledge allegiance (to our flag), pay their taxes, refuse welfare, and steadfastly pursue the American dream is welcome. Bring them on.

But in exchange, we’ll give Mexico -- and our liberal hippie crowd -- exactly what they want: every American drug offender, free to go.

We’ll empty our jails of them, and drop the prosecution of those not yet there. Crackheads and potheads, meth heads and junkies, we’ll offer them full and complete pardons, with just one condition: they move to Mexico -- renouncing their U.S. citizenship -- forever.

Damien Harmon Believed to have Died from Asphyxia

KLFY, LA
05/11/06

An autopsy reveals new information on the death of a hub city man.

The man died after being apprehended by Lafayette police.

Preliminary results from the Lafayette Coroner's Office indicate Damien Harmon died as a result of asphyxia.

A plastic bag filled with what is believed to be marijuana was found lodged in Harmon's larynx.

Toxicology reports are pending as to the exact identity of the substance.

Harmon fled from police on Rue Royale Wednesday morning.

Officers say while chasing him, they saw Harmon swallow something.

Harmon died at the scene.

Man may go to prison for eating pot brownies

Stockton Record, CA
05/11/06

SACRAMENTO - A minor player snagged in a federal corruption scandal that brought down several San Joaquin County officials could go to prison for eating brownies made with marijuana, according to a probation report filed in federal court.

J. Tyler Reves, 37, avoided prison time when he pleaded guilty in January 2005 for his part in the scandal involving his boss, former county Supervisor Lynn Bedford, then-Sheriff Baxter Dunn and former lawman Monte McFall.

McFall, Dunn and state official N. Allen Sawyer stood to make $2 million if they successfully lobbied for a power plant to be built at the Port of Stockton. The power plant was never built.

Reves pleaded guilty to one count of lying to the FBI, which landed him eight months on home detention and five years of probation. Under the terms of his probation, Reves was to stay away from illicit drugs.

But in February and March, he failed five urine tests, testing positive each time for marijuana, according to a probation report filed this week with U.S. District Judge Morrison C. England Jr. in Sacramento.

Reves will also have to explain in a June 20 appearance before England further allegations that he missed four other drug tests and failed to pay a $100 fine, part of England's original sentence.

Probation officers said in the report that Reves has refused to take responsibility for the marijuana accusation. He submitted a letter written by one of his three daughters that claimed she made "pot-laced" brownies and fed them to him without his knowledge. The girl's age was not included in the report.

Staffer in County Attorney's Office faces pot charge

By Kim Smith
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona
05/10/06

A 15-year employee of the Pima County Attorney's Office was arrested last week by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which says she was involved in a marijuana distribution ring.
Erlinda Perez and her husband, Abraham, were indicted and arrested as the result of a yearlong DEA investigation that began in Harrisburg, Pa., said Jim Segeda, resident agent in charge of the Harrisburg DEA division.
It's believed that the couple, along with at least five others from Tucson, California and Pennsylvania, conspired to transport marijuana to Pennsylvania, Segeda said.