Meanwhile, the Drug wars and the Harm they do continue

[truedelphi]

Well, the Drug War is ongoing -


From the following link -
http://ladybud.com/her-name-was-rachel-hoffman/

This young woman was investigated by Florida police when they discovered her driving while under the inlfuence of marijuana. When they raided her aprtment, they found several Ecstasy pills and more marijuana.

In order for her to get the cops to drop serous charges against her, she agreed to wear a wire, purchase a gun, and go off and try to score some $ 13,000 worth of narcotics with money the police gave her. Then she disappeared.

What happened to her?
From the link -
"when they discovered she was wearing a wire, these grifters executed her under a canopy of woods and Spanish moss with the same gun she was supposed to buy from them. But arguably, the police who had been using her as an informant are just as, if not more, guilty of her murder.

In a statement to the Tampa Tribune shortly after her death and prior to her funeral, her stepfather said:

“The reality is, untrained civilians of any age should not be put in that position by a police force, and they put a 23-year-old relatively naïve person in a life-threatening situation”.

On May 7, please remember Rachel Hoffman. Do not ever, ever forget her and the thousands of countless others who are killed in the line of duties they ought never have participated. Each year, there should to be vigils for her and countless others who were put into these impossible situations and lost their lives.
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I wrote about crap like this happening circa 2000, Under the President Bill Clinton.

Some six years ago, Clinton was being interviewed by a young San Francisco Reproter, and he said to her, "Gee if only someone would stop the total nonsense that is the drug war."

I very much liked the fact that this reporter included his remark in her interview, with her notation - "Uh was this man not the President of the USA for eight years? Maybe he could have stopped this nonsense."

Anyway, quite recently the Congressional Research Service came up with some talking points for Obama, regarding the move by many of the states to legalize marijuana.

The Congressional Research Service, which not surprisingly provides research for members of Congress, has put together an extremely comprehensive analysis of possible responses from the federal government and the legal issues surrounding them. It is a long but worthwhile read if you want get into the weeds on the issue.

In summary, while marijuana is legal under state law it is still illegal under the Federal Controlled Substances Act. The federal government could decide to mostly leave the states alone, but if Obama wants to interfere the report looks at the three main tools at his disposal.

1. Federal Prosecution – The federal government can arrest people in these states for violating federal anti-marijuana laws. Going after regular smokers, while theoretically possible, would not be practical because it would require a massive new federal expenditure. The report points out 99% of drug offenses are dealt with under state law.

The federal government could go after the newly authorized commercial businesses to dissuade anyone from taking part. Or as they do with medical marijuana, only go after ones that violate some vague criteria.

2. Forfeiture – The CSA allows for the government to take property involved in drug crimes. Civil forfeiture doesn’t require criminal charges against the owner, just proof the property was involved in criminal activity. From the report: “Forfeiture proceedings are generally less resource intensive than a criminal prosecution and have been used in the past against medical marijuana dispensaries. In practice, the DOJ would be able to seize and liquidate property, both real and personal, associated with marijuana production distribution and retail sale facilities operating in Colorado and Washington without bringing any criminal action.”

This could be used in addition to prosecution or instead of it. If used aggressively this would make it nearly impossible for anyone to run a legal marijuana business in these states.

3. Preempt Lawsuit – The government could file a lawsuit in federal court claiming the new legalization laws are preempted by federal law. This is a tricky legal question and there is no guarantee the federal government would win. The personal possession provision in both laws are almost assured to be found Constitutional under the 10th Amendment. The main issue would likely be if the provisions licensing growers and retailers are preempted.

Maybe Mr Clinton could step forward and off up his two cents on the issue once again. It is always sad to realize that our governing officials are so far behind the curve, on everything from Social Security to their continuing nonsensical War on Some Drugs.