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High Times With Peter Gorman And Art Bell (Thursday Night's Syndicated Radio
Talk-Show With Art Bell Features The 'High Times' Writer And Editor
Discussing Tours He'll Lead To Peruvian Amazon Featuring Ayahuasca Rituals)
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 12:39:53 -1000
From: prophets@maui.net
To: dragonfly@aloha.net
Subject: High Times with Peter Gorman and Art Bell
An impressive first takes place tomorrow night (January 8/9) when America
listens to High Times Magazine executive editor Peter Gorman as a special
guest on Art Bell's Coast-to-Coast radio program. Peter Gorman is a
remarkable individual who brings a great deal of colorful entertainment, and
definitely on-the-edge information, to the program's large audience. Gorman
is a noted writer, adventurer and medicinal plant collector, and at High
Times Magazine he concentrates on civil liberty issues. He has published
articles and papers in numerous national and international magazines,
including: The New York Times, The Boston Globe, Omni, Spy, Discovery
On-Line, The New York Sunday News, Americas (the magazine of the OAS),
Buzzworm, Das Tier, Die Zeit, Elle, Geo, Airone, Geo Mundo, Geographical,
New York Newsday, Natura, Now, Panorama, Playboy, Sette, Shaman's Drum,
Terre Sauvage, Wildlife Conservation, Penthouse, World, The World and I,
VSD, and Zoom. Gorman is highly respected for his research into a wide
variety of fields, including indigenous cultures, rainforest destruction,
ethnopharmacology, and shamanism. His discovery of the human use of a
substance secreted by the phylomedusa bicolor frog has created intense
international interest in the potential medicinal properties of the substance.
What could be of particular interest is Peter Gorman's current adventure of
taking small groups of people into the Peruvian Amazon to participate with
curandero shaman in ayahuasca rituals which generate out-of-body travel
(much like remote viewing), journeys beyond space and time (time travel),
receiving information from plant and animal spirits, and the receiving of
cures for common and exotic illnesses. The results being claimed from the
use of this ancient brew in this deep jungle setting are extraordinary. His
Amazon jaunts are taking place in March, April and August of this year.
Check your local radio listings for the time and station for Art Bell with
Peter Gorman.
You may also listen to the show using Real Audio which may be downloaded
from the Art Bell webpage at: http://www.artbell.com/
For more information on Peter Gorman work and his Amazon Jaunts, visit:
http://www.aloha.net/~axiom/amazon.html
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Zumwalt Denies He Sold Cocaine (Duvall, Washington, City Councilman
Denies Charges During Trial)
From: "W.H.E.N."
To: "Talk Group"
Subject: HT: ART: Councilman denies coke sales
Date: Wed, 7 Jan 1998 19:55:12 -0800
Sender: owner-hemp-talk@hemp.net
1997 The Seattle Times Company
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 1998
Zumwalt denies he sold cocaine
by Ronald K. Fitten
Seattle Times staff reporter
Duvall City Councilman Dave "Ernie" Zumwalt, on trial for allegedly selling
and distributing cocaine, testified yesterday that he never sold drugs to a
police informer.
Zumwalt's testimony in King County Superior Court contradicted the
testimony of the informer, who said he bought a half-gram of cocaine from
the councilman at a Duvall tavern in July while police waited outside.
The informer testified Monday that he walked up to Zumwalt in the bar and
told him he wanted to buy cocaine. He said Zumwalt told him he'd have to
wait because the police were parked outside.
But after telling Zumwalt he had a friend waiting for him, the informer
said Zumwalt agreed to make the sale. He said that he slipped Zumwalt $40
and that shortly afterward the councilman went outside to his van and
returned with the cocaine.
He said Zumwalt gave him the cocaine in the restroom.
But Zumwalt yesterday denied he ever sold the informer drugs. He said, "I
told him I didn't have anything," then chided the informer for even raising
the question.
Zumwalt conceded that he went out to his van but said he returned with his
pool cue, not cocaine.
When asked by his attorney, Tony Savage, whether he had delivered or sold
drugs to the informer July 25, Zumwalt replied, "No sir." He also
contradicted testimony on several key issues provided earlier by the
police.
Zumwalt said when he was arrested Aug. 1 and his van was searched, he was
never asked while sitting in the police patrol car whether a vest taken out
of his van belonged to him. Police said they found a small quantity of
cocaine in the vest.
Zumwalt also denied admitting during a police interrogation that he sold
drugs to the informer.
"They asked me if I had done drugs," Zumwalt said. "I said, `Yes, I have
done drugs.' " But when asked whether he'd sold drugs, he testified he told
the two officers no.
Zumwalt, 41, admitted during direct examination that he received drugs from
a drug dealer up until two years ago.
He added that though he was still friends with the dealer, he had not
received drugs or observed the dealer sell drugs since he quit taking
drugs.
Ronald K. Fitten's phone message number is 206-464-3251. His e-mail address
is: ronf-new@seatimes.com
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Cleaned Out (Michael Dix and Tracy Burns,
Busted For Marijuana And Cocaine
Possession Nine Months Ago, Come Home
To Find Cops Have Taken All Their
Possessions Without Due Process
Because They Didn't Buy Iowa Tax Stamps
For The Illegal Drugs)
MN: US IA: Cleaned Out
Newshawk: "Carl E. Olsen"
Source: Cityview
Author: Geoff S. Fein
Pubdate: January 7, 1998
Page: 7-8
Contact: Fax: 515-288-0309
Email: bpc@mail.commonlink.com
Photo: "I was freaked out. I begged them not
to take things. I sat here and watched them
rob me." Tracy Burns, With Mike Dix, in
their Adel home.
Editor's note: This article, with photo, is
online at:
http://www.commonlink.com/~olsen/DPF/stamps.html
Michael Dix and Tracy Burns were busted
for marijuana and cocaine possession. Nine
months later, cops seized everything from
their pickup truck to a pooper scooper.
CLEANED OUT
Michael Dix and Tracy Burns wear the look of frustration, anger and fear.
They moved to Adel four years ago from Waukee. Dix, a plumber, came from
East Dubuque, Ill., because of the construction boom and to be closer to
his family.
The couple's home is several miles off Highway 6. The only noise they hear
is the sounds of cooing doves and barking dogs.
Inside, borrowed furniture sits upon torn-up floors and semi-finished
walls, the byproduct of a remodeling project.
Their home is an empty nest.
But it wasn't always that way.
They had all the things a young couple could want: furniture, a stereo and
a VCR. Dix had his tools and a Ford pick-up.
And they both had a cocaine problem.
On March 10, the couple's home was turned upside down as Dallas County
Sheriff's deputies searched for drugs. Months earlier, deputies searched
through their garbage for drugs, but came up with only a few seeds and a
straw, Dix says.
It was, however, enough to get a search warrant for the home.
The sheriff was originally tipped off by neighbors who complained about
increased traffic on Prospect Ave., a sign of drug dealing, says Dallas
County Sheriff Art Johnson.
Because no one was home during the raid, deputies left a letter informing
the couple of their pending arrest.
"Our attorney called them. We agreed to turn ourselves in," Burns says.
But the Dallas County Sheriff couldn't wait.
"They went behind our lawyer's back and arrested us," Dix says.
Burns, 26, and Dix, 37, were arrested March 14 on charges of possession
with intent to deliver. The raid turned up 5 grams of marijuana and 48
grams of cocaine.
Though they had more than an ounce and a half of cocaine, Burns and Dix
deny they were dealers, instead claiming it was for their own use.
On June 26, Burns and Dix pleaded guilty to not having a drug tax stamp.
The Dallas County attorney dismissed the possession charges, avoiding a
trial. The couple were placed on five years probation, paid fines and
entered drug treatment.
Six months later they're adhering to the court's orders, staying off drugs
and working to turn their lives around, Burns says.
Little did Burns or Dix know their past would come back to rob them.
On Dec. 15, Burns returned to the Dallas County Sheriff's department to
retrieve items taken during the March search. She got back all but one - a
videotape. The next day she was sitting in her living room when a deputy
drove up.
"I thought he was coming to drop off the tape," Burns says.
Until she say the other vehicles.
Deputies and agents of the Iowa Department of Revenue had come to collect
on the couple's failure to pay the drug stamp tax.
The tax, which sounds more like a leftover from the Revolutionary War, is a
way for Iowa to collect on the multi-million dollar drug trade.
"It's a means to have this segment of society pay its fair share," says
Lucille Hardy, an assistant with the attorney general's revenue division.
"It's revenue the state is entitled to."
Since Sept. 1990, Iowa has required a stamp be affixed to a baggie of
marijuana or a vial of cocaine. Any illegal drug requires a stamp. And it
ain't cheap.
A $5 tax is due on each gram of marijuana; $250 on each gram of cocaine,
heroin or methamphetamine; $750 on each unprocessed marijuana plant; and
$400 per 10 pills, from the moment of possession.
"This is a business with no income tax, no sales tax, so we enacted an
excise tax," Hardy says.
Iowa law prevents the Department of Revenue from sharing information on
drug tax stamp applicants with law enforcement agencies. Even with that
assurance, few people are lining up to admit they are in possession.
A program manager with the Department of Revenue says few if any stamps
have been sold, except maybe to stamp collectors.
Some attorneys have begun telling clients to get the tax stamps, Hardy says.
"The number of applicants is small in comparison to the number of people in
possession of drugs," she says.
TAXING SITUATION
Burns and Dix owed the government $24,242.40, half in taxes, half in
penalties.
Failure to pay results in immediate collection.
That's what the state did.
During the three-hour seizure, Lori Dennis, an agent of the Iowa Department
of Revenue and Finance, and seven sheriff's deputies took six truckloads of
items. Among them were stereo equipment, a bug zapper, pooper scooper,
bread box, couch and love seat, milk can, 50-foot roll of air hose,
Christmas presents, a Thighmaster, Burns' engagement rings and Dix's 1994
Ford Ranger.
"I was freaked out. I begged them not to take things," Burns says. "I sat
here and watched them rob me."
The state took more than 150 items.
Neither Burns nor Dix had any idea they owed the money.
"No one contacted us about the law," Dix says. "The Department of Revenue
said most people don't pay. This is why they don't give notice."
The notice sent to Burns and Dix was postmarked the afternoon of Dec.16,
the day of the raid. It's possible the notice wasn't even sent until
afterward.
Dennis wouldn't comment.
"We don't have a lot of advance warning, says Don Cooper, Administrator of
Compliance with the Department of Revenue. "The usual process is to hand
deliver it. It's not a typical case to mail notice of the tax."
Nothing about this case is typical.
No advance warning is given because violators are usually unwilling to pay
the tax. They may hide, sell off their possessions or flee, making it
harder for the state to collect, Cooper says.
But Burns and Dix say they were willing to work out a payment plan. And
it's doubtful they would have fled - both have jobs and own their home.
"They were never given a chance to work on a payment plan," says Burns'
attorney Dean Stowers.
The number of people prosecuted for not buying the stamps is unknown.
Hardy says the Attorney General's office collected more than $400,000 in
back taxes in 1996.
While the Department of Revenue states it's willing to work out payment
plans, acceptance of a plan is at the department's discretion.
"They are saying they use discretion, but they can't say how. Is it up to
the individual revenue officer?" Stowers says.
Truth is, Burns and Dix never got the chance to ask about a payment plan.
The letter sent to them said if they wanted to discuss a payment plan, they
should call the Department of Revenue on Dec. 16. But they didn't get the
letter, sent registered mail, until Dec. 18, two days after the raid.
During the seizure, Burns says law enforcement went through the house
tagging items, acting as if they were on a shopping spree.
"They made it sound like they were taking things for their own personal
use," Burns says.
When she asked to call her attorney, Burns says not only did officers
refuse to let her answer the phone without paying $24,242.40, but they
tagged the phone and seized it.
"I sat in the corner of the room and they stood over me," Burns says.
"They said if we listened to them this wouldn't happen."
Burns and Dix both believe the reason for the seizure was that they refused
to be snitches. When they were arrested in March, the couple says Sheriff's
Investigator Kelly Sutten asked them to turn over names. "The police were
upset because the people wouldn't become snitches.
The cops carried a grudge over this," Stowers says.
Sutten was on vacation and unavailable to comment.
COPING
Dix was in the middle of remodeling the house. The job was made a bit
easier when police broke down the door and ripped up the carpet. Losing
his tools and feeling victimized by the authorities, however has made it
hard for him to continue.
"I got so much hard work into this," Dix says. "It's hard to control my
anger."
Dix was hoping to spend some time over his vacation doing work around the
house. But not now.
"I'm trying to keep occupied. I have no tools and I'm afraid to buy
anything. They could come back and take them."
Tools were not the only thing he lost.
When authorities took his truck, they directly affected the terms of his
probation. Dix can no longer drive to weekly recovery meetings in Des
Moines. He's now trying to make arrangements with his probation officer so
he isn't charged with violating probation.
"No one is making much effort to work with us," Dix says.
Burns says she has trouble sleeping and has gone to a doctor because of the
raid. "It's scary. They can come in any time and take things," she says.
Burns and Dix say they put in long hours at work to keep their minds off
their situation.
"It's not bad working long hours when you don't have much to come home to,"
Dix says.
"We knew we had five years ahead of us, but we were doing really well.
This is like a smack in the face," Burns says. "Now we just sit here and
look at nothing we have."
***
SEIZED
The police wrote this list of items they took from the home of Tracy Burns
and Michael Dix for failure to pay the stamp tax on their drugs
1.Kenmore microwave
2.1-gallon jug of pennies
3.Wine rack & contents
4.CDs & rack
5.7 Nintendo 64 games
6.Star Fox 64 games
7.Two blank video tapes
8.Three VCR video tapes (movies)
9.50' roll of yellow airhose
10.Nokia cell phone
11.Pentax 35mm camera
12.Hitachi TV
13.Nintendo 64
14.Hitachi VCR
15.Coffee table
16.Table lamp
17.Wooden TV trays
18.Two hand held video games
19.RCA Dish TV
20.Maglite
21.Bread box
22.Sears Craftsman lawn tractor
23.Couch & love seat
24.Sony boom box radio
25.Telephone stand
26.Oreck XL Vacuum cleaner
27.Avon Michael Jordon watch
28.Gold colored rope style chain
29.Antique style Austin phone
30.Brass plant stand
31.Metal step ladder
32.Miscellaneous hand tools
33.Bread maker
34.Goose cookie jar & pennies inside
35.Black Hills ring
36.Solitaire ring
37.Microwave stand
38.Telephone system
39.Norman Laboratory Speakers
40.Hpm - 60 Speakers
41.One set soft side luggage
42.Table & chairs (dining room)
43.Folding card table (4 chairs)
44.CD file & 12 CDs
45.Box containing 76 CDs
46.Stand up mirror
47.Box & 7 CDs
48.White jug full of pennies
49.Collector plates
50.Collector plates
51.Collector plates
52.Collector plates
53.Collector plates
54.Collector plates
55.Collector plates
56.Collector plates
57.Collector plates
58.Collector plates
59.Collector plates
60.Collector plates
61.Darts & dart case
62.Misc. costume jewelry
63.Florescent lantern
64.Dewalt circular saw
65.Coleman Dual Fuel Lantern
66.Camping stools
67.Delta Mitre saw
68.(illegible)
69.Skil 4 1/2 angle grinder
70.Air compressor regulators
71.Spray gun
72.Spray gun
73.Air heater
74.Tool cabinet & contents
75.Air compressor
76.ICE auger
77.Halogen light
78.Shopvac
79.Battery charger
80.Craftsman chainsaw
81.Fiberglass 6' Ladder
82.(illegible)
83.B & D buffer
84.Whistler radar detector
85.Folding ladder
86.Dewalt drill & case
87.Silver horn saddle (kid size)
88.Adult saddle
89.Four fishing poles
90.Gas trimmer
91.Boat anchor
92.Huffy bike
93.Palm sander
94.Mag cement float
95.Drop cord
96.Swingline stapler
97.Floor support stands
98.Sheet rock square
99.Oreck hand held vac
100.Ford Ranger pick-up truck
101.Drill bit index & bits
102.Halogen lamp
103.Liars bench
104.Tent
105.Hole saw
106.Belt sander
107.Plumber bit kit
108.Three ice fishing poles
109.Tackle box & contents
110.New kitchen faucet
111.Well pump
112.Patio tables & chairs w/umbrella
113.Bug zapper
114.Milk can
115.Servess 5hp roto tiller
116.Turbo wash
117.Almn grain scoop
118.Quasar camcorder
119.Self propelled push mower
120.Paramount weed trimmer
121.Sheridan pellet gun
122.Winston lighter set
123.Bose speaker
124.Elvis decanter
125.Elvis decanter
126.Video rewinder
127.Bushnell binoculars
128.Box of 18 CDs
129.New Ford rim
130.Music box carousel horses
131.Music box carousel horses
132.Music box carousel horses
133.Music box carousel horses
134.Music box carousel horses
135.Music box carousel horses
136.Music box carousel horses
137.Music box carousel horses
138.Brass carousel horse
139.Green bakeware
140.(illegible)
141.Pioneer turntable
142.Backgammon
143.TEAC graphic equalizer
144.Pioneer cassette tape deck
145.Kenwood receiver
146.Sony CD player
147.Elvis decanter
148.Thighmaster
149.Stanley stud finder
150.AM/FM Clock Radio
151.$75 cash
152.$75 cash
153.$75 cash
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Ignoring Impact Of Legal Drugs (Syndicated Editorial By Arianna Huffington
Of Creators Syndicate Asks Why We Punish People So Severely For Using
Illegal Drugs, While Drug Companies Make Billions Selling Mood-Altering Drugs
To Millions Of Americans, Including Children?)
Date: Wed, 7 Jan 1998 08:45:13 EST
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: "Doug Keenan"
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Huffington: Ignoring impact of legal drugs
Ignoring impact of legal drugs
ARIANNA HUFFINGTON
Before the new year gets much older, our airwaves will be filled with
anti-drug commercials - paid for in part by you.
The Office of National Drug Control Policy in cooperation with the
Partnership for a Drug-Free America and the Ad Council will soon launch a
$350 million ad campaign against drugs - $175 million to be provided by the
American taxpayer.
Why not continue to expect corporate America, including the networks, to
provide this public service, as they have been doing for years? But there
is a larger question that affects the drug war on which the government
proposes to spend $16 billion in 1998, a 400 percent increase since 1986.
"Why do we have such intense punishment," Dr. Dean Ornish told me, "for
people who take drugs illegally while drug companies make billions of
dollars in profits every year by selling mood-altering drugs to millions of
Americans, including children?"
There are undoubtedly some children who are properly diagnosed as clinically
depressed and are legitimately prescribed antidepressants, But there are 2.5
million prescriptions filled every year for Zoloft, Prozac and other
antidepressants for children under 18.
"Shall we dance?" a Zoloft ad asks while a fatherly man is dancing with a
young girl in a sun-filled room. "Make it happen," the ad urges us. So,
it's great for us to medicate you, but it's terrible for you to medicate
yourself.
Tom Oberdorfer, a clinical social worker who works with many anxious,
depressed or hyperactive children, traces a lot of these problems back to
the family. "The troubled kid," he told me, "may in fact be the ticket for
the whole family to recognize and deal with the problems they have been
ignoring."
Dr. Ornish echoes this deep concern. "It is all too easy to write a
prescription and stop looking at what is really troubling the child."
The aggressive marketing both to doctors and directly to consumers - is
supplemented by many subtler forms of persuasion. Medical journals are
predominantly funded by ads they carry from pharmaceutical companies, while
much of the research on drugs, Including antidepressants, is sponsored by
the drug companies. And then there are the junkets drug companies offer,
the lobster dinners, the doughnuts in the emergency room and, above all. the
"detail" men and women - as the sales reps are called - who are a formidable
grass-roots army traveling around the country, leaving a trail of samples
behind.
Some of these legal drug pushers in the employ of Eli Lilly, the
manufacturer of Prozac, found their way to a suburban Washington high
school. "They gave out pens and pads and little brochures pushing Prozac to
those high school kids," Sidney Wolfe, director of the Public Citizens
Health Research Group, said in a groundbreaking but hardly noticed Nightline
show last March on the continuum between legal and illegal drugs.
As Heather, a heroin user who runs a needle exchange program in Santa Cruz,
said on the same Nightline show: "If you live in a neighborhood where you
can't afford $150-an-hour therapists and Prozac. and you've got brown tar
heroin down the street, and you know that's going to ... get you through
another day without killing yourself, that's what you're going to use."
Why has there not been - Ted Koppel asked - "a really massive study" on the
relationship between legal drug use and illegal drug use?
And there is plenty of anecdotal evidence of children who move from legal
antidepressants or sleeping pills to street drugs. But we will never win
the war against drugs unless we stop turning a blind eye to the connection
between a culture that offers a pill for every ill and a culture that cannot
wean itself from illegal drugs.
The pressures against studying this correlation are enormous.
Pharmaceutical companies are a big part of the war against drugs, helping
fund both the Partnership for a Drug-Free America and the National Center on
Addiction and Substance Abuse, while 17,000 of their sales reps distribute
information to health care professionals to help them identify drug abuse. .
So here we are, using the same people who are pushing mood-altering drugs to
alert doctors to the dangers of the competition. On top of it, television
and magazines are living off the ad revenues of pharmaceutical companies.
"We probably make more money in our industry from the pharmaceutical
industry than we do from any other," Koppel said. "Do we need to be
concerned about the role that television is playing in perhaps unwittingly
promoting drug use in this country?"
Koppel had the guts to ask the question. Will the media have the guts to
look for the answers?
Creators Syndicate
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Letter To Editor & Response In JAMA ('The Journal Of The American Medical
Association' Favorably Reviews A Pro-Drug-War Book That Endorses Drug-Testing
But Doesn't Cite Any Scientific Evidence For It)
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 18:58:25 EST
Originator: drctalk@drcnet.org
Sender: drctalk@drcnet.org
From: "Tom O'Connell" (tjeffoc@sirius.com)
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: LTE & Response in JAMA
My letter to the Editor criticizing the review of "Selfish Brain" was
published in Jan 7 JAMA, along with responses from the reviewer and the
author.
JAMA; 279:20, Jan. 7, 1998.
Khantzian's plea for "love, not war" in this context is at least amusing.
Dupont states that I "misunderstand" his support for drug testing. I don't
at all-it's lucrative. If there were any published evidence (beyond his
anecdotal recollection) that routine testing of any population reduces the
incidence of addiction, we'd never know it because of there is no
bibliography.
His response is a good example of classic drug warrior "refutation-" ignore
the specifics of the criticism and restate the original assertions in
slightly different form.
Learning From Addiction
To the Editor.-Several weeks ago, my abiding interest in our national drug
policy was further piqued by a book review in JAMA, so I ordered The
Selfish Brain, by Robert L. DuPont, MD. When it arrived, I was astounded to
find that, although dealing assertively with all aspects of drug addiction
from history through modern clinical concepts, the book contains no
bibliography.
Written for a lay and professional readership, the book makes several
policy recommendations, including mass drug testing of high schoolers.
Given the author's prominence as a former presidential drug policy adviser
and first director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, it is sure to
be widely quoted. That a book devoid of supportive references would be
published by the American Psychiatric, Press and reviewed in JAMA lends it
an unwarranted appearance of academic integrity.
Beyond that, the review, while timidly taking issue with the author's
authoritarian tone, fails to note the absence of references. The book does
have pages of glowing recommendations from prominent members of the drug
"prevention and treatment" establishment, and its author and one of the
endorsers, a former Drug Enforcement Agency director, are joined in the
business of setting up drug-testing programs for industry, further
suggesting that American medicine's institutions have become compromised by
the drug war.
Thomas J.O'Connell,MD
San Mateo, Calif
1. Khantzian EJ, reviewer. JAMA. 1997; 278:339-340. Review of: DuPont RL.
The Selfish Brain: Learning From Addiction
In Reply.-Dr O'Connell takes me to task for "timidly taking issue" with Dr
DuPont's book, The Selfish Brain. He also chides me, JAMA, and the American
Psychiatric Press for not making more of the absence of references in the
book. More seriously, he accuses "American medicine's institutions" of
becoming "compromised by the drug war" because of the endorsements in the
book and because of DuPont's and one endorser's activities.
For the interested reader who has not read the review, I would argue that I
give a fair and balanced description of the book's content but, tactfully
and forcefully enough, criticize DuPont's views about prevention, policy,
and treatment as a "rigid approach [and] a shortcoming of the book." In my
review, I make a plea for more flexible and integrative thinking for
proponents of DuPont's perspective vs his narrow reductionistic views. As
for my failure to note the absence of references, mea culpa, but I do not
see the lack as so dreadful an issue as does O'Connell. I disagree that
this book can presume to be a major scientific or academic reference. It
mainly recapitulates and popularizes much that is known (or disputed) about
the nature of substance use disorders and what we should do about them,
especially from the perspective of DuPont's admittedly strong convictions.
To the extent that O'Connell's letter is accusatory, I find it
objectionable. We need to make more peace, not war, on issues of drugs in
our society. My preference is to consider alternative perspectives
respectfully and to challenge them forcefully when necessary. As I conclude
in my review, "this is especially the case when we are dealing with
problems as complex as those involved with substance use disorders."
Edward J. Khantzian, MD
Tewksbury Hospital
Tewksbury, Mass
In Reply.-Dr O'Connell complains that my book, The Selfish Brain: Learnng
From Addiction, is not referenced. He may be reassured to know that the
book was peer reviewed by the publisher and the American Psychiatric Press
and that JAMA's reviewer, Dr Khantzian, is a distinguished opponent of many
of my drug policy recommendations, which he makes clear in his review. The
book lists 43 recommended books on related topics in the section
"Bibliotherapy." Finally, O'Connell and other readers seeking more
citations can find ample references in my many published articles on drug
policy including those cited below.
The Selfish Brain is not a drug policy book. Instead, it offers an
integrated, comprehensive understanding of the uniquely human and
20th-century problems of addiction to alcohol and other drugs. The most
important features of the book are the recognition of the newly elucidated
biology of reward as the principal biological root of addiction and a
single-minded focus on the vital role of the 12-Step programs, including
Alcoholics Anonymous, in promoting lifelong recovery from addiction.
O'Connell misunderstands my support for drug testing. Testing for alcohol
and other drugs is important for both prevention and treatment, because
denial is, along with loss of control or unmanageability, 1 of the 2
principal characteristics of addiction. It is only when denial and
dishonesty are stripped away from addictive behavior that the healing
forces of recovery can begin the transformation of the addict and the
addict's family. I have known many addicted people who date the beginning
of their recovery from the time they were "caught" in the criminal justice
system, the workplace, or elsewhere as a result of a positive drug test
result.
I am grateful to the American Psychiatric Press for publishing the book, to
JAMA for having it reviewed, and to O'Connell for bringing additional
readers to the book.
Robert L. DuPont, MD
Institute for Behavior and Health, Inc
Rockville, Md
1. DuPont RL, McGovern JP. A Bridge to Recovery: An Introd uction to
12-Step Programs ; Washington, DC: Amencan Psychiatric Press, 1994.
2. DuPont RL, Voth EA. Drug legalization, harm reduction, and drug policy.
Ann Intern Med. 1995123:461-465.
3. DuPont RL Gold MS. Withdrawal and reward: implications for
detoxification and relapse prevention. Psychiatr Ann. 1995;25:663-668.
4. DuPont RL. Harm reduction and decriminalization in the United States: a
personal perspective. Subst Use Misuse. 1996;31:1929 1945.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Industrial Hemp Bills And Initiatives In The US (Update Compiled By
The Colorado Hemp Initiative Project)
Date: Wed, 7 Jan 1998 00:22:28 -0700 (MST)
From: "Colo. Hemp Init. Project" (cohip@levellers.org)
X-Sender: cohip@saturn.eagle-access.net
To: "Colo. Hemp Init. Project" (cohip@levellers.org)
Subject: Industrial Hemp Legislative Efforts
Industrial Hemp - Bills and Initiatives in the U.S.
Updated: January 7, 1998
Compiled by the Colorado Hemp Initiative Project
The following is a list of states that have either already introduced
industrial hemp legislation or are likely to do so in the future.
Please send any updates or corrections to cohip@levellers.org.
***
STATE LEGISLATIVE EFFORTS
***
1) Colorado
Rep. Kay Alexander (R-Montrose)
State Capitol Building
200 E. Colfax Ave.
Denver, CO 80203
(303) 866-2955
Status: Bills in 1995, 1996, and 1997 were killed due to intimidation by
the DEA. Bill will be re-introduced in January 1998.
***
2) Hawaii
Rep. Cynthia Thielen (R - Kailau Kameohe)
State Capitol Bldg.
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808) 586-6480
Email: thielen@aloha.net
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
Also, contact:
Rep. David Tarnas
Email: dtarnas@aloha.net
***
3) Iowa
Rep. Cecelia Burnett (D-Ames)
State Capitol Bldg.
Des Moines, IA 50319
Phone: (515) 232-2710
Email: cburnet@legis.state.ia.us
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
***
4) Kansas
Sen. David Corbin
Statehouse - Room 120-S
Topeka, KS, 66612
(913) 296 7388
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
***
5) Kentucky
Sen. Barry Metcalf
141 Alycia Dr.
Richmond, KY 40475
(606) 624-8387
Status: Unknown.
***
6) Minnesota
Rep. Phyllis Kahn
367 State Office Bldg.
St. Paul, MN 55155
612-296-4257
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
Email: rep.phyllis.kahn@house.leg.state.mn.us
Rep. Steven Wensel (D)
Minnesota House of Representatives
State Office Building
Room 487
100 Constitution Ave.
St. Paul, MN 55155
***
7) Missouri
Sen. Jerry T. Howard (D-Dexter)
P.O. Box 279
Dexter, MO 63841
(573) 624-8778
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
***
8) North Dakota
Rep. Monson (R-Osnabrock)
State Capitol
600 East Blvd.
Bismarck, ND 58505
Phone: (701) 328-3373
(701) 328-3506
Email: notes.dmonson@ranch.state.nd.us
Status: Bill passed and signed by Governor authorizing NDSU to study the
feasibility of industrial hemp. The bill did not mandate a test plot of
hemp.
***
9) Oregon
Rep. Floyd Prozanski
P.O. Box 11511
Eugene, OR 97440
(541) 342-2447
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
***
10) South Dakota
Sen. Frank J. Kloucek
R.R. # 1, Box 56
Scotland, SD 57059
(605) 583-4468
Status: Unknown.
***
11) Vermont
Rep. Fred Maslack (R - Poultney)
State House
Montpelier, VT 05602
(802) 828-2256
Status: Bill passed in 1996 authorizing a feasiblility study.
"Alternative Agricultural Strategies in Vermont: The Case of Industrial
Hemp" is directly available on my web site using the following url:
http://www.uvm.edu/~rmelamed/UVM_Hemp_Report_1997.html
Update (12/6/97): Senator Hull Maynard (R) and Senator Elizabeth Ready (D)
filed a draft bill in the state capitol to provide for the liscencing of
farmers interested in growing industrial hemp.
The Vermont House of Representatives is expected to also introduce
legislation ( through the Agricultural Committee) in January.
To contact the original House sponsor of the 1996 Hemp Bill:
Rep. Fred Maslack
115 State Street
State House
Montpelier, VT 05633-5201
(802) 828-2231
(802) 828-2424 fax
***
12) Virginia
Delegate Mitchell Van Yahress (D-Charlottesville)
223 Main St.
Charlottesville, VA 22902
(804) 293-6483
Status: Killed in 1997 legislative session.
***
13) Wisconsin
No details are available.
Contact:
Bud Sholts
Wisconsin Dept. of Agriculture
P.O. Box 8911
Madison, WI 53708-8911
(608) 224-5135
Email: sholtea@wheel.datcp.state.wi.us
***
BALLOT INITIATIVE EFFORTS
***
California Industrial Hemp Act of 1998
- ballot initiative to allow commercial cultivation of industrial hemp in
California
Status: Will begin collecting signatures on the ballot initiative in
January or February.
Contact:
Sam H. Clauder II
Californians for Industrial Renewal
12922 Harbor Boulevard
Garden Grove, CA 92840
Phone: (714) 89-2-CAIR
Fax: 894-8010
Email: cair@gte.net
***
Provided as a public service by the:
Colorado Hemp Initiative Project
P.O. Box 729, Nederland, CO 80466
Hotline: (303) 784-5632
Email:
Web: http://www.welcomehome.org/cohip.html
"Fighting over 60 years of lies and dis-information
with 10,000 years of history and fact."
ARE YOU REGISTERED TO VOTE???
***
To be added to or removed from our mailing list,
send email with the word SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE in the title.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Humboldt Brewing Making Beer With Hemp - Naturally (Former Oakland Raiders
Star Mario Celotto Owns Brewery In Arcata, California, Using Hemp Seeds)
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 22:41:40 -0500
To: DrugSense News Service
From: Richard Lake
Subject: MN: US CA: Humboldt Brewing Making Beer With Hemp -- Naturally
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: Jerry Sutliff
Pubdate: Wed, 07 Jan 1998
Source: Oakland Tribune
Author: Bill Brand
Note: Staff writer William Brand publishes What's on Tap, a consumer craft
beer and cider newsletter. He can be reached at whatsontap@value.net
Section: Food Section
Contact: triblet@angnewspapers.com
HUMBOLDT BREWING MAKING BEER WITH HEMP -- NATURALLY
THERE'S a new strong ale coming from Arcata's Humboldt Brewing Co.,
brewers of the popular Red Nectar Ale, that's a real zinger: Hemp Ale.
It's true. Hemp seeds are an ingredient in the beer, says Humboldt
president Mario Celotto, the former Oakland Raiders star who moved north to
Arcata and started Humboldt a decade ago.
The seeds are added in substantial quantity to the mash, the mixture of hot
water and ground barley that begins the beer-making process.
"Of course, you can't get high from these seeds," Celotto says. As anyone
who has sampled the illegal weed knows, THC, the potent narcotic chemical,
is found in quantity only in the leaves, buds and flowers of the female
hemp plant, not in the seeds.
Hemp and marijuana are different names for the same plant: cannabis
sativia. Human-kind for centuries has grown the male hemp plant for fiber
for rope and clothing. The female plant is useless for fiber, but good for
other uses, in-cluding these days - beer.
"The government requires us to use sterile seeds," Celotto explains. "But
they add a spicy flavor - it's like adding pepper to a dish. The hemp is
not going to change the body of the beer or the hop characteristics - but
it definitely makes a difference."
Humboldt Hemp Ale is scheduled to reach Bay Area taverns and other on-tap
accounts in two weeks. It should be available in bottles in liquor stores
and supermarkets in early February. But thanks to Celotto, we received an
advance sample.
Humboldt Hemp Ale is much more than a sales gimmick. The beer, formulated
by Celotto and brewed by Larry Lesterud is a big, 6.5-percent alcohol by
volume, unpasteurized, dark brown ale topped with a thick, creamy head.
Drink it cold from the refrigerator and it's a nice beer with a bit of
spice. But let it warm slightly to its proper drinking temperature around
45 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit and you're looking at a real winner.
The flavor is very rounded -a fine balance of dark crystal and chocolate
barley malts and hops. The hemp seeds add an interesting dimension,
slightly sweet and definitely spicy, but blending well with the Willamette
and Tetmanger hops, which are also spicy. The finish is appropriately
hoppy. Rating: 90.
It's no wonder the marijuana seeds and the hops blend so nicely. Unlike
more traditional modern spices like cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg, both hops
and hemp are members of the same Cannabinacea plant family.
Humboldt Is the second commercial brewery to make a hemp beer. The first
was Frederick Brewing of Frederick, Md., which brought out Hempen Ale in
1996, then in-troduced Hempen Gold last year. Frederick has sold as much
hemp beer as it can make since day one.
Neither beer is available regularly in the Bay Area, although Beverages, &
more outlets sometimes have them. Hempen Ale is a malty, light brown ale
with a pleasing spicy note. It won the bronze medal in the herb/spice
category last October at the Great American Beer Festival. Hempen Gold, is
a brewpub standard golden beer, light to the taste with a sweet spiciness.
We rated Hempen Ale 88. Hempen Gold gets an 80. It's a well-made golden
with that interesting spicy note.
Brewer and Frederick Brewing co-founder Steve Nordahi, who is a University
of California at Davis graduate and former Danville resident, says the
brewery obtains hemp seeds from Eastern Europe and China. The seeds are
sterilized under government supervision.
Naturally, Celotto says Humboldt's seeds come from select Northern
California hemp fields. He admits with a trace of humor that considering
Humboldt County's reputation for raising cash crops of the illegal weed,
brewing a legal hemp beer was an almost irresistible temptation.
Celotto said Humboldt Hemp Is the start of a big push to make its beers
widely available in California. He has moved his wife and family back to
Oakland and Is making the East Bay the center of sales operations. The
company had announced a merger with another brewer who wanted to create a
national chain of craft brewers. Humboldt backed out to concentrate on its
natural market: California.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
US Government Brings First Tobacco Criminal Case (Justice Department Alleges
DNA Plant Technology, A California Biotechnology Firm, Conspired With
Brown & Williamson To Develop High-Nicotine Tobacco Plant)
Date: Wed, 7 Jan 1998 21:58:52 -0800
To: mapnews@mapinc.org
From: jwjohnson@netmagic.net (Joel W. Johnson)
Subject: MN: US: WIRE: U.S. Government Brings First Tobacco Criminal Case
Newshawk: shug
Source: Reuters
Pubdate: Wed, 7 Jan 1998
Author: James Vicini
U.S. GOVERNMENT BRINGS FIRST TOBACCO CRIMINAL CASE
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government Wednesday brought the first
criminal charges in its tobacco industry investigation, alleging a
California biotechnology firm conspired with a cigarette maker to secretly
develop a high-nicotine tobacco plant.
Justice Department officials said DNA Plant Technology Corp., which
develops new plant varieties, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of
conspiring to violate the tobacco seed export law and to cooperate in the
3-year-old probe.
The officials said Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., the nation's third
largest cigarette maker and a unit of B.A.T Industries Plc of Britain, was
an unindicted co-conspirator in the alleged scheme to develop a genetically
altered tobacco plant with a higher nicotine content.
According to court papers, DNA Plant Technology conspired with Brown &
Williamson and its Brazilian affiliate to violate a law that bars tobacco
seed exports from the United States without a permit. The alleged
violations took place between 1984 and 1991, when the law was repealed.
The department charged that one of Brown & Williamson's goals was to
develop a reliable source of high-nicotine tobacco it could use to control
nicotine levels in its cigarettes. It said one variety, code named Y-1,
had a nicotine level of 6 percent, about twice that of normal flue-cured
tobacco.
It said Brown & Williamson gave the variety to the Oakland-based company,
which specializes in developing new plant varieties through genetic
engineering and advanced breeding techniques.
The department said Y-1 was allegedly grown in Brazil and other countries
to help conceal its development. Federal regulations barred the commercial
growth of such high-nicotine tobacco in the United States.
It charged that the two companies also illegally exported seeds to other
nations, including Nicaragua, Honduras, Chile, Nigeria, Costa Rica,
Argentina, Zimbabwe and Canada to explore whether they were good locations
to grow Y-1 tobacco.
The department said the two companies used code words in internal documents
to conceal the tobacco seed exports. The plantings in Brazil were called
``winter trials'' while the seeds were ``special material.''
The Department also said DNA Plant Technology deliberately concealed from
the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) information about its contract with
Brown and Williamson to develop the tobacco.
The department charged that employees of the biotech firm and Brown &
Williamson illegally shipped seeds by air express or courier and smuggled
them when they traveled to Brazil.
The maximum penalty that DNA Plant faces is a $200,000 fine or twice the
gain it received under the contract. The charges were filed in federal
court in Washington, D.C.
The charges were brought as Congress prepares in the next few months to
take up a proposed national settlement under which the tobacco companies
would pay $368.5 billion in a deal negotiated last June with state
officials.
Congressional sources said the case would not likely have a direct impact
on congressional action, but could strengthen tobacco foes fighting an
industry whose public image has grown ever more tarnished.
Congressman Marty Meehan, a Massachusetts Democrat who sought the tobacco
investigation, applauded the bringing of the first case. ``I anticipate
that this is just the tip of the iceberg,'' he said.
A plea agreement is expected to be filed soon, department officials said,
adding that DNA Plant has agreed to tell what it knows about Brown &
Williamson's activities.
DNA Plant said it has agreed to cooperate in the probe and added that its
research agreement with the cigarette maker involving the Y-1 variety ended
in 1994. It said the Justice Department asked it not to comment further
because of the ongoing investigation.
Sources close to the probe said the department has been negotiating with
the biotech company in recent weeks about the terms of the plea deal.
In 1994, FDA Commissioner David Kessler testified before Congress that
Brown and Williamson had shipped Y-1 tobacco to the United States from
Brazil for use in five cigarette brands -- two varieties of Viceroy, two
varieties of Richland and Raleigh Lights King Size.
REUTERS
-------------------------------------------------------------------
JAMA Articles Referred To By 'Miami Herald' Letter To Editor (Two Studies
On Domestic Violence Associated With Illegal Drugs Report Vast Majority
Of Disturbances Involve 'Alcohol And Other Drugs,' Suicide, Weapons;
44 Percent Previously Arrested For Violent Acts; 'Use' Undifferentiated
From 'Abuse' In JAMA Terminology, Also Violence Due To Prohibition
Rather Than Illegal Substances Themselves)
Date: Fri, 09 Jan 1998 07:37:51 -0500
To: mattalk@islandnet.com
From: (Anonymous)
Subject: Re: Legal booze is no excuse for legalizing drugs (LONG)
Hi, all.
Thought you might like to read these, since they were referenced in the
letter that was published (and posted by Alan). In the first study, I
can't figure out why they didn't report the odds ratio for homicide for
drug/alcohol users living with other drug/alcohol users (they only talk
about drug/alcohol users living with non-drug/alcohol users -- probably
only a small proportion of their sample). I'd like to see the actual study
this was based on for that type of info, but the AMA isn't *that* liberal
with JAMA articles online.
See also the science news update at the end of each abstract.
***
JAMA Abstracts - August 20, 1997
Alcohol and Illicit Drug Abuse and the Risk of Violent Death in the Home
Frederick P. Rivara, MD, MPH; Beth A. Mueller, DrPH; Grant Somes, PhD;
Carmen T. Mendoza, MSPH; Norman B. Rushforth, PhD; Arthur L. Kellermann,
MD, MPH
Context.-While acute alcohol and illicit drug use are common in homicide
and suicide victims, the role of chronic substance use in violent death is
unclear.
Objective.-To measure the magnitude of risk of violent death in the home
associated with alcohol use or chronic abuse and use of illicit drugs.
Data Sources.-Data obtained from a case-control study of risk factors for
homicide and suicide in 3 large metropolitan areas of the United States.
Design.-Matched case-control study including 388 homicide cases, 438
suicide cases, and equal numbers of controls matched for age, sex, race,
neighborhood, and county. Data were analyzed by means of conditional
logistic regressions in which other potential risk factors for violent
death were also considered.
Outcome and Exposure Measures.-Homicide and suicide victims were identified
from medical examiner reports in Shelby County, Tennessee; King County,
Washington; and Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Structured interviews were conducted
with proxy respondents close to the decedents to obtain information about
alcohol or illicit drug use, and history of alcohol-related hospitalization
or trouble at work because of drinking by the subject. Data about alcohol
use by others living in the same house as the subject were also obtained.
Results.-The risks of homicide and suicide associated with alcohol or
illicit drug use were elevated, as were the risks of violent death
associated with several indicators of chronic alcohol abuse. In addition,
nondrinkers living in a home with alcohol users were at increased risk of
homicide (odds ratio, 1.7; 95% confidence interval, 0.98-3.0), and
non-drug-using individuals residing in homes with illicit drug users were
at greatly increased risk of homicide (odds ratio, 11.3; 95% confidence
interval, 4.4-28.8).
Conclusions.-Alcohol and illicit drug use appear to be associated with an
increased risk of violent death. The risk of homicide was increased for
non-substance-abusing individuals living in households in which other
members abused alcohol or drugs. The concept of the individual at risk of
homicide should be broadened to include not only the abuser but also those
who may be at risk because of their exposure to others.
JAMA. 1997;278:569-575
>From the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, Seattle, Wash
(Drs Rivara and Mueller); Department of Epidemiology, University of
Washington, Seattle (Drs Rivara and Mueller and Ms Mendoza); Department of
Preventive Medicine, University of Tennessee, Memphis (Dr Somes);
Department of Biology, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and
Center for Adolescent Health, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland,
Ohio (Dr Rushforth); and Emory Center for Injury Control, Emory University,
Atlanta, Ga (Dr Kellermann).
EDITOR'S NOTE.-The authors of this study found that alcohol and illicit
drug abuse are strong risk factors for violent death in the home. The risk
of violent death was observed to be greatest for the abusers themselves,
but the risk was also elevated for other members of the household who did
not abuse alcohol or illicit drugs. This elevated risk was independent of
the presence of a gun in the home.
Thomas B. Cole, MD, MPH, Contributing Editor
Science News Update:
ALCOHOL AND ILLEGAL DRUG USE INCREASE RISK OF VIOLENT DEATH Risk also
elevated for other household members
CHICAGO-Not only are alcohol and illicit drug users at increased risk for
violent death, but so are members of their household, according to an
article in the August 20 issue of The Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA).
Frederick P. Rivara, M.D., M.P.H., from the Harborview Injury Prevention
and Research Center, Seattle, Wash., and colleagues studied data from 438
suicides and 388 homicides to determine the risk of violent death in the
home associated with alcohol and illicit drug use. These cases were
compared to an equal number of non-substance users.
The authors write: "In this study, a history of alcohol and drug use by the
subject was strongly associated with increased risks of both homicide and
suicide, and increases were generally observed among all sex and racial
subgroups examined."
They found that subjects using both alcohol and other drugs have 12 times
the risk of being murdered and 16.6 times the risk of suicide as that of
non-substance users. Those who had trouble at work related to drinking had
17.9 times the risk of being killed.
The researchers add that those living in the same household as substance
abusers are also at increased risk of homicide. They found that nondrinkers
face 1.7 times the risk of homicide when living with alcohol users while
non-drug users face 11.3 times the risk of homicide when living with
illicit drug users.
Alcohol is a factor in a large proportion of violent deaths, including both
homicides and suicides. Homicide studies in the United States and other
countries have reported high rates of alcohol use by the victim,
perpetrator or both. Similar rates of alcoholism and other drugs have been
detected in suicide victims, according to information cited in the study.
The authors state: "This study supports the need to address alcohol and
drug abuse and its relationship to risk of violent death. The problem of
substance abuse should be addressed on multiple levels, including primary
and secondary prevention, and should include screening for alcohol and
substance abuse problems in the emergency department, particularly in
trauma patients, or at other points of contact, as well as in other
settings for persons with depression, mental illness or suicide attempts.
Brief interventions by primary care physicians can have a significant
effect on weekly excessive alcohol use and binge drinking. In addition,
people with alcoholism should be assessed for concomitant depression and
treated accordingly."
They continue: "Our concept of the individual at risk for violent death
should be broadened to include not only the substance abuser, but also
those who may be at risk because of the presence of others within the
household who are substance abusers."
They conclude: "The problems of violence in our society is a complex one
and will require multifaceted solutions. This study indicates that
addressing the problem of substance abuse on many levels may have a
substantial impact on rates of violence and should be pursued." (JAMA.
278;1997:569-575)
***
JAMA Abstracts - May 7, 1997
Characteristics of Participants in Domestic Violence
Assessment at the Scene of Domestic Assault
Daniel Brookoff, MD, PhD; Kimberly K. O'Brien; Charles S. Cook, MA; Terry
D. Thompson; Charles Williams, PhD
Objective.--To evaluate the characteristics of victims and perpetrators of
domestic assault.
Design and Setting.--Consecutive-sample survey study conducted at the
scenes of police calls for domestic assault in Memphis, Tenn, in 1995.
Participants.--A total of 136 participants (72 victims and 64 assailants)
involved in 62 incidents of domestic violence and 75 adult family members
at the scene.
Main Outcome Measures.--Participants' responses to a confidential survey
and review of police records.
Results.--Of 62 episodes of domestic assault, 42 (68%) involved weapons and
11 (15%) resulted in serious injury. Fifty-five (89%) of 62 assault victims
reported previous assaults by their current assailants, 19 (35%) of them on
a daily basis. Although nearly all assault victims had called the police
for help on previous occasions, only 12 (22%) reported having ever sought
medical care, counseling, or shelter because of domestic assault. Sixty
(92%) of the 64 assailants reportedly used alcohol or other drugs on the
day of the assault. Of the assailants, 28 (44%) had a history of arrest for
charges related to violence, and 46 (72%) had an arrest for substance
abuse. Eleven (15%) of the victims were children. Children directly
witnessed 53 (85%) of the assaults.
Conclusions.--Most victims of domestic violence who had called the police
rarely used medical or mental health facilities for problems related to
family violence despite frequent assaults. Victims and assailants were
willing to discuss their histories of family violence and undergo
assessments at the scenes of police calls.
JAMA. 1997;277:1369-1373
Science News Update:
FEW VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TURN TO MEDICAL COMMUNITY FOR HELP Most
domestic assaults involve alcohol; many involve weapons
CHICAGO--Despite repeated assaults, most domestic violence victims who call
police in a crisis rarely use medical or mental health facilities to help
ease problems in the family, according to an article in this week's issue
of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Daniel Brookoff, M.D., Ph.D., of Methodist Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee,
and colleagues confidentially surveyed 72 domestic violence victims and 42
accused assailants at the scenes of the domestic assaults, in November 1995.
The research team , which included a physician and a nurse or paramedic,
looked at 62 episodes of domestic assault. They found that police were
often the only authorities contacted by victims: "Although nearly all
assault victims had called the police for help on previous occasions, only
12 (22 percent) reported having ever sought medical care, counseling or
shelter because of domestic assault."
Among other findings of the study:
68 percent of the domestic assault incidents involved weapons. 15 percent
resulted in serious injury. 89 percent of assaulted victims reported
previous assaults by their current assailants--35 percent of them on a
daily basis. 92 percent of assailants reportedly used alcohol or other
drugs on the day of the assault.
Despite obvious injuries, many female victims asked the survey team to
intercede with the police to stop the arrest of their assailants. The
researchers write: "One barrier to seeking help that victims mentioned was
the prospect that seeking care or assistance in the prosecution of their
assailants would escalate the violence."
Children were directly involved in a number of incidents: "Eight victims
(11 percent) were younger than 12 years; all of them were the children of
female victims who witnessed or had attempted to intervene in the assault
of their mothers." In many cases, the researchers observed children--some
as young as two--emulating violent behavior.
They conclude: "Without timely identification and intervention, children
who witness family violence may perceive such behavior as usual or
acceptable, thus ensuring that the violence will continue."
Detecting Partner Violence in the Emergency Department
Three brief questions can detect a large number of women with a history of
partner abuse, according to another study in this week's issue of JAMA.
Kim M. Feldhaus, M.D., of the Denver Health Medical Center, Colorado, and
colleagues developed a three-question instrument called the partner
violence screen (PVS). It was tested in the emergency departments at Denver
General Hospital and University Hospital in Denver in the summer of 1994.
Three hundred twenty-two women who sought emergency care during selected
time blocks took part in the study.
Research assistants using the PVS asked the women these questions:
(1) "Have you been hit, kicked, punched or otherwise hurt by someone within
the past year? If so, by whom?" (2) "Do you feel safe in your current
relationship?" (3) "Is there a partner from a previous relationship who is
making you feel unsafe now?"
The women were then asked to complete the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA) which
measures the severity of physical and nonphysical abuse inflicted on a
woman by her partner. Finally, the women were questioned using the Conflict
Tactics Scale (CTS), which measures the use of reasoning, verbal
aggression, and physical violence in resolving family conflicts.
The researchers found the brief PVS to be quite effective: "The three
questions took an average of 20 seconds to administer, far less time than
measuring the patient's routine vital signs. The three questions detected
71.4 percent of women identified as abused by the detailed 19-item CTS. The
PVS also detected 64.5 percent of women who were identified as abused on
the 30-item ISA."
The researchers point out that "the highest prevalence rate of partner
violence was noted among women with only a previous relationship and no
current partner."
They conclude: "All women seeking care in emergency departments should be
asked directly about partner violence, regardless of marital status or
current relationships ... Patients with positive screens should have this
history documented in the medical record, and they should be offered
support, counseling, or at the very least, referrals to safe shelters and
an action plan to ensure their future safety."
Editorial: Learning From the Paradoxes of Domestic Violence
In an accompanying editorial in this week's JAMA, Anne Flitcraft, M.D., of
the University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, describes domestic
violence as "a phenomenon built on the apparent contradiction of love and
violence."
She points to some of the paradoxes--including an incident mentioned by
Brookoff and colleagues, in which the assailant actually calls the police,
and the victim appears to protect the assailant when investigators arrive.
She notes that Feldhaus and colleagues make an important point: "Ending the
violence is not simply about ending the relationship. To the contrary, of
women seen in emergency departments who reported feeling unsafe ... more
than half attributed their fears to ongoing abuse by a past partner."
Emphasizing that domestic violence is a major cause of injury, disability,
homicide, homelessness, addiction, attempted suicide and child abuse, Dr.
Flitcraft concludes that these studies remind us of "the need to address
the status of health, justice and human rights in our communities."
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Behind Bars (Public Broadcasting's 'NewsHour with Jim Lehrer'
Reports On New CASA Study Alleging 80 Percent Of America's 1.7 Million
Prisoners Are There Due To 'Abuse' Of Alcohol, Other Drugs)
Date: Fri, 09 Jan 1998 19:26:14 -0500
To: DrugSense News Service
From: Richard Lake
Subject: MN: US: PBS NewsHour Transcript: Behind Bars - Califano & McCollum
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Source: The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, PBS
Contact: newshour@pbs.org
Pubdate: Thursday, 7 Jan 1998
BEHIND BARS
Of 1.7 million people in prison in the US, 1.4 million cases involve
substance abuse a Columbia University study reported. Alcohol abuse is
especially widespread among our nation's criminals. Treatment programs
within prisons are being used to fight this growing problem. Jim Lehrer
spoke to Rep. Bill McCollum (R) Florida, and Joseph Califano.
JIM LEHRER: Now to today's report stating drug and alcohol abuse are
involved in the incarceration of 80 percent of the people now in American
prisons. Joseph Califano is chairman and president of Columbia University's
National Center on Addiction & Substance Abuse which issued the report.
He's joined tonight by Congressman Bill McCollum, Republican of Florida,
chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime.
Mr. Califano, how strong are these connections between the 80 percent of
the prisoners and drug and alcohol abuse?
JOSEPH CALIFANO, National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse: Well,
they're very strong. We have 1.7 million people in prison in this country;
1.4 million are there either because they violated drug and alcohol laws,
because they were high at the time that they committed their crime, were on
alcohol or drugs, because they stole money to buy drugs, or because they
have a history of alcohol and drug abuse. So really we have prisons that
are wall-to-wall with individuals with drug and alcohol problems.
JIM LEHRER: And is it--is your report and your study, has it concluded that
those people wouldn't be in prison if they had not been alcohol and drug
abusers?
JOSEPH CALIFANO: Two--of the 1.4 million 200,000 are drug dealers who do
not use drugs. The other 1.2 million are people hundreds of thousands of
whom would not be in prison if they did not use drugs and alcohol. And when
we release them from prison without treating them, what we're really doing
is visiting on society alcoholics and drug addicts who will commit crimes,
who are visiting criminals on society. And when we release drug addicts
without treating them, we're releasing from prison individuals who are
supporting drug dealers and the drug market.
JIM LEHRER: All right. I want to get to that part of it in a moment, but I
want to first go back to--I want to go to Congressman McCollum. Do you
dispute the basic finding, the 80 percent finding?
REP. BILL McCOLLUM, (R) Florida: Well, first of all, I want to say that I
have a great deal of respect for Joseph Califano. He has had a tremendous
record and does right now on trying to fight the war on drugs and do it the
right way. And I think this report--in general, what I know about it--is an
excellent report. But I would say that there are some questionable facets
to it. For example, the report, itself, says that the 80 percent figure is
based upon the implication of drug involvement by a great many of these
people. And it defines what implication to drugs means. And part of that
definition includes those who have had regular use, which are further
defined as little as one dose or one use of marijuana a week for a month.
Now, I don't doubt that most of the people who are in jail say--and prisons
around this country have some connection with the drug problem, and they
should be treated, and they need to be treated. In fact, in the federal
system the good news is that by the end of this fiscal year, by the 1st of
October this year we're in right now every single eligible prisoner in the
federal prison system will be in a drug treatment program. That's the good
news. And the states now are not necessarily in that state of affairs. And
the bad news also is that even in the federal system the effectiveness, the
success rate of these treatment programs is only about 10 percent, better
than the private side, but not nearly as good as it should be.
JIM LEHRER: Mr. Califano, what did your study find about the treatment and
the effectiveness of treatment in federal, state, and also compared to
private?
JOSEPH CALIFANO: Let me--also, I'd like to clarify just one thing for Rep.
McCollum, who is also a great battler in this important war for our
country. Regular drug use is defined as it's traditionally defined, which
is the use of drugs twice a week at a minimum for a period of at least a
month. Of the roughly several hundred thousand regular drug users that are
in prison most of them were regular drug users in the month prior to their
arrest, and most of them were tested positive for drugs. And the drugs they
tested positive for were by and large heroin and cocaine and not marijuana.
Secondly, alcohol is the drug most connected with violent crime, which the
report indicates. On your question with respect to treatment, basically the
federal budget in fiscal 1997, .9 of 1 percent of the prison budget, $25
million, was spent for treatment. That is going up as Congressman McCollum
knows. With respect to the states, basically the need for treatment has
gone up. And, remember, of the 1.7 million prisoners 1.6 million are in
state prisoners. The federal part of this problem is the tail of the dog.
And as the need for treatment has gone up roughly eight hundred and fifty,
eight hundred and sixty thousand people who need treatment, those who are
getting treatment has gone down. Less than 150,000 got treatment. And what
is called treatment in prison, in state prisons, is often woefully
inadequate. It's a little education; it's a little of this. The kind of
treatment we think is needed is an intensive residential treatment for most
of these people, along with job training and literacy training, whatever
they need to get them up to a high school equivalency.
JIM LEHRER: Congressman, do you agree with that, that treatment in prison
of these billions of prisoners could do tremendous things?
REP. BILL McCOLLUM: I think that it would, now not alone, but it is very
important that it happen. And it's not happening well today. As I said
earlier, I think the figure I used is correct, that only about a 10 percent
success rate exists in any of these treatment programs, that being higher
again out in the civil world, where drug treatment programs don't have
prisoners incarcerated. So I agree with that part of the report. I also
think it's important, though, to know that as we go through this process,
the violent criminal is being incarcerated for longer and longer periods of
time for justification and good reason, and that, in fact, the person who's
there and being treated, the treatment alone is not the sole answer. In
other words, we need to have a combination of photos.
We need, as Mr. Califano said, to be sure we have prison industry programs
at work, job training programs at work; when the prisoners go out, they are
followed, which they're not today--in most of our prison systems when
they're released to the degree necessary. There's a lot to this. And right
now one of the more remarkable things is that we have seen the crime rate,
the violent crime rate, coming down I think in large measure because we
have extended the length of stay in prisons for many people who are
involved in these violent crimes and serious drug trafficking offenses by
the truth and sentencing laws that most--more than 50 percent of the states
now have passed and the federal government has--it says you have to serve
at least 85 percent of your sentences to stop the revolving door that was
in presence in this country for so long in the prison system.
JIM LEHRER: Congressman--
JOSEPH CALIFANO: We have slowed the revolving door. We haven't stopped it.
I think it is important to note that, on average, people get out of prison
in one and a half to four years; that even with the sentences that
Congressman McCollum is talking about people for crimes like aggravated
assault are getting out on an average in three years, so that if we want to
continue to use crime in this country, we've got to make sure that when
these people are released, we have given them the treatment and training
they need to become taxpaying, law abiding citizens, and that we're not
simply releasing more criminals on society because they are getting out.
JIM LEHRER: Congressman McCollum, what about Mr. Califano's earlier point
that, that it's--that the violent crime is being committed more by alcohol
abusers than drug abusers--does that jibe with your subcommittee's finding
as well?
REP. BILL McCOLLUM: Well, I haven't studied his report and I'm looking
forward to be able to see it in detail, but what we see out there is that
drugs and alcohol are definitely involved, but I'm not ready to say that
our studies have shown up to this point the connection that he's saying his
report does show. What I do--
JOSEPH CALIFANO: Our analysis is to--our analysis, and we will--the report,
I think, is in your office.
REP. BILL McCOLLUM: We're looking forward to reading it in detail. JOSEPH
CALIFANO: And we want to work with you on it. 21 percent of the individuals
in state prison who are incarcerated for violent crime were high on alcohol
only at the time of their crime. 3 percent were high on crack cocaine only
and 1 percent on heroin only. In the jails it's about 26 percent in
comparable lower percentages.
REP. BILL McCOLLUM: I also want to say, if I could, Mr. Califano, that I
don't disagree with your numbers with respect to the amount of people
getting out earlier than they really should be. But the reality is that we
need to get the other half of the states to go to this 85 percent
sentencing rule to get truth in sentencing throughout the nation. And that
would make a huge difference in this, but it does require, in addition to
that, everything you've said about the need to come forward with better
drug treatment programs, more drug treatment programs in the states, as
well as the prison training, and the opportunity to get jobs when they get
out.
JIM LEHRER: What about his point also, Congressman, that--and the report's
point--that if these folks are not treated, they go to prison only, even if
they stay for many years, they come back out still addicted to either
alcohol or drugs, and just become--become repeat customers, or out on the
streets?
REP. BILL McCOLLUM: I think that's absolutely correct, but I think that
there's something that's not in this report that needs to be said too
because the report didn't try to cover this apparently. And that is that in
those few states where we really have good prison industry systems and
they're not as complete anyway as we'd like, the recidivism rate where
those states exist with these programs is very low, compared to where they
don't. And we need very, very much to have prison industries reviewed. I
think that is equally important to the drug treatment issue as is the
question of how we deal with drug treatment in those who are addicted, or
those who are alcoholics.
JIM LEHRER: Mr. Califano, you've issued your report--250 pages. How long
did your folks work on this, three years?
JOSEPH CALIFANO: It took three years to do this.
JIM LEHRER: Three years. Okay. Now, what happens? What happens now?
JOSEPH CALIFANO: I think now what happens, fortunately, a couple of good
things happen. One, I'd like to say treatment and training in prison is a
tremendously sound investment for taxpayers. We estimate that if we treated
all of those 1.2 million prisoners, it would cost about $7.8 billion, about
$6500 each. And the return on that investment in the first year would be
more than $8 billion, and we'd have tremendous returns thereafter. What
happens now, one, I think largely because of our report, the drug czar
announced today that he's going to call a conference in March of experts in
the treatment and training area. And Mr. McConnell is exactly right.
Training and work is very important to go along with this. And that will
lead to a conference in October or November with several hundred people
from all the states in this country.
JIM LEHRER: All right.
JOSEPH CALIFANO: We need a revolution in the way we think about people in
prison, and we need, as I said in the report, a second front in the war on
crime.
JIM LEHRER: Okay.
JOSEPH CALIFANO: In prisons.
JIM LEHRER: We have to leave it there. Gentlemen, thank you both very much.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Crackdown On The Border Is Paying Off, Officials Say ('Operation Rio Grande'
Along South Texas Border Said To Result In 'A Dramatic Drop In Arrests
Of Illegal Immigrants,' Although 'Marijuana And Cocaine Seizures
Have Increased,' Operation 'Has Failed To Shut Down The Principal
Smuggling Corridor On US 77' - 'It's A Slow Process,' Says Commander)
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 22:11:40 -0500
To: DrugSense News Service
From: Richard Lake
Subject: MN: US TX: Crackdown On The Border Is Paying Off, Officials Say
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: Art Smart
Source: Houston Chronicle
Page: Page One, Front Page
Author: James Pinkerton
Contact: viewpoints@chron.com
Pubdate: Wed, 07 Jan 1998
Website: http://www.chron.com/
Crackdown on the border is paying off, officials say
McALLEN -- Border Patrol officials said Tuesday that it is too early to
pronounce Operation Rio Grande a success, but claimed a dramatic drop in
arrests of illegal immigrants is attributable to the unprecedented federal
buildup in South Texas that began in August.
Moreover, Border Patrol agents for the first time are confident that
Washington has given them adequate tools -- hundreds of new officers,
vehicles and an array of high-tech equipment -- to begin controlling a
notoriously porous and violent stretch of the Texas-Mexico border.
Shootouts with drug traffickers and immigrant smugglers are so common in
the McAllen sector that agents must wear bulletproof vests and carry
military assault rifles on the river.
"I'm very, very satisfied with what's going on, but it's going to take time
-- it's a slow process," said Chief Joe Garza, who heads the McAllen
sector, which includes 282 miles along the Rio Grande.
The Border Patrol sector chief said crime has decreased in Brownsville, the
largest city in the Rio Grande Valley, a drop city police attribute to the
increased federal presence in city streets. Since the operation began,
arrests of illegal immigrants in the 17,000-square-mile sector have dropped
by as much as 5,400 a month, when compared with the same time in 1996.
However, Garza emphasized the operation has failed to shut down the
principal smuggling corridor on U.S. 77, used by an estimated 75 percent of
undocumented immigrants who cross the border. Smugglers operate safe houses
in and around the community of Raymondville, and walk their clients around
the Border Patrol's highway checkpoint farther north.
Garza said his Raymondville detail arrested 97 illegal immigrants Monday
night, and noted the arrest rate has dropped slightly so far this year.
Garza said that in the past, Border Patrol operations in his sector would
be launched and "two or three days later we would be out of gas, out of
time or out of money, and we'd have to go back to business as usual and the
smugglers would just wait us out."
Operation Rio Grande, launched in Brownsville last Aug. 25, has massed
hundreds of Border Patrol agents along the Rio Grande in traditional
crossing areas. The number of personnel has increased from 498 in 1995 to
849 today.
Along with the additional agents, 38 batteries of floodlights are trained
on the brush river banks, and a trio of long-range, low- light telescopes
have been mounted in strategic buildings and now scan the border.
"With Operation Rio Grande, we have changed our mindset," Garza said at a
Tuesday news briefing. "I think we have the will ... and the resources and
the support -- not only from the community, but from our own people, our
administration in Washington plus our Congress -- to take control of the
border."
Marijuana and cocaine seizures have increased since the operation got under
way as agents stop more vehicles driving away from the river and uncover
more drug caches along the border.
Meanwhile, immigration officials who are stationed at the Valley's
international bridges report a record number of immigrants using false
documents, including 67 arrested over New Year's weekend. Since the
operation began, 2,278 people using fraudulent or borrowed documents have
been arrested.
An Immigration and Naturalization Service official speculated that many of
those arrested were trying to avoid Operation Rio Grande.
But Operation Rio Grande has it critics, including immigration rights
groups. Activists say it has not cut down on the flow of illegals but has
been a boon to the "coyotes," as immigrant smugglers are known.
"Well, more than anything it is pushing people out west" into remote
brushlands up river, said Nathan Selzer, with the Valley Coalition for
Justice. "There is a concern if you push people away from the populated
areas, there will be more risks."
Garza, the Border Patrol sector chief, said there was not a single abuse
complaint during Operation Rio Grande that has been substantiated. However,
Selzer said his group is investigating five incidents including a man who
claims Border Patrol agents broke his arm after his arrest.
"What we've run into is a great reluctance of people to go forward to the
government with allegations of abuse ... there is very little faith they
won't be retaliated against," said Selzer, who works out of Harlingen.
Operation Rio Grande is the third intensive operation this decade by the
Border Patrol where agents are placed within sight of each other along the
border, and is similar in some respects to earlier efforts in El Paso and
San Diego. In all three instances, the operations have been popular with
merchants in border cities who have for years put up with shoplifters,
petty thieves and burglars who slip across the border to commit crimes.
"The Border Patrol presence downtown has contributed in a positive way to
decreasing the crime rate in Brownsville," said local police Lt. Henry
Etheridge.
"It runs the whole array. You have strong-arm robbers holding up people and
running back to Mexico, and at night we used to have burglars who broke
into businesses through the roofs. And that has decreased," he said.
As in El Paso, gone are the scruffy squads of Mexican youths who stationed
themselves on busy Brownsville intersections and washed windshields or
juggled balls, asking for a few coins in return.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Fatal Heroin Overdose Rattles Family Of Haltom City Man
(Alcohol Impaired Recovering Texas Addict,
Sister-In-Law Tells 'Dallas Morning News')
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 20:49:13 -0500
To: DrugSense News Service
From: Richard Lake
Subject: MN: US TX: Fatal Heroin Overdose Rattles Family Of Haltom City Man
Sender: owner-mapnews@mapinc.org
Newshawk: adbryan@onramp.net
Source: Dallas Morning News
Author: Dave Michaels, The Dallas Morning News
Contact: letterstoeditor@dallasnews.com
Pubdate: Wed, 7 Jan 1998
Website: http://www.dallasnews.com
FATAL HEROIN OVERDOSE RATTLES FAMILY OF HALTOM CITY MAN
Alcohol Impaired Recovering Addict, Sister-in-law Says
As a recovering drug abuser, Robert Hampton seemed to have adjusted his
path from crooked to straight. The 51-year-old plumber was driving a new
truck, taking care of his ailing mother and saving money, relatives said.
Doing heroin seemed like the last thing on his mind.
But, impaired by a night of drinking whiskey-and-Cokes, the Haltom City
resident turned to heroin one last time, said Shirley Hampton, his
sister-in-law. About five hours later, Mrs. Hampton found him dead, slumped
over in a bathroom with a charred spoon, a belt and a syringe at his side,
police said.
Mr. Hampton's Dec. 30 death was the second suspected fatal heroin overdose
in Tarrant County in a week, authorities said. Eric Lee Higgins, 20, of
Bedford, was found dead in his bedroom Dec. 29. Friends and relatives have
said Mr. Higgins had used heroin that night.
Additionally, authorities are awaiting toxicology results to determine
whether a third death - that of Keller resident Bruce Allen Fann, 36, on
Friday - may have been linked to heroin abuse, said Keller police Lt. Tommy
Williams.
Heroin is also considered the cause of a near-fatal overdose Sunday in
Hurst, where a 17-year-old was found at a friend's house in the 1700 block
of Renee Drive in a "crisis state," police said. He was treated at North
Hills Medical Center and later released, Detective Doug Blue said.
It was the second close call for the youth, who was treated at a Bedford
hospital for a heroin overdose in late November, police said.
Detective Kyle Barton, a Haltom City police spokesman, said authorities are
awaiting toxicology results on Mr. Hampton and on residue found on the
spoon, though drug paraphernalia that was found suggests he injected heroin
before dying.
But Mrs. Hampton said her brother-in-law seemed to have abandoned the vice
at least a year ago.
"I think what happened is he had been drinking whiskey. Real stiff drinks,
like one-fourth a cup of soda pop and the rest whiskey and ice," Mrs.
Hampton, 55, said. "If he did [overdose], I think it was an accident. He
was too drunk to know what he was doing. But, of course, he shouldn't have
been doing it anyway."
Family members never suspected that Mr. Hampton still used heroin, they
said, if only because he looked healthy and worked hard. A large man with a
healthy appetite, he was a "caring, forgiving man, a sweet person," Mrs.
Hampton said.
He leaves behind two grown sons, a stepdaughter and four grandchildren, she
said. One of the grandchildren was born the night he died, she said.
"Stay away from heroin. Nothing but harm comes from it," she said.
"Watching this episode take place, it is just so hard on the family. Your
family suffers, not just you."
Mr. Hampton's niece, Cynthia Kellar, said her uncle's death offers lessons
for others thinking of experimenting with heroin.
"To all the kids to who think drugs are a joke, it's just like playing
Russian roulette. You don't ever know if this is the one time the bullet
rolls around," said Ms. Kellar, 26. "No matter what, life is too precious
to waste for a few seconds of pleasure."
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Administrator Says Hospital 'Vindicated' - Riverside's
Substance Abuse Funding Will Be Reimbursed By State Commission
(Texas Commission On Alcohol And Drug Abuse Will Pay Houston Hospital
$2 Million For Treatment Provided While Its Sate Funding Was Suspended
During A Three-Year, $6 Million Investigation Into Alleged Misuse Of Funds
By Scores Of TCADA Contractors, Which Turned Up Nothing)
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 22:15:01 -0500
To: DrugSense News Service
From: Richard Lake
Subject: MN: US TX: Riverside's Substance Abuse Funding
Will Be Reimbursed By State Commission
Newshawk: Art Smart
Source: Houston Chronicle
Author: Mark Smith
Contact: viewpoints@chron.com
Pubdate: Wed, 07 Jan 1998
Website: http://www.chron.com/
Administrator says hospital 'vindicated'
RIVERSIDE'S SUBSTANCE ABUSE FUNDING WILL BE REIMBURSED BY STATE COMMISSION
The Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse will reimburse Houston's
Riverside General Hospital for substance abuse treatment it provided while
its state funding was suspended during an investigation.
A Riverside official said Tuesday that the hospital expects to receive some
$2 million in back claims for services rendered but not reimbursed during
an investigation of Riverside and other TCADA contractors.
In a letter last month to Riverside officials, TCADA Executive Director
Terry Faye Bleier said the hospital is now in good standing with the agency.
TCADA agreed in November to reinstate up to $1.6 million budgeted for
Riverside in the current fiscal year, pending financial and program reviews.
Riverside General and its administrator, Earnest Gibson, were key targets
in the statewide investigation into alleged misuse of funds by scores of
TCADA contractors. During the probe, TCADA withheld payments on existing
contracts with Riverside General.
"I feel the hospital and myself have been vindicated following the state's
investigation," Gibson said. "I think it was clear the hospital provided
exceptional services to this community.
"We were hopeful that it would take no more than 90 days to resolve the
dispute, but it dragged on nearly three years," Gibson said. "My real
regret is the devastating effect this had on the substance abuse industry
in the state of Texas. I believe it was all unnecessary."
TCADA administers state funds used to pay contractors who provide substance
abuse treatment. During the probe, state investigators and auditors
questioned claims totaling more than $50 million by 158 TCADA contractors.
Riverside's questioned claims totaled about $7 million.
Texas Department of Public Safety investigators said that more than 22
programs statewide would be referred to local authorities for possible
prosecution.
And a legislative committee investigating allegations of wrongdoing among
TCADA contractors even hired a private detective to probe Gibson's
financial compensation.
But only a few indictments were returned. And though Texas Rangers
presented Harris County prosecutors with evidence against six Houston-area
providers, including Riverside General, none was indicted.
The $7 million in questioned claims at Riverside has been whittled to
$238,000, and the hospital is challenging that. The $50 million questioned
statewide has shrunk to $6.8 million.
The rest turned out to be legitimate and adequately documented under state
guidelines, TCADA officials now say.
In all, the investigation cost thousands of man-hours and more than $6
million, including $3.6 million paid to a private auditing firm.
Bleier's letter appears to follow the recommendation of a senior
administrative law judge. After listening to more than a month of testimony
last year, Earl Corbitt, a senior administrative law judge with the State
Office of Administrative Hearings, found that TCADA did not act in good
faith during negotiations prior to terminating Riverside General's
contracts. The judge also found that TCADA's decision was "arbitrary and
capricious."
Corbitt recommended that TCADA reinstate all of Riverside's contracts
except an outpatient program for women, and said that one could be
reinstated if Riverside met certain management and personnel conditions.
The judge's recommendation was submitted to the TCADA Board for a final
decision, but it never came to a board vote because of the agreement
between Riverside and TCADA staff to restore this year's fiscal year funding.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Marijuana Is Medicine (Letter To Editor Of 'Lethbridge Herald'
In Canada About History Of Cannabis As Herbal Medicine)
Date: Wed, 07 Jan 1998 17:36:07
From: Kathy galbraith
Subject: Marijuana is medicine
Resent-Sender: mattalk-request@listserv.islandnet.com
To: editor@lis.ab.ca
From: Kathy galbraith
Subject: Marijuana is medicine
Editor
The Lethbridge Herald, Jan. 7, 1998.
Dear Editor,
In response to your article of Dec.11, "Portions of
marijuana law unconstitutional, judge rules", of course this
herbal medicine should be available for proper and responsible
use.
As a long-time student and practitioner of herbal medicine
and natural healing methods, I wondered why most herbal texts do
not even mention marijuana/cannabis/hemp. The best and most
comprehensive text in my library, School of Natural Healing, by
Dr. John R. Christopher, lists it as a sleep aid,
relaxant, pain killer, antispasmodic, and female corrective. Latest
evidence shows it is effective for relieving the pain and spasms
of MS, seizures of epilepsy, migraines, ghost-pain of amputees,
chronic pain of some sorts, some depressions, premenstrual disorder,
glaucoma, AIDS wasting & nausea, and cancer nausea. Queen Victoria
used it, as prescribed by her physician for PMS and migraines.
The British Medical Association and the New England
Journal of Medicine have both asked that it be made available
to those who need it immediately, and patients who have been denied
it have been desperate enough to get themselves arrested just to
protest the status quo.(Lynn Harichy, mother, grandmother, medical
student, and MS sufferer in London, Ont.)
No one has ever died from a pot overdose, it does not kill
or harm the cells of the body. There are many ways to use it besides
smoking; a chronic pain patient from Halifax says one mj brownie lasts
and works better than several Tylenol 3's.
Surely it is time to adopt a rational, compassionate approach
instead of allowing pot sales to line the pockets of biker-gangs
who don't care whether they sell to a cancer patient or a child in the
school yard. Recent polls show the majority of Canadians favor
changing the law to allow responsible use.
Regulation would put cannabis/mj where it belongs - in the
drugstore, health food store and herb garden, alongside the other
herbs God gave us to use, like parsley, sage, garlic, and mint.
Kathy Galbraith
Midwife, teacher,
student of natural healing.
Raymond
***
Kathy Galbraith e-mail: GALBRAITH@upanet.uleth.ca
Public Access Internet
The University of Lethbridge
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Suing For Peace In The War On Drugs (A Vancouver, BC, Constable
Concludes That Prohibition Just Won't Work)
Source: Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca
Published: Wednesday, January 7, 1998
Author: Robert Matas in Vancouver
SUING FOR PEACE IN THE WAR ON DRUGS
After 15 years in the trenches, a constable concludes that prohibition
just won't work
Vancouver -- PUSHERS, addicts and the hapless victims of drug-related
crime -- they have all drawn their share of media attention. But
consider for a moment the perspective of the person the public sends
to the front line in the war on drugs: the police officer.
Thanks in large part to Hollywood, the stereotype is that of the
crusading cop who tracks down dealers against insurmountable odds and
rarely appears to be troubled by the strung-out junkies encountered
along the way. This image of indifference to the human cost of drug
use is so pervasive that it's a shock when a real cop speaks out and
expresses sympathy for those tangled up with narcotics.
Gil Puder has done that and much more. Last week, he stepped out of
his role as a Vancouver police constable and called publicly for the
decriminalization of heroin and cocaine. In an article in a local
newspaper, he maintained that drug abuse is a health issue, rather
than a criminal one.
But Const. Puder did not stop there. He also pointed fingers, accusing
federal Health Minister Alan Rock of ducking the issue and suggesting
that B.C. Attorney-General Ujjal Dosanjh "would rather talk tough and
count the bodies."
He wondered whether the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police has
been silent on the issue because its members have built their careers
on drug enforcement.
Even his own force has not escaped criticism. Last month it raided The
Cannabis Cafe, a local diner that provides customers with pipes to
smoke marijuana, although it does not sell the drug.
Const. Puder likens the raid to a Keystone Kops episode. "I was
there," he said in an interview, "doing crowd control." The goal of
the exercise, he suspects, was not just to enforce the law but to put
the controversial cafe‚ -- an attraction for visitors from the United
States and the rest of Canada -- out of business.
"Most of the guys just shrugged their shoulders and wondered why they
were there."
The article in the Vancouver Sun was written, says Const. Puder,
because, after 15 years on duty, he was finally fed up.
Drugs and violence have been part of his entire career. A few years
after joining the police, he shot and killed an addict who was robbing
a bank. In 1987, a friend, Sergeant Larry Young, was shot during a
drug raid. This year he spent New Year's Day in a flop house, watching
an ambulance team trying to save a junkie's life.
But the incident that really hit home happened back in November. A
young addict had died and he had to break the news to his mother. A
recent immigrant from Eastern Europe, she was already mourning the
unexpected death of her husband and now found herself all alone in a
strange land. She started talking about suicide.
According to Const. Puder, a police officer always finds it easier to
depersonalize a situation and just do his or her job. But after this
incident, he felt truly tired of repeatedly having to cope with
violent death.
Unfortunately, he says, no one seems prepared to address the
situation. Officials agree that the drug problem finances criminal
organizations, drives Vancouver's HIV epidemic, and perpetuates the
petty and major crimes that swamp the courts. They recognize that
prohibition of drugs has its limitations, and acknowledge that tighter
enforcement has proved futile.
Nevertheless, he contends, the federal government appears to be more
frightened by the opposition Reform Party -- and its get-tough
policies -- than it is by the drug problem.
Such outspokenness on the part of a police officer is rare -- with
good reason, given law enforcement's quasi-military tradition and the
ever-present potential for disciplinary action.
But Const. Puder insists that such tactics would not work on him. He
is ready to stand up to anyone who tries to deny him his right to free
speech. As for intimidation, "I'm 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, a black belt
in karate and former boxer. I teach the use of force. If someone wants
to meet me in the back alley, just tell me and I'll show up."
But he need not worry. After the article appeared, he received hand
shakes and messages of support from dozens of his colleagues. Still,
he realizes that publicizing his views may not be the best of career
moves. "But I'm not trying to be chief," he admitted. "I'm happy with
my career."
At 38, he works part-time with the force, patrolling the downtown
district, and part-time as an instructor at the B.C. Police Academy
and Langara College. (A specialist in the use of force, he has
designed training manuals for private security programs and trains
other instructors.)
This arrangement, he says, is flexible and offers more time to spend
with his family (he has two sons, 3 and 9).
His experience, he feels, allows him to speak out on the
decriminalization of narcotics without coming across as "a
bleeding-heart wimp." But he'd like to see others take a more active
role in the debate.
"Social workers speak up. We [the police] directly interact with the
issue every day. Why cannot we speak up? Are we just supposed to shut
up, say nothing, just grit our teeth?"
But even if he stands alone, Const. Puder intends to keep pressing his
case. "This is just something that has to be kept on the front
burner."
Robert Matas is a member of The Globe and Mail's Vancouver bureau.
Cause for concern
When a member of their police force speaks out on drugs, Vancouverites
have good reason to pay attention.
The east side of their downtown area has been identified as the worst
spot in the developed world for the rapid spread of the AIDS virus,
mainly because there are so many drug addicts sharing dirty needles.
Also, Vancouver is believed to have 10 times as many drug traffickers
as any other place in Canada. In the past five years, about 1,470
people have died in British Columbia from overdosing on an illegal
drug.
The regional health unit has declared a medical emergency, and Mayor
Philip Owen has stepped up law enforcement. In an effort to stem a
wave of property crimes, he is moving up to 100 members of the police
force from desk jobs to the streets.
***
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-------------------------------------------------------------------
Kingston, Ontario, Police Bust Erewhon, Off The Cuff Hemp Stores (Allegedly
Disregarding Ontario Supreme Court By Confiscating Literature, Hemp Products)
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 1998 05:39:10 -0400 (AST)
From: Chris Donald
To: Matt Elrod
cc: mattalk@listserv.islandnet.com
Subject: More Hemp Stores busted by police
Looks like any public beacon of support for the evil weed is being
systematically suppressed by the machinery of the state to me. Talk about
closing the barn door after the horse is gone.
On Wed, 7 Jan 1998, Matt Elrod wrote:
-------- Forwarded message --------
Date: Tue, 07 Jan 1997 17:22:50 +0100
From: Dan (chaplain@hempbc.com)
Please Post the following to CCList & Mattalk --
POLICE IN KINGSTON VIOLATE SUPREME COURT RULING
By Dan Loehndorf
Ontario Supreme Court rulings mean nothing to police in Kingston who
recently raided Bill Stevenson's hemp store, Erehwon . On January 7,
1998, police entered the store with a warrant which quoted 462.2 of the
Criminal Code, stating that the store owner did knowingly promote or
sell an instrument for drug use , namely a hash pipe and screen. But
they took everything.
Cannabis Canada, High Times, marijuana cultivation handbooks, hemp
clothing and wallets, black lights, key chains, anything with a hemp
leaf or the words marijuana or hemp on it - all went into the back
of a police van.
Store owner Bill Stevenson approached the police one by one and read to
them from a recent article in Cannabis Canada. Don t you know about the
Ontario Supreme Court Ruling? he asked.
In 1994, Ontario Supreme Court Judge Ellen J MacDonald ruled that
cannabis literature was not illegal, and that the sections of 462.2
pertaining to cannabis literature contradicted the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms. Hemp clothing was explicitly legalized by the
Senate Committee appointed to address Bill C-8 in 96, which recommended
that mature cannabis stalks, that do not include leaves, flowers, seeds
or branches, be exempted from the definition of marijuana, along with
any fibres derived from such stalks.
The police hid behind hierarchy. My boss told me to take everything,
was enough justification for trained officers of the law to vandalize
and steal from Mr. Stevenson s store.
I sort of expected them to show up here sooner or later, said Mr.
Stevenson, But the way they did it ... They didn't care to listen to
what I had to say.
The same day, police also raided Kingston's other hemp store, Off the
Cuff. With the recent raids of HempBC in Vancouver, and The Plant
in Edmonton, Hemp store owners are becoming even more adamant to dig in
their heels - they are being united by oppression.
Police use the threat of deadly weapons, superior numbers, and authority
to conduct what amounts to nothing less than armed robbery. Hemp store
owners have only nonviolent protest, determination, and truth on their
side. I m betting on the hemp store owners.