tagged w/ Marijuana Prohibition
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By Stephen C. Webster
Wednesday, February 1, 2012 13:48 EST
A five-story building in New York City was raided by police this week, revealing that the entire structure was being used as a multi-tiered marijuana farm.
Police said that four of the floors appeared to be designated to individual stages of the plants’ growth, with the most mature on the top floor.
The building also had expensive filtration and watering systems to keep plants healthy and nosy neighbors about their own business, according to NBC New York.
Officers recovered almost 600 marijuana plants, along with 75 pounds of buds that had been prepared for sale. In total, some 1,550 pounds of illegal plants were pulled out of the building.
Three men, ages 23-25, were arrested in the raid. It is not clear if they were solely responsible.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/02/01/police-entire-nyc-building-was-pot-farm/
This video is from NBC New York, broadcast Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2012.
"Hooray!!! Young Entrepreneurs Rock!!!!" =)By Stephen C. Webster
Wednesday, February 1, 2012 13:48 EST
A five-story building... more
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By Reuters
Saturday, January 28, 2012 10:01 EST
(Reuters) – Supporters of legalizing marijuana for recreational use have submitted enough signatures to put the matter to voters in Washington state in a bold move that, if successful, could put Olympia on a collision course with the federal government.
The group New Approach Washington submitted nearly 278,000 valid signatures for the measure, more than required to put it on the November ballot, David Ammons, a spokesman for the Washington Secretary of State’s office, said in a statement.
The move comes as federal prosecutors have sought to crank up pressure on several mostly western states, including Washington, that have legalized medical marijuana even as cannibis remains classified as an illegal narcotic under federal law.
The proposal, if approved by voters, would allow marijuana sales to people 21 and older, permit state taxes to be collected on the drug, ban pot advertising and prohibit driving under the influence of cannabis.
Supporters of legalizing marijuana, who include acting Seattle city attorney Peter Holmes, say the federal prohibition on the drug has not curbed use and that it enriches drug cartels.
“This is the grown-up approach to regulating a relatively harmless drug,” Holmes said.
Opponents of legalization say it would lead to more abuse of the drug, including by young people, and that underground sales would continue.
“There will always be a black market. That’s been proven with cigarettes with the tobacco industry,” said Calvina Fay, head of the Florida-based Drug Free America Foundation. “Even though tobacco is legal and it’s regulated, there’s still a huge global black market.”
Washington is one of 16 states that, along with the nation’s capital, have decriminalized medical marijuana. But federal agents have raided medical marijuana dispensaries in several states, including Washington, in recent months.
Under state law, the recreational legalization initiative next heads to the Washington State Legislature, which has the option of avoiding a popular vote by itself enacting the proposal to legalize marijuana, Ammons said.
The legislature could also allow the measure to go to the ballot alongside an alternative from lawmakers, Ammons said.
Alison Holcomb, campaign director of New Approach Washington, has said she did not expect the legislature would enact the proposal on its own, but would leave the issue for voters to decide.
In 2010, a measure to legalize marijuana in California lost at the ballot box when less than 47 percent of voters approved it.
No modern, affluent nation has ever legalized commercial production and distribution of marijuana, according to research organization RAND Corp.
In the Netherlands, famous for its Amsterdam cafes where guests buy and smoke marijuana, authorities allow adults to buy the drug but the country officially has a policy that commercial production of it is illegal, said Beau Kilmer, co-director of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center.
(Reporting By Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Cynthia Johnston)
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/28/washington-state-marijuana-legalization-headed-for-ballot/
"I have yet to see a case of Lung Cancer that was due to marijuana use!!!"By Reuters
Saturday, January 28, 2012 10:01 EST
(Reuters) – Supporters of... more
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By Muriel Kane
Sunday, January 22, 2012
A British pharmaceutic firm is completing clinical trials of a drug derived directly from marijuana and hopes to receive approval to market it from the Food and Drug Administration by the end of 2013.
The drug, which contains both THC and cannabidiol, has already been approved in Canada, New Zealand, and several European countries to relieve muscle spasms associated with multiple sclerosis. In the US, however, it would be sold to relieve cancer pain.
The FDA began approving drugs based on synthetic equivalents of the active ingredients in marijuana in 1985, but this would be the first drug derived from the plant itself. This is significant because, as the Associated Press points out, “The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration categorizes pot as a dangerous drug with no medical value, but the availability of a chemically similar prescription drug could increase pressure on the federal government to revisit its position.”
“There is a real disconnect between what the public seems to be demanding and what the states have pushed for and what the market is providing,” the president of the International Cannabinoid Research Society told the AP. “It seems to me a company with a great deal of vision would say, `If there is this demand and need, we could develop a drug that will help people and we will make a lot of money.’”
Some marijuana advocates, however, worry that government approval of marijuana-based prescription drugs could become a new argument against legalization of medical marijuana. “That’s the race against time,” Kris Hermes of Americans for Safe Access told AP, “in terms of how quickly can we put pressure on the federal government to recognize the plant has medical use versus the government coming out with the magic bullet pharmaceutical pill.”
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/22/pot-based-prescription-drug-could-receive-fda-approval/
"Legalize It!!!!!!"By Muriel Kane
Sunday, January 22, 2012
A British pharmaceutic firm is completing... more
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Gary Johnson "In 1997 Newt Gingrich Proposed The Death Penalty For Possession Of Marijuana" 5:35 into clip.
If I had a voice, I would ask Newt if his views have changed? I would ask him if he knows the 'true' history of cannabis hemp. One can hide the facts, contained in our history, but they can't change the facts.
Cannabis hemp has history. Positive's which go ignored. I would ask him if he has the courage to have a discussion about cannabis hemp? We have had a war on our shores for too many years. We have more people in prison than any other country, basically due to the war on cannabis. He should be able to state verifiable facts. If not, why not? It's time to end the war.
I would ask him if he has invested in 'private prisons'? The Office of President is too important, to allow them to claim ignorance, as though they don't know. I recommend, "The Emperor Wears No Clothes", by the late Jack Herer. The first half of the book, contains the facts. The second half of the book is copies of the documentation to back up the facts in the first half.
It's our history! It's time to hold politicians accountable! Do they know the facts? If not, why not? If you haven't seen the book, it's available to read on line, http://www.jackherer.com/thebook/ It can be used as a history test, for those who want to lead. Do they know the facts? Only accept 'the truth and nothing but the truth'. Opinions can be spun, no spinning allowed. Facts lead to truth. Spin distorts the truth, to distract from the facts. We're deserve better than that! We are the 'We the People', our Constitution represents!Gary Johnson "In 1997 Newt Gingrich Proposed The Death Penalty For Possession Of... more
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By Eric W. Dolan
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Newt Gingrich said Wednesday that the founders of the United States would have dealt violently with marijuana growers, despite the fact that they grew the plant for commercial purposes themselves.
He said at an town hall event in New Hampshire that decriminalizing drugs like marijuana would increase the rate of addictions and increase crime.
“In general, I’d like us to be as drug free as possible and I think that it requires a much more serious approach.”
Gingrich was later asked if former Presidents Thomas Jefferson or George Washington should have been arrested for growing marijuana.
“I think Jefferson or George Washington would have rather strongly discouraged you from growing marijuana and their techniques with dealing with it would have been rather more violent than our current government,” he responded.
Both Washington and Jefferson grew marijuana on their Virginia farms. At the time, the plant was used to make a number a products, such as rope and textiles. It did not become a widely-used recreational drug in the United States until the 20th century, but some academics have claimed that at least seven early U.S. presidents used the drug in the form of hashish.
Gingrich has previously called for a more aggressive drug policy, including the death penalty for drug smugglers.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/04/gingrich-founding-fathers-would-have-violent-reaction-to-pot-growers/
Watch this video from CNN, uploaded Jan. 4, 2012.
"WTF???" Who made Newt a Historian???" I Highly Doubt the Founding Fathers would have done or said anything about the Hemp back in that day, in fact I am sure they used quite a bit of it for ropes, clothing etc....By Eric W. Dolan
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Newt Gingrich said Wednesday that the... more
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This is a must-watch video featuring some of the top researchers on the healing effects of Cannabis (Marijuana) in it's raw form, eaten or juiced.
Eating raw cannabis as medicine, dietary essential: new research
Cannabis is a dietary essential that helps all cell types function more effectively.
Is a medicine: anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, probably has some direct activity against cancerous cells.
This plant can do phenomenal things, but not if [you aren't taking a high enough dose].
Cannabis is the most important vegetable in the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0VUsak2o9E&feature=player_embeddedThis is a must-watch video featuring some of the top researchers on the healing... more
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By David Edwards
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) told columnist George Will and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) on Sunday that Republican opposition to marijuana legalization was “a great embarrassment to the conservatives.”
During a town hall-style debate on ABC, Frank demanded a response from Will about decriminalizing marijuana.
“I mean, personal liberty, if someone wants to smoke marijuana who’s an adult, why do you want to make them go to jail?” Frank asked.
“With regard to marijuana, I need to know more about whether it’s a gateway drug to other drugs,” Will replied. “I need to know how you are going to regulate it, whether you’re going to advertise it.”
“Anything is a gateway to anything,” Frank said, dismissing Will argument. “That’s the slippery slope argument which is a very anti-libertarian argument. The fact that if somebody is doing something that’s not in itself wrong, that it might lead later on to something else then stop the something else. Don’t lock them up for smoking marijuana.”
“What you’re calling a cop-out, I’m calling a quest for information,” Will insisted.
“How long’s it going to last, George?” Frank asked. “We’ve been doing this for decades.”
“I understand liberalism’s aversion to information because it often doesn’t go in their direction,” Will quipped.
“No, I’m not averse to it,” Frank shot back. “I’ve been studying this for a long time. You know, you’re on Medicare. How much longer are we going to have to wait for you to make up your mind?”
“Let’s get off marijuana,” Ryan interrupted, eager to move to the next topic.
“It’s a great embarrassment to the conservatives,” Frank pointed out. “They want to tell people who they can have sex with. Come on, all this is big government! Who can I have sex with? Who can I marry? What can I read? What can I smoke? You guys, on the whole — not all of you — but the conservatives are the ones who intrude on personal liberty there.”
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/18/barney-frank-schools-george-will-paul-ryan-on-marijuana-legalization/
Watch this video from ABC’s This Week,
"I agree with Barney Frank!!!"By David Edwards
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) told columnist... more
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By Stephen C. Webster
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Use of two of the most deadly and addictive substances known to man is on the downswing among American teens as they increasingly turn to marijuana, a study published Thursday claimed.
Among high school seniors, marijuana use is at a 30-year high, with 1 in 15 saying they use the drug near daily, according to an annual survey of about 50,000 teens in grades 8, 10 and 12. About a quarter of teens surveyed said they tried marijuana at least once last year, and 50 percent overall said they had used an illegal drug before.
Funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Michigan University’s yearly “Monitoring the Future” (PDF) report also found that alcohol abuse, which the Centers for Disease Control says kills more young Americans than any other drug, is also at a historic low.
Tobacco use, similarly, has gone down by a statistically significant amount: just 11.7 percent of U.S. teens say they’ve smoked a cigarette in the last 30 days, compared to 12.8 percent in 2010.
The study also found that most teens don’t view marijuana as a dangerous drug, which lends itself to usage rates going up. While it is impossible to overdose on marijuana and the intoxicating effects are often less disruptive than alcohol, it can promote apathetic and gluttonous behaviors, and long-term smoking can lead to an assortment of lung diseases. There’s also strong evidence that people genetically predisposed to schizophrenia might be at risk for intensifying paranoid delusions after using marijuana.
However, Gil Kerlikowske, who directs the Office of National Drug Control Policy, attributed the rise in use to the growing availability of medical marijuana, which is only sold to adults with valid forms of identification and a doctor’s recommendation in the 16 states where its legal.
“We know that any substance that is legally available is more widely used,” he said.
That claim, which was not specifically supported by the research, was seemingly undermined recent data released by the Institute for the Study of Labor, which sought to answer that question but found no evidence that the availability of medical marijuana drove teens’ usage habits.
It did find, however, that marijuana use was up among adults in states where it has been approved by voters. The same figures also found that more adults were using marijuana instead of drinking alcohol, which cut into the overall number of traffic fatalities due to drunk driving — a trend which also shows up in Thursday’s “Monitoring the Future” report.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/15/study-u-s-teens-opting-for-pot-over-booze-cigarettes/
"I don't Blame them, Booze and Cigarettes are made to shorten your life, there is No evidence that Marijuana does the same!!!"By Stephen C. Webster
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Use of two of the most deadly... more
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Cannabis these days is more well-known as marijuana, a term founded in the highly racial campaign to eliminate cannabis from competition in many industries from pharmaceuticals to big oil and many big money industries in between. This single plant has a very staggering list of thousands of uses, most of which are non-toxic to both humans and our environment as well as fully sustainable; unlike the many products and industries that such uses could compete with or completely replace.
Thanks to an all too effective disinformation campaign, launched in the name of hate and greed, the only thing most people today can associate with this plant are negative stereotypical effects related to drug abuse. Even though those few instances of use are not founded in reality, but rather exaggerations of a tiny percentage of statistical evidence showing detriment to human health which are often based on biased and flawed studies which do not hold up under unbiased scrutiny, the ignorance persists. Lies... that's what keeps people in fear of the plant that could change the world as we know it for the better. Doesn't seem right, does it?
Inform yourself, watch the documentaries and share this with everyone you know. It's time to dispel the fraudulent myths that have dominated public, drug, and foreign policy for over 70 years now. Not only do we have modern studies and evidence that say cannabis should never have been prohibited and virtually black-balled, we have thousands of years of evidence that says this is and has been the most important plant in the history of mankind!
Cannabis Prohibition is a travesty.... it's time to end this bullshit! Legalize, educate and regulate. Together we can change the world!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSKJrgGqx_E&feature=related
ALSO WATCH: Medical Cannabis and Its Impact on Human Health
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Md2WNqqxTQ&feature=...
EXCELLENT documentary! Please share this, pass it on, email it to anyone and everyone. It's time to shatter this myth that has ruined millions of lives and cost taxpayers nearly a trillion dollars. Watch the video, it will open your eyes to the truth!
Also... check out Jack Herer's site loaded with information including a text only version of his famous book, "The Emperor Wears No Clothes".
http://www.jackherer.com/Cannabis these days is more well-known as marijuana, a term founded in the highly... more
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Because of $31 in marijuana sales, Patricia Marilyn Spottedcrow is now serving 10 years in prison, has been taken away from her four young children and husband, and has ended her work in nursing homes.
Three days before Christmas, Spottedcrow, 25, entered the Eddie Warrior Correctional Center.
“I'm nervous … because it's prison … people I don't know,” she said.
“People said don't get too comfortable here or you'll be here longer. Don't make too many friends. Come and do your time and get out.”
Marijuana transactions
On Dec. 31, 2009, Spottedcrow and her mother, Delita Starr, 50, sold a “dime bag” of marijuana to a police informant at Starr's home in Kingfisher, court records state.
Starr handled the transaction and asked her 9-year-old grandson — Spottedcrow's son — for some dollar bills to make change for the $11 sale.
Two weeks later, the same informant returned and bought $20 of marijuana from Spottedcrow.
The two women were arrested for drug distribution and because Spottedcrow's children were in the home, an additional charge of possession of a dangerous substance in the presence of a minor was added.
“It just seemed like easy money,” said Spottedcrow, who says she is not a drug user but has smoked marijuana. “I thought we could get some extra money. I've lost everything because of it.”
The women were each offered plea deals of two years in prison. But because neither had prior convictions and the drug amounts were low, they gambled and entered a guilty plea before a judge with no prior sentencing agreement.
Starr received a 30-year suspended sentence with no incarceration, but five years of drug and alcohol assessments. Spottedcrow was sentenced to 10 years in prison for distribution and two years for possession, to run concurrently. She will be up for parole in 2014.
‘Cried for days'
Starr claims the cases have been “blown out of proportion” by lawmen and criticizes the sentences as stiff. “It shocked me and we cried for days,” she said. In addition, Starr was fined $8,600 and Spottedcrow $2,740.
“Never in a million years did I think I'd be here 10 years,” Spottedcrow said of prison.
“We were under the impression we would get probation. When I left for court, I just knew I was coming back home. It hit me like a ton of bricks. There were no goodbyes, they took me away right then. How do you tell your children you are going to prison? How do you prepare for this?”
Former Kingfisher County Judge Susie Pritchett, who retired in December, said the women were conducting “an extensive operation” and included children in the business.
“It was a way of life for them,” Pritchett said.
“Considering these circumstances, I thought it was lenient. By not putting the grandmother in prison, she is able to help take care of the children.”
A presentencing investigative report prepared by the Department of Corrections rated Spottedcrow's risk of re-offending as “high” and recommended substance abuse treatment while incarcerated.
“It does not appear the defendant is aware that a problem exists or that she needs to make changes in her current behavior.”
Spottedcrow was unemployed and without a stable residence when arrested, the report states. The family lost their Oklahoma City home for not paying bills.
“When she needed money … this is the avenue she chose rather than finding legitimate employment,” the report states. “The defendant does not appear remorseful … and she makes justifications for her actions.”
‘Kids are involved'
Pritchett said on first drug offenses, sentences are usually suspended and may require treatment or random drug tests.
Only if there are other more serious circumstances is a first-time drug offender sent to prison, she said.
“When kids are involved, it's different,” Pritchett said.
“This was a drug sale. When I look at someone in front of me, I'm thinking, ‘What is it going to take to rehabilitate this person?' We look at their attitude and other factors.”
When Spottedcrow was taken to jail after her sentencing, she had marijuana in her jacket. She pleaded guilty to that additional charge Jan. 24 and was sentenced to two years in prison and fined nearly $1,300. That sentence also will run concurrent with her other conviction.
Spottedcrow has four children — ages 9, 4, 3 and 1 — and is determined to keep her 8-year, common-law marriage intact. “It's been really hard on my husband,” she said. “I know a lot of things can happen, but he'll always have my back and be there.”
Her son is aware of what has happened, but the girls have been told their mother is away at college.
“I missed my daughter's fourth birthday, and I'll miss her fifth one too. My other daughter just started talking, and I'm not there to hear her,” Spottedcrow said.
“My baby woke up … and doesn't know where her mommy is. This is the hardest thing to do, and know I can't do anything about it. I just have to focus on myself and take it day-to-day and plan for going home. I will want to see my kids at some point. I'm trying to take this slow. I can't get depressed about it.”
Oklahoma's two prisons for women — the maximum-security Mabel Bassett in McLoud and minimum-security Eddie Warrior in Taft — housed 2,622 prisoners last year.
Of those, 48 percent are serving time for nonviolent drug offenses and 22 percent for other nonviolent offenses such as embezzlement and forgery.
Of the 1,393 women received by Oklahoma prisons last year, 78 percent were identified by DOC as minimal public safety threats.
Most nonviolent offenders are housed at Eddie Warrior, an open campus with a walking track and six dormitories.
‘I'm already changed'
Spottedcrow knows she will need to find a new job skill because her work in the health field won't be there because of her incarceration. She would like to open a boutique.
“Even though this seems like the worst thing … I've been blessed along the way,” she said. “It could have been worse. I'm happy my kids are safe and, ultimately, I'm safe. I'm thankful I still have a family.”
In a year, Spottedcrow will have a review and hopes to shorten her time in prison.
“I'm already changed,” she said. “This is a real eye-opener. I'm going to get out of here, be with my kids and live my life.”
Read more: http://newsok.com/how-31-of-pot-gave-mom-a-10-year-prison-sentence/article/3542585#ixzz1EY2u7W1gBecause of $31 in marijuana sales, Patricia Marilyn Spottedcrow is now serving 10... more
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If you are going to sell cannabis, please do it somewhere besides Malaysia. Three people, including one couple, were sentenced on Thursday to death by hanging by the high court at Temerloh, Malaysia for trafficking 4.5 kilograms (just under 10 pounds) of marijuana last year.
"Death by hanging is the only sentence provided for offenses under Section 39B (1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act of 1952," said Judicial Commissioner Datuk Akhtar Tahir, reports Bernama, the official Malaysian national news agency.
Tahir said the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against Ahmad Mukamal Abdul Wahab, 37; Suhana Kamarudin, 28; and her husband Shawal Hashim, 37.
Ahmad Mukamal and Shawal reportedly shook their heads when the sentence was announced.
"I am not guilty," Suhana shouted from the dock. "I have a child and had promised to return," the young mother said.
The three were charged with selling marijuana near a McDonald's restaurant at Genting Sempah at 12:30 a.m. on March 9, 2010.
Police stopped the vehicle in which they were traveling and seized the slabs of marijuana totaling 4.5 kilos.
Deputy public prosecutor Muhammad Najmi Daud prosecuted the case. Counsel Zulkafli Abd Hamid defended Ahmad Mukamal and Shawal, while Ahmad Nizam Hamid defended Suhana.
http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/02/malaysia_3_sentenced_to_hang_for_selling_pot_at_mc.phpIf you are going to sell cannabis, please do it somewhere besides Malaysia. Three... more
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Let's be "blunt" about this: With all the real issues facing the Potato State, the Idaho Legislature has some mighty strange priorities.
A bill introduced Monday in the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee would make it unlawful to sell, manufacture or distribute roll-your-own cigar blunt wraps in the state. This is because blunt wraps, made from tobacco leaves, are widely used by marijuana smokers to consume weed.
The incredibly pinheaded proposal, sponsored by Republican Senator Denton "Dense" Darrington, would give blunt wraps the same status as other supposed "drug paraphernalia," opening sellers, manufacturers and owners of the products to potential criminal charges, reports Ben Botkin at the Magic Valley Times-News.
The bill comes -- you guessed it! -- at the urging of Big Tobacco, who would really hate to see Americans switch from smoking their cancer-causing product -- which causes 440,000 deaths every year in the U.S. alone -- to marijuana, for which nobody seems to be able to find a single substantiated fatality.
The Cigar Association of America claims the wraps "have no legitimate use" and are primarily used to make "marijuana cigarettes." The horror.... The horror!
"In recent times, the term 'blunt' has become associated with marijuana or joints," Russell Westerberg, speaking on behalf of the Cigar Assocation, knowledgeably informs us.
A blunt can also mask the odor of marijuana and "give the appearance of no wrongdoing" by its smoker, Westerberg added, saying "If Paris Hilton had used a blunt, she probably wouldn't have been caught." (Hilton was detained in South Africa in July for suspicion of marijuana possession at the World Cup. The wealthy hotel heiress cum home sex tape star was later cleared of the charge.)
Westerberg self-importantly brought in samples of these "dangerous" blunt wraps and let lawmakers cluelessly pass them around, inspecting them to "get acquainted" with these threats to polite Idaho society.
He claimed the blunt wraps are also used to smoke "Spice," synthetic marijuana that's caught on among dweebs who aren't cool enough to know anyone with the real stuff.
If you choose to use commercially produced tobacco in the United States, you should at least be aware that you are helping fund some of the biggest opponents of cannabis re-legalization in the country.
http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/01/idaho_senate_attacks_the_menace_of_blunt_wraps_wtf.phpLet's be "blunt" about this: With all the real issues facing the Potato... more
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Can Police Can Kick Down Your Door If They Smell Pot? Some Justices Think So
Police smelling marijuana coming from behind an apartment door can enter the home without a warrant if they believe the evidence is being destroyed, some U.S. Supreme Court Justices said on Wednesday.
More than 60 years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that police couldn't enter a residence without a warrant just because they smelled burning opium, reports Adam Liptak at The New York Times.
On Wednesday, during the argument of a case about what police were entitled to do upon smelling marijuana outside the door of a Kentucky apartment, two justices were concerned that the Court may be ready to eviscerate the 1948 ruling which stemmed from a Seattle case.
"Aren't we just simply saying they can just walk in whenever they smell marijuana, whenever they think there's drugs on the other side?" asked Justice Sonia Sotomayor, considering what a decision against the defendant would tell the police. "Why do even bother giving them a search warrant?"
The old ruling, Johnson v. United States, involved the search of a Seattle hotel room. The smell of drugs could provide probably cause for a warrant, Justice Robert H. Jackson wrote for the majority, but it did not entitle police to enter without one.
"No suspect was fleeing or likely to take flight," Justice Jackson wrote. "The search was of permanent premises, not of a movable vehicle. No evidence or contraband was threatened with removal or destruction."
Since the War On Drugs was re-started by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s, the Supreme Court has steadily given police more leeway to search cars, travelers and baggage, reports David Savage at the Los Angeles Times. But the justices have been reluctant to allow searches of homes without a warrant.
In the new case, Kentucky v. King, police in Kentucky were looking for a suspect who had sold cocaine to an informant. They smelled burning marijuana coming from another apartment -- where Hollis King and his friends were smoking marijuana -- knocked loudly, and announced themselves.
When they heard sounds coming from inside that made them think evidence was being destroyed, they kicked the door in and found marijuana, cocaine, King, two friends, and some cash, but not the original suspect, who was in another apartment.
King was sentenced to 11 years(!) in prison, but the Kentucky Supreme Court overturned his conviction and threw out the evidence, ruling that any risk of drugs' being destroyed was the result of the decision by police to knock and announce themselves rather than to obtain a warrant. The Kentucky court ruled that officers had entered the apartment illegally and that the evidence they found should not have been considered in court, reports Robert Barnes at The Washington Post.
The key issue is whether an "exigent" or emergency circumstance allows the police to enter a residence without a warrant. Sadly but no longer shockingly, Obama Administration lawyers joined the case on the side of Kentucky's prosecutors.
The police who broke into the apartment "reasonably believed that there was destruction of evidence occurring inside," said Ann O'Connell, an assistant to Obama's Solicitor General.
Prosecutors for Kentucky and the federal government told the justices Wednesday that the Kentucky court had erred. They claimed there had been no violation of the Fourth Amendment, which bars unreasonable searches, because they claimed police had "acted lawfully."
But Justice Elena Kagan had doubts about that approach.
If the court looks only at the lawfulness of police behavior, Justice Kagan said, that "is going to enable the police to penetrate the home, to search the home, without a warrant, without going to see a magistrate, in a very wide variety of cases."
All the police would need to say, Justice Kagan said, is that they smelled marijuana and then heard a noise. "Or," she added, "we think there was some criminal activity going on for whatever reason and we heard noise."
"How do you prevent your test from essentially eviscerating the warrant requirement in the context of the one place that the Fourth Amendment was most concerned about?" Kagan asked Kentucky Assistant Attorney General Joshua D. Farley, who claimed the police had done nothing that violated the Fourth Amendment.
Justice Sotomayor was even more direct, asking "Aren't we just doing away with 'Johnson'?"
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg asked why the police could not simply roam the hallways of apartment buildings, sniffing for pot, knocking whenever they smelled marijuana, then breaking in if they "hear something suspicious."
"That would be perfectly fine," Kentucky Assistant Atttorney General Farley replied.
Justice Antonin Scalia revealed some unflattering things about his worldview -- which, God help us, seems to be that of a judgmental 10-year-old -- as he said he was not troubled by the standard the government lawyers proposed. He said that police can't go wrong by knocking loudly on the door.
"There are a lot of constraints on law enforcement," Justice Scalia said, "and the one thing that it has going for it is that criminals are stupid."
Scalia said that "criminals" often cooperate with police when not legally required to do so. They might open the door and let officers inside -- and if not, the police can break in, he said.
"Everything done was perfectly lawful," Scalia said. "It's unfair to the criminal? Is that the problem? I really don't understand the problem."
http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/01/supreme_court_looks_at_smell-based_home_searches_f.php#moreCan Police Can Kick Down Your Door If They Smell Pot? Some Justices Think So
Police... more
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A Canadian man is demanding an apology after his home was raided at gunpoint Thursday by police who thought the scent of a skunk living under his home meant he was growing marijuana.
Oliver MacQuat of Gatineau, Quebec, said a team of armed police officers barged into his rural home with guns drawn, on the assumption they were busting a marijuana grow, reports CBC News.
"I opened the door and they all had their guns drawn," MacQuat said. "I was terrified, my heart was probably going 150 miles an hour."
Around 10 police officers swept through his house, MacQuat said, during which time his teenaged son returned home to flashing police lights.
"I was shaking; I was very worried," said the son, Emilio MacQuat. "I did not know what happened to my dad, what was happening up here.
Police found no drugs of any kind on the property.
MacQuat said police confused the smell of marijuana with the scent of a skunk who lives beneath the front of his home.
"A senior officer came in and said there is a skunk... everything is clean," MacQuat said.
"You could see that were all embarrassed and genuinely sorry," MacQuat said. "They all apologized."
Still, MacQuat is looking for a formal apology from the Gatineau police and the Quebec provincial police.
Gatineau police didn't seem inclined the apologize Thursday, telling CBC News they had "reasonable grounds" to conduct a search.
MacQuat wants an assurance from the police that the raid won't appear on his record when he travels in the future.
"If I was to go to the States my name is going to pop up that I was involved in some kind of drug raid," MacQuat said.
"That's going to be great all the rest of my life," he said. "I want that gone."
http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/01/police_stage_botched_pot_raid_after_smelling_skunk.phpA Canadian man is demanding an apology after his home was raided at gunpoint Thursday... more
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Well, this is interesting. I just love it when I stumble across history lessons.
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Peacey
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added this
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1 year ago
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If you engage in a bit of the wacky tobacco, you probably have a pretty good idea of what a gram of marijuana looks like -- maybe even an ounce. But even the most expanded mind would have trouble conceptualizing the sheer mass of 121.5 tons of marijuana. Mexican authorities are calling this haul "the largest seizure in the country's history of marijuana prepared and packed for sale and distribution."If you engage in a bit of the wacky tobacco, you probably have a pretty good idea of... more
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