Via LEAP’s blog is this video from a press conference held by Police Chief George Gascon of San Francisco.

The press conference was about shutting down illegal marijuana grow operations, but someone actually asked him whether legalization might be an answer to some of our problems, and he noted:

Obviously, it’s speculation… we can go back [...]

Yes, the United States leads the world once again, and I’m sure when they go up to the podium to accept their award, the first one thanked will be the War on Drugs.

That’s right — the latest worldwide incarceration figures are out.

The United States has the highest prison population
rate in the world, 756 per 100,000 of the national
population [...]

Almost three fifths of countries (59%) have rates below
150 per 100,000. [...]

More than 9.8 million people are held in penal
institutions throughout the world, mostly as pre-trial
detainees (remand prisoners) or as sentenced prisoners.
Almost half of these are in the United States (2.29m),
Russia (0.89m) or China (1.57m sentenced prisoners). [...]

Prison populations are growing in many parts of the
world. Updated information on countries included in
previous editions of the World Prison Population List
shows that prison populations have risen in 71% of
these countries.

Check out the numbers…

The Drug Policy Reform Conference is coming up November 12-14 in Albuquerque, NM.

I really wish I could attend. Unfortunately, work requires me to be in Baltimore at that time. I really loved the last one in New Orleans — what a great time to connect with other drug policy reform leaders from around the [...]