The Drug War Inevitably Feeds Violence

Posted on December 6, 2005 by Pete Guither

We see the violence and corruption of the drug war everywhere we look these days. Here’s Rio.

As they ducked for cover, fruit vendors and taxi drivers seemed more spooked by the cops than the criminals.

“Surely, someone will start shooting,” said Alexandre Mello as he watched the hostilities unfold outside his Internet cafÚ. “In the crossfire, some innocent kid will wind up dead.”

In their crusade against brutal cocaine and marijuana dealers who control many of Rio’s shantytowns, or favelas, police often move in with guns blazing.

The operations have failed to dislodge the drug gangs or, analysts say, make the city safer. But the shock-and-awe tactics have produced a massive body count.

According to human rights organizations and government statistics, police in Rio and its suburbs — home to a population of 11 million — have taken the lives of more than 4,000 people in the past five years. In the first 10 months of this year, more than 900 died at the hands of police.

Can someone remind me again what’s so dangerous about drugs that it justifies this?

In Rio, many of the victims of police violence have been hapless bystanders. Others have undoubtedly been dope dealers who, human rights group say, never saw the inside of a jail cell because of rogue cops who sometimes act as judge, jury and firing squad.

“A lot of these killings are quasi-executions, with shots to the head and the heart,” said Sandra Carvalho of Global Justice, a Brazilian human rights group that monitors the police.

Lashing back, suspected drug runners killed 52 Rio police on the job last year. Dozens of other officers were slain while off duty.

Violence feeds violence.

In the worst massacre in Rio’s history, police officers gunned down 29 men, women and children on the night of March 31.

According to Rio state officials, the rampage began in the crime-infested barrio of Queimados, where police randomly shot and killed residents hanging out at a park and a car wash. Next, they moved on to the Novo Iguacu neighborhood and unloaded their weapons into a cantina.

“My son wasn’t into drugs,” said a distraught Dulcinea Sipriano, whose 15-year-old son, Marco, was among the victims. “He was a high school student. Everyone liked him. They had no reason to kill him.”

Throughout the world, we see the active prosecution of the drug war resulting in death, corruption, prison, destruction of family and society, and the waste of resources. What sane person can weigh all that against some unknown potential for the increased voluntary use of certain drugs if they were legal, and say that the drug war is worth fighting?
Some of the drug war abuses are not even so much about drugs. They are the result of forces using the drug war as an excuse to further some other agenda (racism, political/judicial/budgetary power, etc.). That doesn’t excuse the drug war in those cases — it only makes the justification for the drug war more craven and despicable.
We must hold every drug war apologist’s feet to the fire and ask them “Is this what you really want?”

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The Bizarre World of the Drug War

Posted on December 5, 2005 by Pete Guither

Here are a few of the more off-beat recent drug war stories. Some of these have already been posted by the other drug war blogs listed on the left, so I’m just catching up, but I thought you might find them interesting/strange/outrageous.
“bullet” Even cops can get ripped off. Link
Officers set up a sting with the help of an informant to buy a pound of marijuana for $3,200. Informant meets with dealer and gives him the money. Dealer leaves the car to go get the pot and… doesn’t return. No pot. No money. The cops finally tracked him down and recovered the money and charged him with “theft by unlawful taking.”
So essentially they’re arresting and charging him with not delivering an illegal substance to them. Seems to me that the cops wanted to buy illegal drugs. The informant wanted to buy illegal drugs. The “thief” merely wanted to prevent the sale of illegal drugs by taking the drug money out of the black market and use it legitimately to buy stuff. He should be commended.
Question: If someone other than the cops lost money to someone who took their money without supplying drugs, would they be able to get the police to charge their thief with “unlawful taking”?
“bullet” Trained Wasps! Link

An unusual device that uses trained wasps, rather than trained dogs, to detect specific chemical odors could one day be used to find hidden explosives, plant diseases, illegal drugs, cancer and even buried bodies, according to a joint study by researchers at the University of Georgia and U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“bullet” Crackheads Gone Wild Link
Billed as an Xtreeme documentary, this is a kind of real-life post-modern Reefer Madness for crack, that looks as if it had been created by Dave Chappelle.
“bullet” Will he be charged as an adult? Link

PHILADELPHIA — A 2-year-old boy was removed from his family and his mother could face charges after the child handed his daycare teacher two packets of crack cocaine, and a search of his jacket pocket turned up nine more, police said.
[…]

The toddler talked about the drugs, but it wasn’t clear how much he understood. According to police, he said he took the packets off a table at home.

“bullet” I’ve got some killer parsley. Link

Two Flagler County elementary school pupils were arrested last week after pretending a plastic bag of parsley was marijuana.

An arrest report by Cpl. Don Apperson, a school resource deputy with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, said the two girls, each 10-year-old pupils at Old Kings Elementary School, were showing classmates a plastic bag with a green leafy substance they said was marijuana.
[…]

The girls were charged under a state law that makes it a crime to claim that a substance is a drug — whether or not the item is intended for sale or distribution, according to Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Debra Johnson.

How do they shoot movies or produce plays in Florida?

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Politicians want to take Canada backward, Netherlands forward

Posted on December 4, 2005 by Pete Guither

“bullet” In Canada, conservative Stephen Harper, if elected, promises to get tougher on drugs, including marijuana.

Asked why he would saddle a student who is caught with a small amount of the substance with a criminal record, Mr. Harper said “we believe we have to send a message” that these types of activities are unacceptable. In his talks with people who have become addicted to harder drugs, he said, they almost always say they started with marijuana.

Wow — two top meaningless cliches in one statement — “message” and “gateway.” I would strongly and politely suggest that Canadian citizens not elect this wanker (fully aware that as a U.S. citizen I can’t claim any kind of high ground in terms of the ability to elect non-wankers).
“bullet” In the Netherlands:

A broad coalition of political parties unveiled a pilot program Friday to regulate marijuana farming on the model of tobacco, which opponents say would be tantamount to legalizing growing the drug.

Under the test program, to be conducted in the southern city of Maastricht, existing health and safety standards will apply to growers, but they would no longer be the target of police raids or prosecution.

Coffee shops permitted to sell marijuana would be required to provide consumers with information about the health hazards of smoking – similar to tobacco companies – and the chemical content of the marijuana. The shops would also have to say where they bought the marijuana they sell, which proponents say will deter growers from operating dangerous underground greenhouses.

This would finally end the strange contradiction where coffee shops can legally sell pot, but nobody can legally grow it or supply it to them.
Sounds like a good plan to me.

[Thanks to Tom and Bruce]
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Weeds

Posted on December 4, 2005 by Pete Guither

I spent some time this weekend house-sitting for a friend who has Showtime, and I got a chance to catch up with Showtime’s series Weeds (first 10 episodes).
This is a really outstanding series. First-rate cast, writing and direction. Fascinating characters, and while the unique story line of a suburban housewife selling pot to support her family is the main emphasis, the quirky subplots are also delightful. Intelligent, off-beat comedy.
I may have to get Showtime just for this program.

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Drug War in a Nutshell

Posted on December 4, 2005 by Pete Guither

John at High has been working on a drug war documentary. A five-minute segment of it — Drug War in a Nutshell — is a available as a torrent file download (if you know how to do that).
Good data and a fun format. Check it out.

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Fishy Science

Posted on December 2, 2005 by Pete Guither

Thanks to scottp, comes this breaking news from New Scientist: Cannabis doubles the risk of fatal crashes.
Now since all the reliable data I’ve found indicates that, while smoking pot while driving is a bad idea, it actually causes drivers to be cautious and is actually safer than driving while fatigued, or any of a host of other distractions. So the alarmist nature of this article aroused my curiosity, especially these statements:

“These shocking results prove beyond doubt the dangers of drug-driving, and of mixing drink and drugs before getting behind the wheel,” says Mary Williams, chief executive of Brake, the UK’s national road safety charity. [read MADD]

“We need to see the government doing targeted, prime-time TV advertising on the issue of drug-driving, and we … need to see a national roll out of roadside drugs-testing by the police to catch drug-drivers before they kill or injure innocent road users.”

Whoa. Just what did this study discover?
Let’s look. I’m quoting extensively so you can get a real feel for the extent of this ‘scientific reporting.’

Cannabis almost doubles the risk of fatal car crashes, according to a new study, though smoking the drug is still far less risky than drink-driving, the researchers say.

Stoned drivers were almost twice as likely to be involved in a fatal car crashes than abstemious drivers, according to a study of 10,748 fatal car crashes in France between 2001 and 2003. More than half of the drivers in the study themselves died as a result of their accidents and all the subjects were tested for drug and alcohol use after crashing.

Even after accounting for factors such as the age of the drivers and the condition of the vehicle, the researchers conclude that cannabis caused a significant number of the fatalities, with 2.5% of the crashes directly attributed to cannabis use. Alcohol was the direct cause of about 29%.

Using cannabis and alcohol together was 16 times more risky than driving with neither drug in their body.

“You are more likely to be involved in a crash, probably because of the drug‰s effect on your reaction times and concentration,” says Jean-Louis Martin who carried out the research at the UniveristÚ Claude Bernard in Lyon, France. “But the drug also makes you more vulnerable to the effects of the crash, so you are more likely to die.” The study did not explore why cannabis smokers fair less well in a crash.

There are so many questionable assumptions in this piece that I have absolutely no idea whether there is a lick of real science involved. I do see that cannabis is somehow “responsible” for 2.5% versus 29.0% for alcohol, which certainly doesn’t make cannabis look very bad. And the “more vulnerable to the effects of the crash” stuff? — WTF??
If anybody can track down an English version of the actual research or an abstract from it, please let me know. I have a feeling that we’ll be seeing this quoted by prohibitionists without them having a clue to the actual methodology, and I want to be prepared.
Update: Thanks to everyone who tracked down information. I’ve spent some time reading the study, and I lack the skills to completely parse everything in it.
There were, however, a couple of questionable assumptions used. For example, the study assumes that the prevalence of cannabis use within the overall driving population could be accurately represented by analyzing those drivers involved in minor injury crashes (and this is critical to forming an odds analysis of responsibility). I’m not so sure that it’s a reasonable assumption. Additionally, I question some of the decisions used in determining responsibility for fatal crashes, and groups excluded.

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DEA – business as usual

Posted on December 2, 2005 by Pete Guither

Back in August, I mentioned the case of Essam Magid, a DEA informant that the agency continued to use after the FBI dismissed him for revealing his undercover status and identifying two agents.
Today, the LA Times has a four-page story: Snagging a Rogue Snitch. It’s a stark look at how the DEA operates. Using questionable informants who frame innocent victims while living high on DEA cash. And then DEA agents lie in court to protect their snitches. Fortunately, one Judge wasn’t going along:

U.S. District Court Judge Charles R. Breyer was listening closely. In an earlier hearing before the judge, FBI agent Pifer testified that she had explained to [DEA Agent Dwayne] Bareng the reasons why the FBI had stopped using Magid in 2002.

Breyer testily pointed out the discrepancy in the two versions. After a break, Bareng got back on the stand and changed his story. Pifer had told him the reason for the firing, he said. Furthermore, Bareng acknowledged, he had discussed the matter with Magid as well as with his DEA supervisor.

Now Breyer was angry.

Breyer: “So the fact that an informant comes in, lies to the FBI, you find out about it, Magid comes and tells you that he lied to the FBI — that’s just nowhere in the DEA records; is that right? And you had conversations with the DEA and there are no records of that; is that right?”

Bareng: “That’s correct.”

The judge had heard enough. He suggested that Bareng, his supervisor and maybe others had relied knowingly on a “lawless” informant “who has been chastised by the government, who has been fired for it.” More than that, Bareng may have perjured himself, Breyer told prosecutors.

In a rare scene, Bareng soon invoked his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination and asked for a lawyer. Within minutes, Hunter, the assistant U.S. attorney, was passed a note from her superiors: The government moved to dismiss the case against Ismael.

That might have been the end of it all, but the judge wasn’t done. Because witness misconduct and potential perjury had occurred in a case before his court, Breyer said he was compelled to call for an investigation.

The probe, which is being conducted by the inspector general’s office and federal prosecutors from San Diego, is centered on Magid’s possible obstruction of justice.

Investigators are also exploring whether Bareng lied in court about the DEA’s knowledge of Magid’s reckless behavior, whether the agent encouraged some of that conduct and how much his higher-ups knew.

Time for the DEA to pay up for lawless behavior.
Note: This is a problem that goes all the way up to the top. I wrote some time ago about Deputy DEA Director Michele Leonhart and her questionable connections with super-snitch Andrew Chambers.

[Thanks to jackl for the tip.]
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Wishful Drug-Warrior Thinking

Posted on December 2, 2005 by Pete Guither

Walters and the other prohibitionists have been bragging recently about a recent spike in the street price of cocaine.
CATO’s Ted Galen Carpenter, writing at NRO, stuffs that spike down their throat:

f you had received a dollar every time a U.S. government official announced that victory was near at hand in the war on drugs, you would be a rich person. […]

Carpenter uses Walter’s numbers against him to demonstrate that the claims are baseless.

For the past twelve years, street prices of cocaine have fluctuated between $120 and $190 per gram. Clearly, a price of $170 is well within that “normal” range. Indeed, the price of cocaine has fluctuated 19 percent or more — both up and down — many times during the twelve-year period. The latest fluctuation is nothing to get excited about.

If one examines the price trend over a longer period, the “achievement” is even less impressive. During the early 1980s, cocaine sold for more than $500 per gram. The long-term trend has clearly been toward lower prices, suggesting that the supply of cocaine has become more plentiful.

In conclusion, Carpenter takes on the entire philosophy of the drug warrior:

The reality is that a supply-side strategy of drug prohibition cannot produce a worthwhile result. If it fails and drug supplies remain plentiful, it is a waste of time and money. If it “succeeds” and creates a supply shortage and a resulting price spike, it drives addicts into lives of greater and greater criminal behavior. One would be hard-pressed to come up with a better definition of an inherently bankrupt policy.

That last is a very interesting point, which is often overlooked. The one caveat I’d add, is that while I agree with Carpenter’s conclusion — including, to a degree, the likely results if the supply side strategy of drug prohibition “succeeds” — I’ve seen no evidence to suggest that it is possilble for such a strategy to succeed.

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The more science studies, the more cannabis impresses

Posted on December 1, 2005 by Pete Guither

Cannabis Could Reverse Psychosis

AUSTRALIAN researchers believe cannabis, a drug believed to increase the risk of psychosis, may also be able to reverse psychotic behaviour.

Scientists at Melbourne’s Monash University say they have found a chemical compound in cannabis, cannabidiol, that reverses drug-induced behavioural disturbances in mice.

The marijuana-psychosis links have always been questionable, due to methodology and self-medication issues. Now it may be that there are also countering elements within marijuana.
Just like marijuana smoke has carcinogenic compounds, and yet marijuana itself counters with anti-cancer properties.
Every bit of evidence so far seems to show cannabis to be the most amazing plant in creation. If only we weren’t so afraid to study it.

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Drugs and Death

Posted on December 1, 2005 by Pete Guither

Nguyen Tuong Van was hung in Singapore a couple of hours ago. But before we spend too much time discussing this individual who was put to death for smuggling drugs, keep in mind that he has a lot of company in certain parts of the world.
From this article in CNN today [thanks to dwrr], the use of execution for drug crimes is startlingly common.
Despite the fact that death penalty figures are kept a closely guarded secret in many countries (so detailed statistics are often hard to track down), it appears that

[…] more than 420 prisoners have been hanged in Singapore since 1991, most of them for drug trafficking, […]

[Vietnam in 2004] sentenced 88 people to death, half for drug offenses […]

Indonesia […] has 54 people under the sentence of death, with 30 of those facing execution convicted of drug-related crimes, Amnesty reports. […]

In Thailand, possessing 20 grams [less than one ounce] or more of a Class A drug (which includes ecstasy, amphetamines) at an exit point such as a sea- or airport is regarded as trafficking, and if found guilty, an offender will be punished with death.

Despite the profligate use of the death penalty for drug cases (Aren’t there worse criminals for them to go after?), drug use and trafficking still seem to flourish in those countries.
And how about Thailand? Less than an ounce? If you’ve got any enemies, it sure would be easy for them to slip less than an ounce in your pocket without your knowledge as you’re heading for the airport.
Well, I think I know some of the countries I’m crossing off my vacation itinerary.

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