Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

Neill Franklin's visit to Hilo generating interest!

2012-01-26T21:23:00.005-05:00

We fondly remember David's Bratzer's visit to the Big Island two years ago, and we are looking forward to Neill's visit to Hilo on Friday February 3rd.

We've been working on his schedule and it is filling in nicely...it won't be an easy "aloha Friday" for Neill after his busy four days in Honolulu...

He'll start off by meeting Hawaii County Councilman Dennis "Fresh" Onishi. It is a "Furlough Friday" so we really appreciate Councilman Onishi extending his aloha.

Next up, the Rotary Club of Hilo, an organization with many conservative members. The Hawaii County Chief of Police (Harry Kubojiri) recently made a presentation before this group (mostly about the concerns of the local police regarding the state's medical marijuana program), so Neill's presentation will no doubt raise a few eyebrows. Can't wait to gauge the reaction of the attendees once the presentation is over.

Our friends at Global HOPE, Noelie Rodriguez and the students, were able to reserve the Campus Central Plaza at UH Hilo, so Neill will become the second LEAP speaker to wow the students with his message (D Bratz got there first, yo!).

Finally, a very favorable crowd is expected at 4:30pm at the East Hawaii Cultural Council. Neill will most certainly be "preaching to the choir" at this event, which is open to the public. We expect that many victims of the "War on Drugs" from this community will be in attendance, and Neill message of change and reconciliation is going to be a healing one for many.

Local blogs are picking up the story...

http://hawaiinewsdaily.com/

http://www.bigislandnewscenter.com/

And, the Big Island Weekly, which publishes on a Wednesday is looking to do a story which would hit the stands two days before Neill's arrival.

It is going to be a great day!

Corrections Superintendent and Police Chief Testify in NH for Marijuana Legalization

2012-01-25T06:30:00.001-05:00

Bill to Tax and Regulate Marijuana Sales Could Raise Millions in New Revenue

CONCORD, NH -- An active duty New Hampshire corrections superintendent will testify before a state House of Representatives committee today in favor of a bill that would allow the NH Department of Revenue Administration to license and tax the sale of marijuana to adults over 21. The bill, HB 1705, will be heard by the House Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee at 11:00 AM EST in Legislative Office Building Room 204.

Richard Van Wickler, the corrections superintendent for Cheshire County, NH, will appear in support of the bill. "As an active duty jail superintendent, I've seen how marijuana prohibition doesn't do anything to reduce marijuana use but does cause a host of other problems, from taking up space in already crowded jails to funding a violent black market controlled by gangs and cartels."

Van Wickler is a speaker for the organization Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), an international group of police officers, judges, corrections officials, border agents and other criminal justice professionals who have witnessed the failures of the so-called "war on drugs" firsthand.

At the hearing, Van Wickler, who was named "Corrections Superintendent of the Year" for 2011 by the New Hampshire Association of Counties, will also hand-deliver written testimony on behalf of fellow LEAP speaker and active Plainfield, Connecticut chief of police Robert Hoffman. "Of course LEAP, like other law enforcement organizations, does not endorse or condone marijuana use," Hoffman says in his testimony. "But that is not the issue here, because to regulate the manufacture and sale of marijuana is not an endorsement or condonation of its use. On the contrary, regulating the market for marijuana will take it out of the control of violent gangs and cartels."

New Hampshire spends over $17.2 million enforcing its marijuana prohibition laws every year, according to Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron. He says the state could take in an additional $12.6 million in new revenue through legal and taxed sales of marijuana.

The full text of the bill being heard today and other information can be found at http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2012/HB1705.html

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, prison wardens, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2012
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

Awaiting Neill's visit to Hawaii

2012-01-24T03:28:00.006-05:00

Aloha to all in LEAP Blog land...

Just a quick hello, trying to get back into the habit of updating this.

We are looking forward to Neill Franklin's upcoming visit to Hawaii the week of January 29...most of his time will be (well) spent on Oahu...he's got a debate at the UH Richardson Law School, visiting classes at UH Manoa, Chaminade and Hawaii Pacific Universities, taping two segments for "Hawaii InJustice" all in place, with other events still taking form.

And, we on the Big Island will be fortunate to have Neill with us all day on Friday February 3rd in Hilo. He'll be meeting with one of the more conservative County Council members, doing a lunch presentation for the Rotary Club of Hilo (a conservative group for sure), and he will finish the day in front of a no doubt more supportive crowd at the East Hawaii Cultural Council on Kalakaua Street in downtown.

LEAP Pushes Back Against Federal Threats to Colorado's Medical Marijuana Program

2012-01-23T12:37:00.000-05:00

Today Colorado-based and national representatives of LEAP sent a stern letter to U.S. Attorney John Walsh, pushing back against his recent threats to medical marijuana centers that operate legally under state and local law. The full text of the letter follows, and is also available as a PDF here.

January 23, 2012

Dear U.S. Attorney John Walsh:

    As fellow law-enforcement colleagues vitally interested in the health and well-being of children, we must respectfully register our fundamental objection to your recent issuance of 23 letters threatening state-legal Colorado Medical Marijuana Centers and their landlords with civil, criminal and forfeiture sanctions. That you would justify this action on the basis of the locations in question being too close to schools for your liking (compliance with state and local law notwithstanding) is ironic and highlights the failure of the very federal marijuana prohibition policy that underlies the threats in your letter, as we’ll explain.

    Certainly, you must be aware that the voters of Colorado and the Colorado legislature – like the voters and lawmakers of 16 other states – have made it abundantly clear that marijuana is medicine for many people and for many ailments, and that its use and provision to patients should be allowed under the law.

    Almost two years ago, in a bipartisan fashion, the Colorado Senate and House of Representatives enacted a strict dual licensing system for Medical Marijuana Centers that requires a license by the local and state government. All the businesses you have targeted are operating with approval from their local governments and the state of Colorado.

        For you to join maverick prosecutors in California, Montana, Rhode Island, Washington and other states in going out of your way to short-circuit the will of the people and their elected representatives and to place obstacles between patients and their medicine is short-sighted and inimical to the public health, safety and welfare. Your actions bring law-enforcement into disrepute with the spoken will of the voters and their state representatives.

    No law prohibits the location of a physician’s office, hospital or pharmacy within 1,000 feet of a school. So, why would you exercise your prosecutorial discretion in such a way so as to make life more difficult for certain patients and their caregivers in Colorado? It’s not as if these actions will do anything to reduce the illegal trade in marijuana – near schools or otherwise. Expect quite the opposite.

    Those of us who have been working on the front lines to enforce – and reform – the drug laws in this country for years have frequently heard about medical marijuana patients who had to hit the streets to find the doctor-recommended medicine they needed. The medical marijuana centers in Colorado have provided patients like this a safe alternative and have reduced marijuana distribution on the streets. You are doing a disservice to the state of Colorado by using your discretionary prosecutorial power to undermine state and local regulations in a manner that will likely increase the underground distribution of marijuana.

    You seek to put medicine outside the reach of sick people in the name of law enforcement and federal legal superiority under the guise of a minimum 1,000-foot separation between a school and medicine.

   Instead, please recognize that the longstanding policy of prohibition itself – which we, like you, were once charged with enforcing – has made schools and parks the focal point for drug distribution, drug information and drug requisition.

    We can blame marijuana prohibition for the fact that the federal Monitoring the Future study found that a whopping 82% of high school seniors say that it would be “fairly easy” or “very easy” to get their hands on marijuana. Sixty-nine percent of tenth graders report the same thing. Prohibition-empowered drug dealers within our schools are responsible, not licensed and regulated dispensaries. Studies from Brown University and elsewhere show that state medical marijuana laws have not led to increases in teenage marijuana use rates compared to states without legal medical marijuana. Any federal actions to expand the reach of marijuana prohibition and close down Medical Marijuana Centers in Colorado will not be good for public safety, they won’t be good for kids and they certainly won’t help patients.

    Prosecutorial discretion is broad but not without limits, such as good reason, thoughtfulness, judgment and a rational relationship to the public health, safety and welfare, not to mention the will of the people of the State of Colorado. Please consider the full consequences of following through on your recent letters before any further action by your office on this matter.

Sincerely,

Neill Franklin
Executive Director
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition

Leonard Frieling
Former Municipal Court Judge, Lafayette, Colorado
Practicing Criminal Defense Attorney, Boulder, Colorado

Tony Ryan
Retired Lieutenant Police Officer, Denver Colorado

Speaking out, but still silenced: Anonymous cop criticizes War on Drugs

2012-01-17T17:51:00.006-05:00

This post is the first in a new blog series by an anonymous police officer who wants to join LEAP in publicly speaking out against the “war on drugs” but is afraid to because he fears being punished by his department.

As an active duty veteran police officer, I would love to publicly join Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and freely speak out against the drug war. However, I am scared, yes scared, to join LEAP publicly. Although many active duty law enforcers are already speaking out publicly with LEAP and maintaining their careers (more on them later), I believe I would be punished by my department for my advocacy or perhaps even fired.

Despite my current silence, I believe a paradigm shift regarding the drug war is quietly occurring in every law enforcement agency in this country, thanks in large part to the efforts of LEAP. This paradigm shift is palpable— I can see it, feel it, and on occasion I hear it slip out from fellow officers and even supervisors once in a blue moon. I firmly believe things are about to change in this country, and when they do, those within law enforcement will be jumping off this drug war rat ship like it was on fire. And the jumpers will proclaim that they knew the drug war was wrong the whole time. But alas, I am not here to judge or point fingers at those wearing badges—I wear one too. I too am riding on that drug war rat ship. Gladly, I will be jumping off that rat ship with everyone else. In the meantime, I can point no fingers, except at myself.

Russ Belville of NORML SHOW LIVE reads this blog post out loud:

For those of us in law enforcement, we are quite sensitive and aware as to the consequences of publicly joining LEAP. For those not in law enforcement, a further explanation is in order. Allow me to describe why active duty cops generally do not speak out publicly regarding the harm from drug prohibition, even when they know it is wrong. Let us begin with the viewpoint of your average person in law enforcement.

We are scared that in “rocking the boat” and speaking out:

1) We will be terminated and lose everything.

2) We will get passed over for promotion, lose the position that we currently hold, or fail to be transferred to more desirable assignments within our agency.

3) Fellow officers and supervisors will blacklist us for appearing “weak” or “soft on crime”.

These are the everyday real-life reasons why I have not gone public, and why I believe active duty members of law enforcement usually remain silent about the 800 lb. “drug war” gorilla in the room.

There are also underlying psychological and personality reasons that make cops reluctant to speak out:

1. Ego

2. Ignorance

3. Denial

4. Fear

5. Lack of shame of #1-#4

I will be the first to assert the primary reason for my silence, and the silence of most cops, is an economic one (the fear of losing my job). But after 40 years of an insane drug war, is economics the only reason cops have generally remained silent? Honestly? Give me a break. This is not just about fear of losing one’s job—this is also about the character and spirit of the person wearing the uniform. Ignorance, for many cops, listed above, is a self-imposed ignorance of “not wanting” to know.

An additional reason many cops are reluctant to speak out against the drug war is a pervasive mentality that says, “We don’t make the laws, we just enforce ‘em.”

After nearly two decades of being a cop, I am disturbed by this mentality on a daily basis. I am disturbed that my fellow officers generally disassociate themselves from enforcing bad laws. I have often wondered at what point cops would voice distaste for politicians creating even more outrageous laws. Is the general silence due to the 40-year drug war political campaign? Has this made these bad laws acceptable in society? Is it because some politicians and newscasters reading teleprompters tell us these bad laws are OK? (Of course, there are more and more leading politicians speaking out loudly against the drug war these days, a trend that is likely to continue.) Is it because our churches are generally silent on this issue? Is it because your mom lied (and my mom also lied) about the drug war? My answer: all of the above. So...when a young cadet walks in to his or her first day of the police academy, all too often the hearts and minds of these future cops are well conditioned for what is to follow.

I remember the very first day of my police academy when a veteran cop came strutting in the classroom wearing the gun and badge that we all wanted so badly. I looked around the classroom and everyone, myself included, looked up to this cop with respect and reverence. We all wanted to be this guy. With bravado and feeling, this cop strolled around the classroom and eyeballed each one of us, informing us how to think and act if we wanted to be a cop. We hung on every word. One of the bullet points drilled in to us was: “We don’t make the laws, we just enforce ‘em.” No one raised his or her hand to debate this—it was a take it or leave it statement. We took it. We wanted that badge. Trust me, this exact same mentality is alive and well in virtually every police department in the U.S.

So what does this have to do with cops, myself included, failing to speak out publicly against the drug war? Because we are trained from day one to detach ourselves from the emotional aspect of the law, to simply enforce the law. In other words, we are not supposed to have an opinion on whether a law is good or bad. We are supposed to be robot drones, albeit with some discretion, and enforce the law whether we like the law or not. It is this mentality that is pervasive among the men and women in law enforcement. It is this mentality that has grown another branch on the tree of silence regarding our failed drug laws.

After doing this job for many years, I can tell you that many officers have, at least to some degree, convinced themselves that enforcing bad laws is okay because they themselves did not make these bad laws. Therefore, why would an officer publicly speak out about bad laws for which they have no control? This is the real culture within law enforcement that is nurtured and carefully taught to every class of young men and women cadets. It is time for this mentality to stop.

“But what about freedom of speech!” you ask? (Pardon me for a moment while I laugh.) One would think that law enforcement officers would have freedom of speech. But officers have been terminated for expressing their views about the failed policy in the war on drugs. Have some law enforcement officials publicly joined LEAP and kept their careers? Yes, and thank God for these exceptions.

For example, LEAP speaker, Richard Van Wickler, has worked in law enforcement for over 20 years, the last 15 as superintendent for the Cheshire County (NH) Department of Corrections. For years, Wickler has spoken out publicly against our failed drug war, yet has maintained his career, even being named “Corrections Superintendent of the Year” in 2011 by the New Hampshire Association of Counties.

Other active duty members of LEAP have faced resistance. Jonathan Wender, then a police sergeant in Mountlake Terrace, Washington, for example, was fired for his anti-prohibition advocacy. But Wender didn’t take it sitting down; he sued, and in January 2009, the department settled, reinstating Wender and giving him back pay and full benefits.

So, things are slowly getting better and, I believe, will get better thanks to organizations like LEAP. But in general, at the time of this writing, we as public servants will in many cases lose everything by publicly speaking out against this shameful war on people.

Hopefully this starts to give you a sense of why many cops who know the drug war needs to end are reluctant to say so in public. In my next post, I’ll discuss how I came to find out about LEAP and further elaborate on the reasons I want to speak out but am reluctant to.

Cops and Judges Applaud Canadian Liberal Party’s Marijuana Legalization Resolution

2012-01-16T20:18:00.001-05:00

Current and former law enforcement officers offer to meet with party officials

VANCOUVER, BC -- An international organization of police officers, judges, prosecutors and drug enforcement agents welcomes the approval of Resolution 117 at the Liberal Biennial Convention. Resolution 117 calls for the legalization and regulation of marijuana, as well as a pardon for those previously convicted of simple possession. Delegates to the convention passed Resolution 117 by an overwhelming vote of 77% to 23%.

“We do not endorse political parties or candidates,” says David Bratzer, president of the Canadian branch of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). “However, we do support actions that lead to good drug policy. The Liberal convention delegates have done this by calling for an end to the destructive and wasteful policy of marijuana prohibition.”

Bratzer emphasizes the importance of this policy initiative: “Some commentators have suggested that the delegates wasted their time on a side issue, but nothing could be further from the truth. Prohibition costs Canadian taxpayers well over $2 billion per year, and does nothing except make organized crime rich. The delegates have proven that they are serious about using tax money responsibly and intelligently.”

Bratzer is a serving police officer in British Columbia who participates in LEAP while off-duty. His personal views do not represent those of his employer, but they are shared by many other Canadians. According to an Angus Reid poll conducted in November 2010, 50% of Canadians support the legalization of marijuana, while 44% are opposed.

“LEAP is an educational organization. In this capacity, we extend an open invitation to elected officials and party members from across the political spectrum. Please contact us if you or your organization would like to meet and learn about the failure of drug prohibition,” says John Anderson, vice-president of LEAP Canada and a former correctional officer. Dr. Anderson is also a professor of Criminology at Vancouver Island University.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. LEAP does not endorse or support any political parties or candidates for public office. For more information, visit http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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For immediate release: January 16, 2012
CONTACT: Steve Finlay – (604) 315-5635 or steve.finlay@leap.cc

Tom Angell – (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

Some changes for the New Year

2012-01-09T13:37:00.000-05:00

First, regular viewers of the Mapping Project will notice the addition of a new marker on the maps: an outline of a male or female figure in white. In the western legal tradition, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law and it is on this basis that we map the executions in Mexico--as a red balloon marker for all civilians, regardless if they are said to be "bad guys" by the government, the military, the police or the press. However, it was raised as an issue (by some viewers) about those who are, without doubt, innocent: the weeks-old baby, the 4-year-old girl or the woman driving in her car who is caught in the crossfire of a gang shoot out. For these undeniable cases we will now include this new marker. The use of the red balloon markers, however, still does not indicate the culpability of the person who dies, that is not for us to decide, rather the marker only indicates that there was a death that was related to organized crime/narco activity.

Second, the weekly count that we have been displaying (here: www.policereform.org) has been based upon the numbers provided by La Reforma, a respected newspaper whose research is used by many academics and researchers. For the overall total (now at 54,432) We have calculated the dead from the base number provided by the last government report in January 2011 (34,612 people killed in narco-related violence since Dec 2006 -- see my blog here for details) and then adding La Reforma's weekly updates. As of January 1, 2012 this will change, as we will now provide the updated figures based upon our own research with the data available on our public maps, for all to scrutinize. The reason for this is that we cannot challenge or check La Reforma's methodology, and unless you are a subscriber to their paper (as well as able to read Spanish) you cannot even obtain access to these numbers.

Morally, it is somewhat reprehensible that such data (concerning the havoc that is occurring in Mexico) is, firstly, not collected and made widely available by the government in a transparent and timely fashion and, secondly, that private agencies tie this important data to a subscription model...making a tangential profit off of the grief and misery of others. The Mapping Project will now address both of these issues--all data collected is displayed on public maps and the count maintained and updated weekly, free for the viewing. Full Disclosure: I do maintain a database of the collected data as well, but any analysis will be fee-based (we have to pay for this service in some fashion).

For a map of the killings: click: Narco-killings
Website: WM Consulting

Follow on Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/wmmckay

Arizona Medical Marijuana Discrimination by CPS

2012-01-06T10:02:00.003-05:00

Arizona Child Protective Services is discriminating against grandparents wanting custody of their grandchildren because they have Arizona medical marijuana cards.

That's what a CPS case worker told me last night. Four of our grandchildren are in CPS custody, and we felt we were being discriminated against because of our medical marijuana use, but no one from CPS would say it out loud until last night.

The Arizona Revised Statutes Section 36-2813, Discrimination Prohibited is quite clear about this, and says, "No person may be denied custody of or visitation or parenting time with a minor, and there is no presumption of neglect or child endangerment for conduct allowed under this chapter, unless the person’s behavior creates an unreasonable danger to the safety of the minor as established by clear and convincing evidence".

I filed a complaint with the Arizona ACLU, so we'll so what happens.........

Cops Who Support Legalizing Marijuana to Question Presidential Candidates

2012-01-05T12:59:00.001-05:00

Polls Show More Americans Support Legalizing Marijuana Than Oppose It

CONCORD, NH -- Several active duty and retired members of law enforcement will question presidential candidates on the campaign trail in New Hampshire today and tomorrow about the failed war on drugs they've been asked to wage.

"As an active duty jail superintendent, I've seen how the drug war doesn't do anything to reduce drug abuse but does cause a host of other problems, from prison overcrowding to a violent black market controlled by gangs and cartels," said Richard Van Wickler, the serving corrections superintendent in Cheshire County, NH and a board member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). "For a long time this issue has been treated like a third rail by politicians, but polls now show that voters overwhelmingly agree that the drug war is a failure and that a new direction is sorely needed."

WHO: Cheshire County, NH Corrections Superintendent Richard Van Wickler; Plainfield, CT Chief of Police Robert Hoffman and other law enforcement officials

WHAT: Panel discussion and questioning of presidential candidates on ending the war on drugs

WHEN: All day Thursday and Friday, January 5-6; Panel discussion at 1:00 PM Thursday

WHERE: 2012 College Convention; Grappone Conference Center; 70 Constitution Ave.; Concord, NH (1:00 PM Thurs discussion panel in Merrimack Room).

Gallup has been asking Americans about marijuana legalization for more than 40 years. This October, for the first time ever, the firm found that more Americans support legalizing marijuana than oppose it (50%-46%). The support for legalization is up from 36% five years ago and just 25% in the late nineties. According to Zogby, three out of four Americans believe the overall war on drugs has been a failure.

Among the Republican candidates, only Ron Paul has forcefully called for an end to the drug war. Gov. Rick Perry and Gov. Jon Hunstman have said that states should be allowed to legalize medical marijuana without federal interference. Newt Gingrich, when asked by a woman in New Hampshire this week whether she should be arrested for her drug use, said, "No, you shouldn't be arrested for recreational drug use but you also shouldn't do it." President Obama, while opposing legalization, has said that it is "an entirely legitimate topic for debate."

In questioning the Republican contenders after their speeches at the 2012 College Convention (http://www.nec.edu/college-convention), the pro-legalization police officers hope to get more candidates on the record about the ineffectiveness and harms of the war on drugs, and to demonstrate that advocating for an end to prohibition is an increasingly viable political strategy.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, prison wardens, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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NEWS ADVISORY: January 5, 2012
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

If there were not Chapo, we would have to invent him (with apologies to Wilde)

2011-12-09T14:06:00.001-05:00

Following in the footsteps of Eduardo Gutiérrez Guerrero [1], I am going to state the obvious: to focus on arresting the leaders of TCOs rather than systematically dismantling the organization itself will only lead to the fracturing of the organization and increased violence as others try to fill the leadership void (the point proven by charts provided by Gutiérrez). If President Calderón were truly sincere about “combating” organized crime, rather than deploying soldiers in the streets he would focus the state’s resources in competent investigations of ALL those involved, seizing all assets, and tracking down the organizations, businessmen and politicians who collaborate with the narcos as anywhere from 40 to 60 billion dollars a year of illicit cash washes through Mexico each year (or half a trillion since Calderón declared war). With a pool of 7 million “ninis” (youths who neither work nor study and who have little hope to do so) from which to draw, organized criminal groups can easily afford a war of attrition. TCOs offer the ninis what the government cannot and the elites will not, who see them as nothing more than castoff proles or proletarians [2].

The Calderón administration trumpets Ciudad Juaréz as a success with its unenlightened strategy but, although the death rate has fallen, it is not as precipitous as claimed since the administration tends to fiddle with statistics. In this case it is by using data from the highest month of casualties (October 2010 with an average of 11 per day) to compare it to one of the lowest months (April 2011 with an average closer to 6 per day not the 4 stated by Alejandro Poire [3]) claiming a 60% drop when in fact within this time-frame it was closer to 30%--which is not insignificant, and part of a trend of declining deaths for 2011, but certainly not the 60% claimed by the glib Poire (at the time he served as the federal security spokesperson but is now serving as the Interior Minister, the second highest post next to that of President). Both October of 2010 and April of 2011 were anomalies [4], and a more honest accounting would use the average number of people killed in 2010 (which was 9 per day) and compare this with the first four months of 2011 (including April) which has an average of 7 per day, with January and February both surpassing 200 deaths each (January - 222 and February - 231) [5].

But Ciudad Júarez is not the only city in Mexico experiencing hyper-violence as, under this strategy that has the top leaders of TCOs being killed or captured by the war-machine, violence has spread undeterred throughout the country, especially through the pacific states [6]. The latest example is Sinaloa where, for the last few months now, things have been percolating in and around the cities of Culiacán, Mazatlán and Los Mochis (see pie chart below):

Although the violence in Sinaloa has been off of the radar of the major media outlets the lid blew off last week on November 23 with a host of burned bodies, including police officers, turning up in Culiacán, 16 of them publicly charred in 2 burning vehicles as a brazen warning [7]. The Governor of the State, Mario López Valdez, immediately stated that this was between the narcos [8] but a quick answer like this seems a tad facile considering that 32 police commanders in Ahome were recently dismissed [9] and in Tijuana 15 million of Chapo’s money seized [10]. Thus, a different supposition of what is occurring is that Chapo is “cleaning house” for this egregious loss, rather than the imminent attack of the Zetas into Sinaloa territory (a tit-for-tat response to attacks upon the Zetas in Veracruz [11]). Granted, the reprisal theory does seem to be the case with the 20 bodies discovered in Guadalajara, Jalisco the next day [12]...but anybody with a marker and some cardboard can make a “narcomensaje”.

Be that as it may, Calderón´s rhetoric, of making headway against organized crime, does not seem to support the facts as the killers continue to kill en mass, with impunity. Force vs Force as a means to resolve domestic issues is not working, that is, using military weapons and tactics to combat social issues. Trying to address social conditions in terms of war-making and using the army as a domestic police service to combat crime cannot be successful in any sense. Crime and criminals are a result of social phenomena--there is no army to defeat, no leaders who once captured cannot be replaced (at best there is the fracturing of the organization into smaller pieces which will jockey, fight, and coordinate and adapt to continually fill the demands of a voracious drug market). What the war-making has done is make the illicit markets more efficient, the organizations more deadly and created a highly populated “assassin profession” employing thousands of young men (and even women and children).

But, cheered on by the US, Mexico refuses to deter from its ill-trodden path and, despite the fact that the narcos now kill by the truckload, still refuses to change strategy...increasing army patrols of the streets has not prevented assassins from driving around with trucks loaded with dead bodies, dumping them on major thoroughfares and/or lighting them on fire. What is needed is not bullets but competent investigations, rule of law, and a working justice system. Instead of deploying soldiers, Calderón should be “deploying” forensic accountants and investigators, "boring" suits and ties, rather than "sexy" guns and bullets, if he truly wants to wage an effective campaign against organized crime and make the country safer.

Calderon has engaged in a 5 year social experiment, of using the army to combat social problems, rather than focusing on the policing system. The results are in and it is clearly evident that it is not effective. After five years, billions of dollars, international support and assistance, Mexico now suffers from a contagion that has spread from the border to its east and west coasts with police officers kidnapped and killed [13], police forces resigning or fleeing from the towns that they are supposed to protect and serve [14], of cities having to fire their police commanders because of corruption and ties to the narcos, and of executions all over the country that continues to rise each year including those who dare speak out [15].

Now, the question many are asking is if this is a war, should Calderón not be held accountable? [16].

For a map of the killings: click: Narco-killings
Website: WM Consulting

Follow on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/wmmckay

[1] Gutiérrez Guerrero, Eduardo (2011, June 01) La raíz de la violencia. Nexos. Retrieved June 06, 2011 from http://www.nexos.com.mx/?P=leerarticulo&Article=2099328

[2] Malvido, Adriana (2011, December 07) Peña Nieto, redes sociales y ciudadanía. Milenio. Retrieved December 07 2011 from http://impreso.milenio.com/node/9075073

[3] Borderland Beat (2011, May 20) Juarez Homicide rate drops 60% in 6 months, says Federal Security Spokesman. Borderland Beat. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2011/05/juarez-homicide-rate-drops-60-in-6.html

[4] Sosa, Luz del Carmen (2011, May 01) En abril, menor cifra de homicidios en 14 meses. El Diario. Retrieved December 07, 2011 from
http://www.diario.com.mx/notas.php?f=2011/05/01&id=4a49b86c111a74ba9a319cf62dc09983

[5] ibid.

[6] Diego Valle Jones maps out the homicides for 2011, until August, and we can see that the Culican area is a hot spot http://www.diegovalle.net/maps/d3/crime-2011-aug.html

[7] Cabrera, Javier (2011, November 24) 26 muertos en Sinaloa; 16 fueron calcinados: La masacre, por disputa del territorio entre grupos antagónicos: Malova. El Universal. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/811193.html

[8] Debate (2011, November 25) Malova: Se disputan Sinaloa tres cirteles: Son el grupo criminal del Pacífico, los Beltrán Leyva y los Carrillo; familiares de las víctimas de los hechos del miércoles identifican a 10 de los 16 cuerpos. Debate. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from
http://www.debate.com.mx/eldebate/movil/Articulomovil.asp?IdArt=11540450&IdCat=12302

[9] Noreste (2011, November 15) Noreste. Detienen a todos los jefes policíacos de Ahome:
32 mandos fueron citados a una reunión para afinar detalles de operativos donde fueron sorprendidos con su detención. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from
http://www.noroeste.com.mx/publicaciones.php?id=733911&id_seccion=19&fecha=2011-11-15

[10] Noreste (2011, November 23) Incautan a "El Chapo" 15 millones de dólares: Es el segundo aseguramiento más grande de efectivo en lo que va del sexenio; el anterior fueron 26 millones de dólares asegurados en Culiacán. Noreste. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from
http://www.noroeste.com.mx/publicaciones.php?id=735929&id_seccion=

[11] Vanguardia (2011, September 21) Blindan Veracruz tras aparición de 35 cuerpos. Vanguardia. Retrieved December 07, 2011 from
http://www.vanguardia.com.mx/blindanveracruztrasaparicionde35cuerpos-1103136.html

[12] Zamarroni, Ulises (2011, November 24) Hallan al menos 20 cadáveres en Guadalajara: Los cuerpos fueron localizados en tres camionetas abandonadas en la Glorieta de los Arcos del Milenio. El Universal. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/811211.html

[13] CNN México (2011, November 21) Ocho personas, entre ellos tres policías, son secuestrados en Sinaloa: Cinco civiles y tres policías locales fueron secuestrados por hombres armados en el municipio de Angostura. CNN México. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from
http://mexico.cnn.com/nacional/2011/11/21/ocho-personas-entre-ellos-tres-policias-son-secuestrados-en-sinaloa

[14] El Universal. (2011, November 25) Ejército rescata a 14 policías de emboscada en Michoacán: De acuerdo con la PGJE, los elementos municipales fueron rescatados cuando presuntamente iban a ser secuestrados en un paraje de Carácuaro; los sacan de la zona junto con sus familias. El Universal. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/811505.html

[15] Beyliss, Marcelo (2011, November 29) Matan en Sonora a padre de joven desaparecido. El Universal. Retrieved November 29, 2011 from http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/estados/83254.html

[16] BBC (25 November 2011) Mexico activists seek ICC investigation of drugs war. BBC. Retrieved November 25, 2011 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-15899687

New York Times: Active Duty Cops Face Difficulties Joining LEAP

2011-12-05T09:09:00.001-05:00

Over the weekend, the New York Times published a story on the emerging debate within law enforcement about whether we need to end the "war on drugs," and the fact that some officers who support legalization are facing problems on the job.

Stationed in Deming, N.M., [Bryan] Gonzalez was in his green-and-white Border Patrol vehicle just a few feet from the international boundary when he pulled up next to a fellow agent to chat about the frustrations of the job. If marijuana were legalized, Mr. Gonzalez acknowledges saying, the drug-related violence across the border in Mexico would cease. He then brought up an organization called Law Enforcement Against Prohibition that favors ending the war on drugs.

Those remarks, along with others expressing sympathy for illegal immigrants from Mexico, were passed along to the Border Patrol headquarters in Washington. After an investigation, a termination letter arrived that said Mr. Gonzalez held “personal views that were contrary to core characteristics of Border Patrol Agents, which are patriotism, dedication and esprit de corps.”

...

In Arizona, Joe Miller, a probation officer in Mohave County, near the California border, filed suit last month in Federal District Court after he was dismissed for adding his name to a letter by Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, which is based in Medford, Mass., and known as LEAP, expressing support for the decriminalization of marijuana.

...

“No one wants to be fired and have to fight for their job in court,” said Neill Franklin, a retired police officer who is LEAP’s executive director. “So most officers are reluctant to sign on board. But we do have some brave souls.”

...

In the case of Mr. Gonzalez, the fired Border Patrol agent, he had not joined LEAP but had expressed sympathy with the group’s cause. “It didn’t make sense to me why marijuana is illegal,” he said. “To see that thousands of people are dying, some of whom I know, makes you want to look for a change.”

“I don’t want to work at a place that says I can’t think,” said Mr. Gonzalez, who grew up in El Paso, just across the border from Ciudad Juárez, which has experienced some of the worst bloodshed in Mexico.

Mr. Franklin, the LEAP official, said it was natural that those on the front lines of enforcing drug laws would have strong views on them, either way. It was the death of a colleague at the hands of a drug dealer in 2000 that prompted Mr. Franklin, a veteran officer, to begin questioning the nation’s drug policies.

The full story is online here.

White House Dismisses Popular Marijuana Petitions

2011-10-29T11:10:00.001-04:00

Polls Show Marijuana Legalization More Popular Than President Obama

WASHINGTON, DC -- Late Friday night the White House issued a typical evasive rejection of the several marijuana legalization petitions that collected more signatures than any other issue on its "We the People" website. Even though recent polls show that more voters support marijuana legalization than approve of President Obama's job performance, the White House categorically dismissed the notion of reforming any laws, focusing its response on the possible harms of marijuana use instead of addressing the many harms of prohibition detailed in the petitions.

One of the popular petitions, submitted by retired Baltimore narcotics cop Neill Franklin, called on the Obama administration to simply stop interfering with states' efforts to set their own marijuana laws.

"It's maddening that the administration wants to continue failed prohibition polices that do nothing to reduce drug use and succeed only in funneling billions of dollars into the pockets of the cartels and gangs that control the illegal market," said Franklin, who serves as executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group of cops, judges and prosecutors who support legalizing and regulating drugs. "If the president and his advisers think they're being politically savvy by shying away from much-needed change to our drug policies, they're wrong. The recent Gallup poll shows that more Americans support legalizing marijuana than support continuing prohibition, so the administration is clearly out of step with the people it claims to represent. President Obama needs to remember his campaign pledge not to waste scarce resources interfering with state marijuana laws and his earlier statement about the 'utter failure' of the drug war."

Five of the top 10 petitions on the "We the People" site are about some aspect of marijuana or drug policy reform. The eight marijuana petitions that the White House's Friday rejection was intended to address have collectively garnered more than 150,00 signatures.

This isn't the first time that marijuana policy reform has proven popular in online forums hosted by the White House. A question from LEAP member and former sheriff's deputy MacKenzie Allen got the most votes in a White House YouTube forum this January. Marijuana questions also dominated the White House's "Open for Questions" online town hall in March 2009 and the Obama transition team's Change.gov website in late 2008. Each time, the administration has issued terse rejections that contradict Obama's 2004 statement that "we need to rethink and decriminalize our marijuana laws."

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the war on drugs and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

# # #

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 29, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

New Ken Burns PBS Documentary Brings "Prohibition" Lesson to Modern America

2011-09-28T19:03:00.000-04:00

More Politicians Joining the Call to End "War on Drugs"

Cops Who Fought "Drug War" Say It's Time for Legalization

WASHINGTON, DC -- As more politicians and world leaders declare willingness to consider ending the "war on drugs," a group of law enforcers who fought that war says a new Ken Burns PBS documentary about alcohol prohibition premiering Sunday provides an important lesson for today's prohibition on marijuana and other illegal drugs.

"Does anyone think making the dangerous drug alcohol illegal actually decreased the harm associated with its use, abuse and distribution?" asked Neill Franklin, a retired Baltimore narcotics cop who now heads up Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). "Just as then, today's prohibition on drugs doesn't accomplish much to reduce harmful use and only serves to create gruesome violence in the market where none would exist under noncriminal regulation. Legalizing these drugs will make our streets safer by reducing the crime and violence associated with their trade, just as when we re-legalized alcohol."

Many current and former elected officials are calling for a re-evaluation of the "war on drugs" and a growing number are even suggesting that marijuana and other drugs should be legalized. For example, last month, Mexican President Felipe Calderon made headlines by saying - in light of an uptick in cartel attacks - that the U.S. should look at "market alternatives" for drug supply if demand can't be reduced.

Advocates are pointing out the parallels between the repeal of alcohol prohibition and today's debate about ending the "war on drugs." For example, one factor that led to the demise of alcohol prohibition was its enormous pricetag for taxpayers during the Great Depression. Today's rough economic climate is leading more politicians to criticize the growing cost of the "war on drugs."

LEAP's Franklin said, "The one major difference between the two prohibitions is that our wise grandparents came to grips with the failure of their experiment to ban alcohol after just 13 years, while the 'drug war' that President Nixon declared 40 years ago is still being prosecuted, more harshly and expensively than ever. It's about time more of our political leaders start to think about an exit strategy."

Other influential leaders and groups recently issuing calls to move away from prohibitionist drug policies include the NAACP, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz, former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, the Washington State Democratic Central Committee and the UK's Liberal Democrat Party.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 29, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

ONE DRUG ARREST EVERY 19 SECONDS IN THE U.S.

2011-09-19T11:42:00.000-04:00

New FBI Numbers Reveal Failure of "War on Drugs"

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A new FBI report released today shows that there is a drug arrest every 19 seconds in the U.S. A group of police and judges who have been campaigning to legalize and regulate drugs pointed to the figures showing more than 1.6 million drug arrests in 2010 as evidence that the "war on drugs" is a failure that can never be won.

"Since the declaration of the 'war on drugs' 40 years ago we've arrested tens of millions of people in an effort to reduce drug use. The fact that cops had to spend time arresting another 1.6 million of our fellow citizens last year shows that it simply hasn't worked. In the current economy we simply cannot afford to keep arresting three people every minute in the failed 'war on drugs,'" said Neill Franklin, a retired Baltimore narcotics cop who now heads the group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). "If we legalized and taxed drugs, we could not only create new revenue in addition to the money we'd save from ending the cruel policy of arresting users, but we'd make society safer by bankrupting the cartels and gangs who control the currently illegal marketplace."

Today's FBI report, which can be found at http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2010/crime-in-the-u.s.-2010, shows that 81.9 percent of all drug arrests in 2010 were for possession only, and 45.8 percent of all drug arrests were for possession of marijuana.

A separate Department of Justice report released last month shows that Mexican drug cartels are currently operating in more than 1,000 U.S. cities, whereas two years ago they were in 230 U.S. cities. Meanwhile, a new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report released earlier this month shows that nearly one in 10 Americans admit to regularly using illegal drugs.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 19, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

War on Marijuana

2011-09-17T09:38:00.003-04:00

Today´s post is by guest writer, Allison Gamble--W. McKay

Marijuana is the most widely used illegal substance in the United States, and the most controversial as well. While some people argue from a forensic psychology standpoint it's an addictive drug that leads to the use of much more addictive and harmful substances, others point to studies that emphasize the exemplary safety profile of the substance. For many people who use it for medicinal or recreational purposes, the perceived benefits outweigh the potential risks. A careful analysis of existing data is needed to determine whether the war on this particular drug is justified.

According to estimates by the University of California Los Angeles, around one fifth of the adult American population has smoked marijuana within the past year, and two to three percent use it on a daily basis. Some people use this drug for its health benefits, which have just begun to be discussed in scientific literature, but include the reduction of nausea and the relief of pain.

The National Academies Press has put together a comprehensive review of the effects of marijuana. It notes studies involving the use of marijuana for cancer pain showed significant pain relief, and when used in conjunction with chemotherapy (which often induces severe nausea) over half of patients were better able to eat and keep down food. Additionally, many patients reported feeling happier and less anxious.

Marijuana has been noted to be effective in treating the pain of several other medical conditions. These include chronic pain, especially when paired with insomnia, due to marijuana's sedative effects; migraine headaches; pain originating from the nerves or due to spinal cord injury; and pain related to HIV/AIDS or its associated therapies. Newer studies suggest marijuana may even exhibit anti-cancer properties. For of these reasons, 16 states have seen fit to legalize the drug for medicinal purposes, and voters in several other states are considering doing so.

Marijuana is frequently compared to alcohol in terms of recreational use. Similarly to alcohol, many people report feeling euphoria and disinhibition after using this drug. Unlike alcohol, however, marijuana does not have a known lethal dose, and the likelihood of harmful physical effects or addiction is actually quite low. In fact, studies are inconclusive as to whether marijuana is even addictive at all. To date, there have been no known fatalities due to overdose of marijuana, and even reports that solely focus on the adverse effects of the drug note it generally has a good safety profile when compared to other recreational drugs.

Although there is a growing acceptance of the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, with up to 73 percent of the population supporting its use as a painkiller and anti-nausea drug, far fewer Americans support outright legalization. State laws that allow this drug to be used as medication conflict with federal laws that keep it completely illegal, and have led to federal raids on dispensaries around the nation, even if no charges were filed. Only further research into the specific benefits and risks posed by this plant will allow Americans to make an informed decision as to whether it should continue to be illegal, or if the war on marijuana should finally be ended.

Allison Gamble has been a curious student of psychology since high school. She brings her understanding of the mind to work in the weird world of internet marketing.

Cops and Judges Endorse California 2012 Marijuana Initiative

2011-09-13T15:51:00.000-04:00

Law Enforcers Say Ending Prohibition Improve Public Safety

SACRAMENTO, CA -- A group of police officers, prosecutors, judges and other criminal justice professionals is announcing its support for the Regulate Marijuana Like Wine Act of 2012, a ballot initiative that would end marijuana prohibition in California. The group, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), represents criminal justice professionals who have been on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and seen its failures and dangers up close.

Stephen Downing, a retired deputy chief of police with the Los Angeles Police Department, said, "This initiative will accomplish what the drug war has failed to do by cutting off the economic engine that fuels gangs, cartels and terrorists. And, instead of wasting millions of dollars to eradicate marijuana, we will bring marijuana under strict regulation and generate billions of dollars through capturing otherwise lost sales tax. Like it or not, marijuana is California's biggest cash crop and it is time we admit prohibition isn't working and start regulating and taxing it instead."

The Regulate Marijuana Like Wine Act of 2012 would repeal prohibition of marijuana for adults aged 21 and older, strictly regulate the sale of marijuana similar to the wine industry and allow hemp agriculture and products. The initiative would not change laws regarding medical marijuana, impairment in the workplace, driving while impaired or use by persons under 21 years old.

Retired California Superior Court Judge James Gray added, "By regulating and controlling marijuana, we will make marijuana less available for our children. Don't take my word for it; ask any teenager you find whether it is easier to get marijuana or alcohol. The answer will be marijuana, because alcohol is regulated and controlled by the government, and marijuana is controlled by illegal marijuana dealers who don't ask for I.D."

More information about the initiative is online at http://www.RegulateMarijuanaLikeWine.com.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

# # #

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 14, 2011
CONTACT: Jim Gray - (714) 328-8829 or JimPGray@sbcglobal.net
Stephen Downing - (562) 433-4043 or steve@sonarnetworks.com

Paradigm Shift

2011-09-08T20:50:00.001-04:00

President Calderón is still befuddled as to why the strategy that he has been pursuing for the last 5 years has not produced the results that he had expected (and for which he is still waiting), i.e., to win the drug war, as evidenced in his speech last week [1]. Aside from a close examination of the colossal failures of Plan Columbia and its kinship to Mexico’s imbroglio, I would like to humbly suggest that the problem is the paradigm through which Calderón views the challenges facing Mexico with regards to organized crime, drugs and security. His rhetoric indicates that he continues to view Mexico at war as is most recently seen by his labelling of criminal acts, such as the recent arson attack of the Casino Royale in Monterrey, as terrorism (of which they clearly are not, no matter how horrific, since these actions are perpetrated for financial gain rather than political aims) [2]. Moreover, Calderón, still operating within this “war-paradigm”, is also incorrect in thinking that the continuance of his current strategy is the only way to win (no matter how long it takes nor how many deaths result) [3].

One thing that President Calderón does get right, however, is that the prodigious US demand for drugs fuels the TCOs in Mexico and in turn the violence that has claimed nearly 48,000 lives (a large part of this is due to his misguided war and security policies) [4]. Everything else he gets wrong including relying on the US and its advisers to continue to follow this path of waging a war upon his fellow citizens (something to which the TCOs are now responding in kind through using any and all military grade weapons and munitions as well as building their own homemade tanks [5]).

It is erroneous for Calderón to adopt US “war-paradigm” policies and strategies to address social issues. We know this because, after over 40 years and trillions of dollars (yes trillions, not millions, not billions), the US still does not have a definitive policy nor practice that can enforce prohibition. As an example of this failure, the US tries to build a wall along the Mexican boarder when it cannot even keep contraband out of the most secure facilities it has--prisons--where drug use and abuse is rampant (just ask any warden or guard). The US continues to jail anyone who buys, sells or uses illegal drugs, with nothing to show other than the highest incarceration rate in the world coupled with the highest drug use in the world (clearly the tactics of fear are not working). As a grand social experiment, which has been conducted for over 4 decades (and is still, sadly, underway), the US has proven, without a shadow of a doubt, that the use of force to address social and health issues is not efficacious, that this “war-paradigm” does not work.

So, given the above, President Calderón needs to realize that if the use of force did not work with the US with its well-funded, well-trained and well-equipped armies (both police and military) it certainly will not work in Mexico with its poorly-funded, poorly-trained and poorly-equipped security forces (both the military and the police) stumbling along, relying “on numbers over intelligence and [which] falls back on time-worn tactics, such as highway checkpoints, of limited use against drug traffickers... [and] left the U.S. pointedly criticizing the force as "virtually blind" on the ground” [6]. Furthermore, for Calderón to continue to operate under a “war-paradigm”, and the poor results being achieved so far, has some seeing US forces in Mexico as inevitable [7].

But, what if we step back from this paradigm, and realise that it is not a war, what is to be done to address the threat of the TCOs? One option is to examine the structural elements--those that give rise to organized crime; the venues for their profits; and, the recruitment of Mexico´s poor into its ranks--something that is lacking under Calderón’s “war-paradigm”. A good example for us to turn to is Britain’s fight against highwaymen, desperate ex-soldiers-turned-robbers who, for the most part, when released from the war with little or no opportunity for work and the availability of quick cash to be made by a gun, turned to robbing stagecoaches in the 17th and 18th Centuries. Operating under the “war-paradigm” soldiers were deployed, strategies employed, rhetoric evoked and victories announced with each arrest made (sound familiar?) all for naught as the highwaymen continued in their trade, frustrating the British government’s efforts to combat this threat. Despite the efforts of an Empire nearing the height of its power and glory, one where the phrase "his Majesty's dominions, on which the sun never sets," was apt, and yet could do little to to prevent the scourge of highwaymen.

What did prove effective against the highwayman was a structural adjustment, i.e., the invention/introduction of bank drafts and cheques, the innovation of transferring money through the use of a document rather than physically bearing one’s riches (gold, silver and other valuables were untraceable and could be used by anyone)...bank instruments which could then be tracked and canceled if they were stolen (and a new draft reissued) thus making useless those stolen by the highwayman.

A paradigm shift, something for President Calderón to consider as he enters the sunset of his governing tenure...

[1] Tovrov, Daniel (2011 Sept 5) Mexico's Drug War: Can President Calderon Win? International Business Times. Retrieved Sept 5, 2011 from http://hken.ibtimes.com/articles/208652/20110905/mexico-drug-war-gang-president-calderon.htm

[2] ibid.

[3] ibid.

[4] But, Calderón is incorrect in thinking that the problem solely rests from being a neighbour to such a voracious consumer for Canada is as well yet does not suffer from the atrocious deaths and powerful TCOs that plague Mexico. Why is this? This is where the finger has to point back to himself, his fellow politicians, and the elite who control the wealth and resources of the country (with no intention of sharing), of the corruption that runs throughout all levels of government and without any serious efforts to bring about reform, accountability or transparency. For a count of those killed since President Calderón came to power see: https://sites.google.com/site/policereform/narco-killings

[5] Housworth, Gordon (2011, July 19) 'Narco-tanks': Cartel Competition Elevates to Asymmetrical Weapons. Insight Crime. Retrieved September 05, 2011 from http://www.insightcrime.org/insight-latest-news/item/1073-narco-tanks-cartel-competition-elevates-to-asymmetrical-weapons?

[5] Wilkinson, Tracy and Ken Ellingwood, (2010, December 29) Mexico army's failures hamper drug war. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 22, 2011 from
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/dec/29/world/la-fg-mexico-army-20101230

[6] Laplante, Matther D. (2011, February 07). Army official suggests U.S. troops might be needed in Mexico. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved April 22, 2011 from http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/51207681-76/mexico-westphal-drug-insurgency.html.csp

For a map of the killings: click: Narco-killings
Website: WM Consulting

Follow on Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/wmmckay

Department of Justice Says Mexican Cartels Operating in More Than 1,000 U.S. Cities

2011-09-08T13:44:00.000-04:00

Two Years Ago, DoJ Said Cartels Were in 230 U.S. Cities

WASHINGTON, DC -- A newly released report by the U.S. Department of Justice shows that Mexican drug cartels are rapidly gaining ground inside the United States, despite expensive efforts by the government to crack down on trafficking. In light of the findings, a group of border patrol agents, police officers and judges is saying that it is time to legalize and regulate drugs in order to de-fund the cartels that make so much money from the illicit drug market.

"As someone who fought on the front lines of the failed 'war on drugs' for decades it is really no surprise to me that our prohibition policy isn't helping to achieve any reduction in drug trafficking," said Terry Nelson, a board member for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and a retired U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent. "We should have learned this lesson decades ago with alcohol prohibition, but let's hope that the data in this new government report helps more members of Congress and Obama administration officials to realize that their 'drug war' strategy is an abysmal failure and that it's time for a new direction."

The DoJ report, the 2011 National Drug Threat Assessment, says that Mexican criminal organizations have set up shop in more than a thousand U.S. cities, a sharp rise from the 230 cities reported in the 2009 assessment. The new report also says that, "The threat posed by the trafficking and abuse of illicit drugs will not abate in the near term and may increase."

In a separate recently leaked memo, U.S. Customs and Border Protection admits that enforcement operations against the cartels have no "discernible impact on drug flows."

"Innocent civilians and hardworking law enforcement officers are dying every day because of our failed policies," said Nelson. "The fact that we keep ramping up the 'drug war' instead of changing course is unconscionable."

The 2011 National Drug Threat Assessment can be found at http://www.justice.gov/ndic/pubs44/44849/44849p.pdf

The leaked memo from U.S. Customs and Border Protection can be found at http://info.publicintelligence.net/CBP-NoChangeDTOs.pdf

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

# # #

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 8, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

Phoenix PD Lost Explosives at Sky Harbor

2011-09-05T11:43:00.002-04:00

Phoenix PD Lost one pound of Explosives while training at Sky Harbor airport. Someone just picked up the bag with the explosives, and took it home....

Local news just showed the vehicle that took the explosives. People and officers are a block or so away, waiting for the bomb squad.

You think they would watch explosives. a little closer......

Black Government Employees Call for End to Racially Biased “War on Drugs”

2011-08-31T11:36:00.000-04:00

Group Joins Police Officers in Calling for Move Toward Legalization

WASHINGTON, D.C. –Blacks in Government (BIG), a group representing the interests of African-American government employees at the federal, state, county and municipal levels, overwhelmingly passed a resolution at its national delegates meeting last week calling for an end to the failed and racially biased “war on drugs.” The resolution, which will be delivered to President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, calls for “alternatives to incarceration that may, in part, include a model to regulate and control the distribution of some drugs.”

The resolution pointed to the words of Maryland State Police Major Neill Franklin and U.S. Marshal Matthew Fogg, both members of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group of police, judges, prosecutors and prison wardens who support legalizing and regulating drugs. BIG and LEAP have noted that African Americans constitute 53.5 percent of all persons who entered prison because of a drug conviction despite the fact that blacks are no more likely than whites to use drugs.

“I personally witnessed racially biased enforcement procedures when I ran a joint DEA task force,” said Fogg, a former U.S. marshal and a past BIG national first vice president. “When I requested equal enforcement of upscale suburban areas, I met internal resistance.”

The BIG resolution calls for “a federal investigation for solutions to eliminate the pretense and continued arrest and incarceration of African Americans at extraordinarily disparate rates for drug related charges.”

In passing the anti-drug-war resolution, BIG joins other African-American groups that have taken similar positions, such as the NAACP, the National Black Caucus of State Legislators and the National Black Police Association.

“The war on drugs has put blacks behind bars for drug offenses at more than ten times the rate of whites, even though the evidence consistently shows that blacks are no more likely to use or sell currently illicit drugs than whites are,” Fogg added. “It is time to end this virtual race war.”

The full text of the BIG resolution can be seen at http://www.bignet.org/regional/delegates/Resolution2_2011R.pdf

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, FBI/DEA agents, U.S. marshals and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. Info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 30, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell – (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

Opium Wars

2011-08-07T23:29:00.000-04:00

Carel Edwards is the former head of the European Commission's Anti-Drug Policy Coordination Unit. His insightful blog - Opium Wars - is focused on the politics of the global drug war. Here is an except from his latest post:

How long will it take for our feeble and election-hungry politicians to take their eyes off the economy and to recognise that the bells are tolling for traditional prohibition of drugs and for the UN Conventions on drugs, at least in their present form. If they persist in "fighting" rather than regulating and reducing the side effects, we should expect a gradual slide into a form of society in which organised crime plays a major part in mainstream politics and in ordinary people's lives. Try to explain that to your children.

LEAP is fortunate to have him as a member of our advisory board!

Colorado Cop and Judge Collect Signatures for 2012 Marijuana Legalization Initiative

2011-08-02T15:04:00.002-04:00

Former Law Enforcers Say Marijuana Prohibition Has Failed and Harms Public Safety

DENVER, CO -- Police officers, judges and other criminal justice professionals who once enforced Colorado's marijuana prohibition laws are now helping to get an initiative to legalize and regulate marijuana onto the state's 2012 ballot. This Wednesday a former Denver cop and a former Lafayette judge will participate in a signature gathering drive to support the new initiative by the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol.

"During my 36 years as a Denver cop I arrested more people for marijuana than I care to remember, but it didn't amount to one bit of good for our citizens," said Tony Ryan, a former officer with the Denver Police Department and a board member for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. "Keeping marijuana illegal doesn't do anything to reduce marijuana use, but it does benefit the gangs and cartels who control the currently illegal marijuana trade."

WHO: Cop and judge who support legalizing marijuana
WHAT: Signature gathering effort for 2012 marijuana initiative
WHEN: Wednesday, August 3 at 1:00 PM MT
WHERE: In front of the Denver City and County building, 1437 Bannock St., Denver

Another member of LEAP, former Lafayette judge Leonard Frieling, added, "When so many murders, rapes and robberies go unsolved, it makes absolutely no sense to keep taking up space in our courtrooms and jails with people arrested for marijuana possession. And even on the distribution end, no matter how many drug cartels and gangs we bust, there are always more criminals willing to step up and risk their lives and freedom for a chance at lucrative black market profits. Our state's voters have the power to strike a bigger blow against organized crime with this initiative to treat marijuana like alcohol than any amount of skill and dedication in the criminal justice system ever can."

The anti-prohibition law enforcers are just a few members of a huge statewide effort to collect signatures to place the marijuana legalization initiative on next year's ballot. More information about the initiative and details about how to get involved in the signature gathering drive can be found at http://www.RegulateMarijuana.org.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, prison wardens, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate marijuana after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition is not only ineffective but causes violence and crime. More info is available at http://www.leap.cc.

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NEWS ADVISORY: August 2, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc
Mason Tvert, initiative proponent - (720) 255-4340 or mason@saferchoice.org

Former Indiana Corrections Officer Testifies for Marijuana Legalization

2011-07-27T17:41:00.000-04:00

Study Committee Weighs Overhaul of Indiana's Marijuana Laws at Thursday Hearing

INDIANAPOLIS, IN -- A former officer with the Indiana Department of Corrections will testify in favor of legalizing marijuana before a special study committee of the state legislature on Thursday. The study committee will be evaluating the state's marijuana laws and considering alternatives such as legalization with taxation, decriminalization and medical marijuana.

Chad Padgett, a former corrections and youth services officer from Walton, will testify that, "Marijuana prohibition does not work and never has. As alcohol prohibition showed, making a drug illegal is the single most effective way to put it in control of violent gangs and drug cartels. By prohibiting marijuana, government gives up the right to control and regulate its production, distribution, and consumption. If marijuana was brought above-ground as a legal industry, we could regain control over it."

WHO: Former corrections officer who supports marijuana legalization, other advocates
WHAT: Hearing of Indiana Criminal Law and Sentencing Policy Study Committee
WHEN: Thursday, July 28 at 1:00 PM
WHERE: Room 431, State House, 200 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, Indiana

Padgett is speaker for the organization Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), an international group of police officers, judges, corrections officials, border agents and other criminal justice professionals who have witnessed the failures of the so-called "war on drugs" firsthand.

"We can have safe streets or marijuana prohibition, but not both," Padgett will testify. "We can prioritize violent crime and reserve horribly expensive and limited prison space for those who injure, kill, steal and cheat others, or we can continue to prioritize a war on drugs which has not succeeded by any measure."

Ceasing to arrest people for marijuana and regulating and taxing its sales could lead to more than $182 million a year in law enforcement savings and new revenue for Indiana, according to Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron.

"We have limited amounts of tax dollars, and the public has told us stop spending money," Sen. Karen Tallian, a leading champion for reevaluating the state's marijuana laws, told the Associated Press earlier this year. "So I think we need to examine now if we want to spend our tax dollars on marijuana arrests or on public education. Do we want to spend it on marijuana arrests or infrastructure?"

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, prison wardens, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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NEWS ADVISORY: July 27, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc

NAACP says end the "war on drugs"

2011-07-26T18:24:00.001-04:00

The NAACP has just joined the list of prominent organizations and individuals calling for a major paradigm shift away from the failed and punitive "war on drugs" and toward a health-based approach with a resolution passed today at the organization's national conference in Los Angeles.

Neill Franklin, an African American former narcotics cop from Baltimore and executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, presented on the need to end the "war on drugs" at the NAACP conference yesterday, and had this to say about the passage of the resolution:

"The NAACP has been on the forefront of the struggle for civil rights and social justice in this country for over a century. The fact that these leaders are joining others like the National Black Police Association in calling for an end to the 'war on drugs' should be a wake up call to those politicians - including and especially President Obama - who still have not come to terms with the devastation that the 'drug war' causes in our society and especially in communities of color."

Here's video of Neill presenting at an NAACP criminal justice summit in March:

NAACP's official press release follows.

NAACP PASSES HISTORIC RESOLUTION CALLING FOR END TO WAR ON DRUGS

President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous: Major step towards equity, justice, effective law enforcement

Contact: Ben Wrobel 
(917) 846-0658
bwrobel@naacpnet.org

(Los Angeles, CA) – Today the NAACP passed a historic resolution calling for an end to the war on drugs. The resolution was voted on by a majority of delegates at the 102nd NAACP Annual Convention in Los Angeles, CA. The overall message of the resolution is captured by its title: A Call to End the War on Drugs, Allocate Funding to Investigate Substance Abuse Treatment, Education, and Opportunities in Communities of Color for A Better Tomorrow.   

“Today the NAACP has taken a major step towards equity, justice and effective law enforcement,” stated Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP. “These flawed drug policies that have been mostly enforced in African American communities must be stopped and replaced with evidenced-based practices that address the root causes of drug use and abuse in America.”

The resolution outlines the facts about the failed drug war, highlighting that the U.S. spends over $40 billion annually on the war on drugs, locking up low-level drug offenders – mostly from communities of color. African Americans are in fact 13 times more likely to go to jail for the same drug-related offense than their white counterparts. 

“Studies show that all racial groups abuse drugs at similar rates, but the numbers also show that African Americans, Hispanics and other people of color are stopped, searched, arrested, charged, convicted, and sent to prison for drug-related charges at a much higher rate,” stated Alice Huffman, President of the California State Conference of the NAACP. “This dual system of drug law enforcement that serves to keep African-Americans and other minorities under lock and key and in prison must be exposed and eradiated.

”Instead of sending drug offenders to prison, the resolution calls for the creation and expansion of rehabilitation and treatment programs, methadone clinics, and other treatment protocols that have been proven effective.  

“We know that the war on drugs has been a complete failure because in the forty years that we’ve been waging this war, drug use and abuse has not gone down,” stated Robert Rooks, Director of the NAACP Criminal Justice Program. “The only thing we’ve accomplished is becoming the world’s largest incarcerator, sending people with mental health and addiction issues to prison, and creating a system of racial disparities that rivals Jim Crow policies of the 1960’s.” 

Once ratified by the board of directors in October, the resolution will encourage the more than 1200 active NAACP units across the country to organize campaigns to advocate for the end of the war on drugs.   

Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private

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New Jersey Narc Supports New Bipartisan Marijuana Decriminalization Bill

2011-06-30T15:07:00.001-04:00

Assembly Bill Would Let Cops Focus on Violent Crimes

TRENTON, NJ -- A bill to decriminalize possession of less than an ounce of marijuana was introduced in the New Jersey General Assembly with bipartisan support on Wednesday. The bill, which is being endorsed by a group of police and judges who once waged the "war on drugs," comes less than a month after Connecticut legislators passed similar legislation decriminalizing marijuana.

Jack Cole, a 26-year veteran of the New Jersey State Police and board chairman for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, said, "As a former undercover narcotics detective in New Jersey, I now know that all the time and resources I spent arresting people for marijuana offenses over the course of my career didn't accomplish anything good. In addition to being a waste of money that should have been spent solving and preventing violent crimes, these arrests in many cases ruined otherwise productive people's lives. The marijuana decriminalization bill is a great first step to undoing some of the damage wrought by the failed 'war on drugs.'"

The New Jersey bill, A4252, would remove criminal penalties for adults who posses less than 15 grams of marijuana. It is sponsored by Assemblymen Reed Gusciora (D) and Michael Patrick Carroll (R) with 15 additional co-sponsors.

Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron estimates that New Jersey currently spends more than $183 million every year enforcing its marijuana prohibition laws. In 2009, 22,439 people in New Jersey were arrested for possessing less than 50 grams of marijuana.

Rachel Cotrino, an attorney and Board member at NORML NJ, said, “In addition to imprisonment, offenders of the current law face loss of driving privileges from six months to two years. This unreasonably punitive measure causes many, otherwise law abiding citizens, to lose their jobs because they cannot get to work. Offenders also face eviction from their leased premises or loss of public housing. It is time to decriminalize the individual user and remove the current penalties that stifle our community and economy.”

Fourteen states in the U.S. have decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana by adults.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP) represents police, prosecutors, judges, federal agents and others who want to legalize and regulate drugs after fighting on the front lines of the "war on drugs" and learning firsthand that prohibition only serves to worsen addiction and violence. More info at http://www.CopsSayLegalizeDrugs.com.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 29, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media@leap.cc