The Crime Report (https://thecrimereport.org/category/drugs/)
New York City authorities said they would issue summonses rather than conduct arrests of people caught smoking marijuana in public. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. says the policy may solidify racial inequities.
“We looked at the pros, we looked at the cons, and when we were done, we realized that the pros outweighed the cons,” said state health commissioner Howard Zucker, describing a recommendation to Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Police will continue to arrest anyone caught smoking who has a “recent documented history of violence,” anyone on probation and anyone whose “smoking poses an immediate public safety risk. Everyone else will get a summons carrying a $100 fine.
Robert Patterson, acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, announced he is retiring, saying that running the agency as a temporary fill-in had become “increasingly challenging.” He replaced another acting administrator, Chuck Rosenberg.
In a 5-3 ruling, the Supreme Court said that a federal drug defendant was not entitled to a detailed explanation from a judge of why a lower sentence wasn’t imposed in his case.
Supported by both President Trump and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), top banking trade groups are pressing policymakers to make it easier for their members to serve cannabis businesses that are now legal in states like California and Colorado.
Though customs agents frequently intercept the drug, plenty gets through. Experts are skeptical that the surge can be contained, considering the increasing volume of mail and the incredible potency of synthetic opioids
Most Americans seem willing to accept that opioid addiction should be treated as a disease rather than a criminal offense. But the wide variety and quality of treatment and rehab facilities in the US means we should now double down on efforts to investigate which ones really perform, says an addiction expert.
Department of Justice prosecutors have yet to bring charges against pot businesses that are abiding by state law. Meanwhile, President Trump has supported a bill that would allow states to pass their own marijuana laws without federal interference.
Fentanyl is responsible for nearly half of U.S. opioid overdose deaths. Prosecutors are treating overdose deaths as homicides, seizing enormous quantities of the drug and charging foreign nationals with wide-ranging conspiracies.