NEWSBRIEFS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
November-December 1997
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DRUG POLICY INITIATIVES
Drug Policy Reform Measure in Washington Defeated
Majority of DC Council Members Sign Petition for Medical Marijuana Measure in Nation's Capital
Oregon Marijuana Recriminalization Measure Qualifies for 1998 Ballot
Swiss Voters Overwhelmingly Support Heroin Maintenance Program
INTERNATIONAL
United Nations Offers 10-Year Opiate Eradication Plan
10 Latin American Cities Sign Declaration Criticizing Global Anti-Drug Efforts
United Kingdom Appoints First "Drug Tsar," While Marijuana Decriminalization Debate Grows
Colombia Approves Bill Limiting Extradition of Drug Traffickers
Russian Organized Criminals Tied to Colombian Drug Traffickers, Says FBI Director
Drug Dealers Donate to the Church, Says Mexican Priest
"Narco-Ballads" Gain Popularity With Mexicans
Canadian Ambassador to Mexico Quits After Drug Corruption Remarks
Australians Spend $7 Billion Yearly on Illegal Drugs
U.S.-MEXICO BORDER
Border Troops Measure Fails to Pass U.S. Senate
Border Agents Protest Newspaper Ads for Information About Corrupted Officers
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Doctor Receives Federal Approval for Research of Medical Marijuana's Effects on AIDS Patients
Cannabinoids in Marijuana Can Relieve Severe Pain, Researchers Report
San Mateo County, CA Seeks Means to Distribute Medical Marijuana
Medical Marijuana Activist Todd McCormick Indicted
Canadian Woman to Mount Medical Marijuana Court Challenge
Dennis Peron's Trial Moved to San Francisco
DRUG POLICY STUDIES
Drawing Analogies from Dutch Marijuana Policy to U.S. Policy in "Legalization" Debate Difficult, Say Experts
PREGNANCY
Group Offers Crack Addicts Money for Contraceptive Procedures
Wisconsin Assembly Passes Law to Detain Pregnant Alcoholics and Addicts, Mandating Treatment
IN THE COURTS
Evidence in DEA Agent's Murder Case May Be Tainted
Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Crack Sentencing Disparity Case
Jury Deadlock in Trial of Lawyers Alleged to Serve Cali Cartel
Hemp Seed Prosecution in Hawaii Ends in Mistrial
DRUG TESTING
Fourth Largest School District in U.S. to Implement Random Drug Testing
Great Britain Scientists Developing "Lollipop" Drug Test
TREATMENT
Treatment Cuts Drug Use in Half, Reduces Crime and Homelessness, Says SAMHSA Study
La Bodega de la Familia Provides Help for Families of Drug Addicts in New York
TOBACCO
Federal Regulations Against Youth Tobacco Purchases Unlikely to Work, Says New Study
Cigarette Smokers May Be Trying to Relieve Mental Illness
Cigarette Makers Increase Marketing in Nightclubs and Bars
Cuban Cigar Smuggling Into the U.S. Is Increasing
MARIJUANA
Marijuana Growing in California Increasingly Under Mexican Direction, Police Say
DEA Subpoenas Publisher for List of Buyers of Marijuana Cultivation Book
NETWORK NEWS
Drug Policy Billboard Posted by Chicago Lawyer Stirs Debate
LAW ENFORCEMENT
California Governor Vetoes Bill Requiring Search Warrant Before Use of Electronic Tracking Devices
FBI Chemists Find Cocaine on Majority of Paper Currency in U.S.
PRISONS
California Governor Wilson Vetoes Inmate Interviews
Maryland Prisons Use High-Tech Drug Detection System on Visitors and Workers to Prevent Smuggling
ALCOHOL
Alcoholics "Drying Out" May Risk Brain Damage, Say British Researchers
HARM REDUCTION
Denver Mayor Proposes Allowing Three Needle Exchange Programs, Amending Paraphernalia Law
"Cotton Fever" in Intravenous Drug Users
BOOK REVIEW by Eric E. Sterling
Lynn Zimmer and John Morgan,
Marijuana Myths, Marijuana Facts
RESOURCES