NEWSBRIEFS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
August 1997
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THE HERNANDEZ KILLING
Neighbors of Texan Killed by Military Anti-Drug Patrol Petition for Demilitarization of Border; Pentagon Pulls Anti-Drug Troops From Border; State Grand Jury Decides Not to Indict Marine
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
NIH Medical Marijuana Panel Report Released, Supports Efficacy, Recommends Further Study
Drug Policy Reform Initiative on Washington State Ballot in November
Washington High Court Rejects Medical Marijuana Claim
Petitioners in Arizona Force Referendum on Laws Dismantling Proposition 200
ACT-UP Gathering Signatures for Medical Marijuana Initiative in Washington, D.C., Billionaire Steve Forbes Announces Counter Effort
Proposition 215 Can Be Used Retroactively and to Counter Marijuana Transportation Charges, Says State Appeals Court
California Medical Marijuana Activist Charged With Marijuana Cultivation
Medical Marijuana Patient, Advocate, Defendant Killed in Car Accident, Marijuana Cultivation Charges Dropped
Fort Bragg, California Advocates Suggest Let Police Dispense Medical Marijuana
Medical Use of Marijuana Ingredients Backed by British Medical Association
SENTENCING
Reduction in Crack-Powder Cocaine Sentencing Disparity Proposed by Clinton Administration
DRUG USE TRENDS
Youth Drug Use Turns Down, Says Annual Household Survey
"Hip" ONDCP's
Pulse Check
Defines Drug Slang
HARM REDUCTION
New Jersey Needle Exchange Founders Convicted of Syringe Distribution
Swiss Heroin Maintenance Program Declared a Success
Heroin Trial in Australia Abandoned
New Physician Group Seeks Alternatives to National Drug Policy
Needle Exchange Law Takes Effect in New Mexico
MARIJUANA
Oregon Recriminalizes Possession of Small Amounts of Marijuana
Decriminalizing Marijuana Proposed in Australia
Canadian Constitutional Challenge to Marijuana Laws Rejected by Trial Court, Appeal Planned
Helicopters to Continue Low-Flying Marijuana Eradication Efforts in Northern California
ON CAPITOL HILL
Weld Resigns Massachusetts Governorship, Brings Confirmation Fight to Washington
Congress Rejects Suspension of International Anti-Drug Certification Process
ALCOHOL
Wine Industry Proposal to Claim "Health Effects" On Labels Is Opposed by HHS and AMA
Test-Marketing of "Alcopops" Prompts Accusations of Targeting Juveniles
TOBACCO
Parents Who Smoke Contribute to More Than 6,200 Childhood Deaths a Year, Says New Study
Ammonia Added to Cigarettes Can Significantly Boost Availability of Nicotine, Says New Study
Scientists Caution Clinton Administration About Nicotine Regulation
Congress Votes to Continue Tobacco Subsidy, Rejects Crackdown on Juvenile Cigarette Purchases
HEMP
Kentucky Hemp Law Ruled Unconstitutional
New Hemp Shoe Endorsed by Actor Harrelson
INTERNATIONAL
Illegal Drug Trafficking Represents 8% of World Trade, Says U.N. Report
Military Rife With Drug Corruption, Reports Mexican Newspaper Procesco
Cambodian Coup Leader Financed by Drug Traffickers, According to Western Anti-Drug Officials
Multinational Anti-Drug Center May Be Built in Panama
Thai Lawmaker's Anti-Drug Protest Leads to His Investigation
TREATMENT
California Methadone Clinics Target of Fraud Probe; Clinic Reveals Patient Records to DEA, Patients Arrested
DRUG SMUGGLING
Airline Employees Charged With Drug Smuggling
Border Patrol Agent Charged with Possession of Marijuana with Intent to Distribute
IN THE COURTS
Ohio Judge Throws Out Drug Evidence, Says Trooper May Have Used "Profiling"
Actor Carroll O'Connor Successfully Defends Slander Suit Brought by Cocaine Distributor of His Late Son