cannabisnews.com: Prospects for Drug Reform in Obama's Washington





Prospects for Drug Reform in Obama's Washington
Posted by CN Staff on November 18, 2008 at 11:00:14 PT
By Phillip S. Smith, Drug War Chronicle
Source: AlterNet
USA -- The political landscape in Washington, DC, is undergoing a dramatic shift as the Democratic tide rolls in, and, after eight years of drug war status quo under the Republicans, drug reformers are now hoping the change in administrations will lead to positive changes in federal drug policies. As with every other aspect of federal policy, groups interested in criminal justice and drug policy reform are coming out of the woodwork with their own recommendations for Obama and the Democratic Congress. This week, we will look at some of those proposals and attempt to assess the prospects for real change.
One of the most comprehensive criminal justice reform proposals, of which drug-related reform is only a small part, comes from a nonpartisan consortium of organizations and individuals coordinated by the Constitution Project, including groups such as the Sentencing Project, Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), and the Open Society Policy Center. The set of proposals, Smart on Crime: Recommendations for the Next Administration and Congress, includes the following recommendations:* Mandatory Minimum Reforms:Eliminate the crack cocaine sentencing disparityImprove and expand the federal "safety valve"Create a sunset provision on existing and new mandatory minimumsClarify that the 924(c) recidivism provisions apply only to true repeat offenders * Alternatives to Incarceration:Expand alternatives to incarceration in federal sentencing guidelinesEnact a deferred adjudication statuteSupport alternatives to incarceration through expansion of federal drug and other problem solving courts. * Incentives and Sentencing Management:Expand the Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP)Clarify good time creditExpand the amount of good time conduct credit prisoners may receive and ways they can receive itEnhance sentence reductions for extraordinary and compelling circumstancesExpand elderly prisoners release programRevive executive clemency * Promoting Fairness and Addressing Disparity:Support racial impact statements as a means of reducing unwarranted sentencing disparitiesSupport analysis of racial and ethnic disparity in the federal justice systemAdd a federal public defender as an ex officio member of the United States Sentencing CommissionThe American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has also issued a set of recommendations, Actions for Restoring America: How to Begin Repairing the Damage to Freedom in America Under Bush, which include some drug reform provisions:* Crack/Powder Sentencing: The attorney general should revise the US Attorneys' Manual to require that crack offenses are charged as "cocaine" and not "cocaine base," effectively resulting in elimination of the disparity. * Medical Marijuana: Halt the use of Justice Department funds to arrest and prosecute medical marijuana users in states with current laws permitting access to physician-supervised medical marijuana. In particular, the US Attorney general should update the US Attorneys' Manual to de-prioritize the arrest and prosecution of medical marijuana users in medical marijuana states. There is currently no regulation in place to be amended or repealed; there is, of course, a federal statutory scheme that prohibits marijuana use unless pursuant to approved research. But US Attorneys have broad charging discretion in determining what types of cases to prosecute, and with drugs, what threshold amounts that will trigger prosecution. The US Attorneys' Manual contains guidelines promulgated by the Attorney general and followed by US Attorneys and their assistants. * The DEA Administrator should grant Lyle Craker's application for a Schedule I license to produce research-grade medical marijuana for use in DEA- and FDA-approved studies. This would only require DEA to approve the current recommendation of its own Administrative Law Judge. * All relevant agencies should stop denying the existence of medical uses of marijuana -- as nearly one-third of states have done by enacting laws -- and therefore, under existing legal criteria, reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule V. * Issue an executive order stating that, "No veteran shall be denied care solely on the basis of using marijuana for medical purposes in compliance with state law." Although there are many known instances of veterans being denied care as a result of medical marijuana use, we have not been able to identify a specific regulation that mandates or authorizes this policy. * Federal Racial Profiling: Issue an executive order prohibiting racial profiling by federal officers and banning law enforcement practices that disproportionately target people for investigation and enforcement based on race, ethnicity, national origin, sex or religion. Include in the order a mandate that federal agencies collect data on hit rates for stops and searches, and that such data be disaggregated by group. DOJ should issue guidelines regarding the use of race by federal law enforcement agencies. The new guidelines should clarify that federal law enforcement officials may not use race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, or sex to any degree, except that officers may rely on these factors in a specific suspect description as they would any noticeable characteristic of a subject.Looking to the south, the Latin America Working Group, a coalition of nonprofit groups, has issued a petition urging Obama "to build a just policy towards Latin America and the Caribbean that unites us with our neighbors." Included in its proposals are:* Actively work for peace in Colombia. In a war that threatens to go on indefinitely, the immense suffering of the civilian population demands that the United States takes risks to achieve peace. If the United States is to actively support peace, it must stop endlessly bankrolling war and help bring an end to the hemisphere's worst humanitarian crisis. * Get serious -- and smart -- about drug policy. Our current drug policy isn't only expensive and ineffective, it's also inhumane. Instead of continuing a failed approach that brings soldiers into Latin America's streets and fields, we must invest in alternative development projects in the Andes and drug treatment and prevention here at home.The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) has some suggestions as well. As NORML's Paul Armentano wrote last week on Alternet:* President Obama must uphold his campaign promise to cease the federal arrest and prosecution of (state) law-abiding medical cannabis patients and dispensaries by appointing leaders at the US Drug Enforcement Administration, the US Department of Justice, and the US Attorney General's office who will respect the will of the voters in the thirteen states that have legalized the physician-supervised use of medicinal marijuana. * President Obama should use the power of the bully pulpit to reframe the drug policy debate from one of criminal policy to one of public health. Obama can stimulate this change by appointing directors to the Office of National Drug Control Policy who possess professional backgrounds in public health, addiction, and treatment rather than in law enforcement. * President Obama should follow up on statements he made earlier in his career in favor of marijuana decriminalization by establishing a bi-partisan presidential commission to review the budgetary, social, and health costs associated with federal marijuana prohibition, and to make progressive recommendations for future policy changes.Clearly, the drug reform community and its allies see the change of administrations as an opportunity to advance the cause. The question is how receptive will the Obama administration and the Democratic Congress be to drug reform efforts."We've examined Obama's record and his statements, and 90% of it is good," said David Borden, executive director of StoptheDrugWar.org (publisher of this newsletter). "But we don't know what he intends to do in office. There is an enormous amount of good he can do," Borden said, mentioning opening up funding for needle exchange programs, US Attorney appointments, and stopping DEA raids on medical marijuana providers. "Will Obama make some attempt to actualize the progressive drug reform positions he has taken? He has a lot on his plate, and drug policy reform has tended to be the first thing dropped by left-leaning politicians."There will be some early indicators of administration interest in drug reform, said Bill Piper, national affairs director for the Drug Policy Alliance. "We will be watching to see if he issues an executive order stopping the DEA raids; that would be a huge sign," he said. "He could also repeal the needle exchange funding ban. The congressional ban would still be in place, but that would show some great leadership. If they started taking on drug policy issues in the first 100 days, that would be a great sign, but I don't think people should expect that. There are many other issues, and it's going to take awhile just to clean up Bush's mess. I'm optimistic, but I don't expect big changes to come quickly.""We are hoping to see a new direction," said Nkechi Taifa, senior policy analyst for civil and criminal justice reform for the Open Society Policy Center. "We couldn't have a better scenario with the incoming vice president having sponsored the one-to-one crack/powder bill in the Senate and the incoming president being a sponsor. And we have a situation in Congress, and particularly in the Senate, where there is bipartisan interest in sentencing reform. Both sides of the aisle want some sort of movement on this, it's been studied and vetted, and now Congress needs to do the right thing. It's time to get smart on crime, and this is not a radical agenda. As far as I'm concerned, fixing the crack/powder disparity is the compromise, and elimination of mandatory minimums is what really needs to be on the agenda.""With the Smart on Crime proposals, we tried to focus on what was feasible," said the Sentencing Project's Kara Gotsch. "These are items where we think we are likely to get support, where the community has demonstrated support, or where there has been legislation proposed to deal with these issues. It prioritizes the issues we think are most likely to move, and crack sentencing reform is on that list."The marijuana reform groups are more narrowly focused, of course, but they, too are looking for positive change. "Obama has made it very clear on the campaign trail that he disagrees with the use of federal agencies to undo medical marijuana laws in states that have passed them," said Dan Bernath, a spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project. "He has vowed to stop that. Obama seems to be someone who values facts and reasoned decision-making. If he applies that to marijuana policy, that could be a good thing".While the list of possible drug reforms is long and varied, it is also notable for what has not been included. Only NORML even mentions marijuana decriminalization, and no one is talking about ending the drug war -- only making it a bit kinder and gentler. The L-word remains unutterable."While we're optimistic about reducing the harms of prohibition, legalization is not something that I think they will take on," said Piper. "But any movement toward drug reform is good. If we can begin to shift to a more health-oriented approach, that will change how Americans think about this issue and create a space where regulation can be discussed in a a rational manner. Now, because of our moralist criminal justice framework, it is difficult to have a sane discussion about legalization.""We didn't talk that much about legalization," said Gotsch in reference to the Smart on Crime proposals. "A lot of organizations involved have more ambitious goals, but that wouldn't get the kind of reaction we want. There just isn't the political support yet for legalization, even of marijuana.""We should be talking about legalization, yes," said StoptheDrugWar.org's Borden, "but should we be talking about it in communications to the new president who has shown no sign of supporting it? Not necessarily. We must push the envelope, but if we push it too far in lobbying communications to national leadership, we risk losing their attention.""I do think it would be a mistake to blend that kind of caution into ideological caution over what we are willing to talk about at all," Borden continued. "I think we should be talking about legalization, it's just a question of when and where," he argued.Talking legalization is premature, said Eric Sterling, formerly counsel to the US House Judiciary Committee and now president of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation. "What we are not yet doing as a movement is building upon our successes," he said. "We just saw medical marijuana win overwhelmingly in Michigan and decriminalization in Massachusetts, but the nation's commentariat has not picked up on it, and our movement has not been sufficiently aggressive in getting those votes translated into the political discourse. We haven't broken out of the making fun phase of marijuana policy yet."Sterling pointed in particular to the medical marijuana issue. "Everyone recognizes that the state-federal conflict on medical marijuana is a major impediment, and we have 26 senators representing medical marijuana states, but not a single senator has introduced a medical marijuana bill," he said. "It's an obvious area for legislative activity in the Senate, but it hasn't happened. This suggests that we as a movement still lack the political muscle even on something as uncontroversial as the medical use of marijuana."Even the apparent obvious targets for reform, such as the crack/powder sentencing disparity, are going to require a lot of work, said Sterling. "It will continue to be a struggle," he said. "The best crack bill was Biden's, cosponsored by Obama and Clinton, but I'm not sure who is going to pick that up this year. The sentencing reform community continues to struggle to frame the issue as effective law enforcement, and I think it's only on those terms that we can win."Reformers also face the reality that the politics of crime continues to be a sensitive issue for the majority Democrats, Sterling said. "Crime is an issue members are frightened about, and it's an area where Republicans traditionally feel they have the upper ground. The Democrats are going to be reluctant to open themselves up to attack in areas where there is not a strong political upside. On many issues, Congress acts when there is a clear universe of allies who will benefit and who are pushing for action. I don't know if we are there yet."Change is the mantra of the Obama administration, and change is what the drug reform community is hoping for. Now, the community must act to ensure that change happens, and that the right changes happen.Source: AlterNet (US)Author: Phillip S. Smith, Drug War ChroniclePublished: November 18, 2008Copyright: 2008 Independent Media InstituteContact: letters alternet.org Website: http://www.alternet.org/URL: http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/107593/Stop The Drug Warhttp://stopthedrugwar.org/CannabisNews Justice Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/justice.shtml
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Comment #11 posted by Hope on November 20, 2008 at 06:58:54 PT
I hope that's not prohibitionist "Lipstick" 
on Obama's collar.These possible appointments have made me think of a very old song I used to hear when I was a child.http://www.metrolyrics.com/lipstick-on-your-collar-lyrics-connie-francis.htmlOf course, it's not the Mary Jane of the lyrics that I'm worried he might be "smooching" with, it's the prohibitionists.I'm still hoping in Obama, though. I hope I don't regret it and I hope with all my heart that these possible appointments are not prohibitionist/drug warrior "Lipstick" on his collar.
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Comment #10 posted by afterburner on November 19, 2008 at 20:00:35 PT
Schedule V - Sounds Good...
except most current Schedule V items are low-dose narcotics.{
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has also issued a set of recommendations, Actions for Restoring America: How to Begin Repairing the Damage to Freedom in America Under Bush, which include some drug reform provisions:* Crack/Powder Sentencing: The attorney general should revise the US Attorneys' Manual to require that crack offenses are charged as "cocaine" and not "cocaine base," effectively resulting in elimination of the disparity. * Medical Marijuana: Halt the use of Justice Department funds to arrest and prosecute medical marijuana users in states with current laws permitting access to physician-supervised medical marijuana. In particular, the US Attorney general should update the US Attorneys' Manual to de-prioritize the arrest and prosecution of medical marijuana users in medical marijuana states. There is currently no regulation in place to be amended or repealed; there is, of course, a federal statutory scheme that prohibits marijuana use unless pursuant to approved research. But US Attorneys have broad charging discretion in determining what types of cases to prosecute, and with drugs, what threshold amounts that will trigger prosecution. The US Attorneys' Manual contains guidelines promulgated by the Attorney general and followed by US Attorneys and their assistants. * The DEA Administrator should grant Lyle Craker's application for a Schedule I license to produce research-grade medical marijuana for use in DEA- and FDA-approved studies. This would only require DEA to approve the current recommendation of its own Administrative Law Judge.* All relevant agencies should stop denying the existence of medical uses of marijuana -- as nearly one-third of states have done by enacting laws -- and therefore, under existing legal criteria, reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule V. 
}Description of Federal Controlled Substances.
Schedules I - V.
U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration 
http://www.erowid.org/psychoactives/law/law_fed_sched.shtml
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #9 posted by observer on November 19, 2008 at 17:41:27 PT
petition government for redress of grievances
We can't wait and see what this administration decides to do. Truth is, without serious pressure, it will most likely be more of the same, if for no other reason than because it's "safer."Good point. Do you think that prohibitionist organizations are not pressuring the incoming administration to not go soft on drugs? Unless we put pressure on the new administration, they will be (and appear to be) taking the "safe" option ... of getting "tough on drugs". I don't think we're bad people for pointing out someone's record on drug policy, rather, I think we need to be aware of these things and act accordingly. And correct me if I'm wrong here, but petitioning government for redress of grievances isn't the same as suggesting something be killed, is it? We still have (even post 9/11) have the right to petition government for redress of grievances? I mean, It is still legal to call or write elected officials and advise them on policy, right? - Even if we disagree with the official. Anyway, the best people to put pressure on the administration are the friends of the administration - people they will listen to. You expect your political opposition to not have your best interests at heart, but your friends, you may listen to. 
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Comment #8 posted by Toiddles on November 19, 2008 at 16:22:43 PT:
Not wait and see, we must get ready to act
We can't wait and see what this administration decides to do. Truth is, without serious pressure, it will most likely be more of the same, if for no other reason than because it's "safer." I 100% agree with this article, so we must organizer and act.Here is a campaign I've been involved in. http://www.thepoint.com/campaigns/marijuana-equalization-legalization-campaign
Once we get enough people on board we will be very effective. The majority agree on this issue, we just need to organize and show our numbers.
Marijuana Legalization
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on November 19, 2008 at 13:51:26 PT
 observer
It took me years to figure out they were Libertarian and then I never posted another article. I don't post Democrat articles from like the Daily Kos. I post articles by people from MPP and Norml that are put on Alternet and that is the extent of it. Libertarians don't like Obama and they jump at anything to act superior. I will let Obama become President and then after the first 100 days of the new administration I will know more what he will or won't do. I resent people that seem to like the words kill it before it grows. It's an insult to those who don't think like they do.
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Comment #6 posted by observer on November 19, 2008 at 13:32:46 PT
reason.com ban?
Interesting ... I wasn't aware that reason.com was banned here, as you have posted from it (and from author Jacob Sullum) many times before the past, like here: http://cannabisnews.com/news/17/thread17079.shtml etc.So I thought I was on safe ground. Anyhow, I'll not mention that magazine any more here, if it is banned. More to the point, is the information about Eric Holder true, that Obama's AG choice Holder has been gung-ho anti-cannabis drug warrior? That seems relevant to the discussion. And that will probably be hard to hide or cover up, IMO. A bit like Biden's past record. As for myself, I like to read all different takes on cannabis, even if it is from people who's politics I don't like. I read socialist writers, objectivist writers, marxist writers, neocon writers, and so on. I even read old dead Greek writers (but only sparingly). I don't care where information comes from, so much as whether it is true of false. The truth seems to always come out, anyway. Hopefully people don't feel threatened by the truth, although I can understand why many are, when they are. Best wishes in all your endeavors,Observer
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on November 19, 2008 at 12:57:18 PT
observer
I am not interested in information from a Libertarian web site. Please post it on their web site not CNews. Thanks.
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Comment #4 posted by observer on November 19, 2008 at 12:50:13 PT
indistinguishable from other zealot drug warriors
Eric Holder Nips Marijuana in the Bud and Invents a Time Cover StoryBarack Obama's selection of Eric Holder as his attorney general is a very discouraging sign for anyone who hoped the new administration would de-escalate the war on drugs. As Dave Weigel noted earlier today, Holder pushed for stiffer marijuana penalties when he was the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, and the details are strikingly at odds not only with Obama's signals regarding marijuana but with his opposition to long sentences for nonviolent drug offenders. According to a December 1996 report in The Washington Times excerpted at TalkLeft, Holder wanted "minimum sentences of 18 months for first-time convicted drug dealers, 36 months for the second time and 72 months for every conviction thereafter." He also wanted to "make the penalty for distribution and possession with intent to distribute marijuana a felony, punishable with up to a five-year sentence." The D.C. Council made the latter Holder-endorsed change in 2000. Holder thought New York City's irrational, unjust crackdown on pot smokers was a fine idea and worth emulating, saying "we have too long taken the view that what we would term to be minor crimes are not important." His rhetoric on the seriousness of marijuana offenses was indistinguishable from that of the most zealous Republican drug warrior...
http://reason.com/blog/show/130163.html
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on November 18, 2008 at 14:36:05 PT
About The Article
There's a lot of detail in this article but my hope is that the raids on medical marijuana patients will stop when Obama is finally the new President. I know I couldn't hope for that much if McCain had won. I'll be glad when the transition is over and Bush is out and we can start fixing our country and make progress in important areas besides marijuana issues.
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Comment #2 posted by observer on November 18, 2008 at 12:53:03 PT
Remember Jaclyn Elders. 
But we don't know what he intends to do in office.First things first. (1) Clear obstacles to re-election.  (1-a) Don't appear soft on drugs. Remember Jaclyn Elders. (See: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Crime/BG989.cfm for classic prohibitionist tactics)(2) If re-elected, lay groundwork for future electioneering.   (2-a) Don't appear soft on drugs. Refer to 1-a.So I doubt if Obama will do anything that will look like he's "soft on drugs". He'll not mention the subject except to mention new things big government will do to "fight drugs" and save the "children". The Obama regime will probably nod to "drug courts" I predict, to attempt to placate both sides: absolute priority and deference to the police state, of course, so that arrests and jailings for pot can continue uninterrupted. But also with an intrusive touch-feely fake "counseling" and "therapy" half to it; fake because the jail and prison for one's belief isn't and never was any kind of "therapy" in a sane or rational or free society. So we see the rhetorical "counseling" half of the "drugs courts" idea, is simply a smokescreen for the jail-the-pothead half. To deflect criticisms that "X percent of black males are in the prison system", Obama will be tempted to simply put more non-back males in prison, for "equality"; to equalize things a bit. That would count as "change". I hope I'm wrong. Let's see what actually happens, if history repeats itself. 
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Comment #1 posted by museman on November 18, 2008 at 12:17:47 PT
last line says it all
"Now, the community must act to ensure that change happens, and that the right changes happen."LIBERATE 90-DAY WONDER FOR EVERYONE
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